A real bad trip, man

Too bad - Rockfest '99 could have been a great time

EDMONTON

Bummer, man.

What could've been the most important rock 'n' roll event in Alberta this summer - this decade, even - has turned into a catastrophe. Rockfest '99 is no more, cancelled, head out on the highway, here for a short time, not a good time. Hell will freeze over (or be 30 and sunny on New Year's Eve in Edmonton) before it ever comes back. Dig?

Leaving a trail of unpaid bills and dangerous ill will, promoter Frank Scott's name is as muddied as the Labatt Raceway site. With angry suppliers screaming for his hide, he took a powder for parts unknown yesterday afternoon. He's undoubtedly a little sore in the bargain after being kneed in the groin - in front of his own kids, no less - by the irate manager of the Five Man Electrical Band (a woman named Taunia Sawchuk, who weighs all of 90 pounds - still no excuse for such low-class behaviour).

Sign, sign, everywhere a sign, peace and love mean nothing when our cash is on the line ....

Frank got off easy. I talked to people in the campground who wanted to string him up by his family jewels.

Even the top people who worked with Rockfest are hurting. Production manager John Power was left with a multi-million dollar sound rig - which sounded great, by the way - and no way to get home.

"I'm numb," he said yesterday. "You got a plane ticket for me?"

Sad, very sad. I've seen more disorganized events than Rockfest '99 - anyone remember Highwood? - but not on such a grand scale.

It could've been so much more. This wasn't just a rock festival. It could've been a cultural event on the order of Woodstock (or Altamont, if the plug had been pulled before Def Leppard went on). It was a coming together of people of a certain age group and class for the common purpose of getting wrecked and enjoying bands whose songs defined their youth. Call them hippies, call them bikers, call them a hardy combination of both, this crowd was some of the most genuine and interesting people I've ever come into contact with. With all the booze and drugs being consumed, there were only about a dozen arrests, mostly for being drunk and disorderly. These folks come from a lifestyle of pure, simple libertarianism: Mind your own business, don't mess with mine.

(I made a crack about the fans getting "ugly" in the delay before Loverboy on Saturday; one fellow in the campground took exception to this. If you're reading this, dude, thanks for not kicking my ass).

While Def Leppard and Sammy Hagar may have been the big draws, many of the people came to see bands like Nazareth, 38 Special, Kansas. They haven't had a hit since the average Edgefest fan was born, but these folks didn't care. As Sly Dog, a wheelchair-bound biker-type said happily, "We'll travel anywhere for good s--- like this."

Picking through the wreckage of the weekend (and stepping carefully over the unsanitary conditions of the facilities), let us look for the positive things.

Off the top, the festival didn't end for some of the die-hard campers left in the mud. In true Alberta spirit, they made their own Rockfest. Generators and musical instruments were assembled so local band Blind Panic could stage a free concert last night. I'll bet it turned into a hell of a jam.

Rick Derringer was one of the first acts of Rockfest '99 and also one of the best. His nitro-fueled guitar playing and passionate vocals proved that he's still as formidable force on the stage as he is in the studio.

Local rock band Joe Rockhead, based on its solid performance on the "B" stage, should be headlining rock festivals before too long. Their lyrics are a bit silly - as if Rock and Roll Hoochie Koo isn't - but this band has huge potential.

And to top it off, tequila-glorifying rock star Sammy Hagar made all of us forget our troubles during his performance on Saturday night. Now that his Van Halen woes are behind him, he's found his mission: "Promoting happiness," as he puts it, with fun, blissfully mindless tunes that can make old rockers feel young again.

When you come right down to it, that was really the whole point of this thing - making Rockfest '99 a success in spite of its spectacular failure.

Rock on!