Four decades ago my friend Chet Helms had this vision, an answer to the decadence and death in Vietnam, to the bigotry and animosity that mirrored Civil Rights and how the universal elixor could be the music that defined an entire generation and decade and the tapestry that was woven by the pillars of the counter culture, the icons of the era, inclusive of musicians, agents, poets and artists.

The nomadic youth of the day were on a sojourn to the west coast, to the Valhalla of the "hippiedom" and the capitol of psychedelia, Haight Ashbury in San Francisco. Amidst the background of youthful flower children in search of personal identity, Chet Helms would construct an event that would become musical folklore and now, forty years after that endeavor, the remnants of that event are on their way to Pinellas Park to share the euphoria of the past as we gaze into the future. it can be any year to orchestrate a festive Summer of Love and in this year of 2007, perhaps an event of given magnitude that mirrors the concerns of sixties activists and songs of protest is a much needed and desired escape from the anxieties and concerns of yet another uselss war in a far away land.

Thoughts of yesteryear permeate the air in these Summer of Love performances as Jefferson Airplane survivors Marty Balin & Paul Kantner, Big Brother & The Holding Company's Sam Andrew, David Getz and Peter S. Albin resurrect the vitality and impact of Janis Joplin and Tom Constanten of The Grateful Dead displays why The Grateful Dead became a cultural phenomenon and folklore for those who are pundits of music history.

The addition of Quicksilver messenger Service remnants and stalwarts of the musical revolution, David Freiberg and Gary Duncan augment this collective time capsule along with David & Linda LaFlamme of It's A Beautiful Day. All are collectively more weathered now, the passage of time taking a visual toll on some but their skills remain, the rapport and charisma that would exude during the glory of the dance hall venues, i.e., The Fillmore Auditorium, The Fillmore West, Winterland and the fabled Avalon ballroom, owned and run by the affalble and charming Chet Helms.

Events of the era were clandestine, inclusive of poetry, posters, music and the fragrances that permeated the grassy knolls of Golden gate park. This was the Victorian edifice, the face of sixties rebellion and the songs that defined us. The music was a focal point but the ambience was just as critical to the masses as the lyrics. The excitement of the impending Summer of love in the old Polo Grounds resonated throughout the country and a neoteric band of the day would grasp the magnitude of the tentative event and utilize one of Stanley Owsley's chemicals for perpetuity, i.e., Dickie peterson and Blue Cheer. The expectations began to reach monumental proportions and visions of exotic mavens and whirling dervishes cavorting to the sounds of jefferson Airplane, BBHC and QMS on that January 14th in 1967 became the destination for 25,000 fans of this new San Francisco Sound.

We were hopeful for a change, a simple belief that the magic of music and cultural accpetance would cure the wounds of world. It didn't transpire the way we would have wanted but, in this year of 2007, the ideology of the past seems to be a better motif for the future than what we've been acclaimated to the last few decades. Pandering to the past isn't the vision that most survivors want to strive for, we frequent these performances in an effort to relive the memories that surface from the recesses of our minds and hope that the youth of the day can see something other than the sensationalism of sex, drugs and rock n' roll and find that the music of content will survive and perpetuate based on the content of the songwriters.

This is the last stand for a myriad of these bands in a collective effort to celebrate what once was and should be, peace through commonality of music and cultural acceptance. Join us on these blustery days of winter in florida and find the glory and vibrance that was once synonymous with the musicians and venues of the Golden Age, they are older now but they still make memories and leave nothing but legendary footprints.

Cheers
- Don Aters