http://www.dailyfreeman.com/articles/2009/12/25/entertainment/doc4b33db3a84b01114263232.txt
December 25, 2009
By Ann Gibbons
Like the Roman god, Janus, who saw the past and the future
simultaneously in the present, the New Riders of the Purple Sage
continue to honor their past, hone music of the present, while
envisioning the future, all the while adhering to the spirit of the
original band.
The New Riders will perform Saturday at the Bearsville Theater in
Woodstock, honoring another tradition the band began when it resumed
vigorous touring in 2005. This is the sixth year the band will open
its touring season at Bearsville. Professor Louie and the Crowmatix
will open at 8 p.m., with the New Riders taking the stage at 9 p.m.
Even though the band performs 80 to 100 shows around the country a
year, members continue to kick off the tour in the same eight venues,
just after the holidays, as a way of creating their own tradition.
Although the band lost founding member, Jon Dawson, this year, they
honor his memory by bringing his music to a whole new generation of fans.
"We've picked up the torch, so to speak," said Michael Falzano, who
plays guitar with the band, in a phone interview this week. Dawson,
before he died in July, told band members he was pleased to know that
thousands and thousands of new listeners would hear his music.
In June, the band released its first studio album in 20 years.
Falzano produced the album, "Where I Come From," which was recorded
at Woodstock Records. Even though the album is actually a CD, he said
he retains the language because, like a photo album, it's a
collection only of songs.
"Time marches on. The album represents a change for us," Falzano
admitted, with seven new songs from Robert Hunter, lyricist for The
Grateful Dead. "But," he said, "we still do some of the original
music and they're on the new album." He said all the members write,
some prolifically, so much so that they're about ready to start on
another album, probably beginning in February.
"The album is a growth piece and shows our development as a band,"
Falzano said, "but it's clear we've stayed true to the spirit of the founders."
He said the band, founded in 1969 by Dawson and Jerry Garcia of The
Grateful Dead, performs Dawson's three-minute tunes, but also some
longer jams that showcase where they are and where they're headed.
"What's really great is that we're still growing as musicians, as a
band, after 40 years," Falzano said. He said the band initially
thought it would do only five show when it resumed touring in 2005.
But all the performances sold out, and the band had fun getting
together and playing together, so members decided to resume touring
extensively.
"It's a long touring season," he said about the 80-100 performances
per year. "But we're still growing the music. We can't just continue
to play the old songs. Eventually, the people will lose interest and
so will the band."
Band members Nelson on guitar; Buddy Cage, pedal steel guitar;
Ronnie Penque, bass guitar; Johnny Markowski, drums; and Falzano
are getting older, with ages ranging from 40s to late 60s, and have
learned a lot being on the road.
Falzano said, in touring with a bunch of guys, it was important to be
flexible. "We also know that we need to keep the music fresh, not to
play it the same way every night." But, he said, it's critical not to
change too much, because the songs are iconic.
The latest album showcases the band playing together. Falzano said
some producers build songs from each instrument, resulting in a
somewhat sterile sound, while he insists the band play live and together.
"We do a song maybe two or three times, then pick the one that best
captures the music," he said. He said one of his favorites on the CD,
"Barracuda Moon," was played just once, but the sound was so
spontaneous, yet so complex, the one take did it. The song happened
naturally, organically, he said, adding that it has gotten good air time.
Aaron Louis "Professor Louie" Hurwitcz, of Woodstock Records, said an
album is a postcard to the event.
"A band playing live in the recording studio has the opportunity,
unlike on stage, to stop and discuss the music, whether a line sounds
better like this - or like that," he said. In the studio, there's more control.
Hurwitz said the new album is especially important, not only because
it's the first one the band has released in 20 years, but also
because there are some vintage songs, as well as new tunes, that have
never before been heard. "This is the first time they've been
released," he said.
He described Woodstock Records, founded in 1998, as a contemporary
thinking label that produces a range of music, from jazz to classical
to rock, and all stops in between. He said it's an open-minded studio
whose criteria is quality and professional musicians. He said he's
known the New Riders' musicians for a long time and it made sense for
them to go with a recording studio whose work they knew.
"We work with the musicians to produce an album they're proud of," he
said, unlike more commercial studios that are hard-pressed by
production deadlines.
Professor Louie and the Crowmatix will open for the New Riders, then
sit in with the band during some parts of its two-hour performance.
Mark "Toast" Topazio, touring manager for the New Riders who always
travels with the band, said the album and the tours self-reference -
that one promotes the other.
He likens the success of the band's touring season to a renaissance
of the New Riders.
"It's like an extended family," he said, noting that he's sort of
become "the dad." "I make sure they eat, get enough sleep, keep up
their energy."
He said one of the satisfactions of that extended family is that his
son, "Little Toast," or "LT" as he's known, has a touring role, too.
"We're looking forward to 2010, thankful that we're in good health
and able to perform together," he said. He said he's very pleased
that the band continues the legacy of founder Dawson while bringing
in new tunes and "new, new tunes" that the band hopes to record early in 2010.
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