The Nightwatchman's "Justice Tour"
New York
Justice: Road Recovery
The Justice Tour 2008 stopped next in New York City! This city's
benefit was the wonderful Road Recovery, celebrating their 10th
Anniversary of helping kids get out of addiction and into some serious
musical good times. Road Recovery was started 10 years ago by Gene
Bowen, former tour manager for Mr. Jeff Buckley and former addict. Once
he got clean, he realized that he could make an impact on the world by
helping young kids get clean, and Road Recovery was born.
They offer
workshops, sober road crew connections, performance opportunities,
speaker seminars, master classes, sobriety meetings - basically
everything a kid could need to get better than back on track, but also
to get to feel like they ROCK!
We arrived in New York (NO! SLEEP! TIL BROOKLYN!), dropped off our bags,
and headed off to the rehearsal space to meet up with the Road Recovery
people and the kids that form the band Crazy James. You took a tiny
elevator up to the space, and I squeezed into one with some young
members of the band/Road Recovery success stories. They asked me who I
was, and I explained that I was on my way up with some people that were
excited to hear them play ... and that just happened to play
themselves. They were bursting with energy, and when they heard Tom
Morello was on the next elevator up, the excitement levels almost took
them through the ceiling. I got it. I see these guys pretty often and
I still feel that way, after all. Stoked!
Margaret (Mrs. Wayne) Kramer has worked with this organization for a
while, and we were talking to the kids and each other, and she explained
that a lot of these kids had come from gnarly backgrounds and turned to
drugs as a way of medicating themselves to forget the rest. Music gave
them a way to learn to be comfortable with themselves, and to have
something to be excited about. Even more so, perhaps, when confronted
with a small rehearsal room stuffed with The Nightwatchman (Tom
Morello), Jerry Cantrell, Slash, Wayne Kramer, Perry and Etty Farrell,
Sen Dog, Breckin Meyer, Dave Gibbs and Carl Restivo! Imagine! To back
THEM up!
They ran through a few songs together, and you could tell the kids were
crazed with not only the star power, but with their own potential -
realized. They ran through their group song - appropriate or not - "I
Wanna Be Sedated" by those rascals, The Ramones. To watch these kids
absolutely go for it, and see their eyes widen when your Slash and Tom
Morello ripped solos to their own group vocals, was to see tangible, not
only recovery, but pure bliss. What a long road ... and what a reward.
On this Justice Tour, the goal is to get people involved locally,
grass-roots, to create positive change. New York, you're a big, big
city ... but the connection we felt, and the good inroads to change, are
in full effect. Please visit www.roadrecovery.org to see how you can
help ... or to see some fine rock music coming out of your own local
success stories, the wonderful kids of Road Recovery!
Tour: Nokia Theater, New York City, New York
We arrived early to the Nokia Theater to do interviews, rehearse, do
sound check, and give the Road Recovery kids a full chance to soak up
the atmosphere of a gigantic rock show. I eavesdropped on a couple
radio and t.v. interviews The Nightwatchman gave, and though we were all
running on mere fumes (and sick amounts of Red Bull - blech), the energy
and excitement for the purpose of it all (Good and Rock) remained
intact. A woman asked Tom what he thought of this generation of kids,
and he said he thought every new generation of kids deals with people
thinking they're apathetic, but we see people struggling and fighting
and wanting and working to find Justice in the world ... "They want
it". I know I was tired, but I choked up a bit at the truth of that. We
ALL want it. The same reporter asked what advice Tom would have for
kids who "want to be him." He laughed and said, "I'd say, be THEM", and
added that he had practiced for eight hours a day, which he did NOT
recommend ... "Have a social life". That was followed by a question of
how would The Nightwatchman like to be remembered? That stumped him,
and then he finally said, "You can glean from tonight's show the answer
to that question." So, let's talk about that show, shall we?
