Grateful Dead

For more than three decades, Sonoma County’s Harmony Festival has attracted folks from all over the West to the city of Santa Rosa, about an hour north of San Francisco, for an event that brings together a wide variety of musical attractions from different genres in conjunction with various booths, exhibits and workshops dealing with, as their logo states: “Music, Art, Ecology, Healthy Living, Spirituality.” It’s a good-vibes event that draws a great cross-section of people young and old to the Sonoma County Fairgrounds.

I met Owsley at the age of eighteen. I had just left home, having run off with a Rock&Roll band. Bear, as we knew him, was one of my all-time biggest influences. Always, when I think of him, I think of the endless stuff he taught me or somehow made me realize, all stuff that I've been able to use to the benefit of countless people who probably don't know much about him or how deeply he influenced me and the rest of the band. Most important was the approach he taught me and us: Always be open and engaging - always critical and questioning, but not negatively so much as playfully.