By Sam Goering, Crestone Performances Inc
Strains of Woody Guthrie could be heard emanating from the Elephant Cloud Station as local musicians gathered in tribute to the famed folk singer’s lyrical messages.
The Woody Guthrie tribute and fundraising show, Nov. 15, featured amazing performances from youth poets and local musicians who came together to play some of Woody’s best-known songs in front of a packed room.
The event raised more than $1,700 for Crestone Performances, Inc., the non-profit that organizes the Crestone Music Festival and the annual Youth Grant program that purchases musical instruments and lessons for local youth. There were so many people that it was hard to park in downtown Crestone and the standing- and sitting-room-only audience loudly cheered and applauded throughout the night.
CPI Executive Director, Lydia Sprouts, posted on social media, “[I’m] so grateful to all who came out and sang along with all the great Woody hits. You might have been the best crowd of all time! Congrats to our poetry contest winners Oliwia and Zenna and thank you so much to our family of musicians who made this possible with your varied and wonderful talents. Big love to our faithful venue and Benji at the Elephant Cloud and thank you to my wonderful board of directors for all your support and friendship.”
Many of the musicians collaborated for their performances of hits like “Pastures of Plenty,” “Why Oh Why,” “Do-Re-Mi,” “Hobo’s Lullaby,” “Pretty Boy Floyd,” “I Ain’t Got No Home,” and “Hard Travelin’.”
Sam Goering, known for his saxophone, moved to piano and vocals for “Hobo’s Lullaby,” “1913 Massacre” and “Lindbergh.”
Bruce Becker led a stirring rendition of “Deportee,” Guthrie’s song about unnamed migrants who died in a plane crash on their deportation flight back to Mexico.
Matt Lit, on vocals backed by Alixe Landry and Becker, of The Carefree Way, performed a rousing version of “Why oh Why” and Arlo Guthrie’s “Patriot’s Dreams,” ending with Lit singing “Bad Repetation (stet)”, a capella. Miranda Cecsarini and Marcus Daniels of Sol Mountain Riders brought the energy with “Rambling Around” and “Hard Travelin” and brought David Steele on stage for a tune.
Robin Chestnut did a solo rendition of “I Want My Milk (I Want It Now)”, calling it “the purest protest song” he’s heard.
Daya Scheide and Eli Dokson performed a lovely version of “Hard Times Come again no more,” which was originally written in the 19th century and covered by Woody Guthrie and his son Arlo Guthrie, among others.
Dokson led beautiful numbers with musician friends like Peter Taylor, Andy Skellenger, and Ellie Herod, including “Going Down the Road Feelin’ Bad,” “Red River Valley,” and “The City of New Orleans.”
And finally, there were about fifteen musicians on stage for an all-ensemble performance of “This Land is Your Land,” Woody Guthrie’s most famous song and proposed national anthem, which ended the night.
Youth poets Oliwia Hines and Zenna Hess recited original poems (see their poems in this issue) that they had composed for the event as part of a contest sponsored by CPI. Both poets were inspired by themes or lines found in Guthrie’s songs and they showed great courage and composure standing up and reading their work in front of the packed crowd. In addition to the poetry, CPI Director Sprouts curated quotes, images and books about Guthrie’s life into an exhibit by CPI’s merchandise booth in the Cloud Station foyer. It was clear the musicians enjoyed diving into Woody Guthrie’s music and life history to learn more about the man who spoke for those who didn’t have a voice and the timeless lyrics and songs he wrote.
CPI debuted new shirts and stickers featuring the slogans “More Strings, Less Screens” and “This Machine Kills Boredom” to encourage turning off devices and picking up instruments as a much more nourishing use of time. There are still shirts and stickers available. Get in touch with a CPI board member or stay tuned at future events for your chance to purchase one. For more information visit https://CrestonePerformances.org.