After a completely frenzied meet and greet and photo crush, the entire
gang retired to the backstage rooms, where Tom sorted out the song
orders, and all over the place you could see assorted giants of the
music industry practicing songs (and lamenting that it was a dry
building - no drinks - in honor of the recovering kids) and getting
energized by still more Red Bull.
Then suddenly it was show time, and like a whip crack, everyone was back
in top form. None other than Denis Leary (comedian, and surprisingly
good rocker) opened the show, with his band, The Crown Royals. They
started with the apt, "At The Rehab", with a backdrop screen of bad mug
shots of famous celebrity rehab entrants (Lindsey, Whitney, Betty Ford,
Hasselhoff puking). He commented that, "We've got a big fucking show
tonight, with a lot of ex-fucked up people" and then hit us with his
tune, "I'm An Asshole". I talked to him a bit, and I'm not entirely
convinced that what he sings is true - I would not call him an asshole.
They were followed by a whole bunch of different groups of kids from
Road Recovery ... little ones, teenaged ones, a group called The Miggs,
one called The Hawthorne Center Teens that rocked buckets and danced
like Krumpers, winding up with a little George Michael, "Freedom". Tom
was the M.C. throughout it all, and cracked everyone up when he said the
first time he heard about Road Recovery, he wasn't sure if it was an
organization trying to get New York's pot-holes fixed or what, so we
watched a little video to get everyone on the same page.
Every time Tom came up to introduce something new, he was met with
screams of "NIGHTWATCHMAN!!" "You Rock!" or "I love you, Tom!" - so you
knew it was going to go OFF when he actually played. But that would be
getting ahead of ourselves.
Noted folk musician, Joseph Arthur played a couple songs next, with a
lovely lady he did not introduce. There was harmonica, there was
guitar, there was mention of love in the sun. All of it excellent.
Tom came back up and said, "As the half-Kenyan, Harvard educated man
from Illinois who is NOT running for President (yet), it is my pleasure
to introduce Crazy James", the kids we had hung out with the night
before. Tonight, they were all decked out in rock gear (tiger spandex
pants, heavy make-up, heavy silver jewelry, crucial headbands) and the
outlet of music, head-banging, and sheer positivity meant that they had
arrived. They had made it .. and will continue to make it, every day.
It was extremely moving to behold, and they held nothing back. They
were the reason we were all there, and they knew it, but better yet,
celebrated it! CRAZY JAMES!!!
They were the bridge between the Road Recovery groups and what was to
happen next ... meaning, it was now The Nightwatchman's turn to
execute. He treated the crowd to "House Gone Up In Flames", a little
song you may have heard of called, "Guerilla Radio" (his own version,
that as soon as the kids recognized the chorus, that was it - mayhem),
and then tuned his guitar for 15 seconds of yelling maniac kids wanting
more. So he dedicated his next one them, the Road Recovery superstars,
for that is truly what they are. "The Road I Must Travel" was super
fitting, and also served to rile those kids up for good. He was done,
but only for the moment.
The next group was called "Ours". It's clear that Jeff Buckley is an
influence. Now I LOVE Jeff pretty much more than anybody, but somehow
failed to connect with these guys (maybe because they were kind of
sullen jerks backstage, sad but true). I wasn't alone, because a big
yellow balloon bouncing around got more attention than they did during
their set. Don't get me wrong, they were certainly talented ... but
they lost the crowd and (karma) some kids threw stuff at them, prompting
the singer to be classy and say, "I saw you throw that, asshole". I'll
look them up and listen to them again before I make up my mind, but I
was happy for it to be the next guy's turn ...
Because it was Wayne Kramer! (Whom Tom introduced by saying, "The next
guy has killed people in prison, so to the guy that threw something
before, Careful!") He began with his perfect, "Something's Broken In
The Promised Land". I realized two things during this number: that
kids love swearing - they'll yell for it every time - and that the
"Where's Lee Harvey Oswald, now that we really need him?" is now the
biggest crowd yell-getter, officially coast to coast. Take a hint,
George W! Then his sublime, "So Long, Hank" about Bukowski. I think it
was a bit jazzy for this group of hyped up mostly youngsters, because
during it, I heard shouts of "Rangers!" Hockey playoffs in New York are
nothing to mess with.
