Returning home after time away often presents reentry problems, especially when one’s journey is as magnificent as our stay in Sweden. Fortunately, I get to return to a place magical in its own right, populated with those compadres that I have amassed over the past 17 years. Although the Valley can be quiet compared to a city, we also attract an outsized amount of outside talent, musical and otherwise. By happenstance, on one of my first nights back in town and already a bit bored, I noted that the Band of Heathens was playing the Eagle River Jamboree the next day and I did not hesitate to purchase an entry pass.
For the uninitiated and/or those not from Texas, the Band of Heathens is a country rock band that has been based out of Austin for the past two decades. Prior to the group’s start, Gordy, the lead singer with an unbelievably cool coif, and Trevor, the preternaturally chill keyboardist, were my Dartmouth classmates and friends. My freshman roommate, Dave Reid, was a Massachusetts-born football player, teammates with Trev and Gordo, who hailed from NorCal and Texas, respectively. Through Dave, I got to know the duo pretty well and, as our college years progressed, had some foundational times with them. I also had the great fortune to watch them play music together as well as with other arrangements, including in some of my other friends’ bands.
As life goes, other than at long-ago formal college reunions, I had not had any meaningful interactions with Trevor or Gordy in perhaps the fifteen years that preceded their set in Eagle. Through mutual friends, I was aware of their general direction and, post-divorce, I dated a girl who was a massive Band of Heathens fan, which at least brought me back into their musical orbit. And then, on a beautiful Colorado evening, as the sun began to set, I stood transfixed in the front row as Gordy crooned and Trevor dazzled and the band plain old rocked. Those in the crowd around me, many of whom had come specifically to see Band of Heathens, were similarly moved, dancing with abandon as the music poured out.
With the tunes wrapping up, I was caught in an internal quandary – did I say something to them or just let the experience of watching them play again stay gleefully in my mind? In the end, after an uncharacteristic bout of shyness, I leaned over the rail and said hi to Gordy and Trevor. After a brief second of their disbelief, I was relieved to see that not only did they recognize me, but were clearly happy to see me there.
Taking a bit to take down their equipment, we then rendezvoused for a beer. As we stood there in the field catching up, it was eye-opening to see how they interacted with their fans, some of whom were very intense and serious and some of whom were so intoxicated as to be nonverbal. Seeking a bit of distance from discourse that they have undertaken for twenty years, they then invited me back to their tour bus for further, more private discussion.
Giddy like a groupie, I entered their decked-out Prevost, a rolling testament to their long years on the road that have earned them a rightful place in comfort. Over the next few hours, we traded stories and commiserated and celebrated the travails and joys of parenthood and middle age. All possessing the inevitable gray hairs of men of our age, it was nonetheless a time warp, two decades gone in a flash as I could picture them just as they were in college. At the same time, it was affirming to see the wisdom that they had accumulated, to see the great men that they had become. We particularly bonded over being girl dads and at seeking out the road a bit less travelled – them being a band that eschewed record deals over owning their own music and me being in a somewhat non-traditional legal career.
Soon it was time for them to roll onto the next gig in Taos and, as one final amazing gesture, they dropped me in Edwards on their way out of town. Parting on the bus steps, we embraced and wished each other well until we reconvened again. Regardless of what the future holds, for those wonderful hours, I was ensconced in the beautiful alchemy of time and space, felt the Dartmouth foundation in my heart, and then went to sleep with a giant smile on my face.