Guthrie Reminds Sanders Crowd About the Power of His Past

Arlo Guthrie

at Sanders Theater

A sold-out Sanders Theater crowd sang along with Arlo Guthrie last Saturday night. Wearing his now totally gray hair long and ragged, Guthrie proved that the spirit of folk music lives on into the '90s.

Guthrie was without backup for most of the two and a half hour long show. It was just him, his guitar, his twangy vocals and--most entertaining of all--his trademark rambling interludes.

The crowd yelled out traditional requests, and Guthrie complied goodnaturedly, joking about just how many times he's played some of those old songs. Still, one sensed in the crowd's insistence the nostalgic pressure that can turn old folk singers into monuments to the past. Guthrie managed to force nostalgia out and replace it with a truly energetic force by riffing through a particularly strong rendition of "Coming into Los Angeles."

"The City of New Orleans" met with great crowd satisfaction and Guthrie's voice gave life to the old lyrics and managed to enliven the familiar song.

In a hilariously underhanded tribute, Guthrie led an enthusiastic audience through a sing along of Dylan's "Walking Down the Line." Also paying homage to his father, Guthrie played "Pretty Boy Floyd," and joked about "stealing" songs from his father, who so often "stole" from others.

His newer songs, mostly played on the piano along with some spectacular harmonica playing, lacked the immediate accessibility of the old familiars.

"Keep the Dream Alive," featuring rolling piano accompaniment, outdid itself. Its lyrics--openly sentimental and recalling Guthrie's days at Woodstock--clashed uncomfortably with his otherwise witty, undercutting remarks.

Just after intermission, Guthrie was awarded with a "Courage of Conscience" Peace Award, granted by The Life Experience School and Peace Abbey. After the solemn awarding, Guthrie quipped: "I thought I was dead there for a moment."

Guthrie was then joined onstage by Ed Gearhardt, who accompanied him on guitar. The two strummed their way through an extended version of "Alice's Restaurant," which included an "historical footnote" a la Guthrie, relating to the missing sections of the Watergate tapes.

Gearhardt's soulful guitar and his occasional use of a slide added a depth that Guthrie's solo performance sometimes lacked.

But it wasn't really for his technical finesse that Guthrie received a standing ovation after a bluesy closing rendition of "Amazing Grace,"--it was his constant, conversational interaction with the audience.

Guthrie now owns the church Alice of "Alice's Restaurant" used to live in. He's promoting his son's band now and watching Woodstock--the video--with him.

Despite the changes, Guthrie retains his power to entertain, to endear, to ramble and finally--to remind his listeners once again of music's potential to change the world.