Unfortunately I missed this concert by a couple of days, but it was easy to imagine – the sense of community and the power of the songs – in the vibe that lingered.
Mike Aiken comments:
“A town hall, in New England, is exactly that: a hall where the town (the people of the town) can gather to discuss their business, air their concerns, be heard and (possibly) influence the town’s future. The buildings themselves are therefore a statement of faith: that what goes in, comes out transformed by the town mind. And there indeed is a core democratic principle.
Woody Guthrie held this faith, and preached it far and wide, probably in many small towns like Jamaica, Vermont. 21st Century Vermont, however, is not the Dust Bowl of the Thirties, and not even close to the Vermont photographed by the Works Progress Administration in the 30’s. But Woody Guthrie’s songs are remembered, and celebrated, and out of THAT act of keeping faith with the man and his thoughts and words, maybe there is a new world coming along out of what he saw and heard.”