The Beginning of our Summer Music Experience

Kim and I have a music filled summer ahead of us and I thought I would share some of our experiences with all of you. We started our summer of music by attending a concert in Shiprock, New Mexico on Monday, May 21 that featured the Indigo Girls. Oh my, holy Hannah! What an amazing experience! Those of you that know my wife know she loves the Indigo Girls but until you see them live it is hard to really explain why she has so much passion and commitment to them. They were absolutely amazing and mind blowing. If you ever get the chance to see them in concert, you have to take the chance. I still can’t get over how amazing it was.

A Hopi reggae band called Casper opened the show. This group had an amazing amount of energy and really surprised me. When I heard that a “Hopi reggae band” was opening for the Indigo Girls I was a little skeptical, but they certainly won me over by the time they were done playing their set. They were fun to listen to and had a great message in their lyrics. Probably one of the most enjoyable elements of their performance was to watch Amy and Emily of the Indigo girls jamming to Casper’s music while back stage. From our vantage point we could see just off stage right and those ladies appreciated the performance just as much as we did. It was a lot of fun.

Now, I am going to take a moment to get a little preachy on you. Many of you might be wondering why the Indigo Girls would conduct a concert in Shiprock, New Mexico. Initially we also wondered. It turned out they were doing it to support a grass roots cause associated with a valid environmental cause. The concert, was sponsored by a group called “Honor the Earth”, and was a benefit concert designed to lend support to grassroots Native groups working to stop the Desert Rock coal plant. The grass roots effort desires that the Navajo Nation and other native cultures explore a safe energy economy, one based on the renewable energy potential of Native lands.

I feel this is a valid concern, an appropriate idea, and a cause worth supporting. It is time we take the initiative and explore better ways to exist in this world without causing it harm. Some of you may not think this idea aligns with my core values as a Mormon, but I would suggest otherwise. I firmly believe the Lord expects me to take care of this earth and treat it with respect. He doesn’t expect me to squander my inheritance by mistreating what I have been given or leave messes for future generations to deal with and clean up. A favorite saying of mine is one as if the Lord spoke it himself: He says, “Okay, now you’ve got the multiply part down. How about you work on the replenish.” Many will recognize this from the command to “multiply and replenish the earth.” Well, I think it is time we obey that command and do what we can to conserve and renew the earth. Just take a moment to think about it and do small things to make a difference that is all I am saying.

Okay, I am done preaching. Now back to the music. The Indigo Girls took the stage by singing “Pendulum Swinger” a new song of their latest album. It is a great song, and so much more amazing when you see it performed live. Those two ladies have so much passion and emotion wrapped into their music. It was incredible to watch them. They are so gifted and so talented. They really blew my mind! They switched guitars after every song and even switched in the middle of a song and didn’t miss a beat. They finished by playing the most amazing rendition of “Chicken Man” I have ever seen or heard. It was time well spent and great to be there with my wife and her sister. Thanks for dragging me there Kim it was a wonderful experience!

As I noted in the opening paragraph we have a summer of music ahead of us. I will try to post about each experience as we have them, so look for more. Just to give you an idea of what lies ahead for us. We are going to Indiefest in Pagosa Springs on June 9 & 10, and then we will watch the Indigo Girls again in Salt Lake City at Red Butte Gardens on June 19. Finally, we will likely wrap up our summer by attending the Folks Festival at Lyons, Colorado on August 19 in order to see Gandalf Murphy & The Slambovian Circus of Dreams. We haven’t committed to that one yet but right now we are talking about going. It should be a great music filled summer. I will let you know how it goes.