We are deeply entrenched in festival season here at Home Grown. After a long weekend under the sun in Winston-Salem at the inaugural Jomeokee Jamboree (see review below) and an insanely memorable (and cool temperatured) weekend at Berkfest, we are psyched for Walther's Grassroots Music Festival, August 19 at Oregon Ridge Park in Cockeysville, Maryland. How much dank music can be squeezed into one day? Let's see: Medeski, Martin, and Wood, Jazz Mandolin Project, David Grisman Quintet, Maceo Parker, Bela Fleck, and Lake Trout...that's a one-day festival bursting at the seams! Stop by the Home Grown Booth and say hi! Next we take a fun trip to the always joyous Camp Bisco in Morris, PA, then you can look for the Home Grown Booth again at the Recipe Family Cookout in Albright, West Virginia. Visit Walther-Productions.com for all the info you need on these great events!

Check out this phenomenal lineup of new HGMN releases from July! Visit HomeGrownMusic.net to purchase these titles and browse hundreds more great CDs, videos, cassetes, and t-shirts.

Ominous Seapods - "The Super Man Curse" CD - Can you say LONG AWAITED? That would be an understatement in describing how OSP fans feel about this disc. Good old school rock and roll dominates this CD, and of course they still JAM! This blend of improv with mature, focused songwriting makes for an amazing new sound. Buy one now and get the free bonus disc with unreleased live tracks, while supplies last (It's all about "Hey Donny Osmond") $16.00

Bela Fleck and the Flecktones - "Outbound" CD - Banjo master Bela Fleck and his otherworldly band, the Flecktones, have crafted another masterpiece. This disc features more of the mutated cosmic jazzgrass fans have come to love and includes guest performances by John Medeski, Adrian Belew, and many others. $16.00

Billy Martin and Calvin Weston - "Percussion Duets" CD - Revered drummer Billy Martin (Medeski, Martin, and Wood) teams up with the legendary Calvin Weston to create a moody, fully improvised disc that proves that percussion can be equally as expressive as a full band. $13.00

Ozric Tentacles - 3-CD box set - Get your technodelic trance/rock groove fix! This 3-CD set includes three full classic Ozric albums: Erpland, Pungent Efflungent, and Become the Other. More jams than you can shake a stick at. $25.00

Sam Bush - "Ice Caps: Peaks of Telluride" CD - AMAZING is the only word for this CD from mandolin expert Sam Bush! Well known for his collaborations with Leftover Salmon and legendary shows at the Telluride Bluegrass Festival, he proves that he can make an impact on a recording just as well as a live show! $16.00

Soulive has reissued their best-selling CD "Turn it Out". The new version has been remastered, remixed, and includes two additional tracks featuring John Scofield on guitar, which pushes this disc to over 77 minutes of funk! Still only $14.00

Uncle Sammy - Naturally Preserved CD - Phoenix Presents another disc full of live jams! This freewheeling quartet, whose debut album is live as well, proves once again that they flourish in such a setting. This particular performance took place May 21, 2000, at the Wetlands Preserve in New York City. $12.00

Max Creek - Live CD - This legendary band never fails to impress. Their newest offering, courtesy of Phoenix Presents, was recorded live at the Connecticut Expo Center on New Year's Eve 1999.a magical night indeed! $12.00 SPECIAL OFFER! Purchase any Phoenix title and receive a FREE full-length sampler CD of music from The Big Wu, All Mighty Senators, Lake Trout, and many more, while supplies last.

Seth Yacovone Band - Dannemora CD - This Vermont foursome explores new territory on this CD, shedding the constraints of their straight-up blues style and creating a sound that still channels the blues, but contains healthy doses of funk, jazz, and rock elements. $15.00

Joe Gallant and Illuminati - Code of the West CD - This long-awaited studio release from the groundbreaking ensemble known as Illuminati will change your outlook on classical instruments! The shape-shifting, genre-bending sounds on this disc demonstrate Gallant's amazing composition and the fantastic musicianship of his orchestra. $13.00

Darol Anger/Mike Marshall Band - Brand New Can CD - A fresh can of whup-ass! This disc holds more of the virtuostic, energetic instrumentals that have helped establish Darol and Mike as premier improvisers. A frenetic mix of bluegrass, jazz, and rock! Features special guest Alison Brown on banjo. $15.00

ATTENTION! Clearance sale on more great CDs from Home Grown!
Jamie Notharthomas - all titles $10 - Keller fans will dig these!
Lovechild - self-titled CD $10 - featuring members of Rusted Root!
Highwater - self-titled CD $10 - slick, boogie-infused jams
Rasta Rafiki - all titles $10 - great reggae band featuring former Recipe guitarist Tom Bachelor
Jive Talkin' Robots - Superheroes CD $10 - this one won't be available much longer!
The Jongleurs - all titles $10 - wacky jazz explorations and hilarious themes
Various Artists - Montage CD $8 - includes Fat Mama, viperhouse, Uncle Sammy, Schleigho, and much more
Pied Piper - Got Nada CD $6 - Hot young band from Pittsburgh

Schleigho - "Continent" CD - The long-awaited new disc from this Massachusetts quartet was recorded and produced with Tom Dowd (Eric Clapton, Allman Brothers, John Coltrane) and contains the best manifestation of their latin-dipped jazz/fusion yet! $16.00

Zigaboo Modeliste - "Zigaboo.com" CD - The Meters' drummer keeps laying down the funk into the new millenium! This smoothed-out disc features bassist George Porter Jr. on two tracks and plenty more special guests! $15.00

COLLECTOR'S ITEM UPDATE!
Widespread Panic - "Space Wrangler" cassette - We're nearly sold out of the rare original Landslide release of Panic's debut! This hard-to-find cassette has been unavailable since its initial release in 1988, and will not be available again, so get yours now and be the envy of every serious Spread Head! $11.00

A City Consumed by Panic
The Inaugural Jomeokee Jamboree - August 4-6 2000

Most festival attendees consider the musical lineup to be the prevalent factor in determining whether to join in on the action. The venue, however, goes mostly unnoticed until these attendees arrive. Despite its relatively low status on the decision totem pole, the venue is possibly the most important factor. After all, groups and groups of people will be camping, cavorting, eating, sleeping, showering(maybe), and enjoying music in the spot for at least 2 full days.

