I awoke early on Tuesday. In the early morning light, I freshened up and packed my things for the drive to the Hudson River Valley. My hosts Maggie and Jake came downstairs as they prepared to take off for their respective days at school, one as a student, the other as teacher.
We chatted in the kitchen while Maggie munched on a bagel. I was so grateful to have two days with my dear friend and his daughter. We said our goodbyes in the driveway and I pointed the car southward towards Massachusetts and a possible adventure for the day.
My plan was to head a couple of hours south to Concord, Massachusetts to take in the quaint little town that is legendary in American letters. Ralph Waldo Emerson, Henry David Thoreau, and the Louisa May Alcott family all called the village home. I also planned a visit to nearby Walden Pond where Thoreau did so much of his work and writings on the natural world and man’s place within it.
The New England sunshine and crisp northern air made for a beautiful commute as I rolled southward. Traffic was largely free-flowing, and I made great time. I exited the highway just north of Concord and was dumped out onto a county highway. Once off of the interstate, the traffic patterns changed intensely. I had expected that there would be some heavy traffic to contend with, but as I looked at my directions, I could see that I still had a 47 minute drive to go. More shockingly, in that timeframe, I would cover just 6.7 miles.
Quite quickly I began to wonder how badly I wished to see Walden. At first, I figured that the timing would still allow me to make it to Kingston for dinner. I was off for the evening with now show and had a bit of wiggle room. Then, it occurred to me that we were ensconced in the last week of school throughout New England. It seemed extremely likely that Walden and Concord could be littered with myriad school field trips. Considering the traffic and the possible mess upon my arrival, I decided to save Concord for another visit.
I was still intent upon taking full advantage of my location even if it meant missing Walden this time around. I texted my friend Nick Martino from the Stand Up with Pete Dominick crew and made arrangements to hook up for lunch and a couple of cocktails. I met Nick at his house and we chatted for quite a while catching up on our various musical endeavors.
Eventually, we made our way to a terrific flatbread joint in Hudson, MA where I was treated to a delicious Boulevardier and a spinach, mushroom and ham flatbread. Nick and I discussed politics, music, culture and booze. Our bartender Nicole was kind enough to share a new Key Lime Aperitivo with us. The combination of sweet citrus and bitterness made us immediately begin waxing about what cocktail we might craft with this interesting liqueur.
After some discussion, I asked Nicole to make me a Boulevardier with the aperitivo in lieu of the Campari normally used. The result was delicious. It was a sort of tropical take on an Old Fashioned or Boulevardier. The biggest treat of all was the adventure of exploration with a bartender who is willing to have a great time with her guests. Cheers to Nicole.
Nick and I said our goodbyes and I made my way southward further and eventually back to the west into the Hudson River Valley. I landed at the home of my host, Therese in the late afternoon. I got caught up with Therese and her youngest daughter, Parker as I brought my luggage into the house.
Shortly after my arrival, Cindy from the Stand Up Crew and her family arrived to join us for drinks and a bite. Cindy and I had been part of a crew that shared the same house in Las Vegas during our PodJam weekend. We hit it off and she piled her whole family in the car to drive from Chicago to Kingston just to spend a few days with Therese and her family and to see my show. I was beyond touched and it was a thrill to meet Cindy’s husband and adult sons.
Cindy and Howard’s sons are both severely autistic. Her son Ronald is non-verbal but can still communicate with his folks. Their other son, Nathan is quite communicative and affectionate, but both of them need to live with Cindy and Howard. The boys and Howard headed back off to their Air BnB after a while and Cindy stayed to yuck it up with me and Therese. We chatted about other folks from the stand Up Crew. I caught them up with how the shows had been going and Therese gave us a tour of their beautiful home.
Around 8:30, we piled in the car to get some ice cream while driving Cindy back to her family. The Jolly Cow is a delightful old-school roadside creamery that has been in the same spot since the 50’s. Most of metro Kingston had the same idea we did and we waited and laughed in line on a gorgeous summer evening in upstate New York. Once we made it back to the house, I crawled into bed at a very reasonable hour and drifted immediately to sleep.
The next morning I was up early along with Parker and Therese. We chatted a bit over coffee and I tried like Hell to get Dottie, their new rescue dog to come hang out with me, but she found me too intimidating. After coffee, I hopped in the car to follow Therese to where she boards her donkeys and sheep. We took a lovely ten minute drive in the rising sunshine as dew covered the fields around us.
Upon arrival, the donkeys were excited to meet a new friend and came up to say hello. The sheep were much more cautious. Therese told me each of their names and a bit about their different personalities. Eventually, I grabbed a container of treats and started sharing with everyone who would come up. The donkeys were Johnny on the spot to the goodies, but the sheep took a minute figure out that it was snack time. They slowly made their way toward me once they saw what was going on and lined up for the smorgasbord.
I then followed Therese to her bakery and kitchen in Red Hook, NY. She has a sweet little setup in the back of a local food shop. She makes amazing sandwiches, salads, and desserts. She is truly an artist at what she does. While we hung out in the kitchen we played some music and talked about how excited we were for the show that night. I watched her diligently make breakfast biscuits, veggie hash, and a set of prepared salads. It all looked scrumptious.
Next, I headed out towards the town of West Saugerties on a rock and roll pilgrimage. Within a half hour of very remote country driving I found myself standing all alone in front of dilapidated house in the middle of nowhere. The pink and white structure is completely unassuming and could almost be described as rundown. Still, it might as well be the Taj Mahal.
This humble house is where The Band recorded their first record, which they named The Big Pink in honor of the house. The basement in the house served as a recording studio for most of that album, as well as the famed Dylan and the Band Basement Tapes. Dylan was staying at the house when he had his famous motorcycle accident and disappeared from the scene for an extended period of time.
