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July 7, 2010
It's time to go back to school
Not the regular kind of school, mind you,
but it’s time to head over to Cascade Locks and see the kids from
the School of
Rock.
Now, I know what you’re thinking. You,
just like I did, immediately thought of the movie from a few years
back, “School of
Rock.” Which, by the way, has one of
the most classic first scenes in a movie, ever.
I mean, it’s been a while since I’ve seen
the movie, but to this day, I can still see Mr. Black standing up
on stage, signaling to the “sound-guy” from ten feet away, that he
needs to turn up his stage monitors, because apparently the full
Marshall Stack amplifier he’s playing through is NOT loud enough
to be heard over the roar of the non-existent crowd.
So, if we’re not talking about the movie “School
of Rock,” then what
exactly is going on here?
School
of Rock, as I’m
learning, is a music camp that has schools in several states,
including Oregon.
The best students are given a chance to be in an All-Star Band,
and then the band embarks on a summer tour.
And too me, that sounds like a lot of fun.
But wait, there’s more. The show is being
billed as a re-make of the now famous 1985 Live Aid event.
Now, I guess you can pretty much date me
for this, but I do remember watching this concert on the TV, or,
more specifically, the MTV. (And the MTV, back then, was only for
music videos and music news. I have no idea what it is now, but I
probably wouldn’t recognize it.)
And yes, I remember watching it – and
wishing I was there. It was quite an event – the
US portion was in
Philadelphia, and I think a concert was
held simultaneously in the UK.
I remember looking at the two crowds – the
UK crowd was completely calm and
organized, which is quite a feat for something like 70,000 people.
The US
crowd definitely seemed a bit more animated, and I think they had
to cool the crowd off in the first 100 rows with water hoses.
Looking back, this concert was quite an
event. I mean, not only did bands like Led Zeppelin “reunite” for
a few songs, but musicians like Phil Collins were playing the
UK portion of the show, and then
getting on the Concord
jet – flying to Philly – and playing the
US show.
To play with bands like Led Zeppelin.
Could you imagine having that penciled in
on your calendar?
Now, I don’t think the
School of Rock
has access to Concord
jets and sound equipment that could play to crowds of 100,000, but
my bet is that these talented teens are thrilled to play for any
crowd, and I hope you go support them.
Now, before I leave you with a short
interview with the School
of Rock promoters, I
realize that you’re just dying to know one thing.
Jim, what are you going to wear to the
concert?
Well, I’m telling ya, all this talk of
1985, and concerts, and rock music, and Live Aid? Are you kidding?
Do you know how many ticket stubs I have from the 80s? I still
have those, you know.
But there’s one thing I don’t have
anymore, and it’s killing me.
I don’t have any of my concert
T-shirts.
I swear, if one of those relics appeared
in my closet today, I’d put it on in a second and head over to the
show.
Besides, the shirt would probably still
fit.
School of Rock presents a benefit
concert at Cascade Locks Marine Park for the Cascade Locks Food
Bank on Friday, July 9, at 7
p.m.
For an interview with School of Rock
Promoter
Angela Thomas, click
here:
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