THE RAISING OF THE PEACE | ATLANTA, GA

Photos by Adam Gulledge

The sixth annual Raising Of The Peace is upon us, and The Dunhams have put together another hippified bash to ring in the new year. The North Mississippi AllStars will once again grace the Variety Playhouse stage for an electrifying, jam-flavored New Year's celebration, this year partially in celebration of the life of Ken Kesey. All of the proceeds for the event will go toward the Upper Chattahoochie River Keeper to help preserve the majestic waterway.

Last year the AllStars delivered a spectacular performance, and Ancient Harmony lived up to the co-billing with a splendid exhibition of their current sound, mixing old favorites with some of their more recent material. This year NMAS will be joined by a band that is preparing for a 2001 that will find them moving from a local to a regional act with active Southeast touring, Ghost Trane.

Those who were in attendance last year will surely speak to the festive nature of the memorable evening. The camaraderie and enthusiasm of The Dunham/NMAS audience was overwhelming from the first note of Harmony's set to the deafening roar of the audience after NMAS wrapped up some five hours later. Maria, Jeff and the entire Dunham family took the stage shortly before midnight, joined by their friends Scotty Andrews and Hal Johnston for the actual Raising Of The Peace. Father Time (Gary Cameron) also made an appearance to sprinkle "space dust" on the smiling crowd (it WAS non-toxic dust, by the way), and we all sang "Happy Birthday" to New Year's Day birth girl Stella Blue Dunham (she turned five). This annual Atlanta ROTP tradition gave way to a vicious set of sick music delivered with understated cool by the North Mississippi AllStars. It also marked the band's longest set to date, as they offered a few new tunes, and some wildly extended versions of their standards like, "Po," "Black Maddie," and "Goin' Down South." Many could not tear themselves away from the area in front of the stage, transfixed on the dizzying guitar of Luther Dickinson (myself included) The Dunhams had presented the band to many times their extensive listening audience long before the NMAS explosion (he broadcasted a show of their's some time ago), and the band clearly was returning the favor by throwing down an extremely special show.

The North Mississippi AllStars appeal to a wide variety of music lovers. The band's reverence for past musicians is audible to even the casual listener, yet they seamlessly work hip-hop beats, jazz-aware improvisations, and jam grooves into their seductive sound. This year, NMAS is riding high on the recent release of their second album 51 Phantom. The December release represents a step forward for the band, as they have further fleshed out their traditional-based, God-respecting, psychedilic, blues-hop sound to a realm that is truly their own. The album is also composed mostly of original material (the tunes on the first album were mostly genre-bashing, contemporary-aware slants on native-Mississippi-penned blues chestnuts), and it is produced by rock legend Jim Dickinson. Dickinson has been known for years with his numerous collaborations with a veritable who's who of rock 'n roll (he plays the piano on the Stones' hit version of "Wild Horses," and he has recently done extensive work with Bob Dylan), but he now has a new wave of fame at his doorstep as the man who fathered two-thirds of the hottest blues-based band in the country. "We've worked together through the years," Luther says "but we've never done a full record."

Luther, his drumming brother Cody and the powerful bassist Chris Chew make up this unit. Their shows have quickly spawned a startling word-of-mouth buzz across the country as the band has an unerring knack for delivering robust sets of music with an modern vitality that is infectuous. At a recent performance in Chattanooga the band was faced with a somewhat docile audience, but by the end of the night there was wild dancing and whooping in response to their infectiously energetic presentation. Their sound was augmented by the knifing guitar and soulful vocals of Duane Burnside, yet another musical son of the legendary R.L. NMAS is clearly on a roll, and I would not be surprised if this year's set exceeds last year's in length and intensity.

The burgeoning Ghost Trane will open the show with a two and one half hour set. How fitting is it that Ghost Trane ends another great year for The Dunhams after Ghost Trane was the kick-off live broadcast back in early January? (that was a rhetorical question, please do not actually attempt to answer it.) The band has a knack for creating original compositions from established rock, blues, jazz and reggae chord structures, and even older, more traditional lyrical influences. I liken what they are doing to what Bob Dylan did with folk, and later rock themes early in his career. Word has it that The Trane has a new batch of material which will find them continuing to carve their own sound.

There are many reasons to love this band, but recently I have found myself drawn to their brawny rhythm section. Jambands sometimes fall into he "softpedal" problem due to wimpy rhythm sections. This is certainly not the case with Ghost Trane. This unit benefits from bassist Clark Lee and drummer Brian Weinberg's experience with harder edged music. They drive The Trane through powerful moments, and keep the band from gratuitous meandering, yet they also have a healthy respect for "the jam." Weinberg has quickly become a noted drummer, causing some to go out of their way to hang out on his side of the stage. He and Lee provide a muscular platform from which Alex Ginzburg (lead guitar, vocals), Alex Picca (rhythm guitar, vocals) and Will Gordon (percussion, vocals) launch into stratospheric realms. Ginzberg has gained particular noteriety very quickly, as people are often heard "buzzing" around town about recent "Ginz"-driven moments of particularly enticing improvisation.

Another way I have attempted to explain to people why I am so fond of this band is that on the one hand I know they have a significant love of and respect for The Grateful Dead, yet on the other hand, I also wasn't surprised to run into 4/5ths of the band at a recent Tool concert in town (Tool is one of the most creative bands on the planet right now). Ghost Trane is unquestionably a unique band. They seem to add to their considerable diversity with virtually every performance. This is a perfect opportunity to see them before their Atlanta appearances become a little less frequent as they grow across the country. This Trane is truly bound for glory.

I hope to see everybody out at The Variety supporting the Upper Chattahoochie River Keeper and dancing into the New Year with The Dunhams. Hopefully this will begin an Atlanta tradition of North Mississippi AllStars New Year's Eve shows. It would only be appropriate for the Southern-fueled AllStars to begin and end their year's in the "de facto" capital of the Southeast. The Raising Of The Peace has grown from a little celebration of 200 people in front of the now-defunct Good Ol' Days in Little Five Points, and I hope it continues to grow with NMAS.

Rob Turner
JamBase Atlanta Correspondent
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