Jerry Cantrell was as huge East as he was West! The shouts of "I love
you, Jerry!" did not quit - ever. He played his gorgeous "Brother",
sitting on stools with Tom and Dave Gibbs harmonizing acoustically. A
classic moment, no question. Then, when the crowd went crazy
applauding, Tom said, "But look who's coming!", and the one and only
Slash took the stage! He took a stool next to Jerry, and these two rock
behemoths freaked everyone out with, "Wish You Were Here". I hope it
was being recorded, because it doesn't get any prettier.
The applause did not end for Jerry and Slash, it only began for Perry
Farrell! He was joined by his bombshell wife, Etty, and the QB of this
and most nights, Carl Restivo. They began with their new, "Here Come
Trouble", which Perry said he wrote while watching this year's Superbowl
Giants win - a little pandering to local sports team, but you could tell
he meant and was excited about it. They followed that with the Porno
For Pyros tune, "Pets". Now, that's not the newest song on the block
and this crowd knew EVERY word and sang along with gusto. One kid
yelled out, "I love you, DJ Peretz!", going deep with Perry. He
responded, "We love you too, that's why we're here!" The feeling was
more than mutual. To top that off, Perry invited Jerry and Tom up to
join them for an absolute FREAK OUT version of "Mountain Song"! Every
camera phone in the house was out, for good reason. It was EPIC. Tom
ripped out a solo that scorched our faces off, to the point that at
song's end, Perry said, "Now THAT was cooking!" He couldn't stop
smiling, and said, "You have no idea what a rush it is to look over and
see Tom Morello doing a solo next to you." The energy that these guys
create together is just that, a complete RUSH. In fact, it was SO good
that Perry made everyone one blow Tom kisses in unison - and the entire
house was more than happy to oblige.
And then they went even further and hit us with "Ain't No Right". Etty
prowled the stage with exactly the dose of estrogen the stage needed,
and Perry retained his title of Ultimate Showman - he's just so riveting
to watch, you start to feel your cheeks hurt from trying to match his
smiles. LOVE him! And so does Tom - they hugged and Tom said, "Now
this would be a handsome Presidential ticket". I agree, but they'd have
to sort out who would be on top. I say they could take turns.
Slash, Jerry, Carl, Dave, Wayne and Breckin (the glue of the entire
evening, keeping it all together with his solid drum beats) came back up
for the heavy metal style, "Jailbreak" AND "Kick Out The Jams".
Kicking it old and new school at the same time. And the night was
still building!
Perry came back to lead Stevie Wonder's "Superstitious" - which happened
to feature a Tom Morello guitar solo with the fancy fingers back and
forth over the neck thing he does that is so cool, and that Perry
somehow danced perfectly to, accenting every note. These two are of the
same cloth, it is clear.
At the end of that funk soul brother jam, Tom said, "I'd like to welcome
next to the stage: Me!" and bestowed upon us The Nightwatchman's first
party jam, "Shake My Shit". Tom danced like I've never seen him go at
it before, perhaps inspired by Perry on the previous bit. "All I wanna
do is just shake my shit, just shake my shit tonight!" is all you heard
people muttering to themselves the rest of the night. It is CATCHY.
No Justice Tour show has yet been complete without SEN DOG! He came out
to a roar from the crowd, which favor he returned by saying, "Everyone
say New York City, Motherfuckers! Everyone SCREAMED it for him, and he
said, "Birthplace of Hip-Hop!" There's something about hometown pride
that just stokes people ... and that set the stage for the frantic
rock-out of our now traditional, "Insane In The Membrane/Kill A Man/Rock
Superstar" super-medley. But there was NOTHING traditional about how it
went down this time ... Slash, Wayne, Jerry, Perry, Tom ... tons of
solos (including an amp feedback one by Tom) ... Sen Dog feeling it so
hard he leaped off the stage to crowd-surf, not once, but twice! I was
up above it all and to look down and see every arm raised, supporting
their boy, Sen, in a group effort to party as hard as possible (even
without the customary jay sparked for Sen - remember, this was a show
for recovering teens, and respect was shown). The feeling in the room
was so happy and positive - all because of the power of music. Life -
affirmed!
