In years past, Labor Day Weekend meant one and one thing only to me…the Bedford Blues Festival in Bedford, Texas. Each year it was a weekend celebration of not only Blues, but regional music as well. Some years would feature such Blues Giants as Keb Mo, John Mayall or Wilson Pickett and other years would have more of a Texas Flavor as Joe Ely, Stephen Bruton or Delbert McClinton would take over and help send me into Labor Day morning feeling very well, uh…labored. The crowds were always great, as the fest had a prime location, easy parking and the admission was just the right price…FREE! The throngs that migrated into the burbs for the shin-dig grew to biblical proportions as the organizers started bringing in the top names in Texas/Red Dirt music such as Pat Green, Radney Foster, and Cross Canadian Ragweed. The energetic-party vibe of the live experience for the bands became so well-loved by the artists that they began shooting live videos for their upcoming singles from their Bedford Festival appearances. Pat Green shot his video for “Carry On“ there and I was about a mile back, knee-deep in mud thanks to the deadly mixture of big crowds and rain on the previous night. A couple of years later however, the planets aligned for a great night as Cross Canadian Ragweed took to the stage to film a live video for the fan-favorite “Alabama.“ CCRagweed (sorry, as a big John Fogerty fan, it’s hard to say CCR) was beginning their climb from being merely one of the bands in a crowded Red Dirt scene to becoming kings of the hill and creating a name for themselves nationally. There was a definite electricity in the air (or was it powdered sugar from the funnel cake?) as the band came out and warmed us up with favorites such as “17,” “Sick and Tired,” “Anywhere But Here” and “Hammer Down.“ With a frenzied and inebriated crowd waiting to become a part of CMT history, Cody Canada shouted to the mass “Ok, after 7 years, this one’s seein’ the light of day.” The chorus of fans plugged in our air guitars and began to shred the opening notes of “Alabama” (duh-duh-duhduhduh). I was back in the crowd, in front of the sound board, so I had a great shot with even greater sound. The weather was perfect, the beer lines were shorter, thanks to increasing the number of tents selling the premium fest-souvenier, the band was tighter than most of the shirts that were being worn by the female Cross Canadian Crazies, AND I was off the next day thanks to Labor Day. Perfect. Sadly, that fateful night behind the HEB hospital would be the last one for the festival, as this coming weekend marks the 3 year anniversary since the night where I got to yell “Sweet Home Alabama” without it meaning that I was singing really lame karaoke. Below is the video, so get your air instrumesnts tuned and get busy.
CCRagweed, “Alabama” – Live @ Bedford Blues Fest ’04
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