Standing in that driveway and taking in a deep breath it was easy to feel the ghosts. I believe in the energy of places. I don’t know what that means or how it translates to our existence here. I just know that in some spaces you can feel the weight of what happened there. I felt that weight at the The Big Pink.
I wandered up and down the lane for a few minutes in each direction and listened to the birdsong in the quiet morning. It felt good to be alone and peaceful in the middle of the woods. In a way, it felt like a part of home was in those woods. It reminded me of so many summers at Lake 28 or spent in the northern reaches of Michigan with family and friends. It reminded me of making a record in my own sacred space on more than one occasion. I believe in the spirit of places.
Cindy texted me to see if we could connect and I suggested we meet at the cemetery where I was headed. It seemed like an odd suggestion, but I knew that Howard wanted to see some stuff about The Band just like I did and the Woodstock cemetery is the final resting place of two of its members; Levon Helm and Rick Danko.
Once I’d had my chance to pay my respects to Levon, I sat and just meditated in the silence for a few minutes before walking over to the area where Rick Danko is buried. Cindy and her family arrived after I had been at the graveyard for a half an hour or so, and I was still unable to locate the Danko plot.
I said hello to Howard and the boys and gave Cindy a big hug. She and Ronald and I walked over to see if maybe we could find Rick Danko together. Eventually after much searching, we noticed a small stone with a series of Canadian flags placed around the edges. We stood for a few minutes and then I walked over to snag Howard and show him the spot.
Back at Levon’s stone, Howard asked if I would like to get my picture taken and he kindly snapped a shot of me kneeling with one of my heroes. From there, Cindy and her family would take in some more of the area and I was off to the Fuller Building to set up shop for my show later in the evening.
The Fuller Building is a renovated historic shirt factory in the heart of downtown Kingston, NY. It’s been gorgeously restored by Therese’s husband Scott, who is a gifted architect. The interior of the space is a rustic white brick with exposed beams and gorgeous fixtures. The gallery area where I would be playing is an open, airy space with a bit of an echo that I would have to keep an eye on during the performance.
Once I had my gear all in place and set up as well as could be for the evening’s performance, I made my way back to Therese’s house for a shower and a bit rest before I had to head back into town for an appearance on a local radio show.
The Radio Kingston studios sit right down the street from the Fuller Building on Kingston’s main drag. There is a massive neon sign with the stations call letters towering above the street. As I pulled up and noticed the sign I got the sense this might be a bigger radio station than I had anticipated.
For artists of my level plugging a record or going out on tour, college and community radio stations are the most welcoming spaces to find an audience for what we do. These are also the stations where the staff are more interested in cool happenings more than just what can sell ad time. In my experience, most of the college and community stations I have been to have limited output and cover only a small audience. They’re still a fantastic way to get the word out, but I got the impression that Radio Kingston was operating at a higher level.
Walking into the studio my hunch was confirmed to see a gorgeously lit lobby with wooden walls and detailed appointments. A studio just off the lobby was active with a pair of personalities on-air having a political debate. I set down my acoustic guitar, and wandered around looking at the studios, the posters and art on the walls, and the programming schedule for the station.
A few minutes before five, my contact Jimmy who is a longtime host at the station shook my hand and welcomed me to Radio Kingston. We headed into one of the available studios, Jimmy got me so unchecked and the next thing we knew it was go time. We chatted about my tour, the routing, and what it’s like to tour as an unknown independent artist. We talked about some of my inspirations, including a great story that Jimmy shared with me about one of my idols, Billy Bragg.
I played a pair of songs and chatted with Jimmy for about a half an hour. Upon finishing up, he was kind enough to gift me a Radio Kingston t-shirt and wished me the best of luck on the show that night as well as the rest of the tour.
After the radio appearance, I made the quick trip down the street back to the Fuller Building. Therese, Parker, Scott and their friend John all had everything in place. There was a full bar, a cooler of beers, and an amazing spread of food. Folks began to arrive slowly around 6:00 as we had planned a 7:30 show and Therese had welcomed folks to come early and get some food.
A whole crew of folks from the Stand Up with Pete Dominick community came out that night. Cindy and her family were there as was Therese. Pete, and our friends Megan and Sanman made the trip up from suburban New York city. It quickly began to feel like a mini-reunion of our time together in Vegas a few months ago.
Drinks were poured, food was put away and laughter filled the room. A very nice crowd began to make its way in to the gallery just after 7:30 as I took my cue to begin my set. The show itself was pretty great. My initial concerns about being able to hear myself in the echoey room were abated almost immediately. I flew through a set list of a dozen songs and nearly as many stories in about an hour. I finished to an enthusiastic room filled with applause that felt pretty goddamned great.
The rest of the night of a bit of a blur, to be honest. I enjoyed a couple more whiskey drinks after the set and chatted and laughed into the night with this wonderful community of amazing souls. The night was capped with love, hilarity, and community. Parker gave me a ride back to the house and I crawled into bed a happy little soldier.
Just after 6:00, I was awake and walked out to get coffee and chat with Therese before she set off to feed the donkeys and sheep and make her way to work. Eventually, we said our goodbyes, I thanked her a thousand times more and we promised to do it all again soon. A promise that I intend to keep.
Parker gave me a ride back to the Fuller where she kindly helped me load all of my shit into the Buick and prepped for my drive to Rhode Island. Dottie finally came around to letting me pet her before I got in the car. I gave Parker a hug and thanked hr for escorting the old folks around and putting up with us. She swore she had a good time. I had such a great time that I am almost inclined to believe her.
Cheers,
Matty C
I find it touching that you were able to pay respects to Levon Helm and Rick Danko. "The Weight" is among my personal Top 3 musical compositions of my lifetime, and both of their voices are heard on this masterpiece.