"This Land Is Your Land" is customarily the last song of the night - but
not tonight. It was sung loud and proud by The Nightwatchman and all of
his jumping fans - even at the VIP tables! The "Alternative American
Anthem" was decorated this time by the most American of traditions - a
Slash guitar solo! Ol' Woody Guthrie probably could never have imagined
how hard his penned long ago manifesto would rock in 2008! And the
message was not lost in the glitz - this Land WAS made for you and me!
The Crazy James kids came back up to almost close the night with all the
Superstars on back-up for The Ramones' "I Wanna Be Sedated". The kids
gave it all they had, by now head banging and posturing like total pros
... and they can have dreams of this night dancing in their heads for
the rest of their lives, and know that they DID IT. And did Road
Recovery OH, so proud! Happy Anniversary ... and many more!
You'd think that would be it ... but you'd be wrong. JUST when you
thought some big show closer was about to happen, another "Sneaky
Superstar" showed up - Jakob Dylan! I'm not sure if this was a personal
gift to me, but I'll let myself think that. He is FANtastic, and to
have him show up on this crazy night was just the frosting of the
evening - Jakob Dylan! Playing Sam Cooke's, "Bring It On Home To Me"!
It was so dreamy I really did feel faint (but then we hadn't slept or
eaten or stopped rocking since I don't remember when ...). ANOTHER
Slash solo, and Tom and Perry on background vocals! WHAT?!?! And they
followed that with the uncanny choice of, "He's Got The Whole World In
His Hands" ... the old Sunday School classic, fired up with a Slash and
Morello solo-off: Guitar Hero come to life! It was very, Very, VERY
exciting. AlMOST as exciting as the last song of the night -
GNR's "Paradise City"! Obviously Slash took over on that one, and the
crowd was bonkers from the first note. At the end part where it gets
all fast and super-heavy, they turned up the house lights and you could
see the entire place jumping up and down as one, completely going off
like group fireworks. And don't forget, it's all for a GREAT cause!
This night was so special, yes, for the terrifically astounding music
that went down, but also for the daily victories these Road Recovery
kids accomplish by staying clean, and learning that THIS much fun can be
had, clean, sober and rocking all night long towards a healthy future!
* I can't even report that the night ended there, however. {Disclaimer:
if this sounds at all like a crazy person wrote it, it's because one did
... it is SO late .. because ..}
AFTER the show at the Nokia, the rock could not be stopped. The whole
gang piled in multiple limos and headed over for a surprise gig at the
"CBGB's" (which is now a John Varvatos t-shirt store, but still). When
we pulled up, Joan Jett was doing a set ... so we cooled our heels out
in this crowded, paparazzi, Ebay-seeker filled alley until it was time
to blow some minds. Not hard to do when you roll up after midnight into
a club with Slash, Tom Morello, Perry Farrell, Sen Dog, Wayne Kramer,
Jerry Cantrell and The Freedom Fighter Orchestra (Breckin, Gibbs, Carl Restivo) launching the missiles of "Kick Out The Jams/Jailbreak/Mountain
Song/Insane In The Membrane/Kill A Man/Jump Around" at the surprised,
ecstatic, near apoplectic club goers. And each song featured blistering
solos from Slash and Tom, and if you ever thought about being jaded and
cool in this place, this night - that was all out the window, as people
were jumping up and down with abandon. And then we were gone, like it
was all a great dream. Which I hope to have now, as the dawn lights up
the City That Never Sleeps (I have so much in common with you now, Big
Apple!). Thank you, New York!
- Carol Gronner
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