This year, Buffalo Gap (All Good) and Seaside Park (Gathering of the Vibes) have been the most pleasant places to be for festivals, as far as festivals the HGMN has attended. The inaugural Jomeokee Jamboree was originally scheduled at an amazing spot, high in the mountains of Pinnacle, North Carolina. Unfortunately, the required permits were not granted, and the event had to be relocated to the Dixie Classic Fairgrounds, right in the middle of Winston-Salem, North Carolina. The fairground is part of the Lawrence Joel Coliseum Complex. There was general disappointment among fans and vendors, preferring to camp under a starry, scenic atmosphere rather than in the middle of a city. On Friday, everyone tried to forget and pump themself up for the headliner, String Cheese Incident.

Throughout the day, Common Dawg, Cosmic Charlie, Mood Cultivation Project, and The Brakemen provided background music for the first glaring signs of miscommunication: metal detectors at the gates, swarms of police officers, uncaring fairground staffers, and a cramped camping situation. The big show wasn't even until Sunday and the festival had undergone serious vibe depletion by the end of the night. String Cheese provided welcome release for the community and whipped the site into a frenzy as fireworks from a nearby baseball game rose to brilliant pinnacles above the fairgrounds.

Whatever joy SCI had created was soon whisked away by the fairgrounds staff, who obviously had no idea what a festival really is. As fans surfed along the line of vendors, they were ordered to go back to the camping area. 30 minutes after the show, the concert area looked exactly as it had before the fans even arrived. Fortunately for the vibe and the welfare of the hard-working vendors, someone gave the fairground robots a crash course in festivals, and they agreed not to

close the concert area for the rest of the weekend. Saturday arrived with uncertainty. This uncertainty manifested itself in a few different ways. According to the fairgrounds staff, anything is a weapon. Fans were hassled for everything. A pencil, a marble, taping equipment, as far as the staff was concerned we were criminals. Half an hour would not pass without someone reporting how they got hassled and searched. Thankfully the music this day was good enough to hold everyone's attention. Selah and Jive Turkee began the evening with interesting sets, and crowd favorites Ancient Harmony really got things moving. Remember the uncertain feeling that permeated? It reared its head again when Foxtrot Zulu had van trouble and only managed to squeeze in a 40-minute set. The real winner of the day was Jive Turkee, who filled the void of the first Foxtrot set and played for well over an hour combined. Donna the Buffalo performed a solid set of zydeco dance trance featuring many songs from their new CD Positive Friction - showing why they are festival favorites all over the East Coast. Finally, the entire site seemed to loosen up and smile when the dangerously funky, classic sounds of Original P poured forth from the stage. Their set included many classics like "Flashlight", "Tear the Roof of the Sucker", and "Red Hot Mama", the latter being a frequent visitor to Widespread Panic setlists that really drove home the realization that Sunday was going to be huge.

Sunday morning. The Panic freaks started rolling in at about 6 AM, just enough time for some of them to make the trip from the previous night's show in Columbia, Maryland. It seemed impossible that something as joyous and freewheeling as a Widespread Panic show could take place in the uptight confines of this city-owned fairground. As the crowd swelled to over 12,000, King Konga warmed up the site. Emma Gibbs Band received a great response to their rootsy, heartfelt set, which featured David Blackmon on fiddle. The buzz immediately spread that he would be joining Widespread Panic later on that evening. WSP drummers Sonny and Todd joined forces with King Konga and several dozen fans in creating a drum circle on the second stage. Next up was Bloodkin, who are well-known among "Spreadheads" for their contributions to WSP's catalog of songs. They churned out a biting, distortion-drenched set that perfectly set the mood for Panic. After a short tweener set by King Konga, all the camping, security, and hassles were forgotten, and the attendees breathed a collective sigh of relief as the first strains of "Holden Oversoul" rang out. WSP's set was not only the highlight of the weekend, it also served as a kind of communal "we made it"! Members of Bloodkin joined Panic for stirring renditions of "Quarter Tank of Gasoline" (not played since May of 1993) and "Who Do You Belong To". After an insane "Stop-Go -> Climb to Safety -> Drums" segment, David Blackmon joined the fray for "Driving Song" (which he lends fiddle to on Panic's "Everyday" album) and "Ain't Life Grand". The encore of "Nobody's Loss" and especially "Tallboy" left the crowd smiling and ecstatic, which is exactly how this festival needed to end.

The circumstances surrounding the relocation of the Jomeokee Jamboree were completely out of the promoter's hands. The real burden lies on the town of Winston-Salem and the staff of Lawrence Joel Coliseum (which, oddly, is one of the better indoor venues that Phish and their traveling horde stop at on a regular basis) and how they treat visitors to their town and facilities. The event was not a failure, and it was not a bad time. The staff of Ziggy's and all the people involved with putting on the event did a wonderful job. But the magic, communal spirit, and understanding that kind festivals have embraced was not evident. The verdict? Great music, great fans, and no respect from the city. Look for this festival to become one of the best on the east coast as they explore other venue options.

For more kind festival reviews, visit HomeGrownMusic.net/DancingTree.shtml

Bryan Rodgers works full-time at the Home Grown Music Network and can drive for a really long time without stopping