Live Review
Heart & Soul
a musical celebration to benefit Camp Heartland
@ Bunker's (outdoors), Minneapolis
May 15 & 16, 1999
by Ray Stiles
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Fans
Photo © 1999 Tom Asp All rights reserved
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If day one of the Heart & Soul music festival (for Camp Heartland) was not a sell out Saturday night, it came pretty close. There was a total attendance of over 8,000 for the weekend which translates into a significant monetary contribution being made to Camp Heartland this year, meaning more children afflicted with the HIV virus and their families will be able to attend this great summer camp located in Willow River, Minnesota (opened last year). Held outdoors in the parking lot next to Bunker's, the Heart & Soul site featured a huge stage (five feet high for good visibility), great sound, super crowd and a spectacular lineup. There was a large screen off to the side where the current performer's show was projected so fans in the back still had a good seat. Plus, this is one of the best run festivals I have attended. It was a 100% class act from start to finish. Everything ran smoothly with all the acts sticking close to their scheduled time. In addition to the music there was a rock climbing wall for all of us "kids," a full sized replica of the Bat Mobile, face painting and raffle for the autographed guitar (signed by all the weekend's performers). A special word about the volunteers -- when Mick first started the Heart & Soul benefit in 1995 he said you could count on one hand the number of volunteers. This year there were over 500 people taking time out of their busy lives to help make this the successful event it was. Congratulations and thanks go out to everyone involved in this worthy event.
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Ame, Catherine, Heather
Photo © 1999 Tom Asp All rights reserved
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Interspersed throughout this review are a number of contributions by several young writers who helped me out during this festival.
The last act of the first night's show saw the entire block filled with a sea of screaming Jonny Lang fans (many of them being young teen girls). Jonny put on a very impressive performance, with his screaming guitar, older than his age vocals and inspired song selection. Other highlights of the day's performances included retro, roots rocker, Tony Sims kicking off the festival and featuring Tony with his 1950's hairstyle, superb guitar playing and vocals, and leg-shaking performance. The talented and entertaining Toby Marshall was on keyboards. Oakland, California transplant, Wain McFarlane and Zydeco Blue followed with his 10-piece band and some funky R&B. Wain is a real "mover and shaker" who can get an audience worked up in a hurry.
More Pictures of Tony, Wain and others
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Wes Cunningham
Photo © 1999 Tom Asp All rights reserved
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Wes Cunningham (by Heather Stiles). Making their debut at the Heart & Soul Festival, Wes Cunningham got the crowd into the special spirit of the weekend. The group had a laid back approach but came on strong with a great opening number. Wes did a nice job of mixing up his music -- throwing in a fun country song by Jonny Cash, and a short song with a Spanish excerpt. The group was energized and fun to watch. Wes was also eager to meet his fans following a great all around performance setting the tone for the bands to come.
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The Honeydogs
Photo © 1999 Tom Asp All rights reserved
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The Honeydogs (by Ame Colla). Next up a local band, The Honeydogs, played a very enjoyable set. The group played later in the afternoon and the crowd was relaxed and went along with the flow of the tunes. They played their familiar hits as well as some new music for a delicious variety in their performance. The Honeydogs music provided mellow harmonies that were up-beat enough to draw the audience in. The presence of the group was fun to see, they fit right in with the crowd and the flow of the weekend. The Honeydogs contributed a fine musical performance and helped put a fresh spin on things for the rest of the shows to finish off the weekend.
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Mary Cutrufello
Photo © 1999 Tom Asp All rights reserved
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Houston resident (originally from Connecticut) Mary Cutrufello followed in what turned out to be one of the surprise highlights of the weekend. Decked out in her long sleeve plaid shirt rolled up to the elbows and bouncing dread locks, Mary was a whirling dervish on stage with wailing guitar, raspy vocals and good 'ol rock and roll music reminiscent of Bruce Springsteen. She is one convincing performer. Local keyboard whiz Tom Hunter (as a result of Mary seeing him perform on Sunday with Double Trouble) will being going on tour with her band for the rest of the summer. Eager to please her many new fans Mary said she was ready to sign any and all autographs after her set and she even brought along her Sharpe (pen.)
At this point in the show Mick Sterling introduced Neil Willenson, the founder of Camp Heartland, who in turn introduced three kids who shared their stories about growing up with aids and attending Camp Heartland. A poignant and inspiring story was also related about a mother of one of the children afflicted with the AIDS virus attending Camp Heartland last year. She was holding a burning candle and as it was getting shorting and shorter she became somewhat despondent as she said it symbolized the diminishing life of many of these children. One of the kids then got up and went over to her and said, "the candle may be getting shorter but it still burns and gives off light and hope." And this is the real intent and spirit behind Heart & Soul -- a musical celebration helping to raise money and bring a little more hope to the kids and families living with HIV/AIDS.
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G.B. Leighton
Photo © 1999 Tom Asp All rights reserved
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The Rhyme Sayers Collective followed with a very short set of local Hip Hop. They said this was an introduction to Hip Hop 101.
About this time I took a stroll to the back of the parking lot to discover that the beer concessions must have been having a banner day -- I could tell by the extremely long lines (20 people deep) in front of the port-a-potties.
G.B. Leighton, (by Catherine Kennelly). As always G.B. Leighton put on another great performance, delivering an energetic and fun show. If their new CD is as good as his new song "Meltdown," then it has some definite potential. This is a great band that knows how to capture an audience. I was there jumping and belting out the words to all the songs with the rest of the crowd as he took control and orchestrated the fans just like a conductor. Seeing G.B. Leighton perform is "always" entertaining.
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Jonny Lang
Photo © 1999 Tom Asp All rights reserved
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Jonny Lang (by Heather Stiles). As always the crowd was anticipating local blues phenomenon Jonny Lang's entrance. With a simple nod of his head and a quick smile he made the fans roar with excitement. Lang and his band put on a great show, working the crowd with a few very technical guitar solos and great showmanship. The people were singing the words and appreciating the blues, having a good time and moving to the music. Later in his show we were surprised with a guest appearance from the Blenders. The harmonizing sounds fit right into the mood Lang had set for his show. Jonny Lang's performance was a great wrap up to the first day -- the show was a great success.
Goto Day Two
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