Hippiefest brings back magic of the '60s
"Those were the days, my friend, we thought they'd never end," Mary Hopkin sang in the 1968 hit single.
Originally a Russian ballad, the song's melancholy yearning can be viewed today as a prescient postcard from the 1960s.
But was the decade as enchanting as it often is portrayedâ¢
"I'm not sure that, to me, it was mystical or magical," says Mark Volman of The Turtles, performing Friday at Hippiefest at the Pepsi-Cola Roadhouse. "But I would say there certainly is a tremendous interest in the music of this particular era."
Thus, Hippiefest, a contemporary descendent of the barnstorming rock shows. This year's show features The Turtles, Felix Cavaliere of the Rascals, Mountain, Badfinger and Chuck Negron, formerly of Three Dog Night.
"This is kind of the way we grew up," Negron says of the festival format. "Now, it's become this reunion in the sense that it is bringing back memories of a wonderful time."
What's notable about the bands involved is the number of memorable songs produced, from the Turtles' "Happy Together" to "Groovin'" by the Rascals to "Mississippi Queen" by Mountain or Badfinger's "Day After Day."
Negron alone is a compendium of '60s rock, with "Mama Told Me Not to Come," "Joy to the World" and "Eli's Coming" among his standouts with Three Dog Night.
"I think the difference between us and songwriters today is that our songs weren't just a moment in time," Negron says. "They are good songs to this day. They gave the singer a great melody and lyrics to work with."
Neither Negron nor Volman, however, saw rock music as a long-term endeavor. Negron, who was a star basketball player growing up in the Bronx, admits he got into music to "hang out with girls." When his avocation began to interfere with basketball at California State University, he chose to sing rather than dribble, a choice he doesn't regret.
"It was a great opportunity, and I went for it," he says.
Volman says that when he formed The Turtles with Howard Kaylan -- they would go on to comprise the duo Flo & Eddie and perform with Frank Zappa's Mothers of Invention -- there was no thought given to music as a long-term career.
"I've been coming to Pittsburgh as The Turtles, as Flo & Eddie, as the Mothers (of Invention) all through my life," Volman says. "If you'd have said I was coming through with this tour called Hippiefest in 2009, I would have said that's impossible."
What has happened is partly due to chance and partly due to the enduring quality of the songs. Negron says the music of the 1960s, at least in retrospect, seems remarkably sturdy and enduring, especially in comparison to contemporary songcraft.
"Music today is kind of a feel and a hook," he says. "There are very few great songs being written, and I think that's going to tell. This generation's music probably isn't going to last 20 years."
Volman isn't so quick to dismiss today's music. In the 1960s and 1970s, he says, songwriters -- he cites Jackson Browne and Tom Waits as examples -- were nurtured and given a chance to succeed. Radio was more willing to take chances with artists who didn't adhere to a formula, be it Bob Dylan, Janis Joplin or Steely Dan.
Contrast that era with today, when pop music tends to mean the Jonas Brothers, Miley Cyrus or Taylor Swift. Then look at what Hippiefest offers.
"There are so many great songs," Volman says. "Chuck is singing better than he ever has. When you go back in history, you can pick out your favorite songs: 'One' or 'Easy to Be Hard,' all those great songs that Chuck Negron was responsible for. It's the same when you hear a group like The Rascals and hear the voice of Felix Cavaliere.
"Those are fun for us, and that's what makes a tour like this really fun."
Additional Information:
Hippiefest
Featuring: Chuck Negron, The Turtles, Felix Cavaliere, Mountain, Badfinger
When: 7:30 p.m. Friday
Admission: $85-$115, which includes dinner
Where: Pepsi-Cola Roadhouse, Burgettstown
Details: Web site
