Gathering of the Vibes 2009 part 3 Sunday

Gathering of the Vibes 2009 part 3 Sunday
by Lauren Traub Teton

"This was truly the best Gathering of the Vibes I have been to in the 4 that I have attended."

The perfect festival weather roll we've been on since late Saturday night continued for the daytime GOV shows on Sunday. What a treat to hear Buddy Guy do a song with Grace Potter and the Nocturnals. He sat in on their last song, and the show seemed to segue seemlessly into the Buddy Guy performance. Again, they keep you busy and there was astonishingly little downtime between acts at this year's Gathering of the Vibes.

Buddy Guy is a master of the blues and the audience boogied and loved it. "One leg to the East, one leg to the west, and Buddy was in the middle tryin' to do his best!" This 5 Grammy Award Winner learned at the elbow of Muddy Waters and Howlin' Wolf. Buddy Guy is continuing the tradition with a gifted amazing blond kid who plays in Buddy's band. Did someone say he was 12 years old? We couldn't hear his name but we know we'll be hearing from this next Stevie Ray Vaughn. We were doubly blessed when Grace Potter joined Buddy Guy on his stage for a song.

Crosby, Still and Nash played the final set of the Gathering of the Vibes Festival, that had been running since Thursday. On the first several numbers they sounded like they had drunk a 5-hour Energy Drink about 7 hours earlier. The set changed up the pace with a cover of the Stones "Ruby Tuesday." Storm clouds were quickly gathering, and having experienced a flash storm at this festival Friday night, it was just time to go. I planned to listen to the rest of the show in my car on WPKN who had been graciously broadcasting the music all weekend. But alas, CSN did not give permission for their show to be broadcast. I slipped away from Seaside Park and the crowd as the raindrops started to pelt, about 10 minutes before the end of the act.

In all, only about an hour of music was pre-empted by rain on Friday, Saturday, or Sunday. Amazing considering the history of rain that follows this (and every NY/New England summer music festival I have ever attended.) We're sorry half of the moe show was lost in the evacuation Friday night. This GOV 2009 ran with military precision and here's a shout-out to all the people who made it happen and sacrificed sleep when needed. We hear planning of the next GOV starts 3 days after the last one finishes!

This was truly the best Gathering of the Vibes I have been to in the 4 that I have attended. The two years I went to the shows in Mariaville, upstate NY were magic. The first year back in Seaside Park ('07) was the settling down year. Now the magic is back. It wasn't just the music, it was the high vibration of the crowd. It is great to be with music lovers who are dancing and enjoying themselves. Magic happens in a loose flowing environment like this, and it did!

A couple of tips for GOV goers:

Ferry
*If you're coming from eastern Long Island, consider the Port Jefferson to Bridgeport ferry. I took it over this year and it was so pleasant. Make a reservation before. The cost was $51 for a car and driver. The ferry runs with precision. It takes an hour plus to get across, and drops you about a mile from the festival and you'll see signs to get you there.

If you're a Twifty
(Twifties are people who are in their late 40s and up and FUN!! And there were lots of them at Gathering of the Vibes!) consider buying VIP tickets. This year the VIP area had 2 spacious shady tents where the show could be seen. One tent had snacks, drinks, beer for sale, and a dance floor. The other one was furnished with cushy sofas. The VIP area is a refuge from the harsh realities of weather and a great place to chill. Of course you can go into the main concert area too from there.
VIP tickets usually sell out, plan early! VIP ticket holders get 2 catered lunches, close parking, a special camping area, and more.

Rain
It's no fun to sleep in water if you're not a fish. Bring an air mattress to raise your sleeping bag above water that will seep into your tent. Expect it!