Alice’s Restaurant Massacree Celebrates 50th Anniversary
We know the younger generations probably don’t know who Arlo Guthie is, so here a little bit about one of our favorite musicians.
Arlo is the eldest son of folk music legend, Woody Guthrie, and has followed in his father’s footsteps by becoming a legend in his own right. Arlo’s career exploded in 1967 with the release of “Alice’s Restaurant”. The song premiered at the Newport Folk Festival, and helped foster a new commitment among the ’60s generation to social consciousness and activism.
Arlo went on to star in the 1969 Hollywood film version of “Alice’s Restaurant”, directed by Arthur Penn. Alice’s Restaurant, which was too long for radio airplay; “Coming into Los Angeles” which was banned from many radio stations (but a favorite at the 1969 Woodstock Festival); and his definitive rendition of Steve Goodman’s “City of New Orleans”, proved that Guthrie was no One-Hit-Wonder.
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An artist of international stature, he has never had a ‘hit’ in the usual sense. Arlo walk to his own beat, rather than march in step to the rhythms and trends of popular culture. Over the last five decades Guthrie has toured North America, Europe, Asia, Africa and Australia winning a wide, popular following. In addition to his accomplishments as a musician, playing the piano, six and twelve-string guitar, harmonica and a dozen other instruments, Arlo is a natural-born storyteller, whose tales and anecdotes figure prominently in his performances. In 1991 he purchased the old trinity Church where events took place that led to him writing of Alice’s Restaurant.
Arlo will be hitting hit the road across the USA during 2015 to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the famed “Alice’s Restaurant Massacree.” The musical monologue, running 18-minutes long, has become a Thanksgiving holiday tradition for years. Guthrie will perform his classic song in its entirety at every stop on the tour. Joining Guthrie will be Terry Hall on drums, Bobby Sweet and Darren Todd on guitar, and Arlo’s son, Abe Guthrie, on keyboards. Each show will also be curated with a special multi-media presentation featuring previously unseen images from the Guthrie archives. For the full tour schedule, visit www.arlo.net.
