Write Between the Lines is an exploration and articulation of
the obvious and the obscure. A cavalcade of creation and commentary
designed to amuse and bemuse.
Thank
You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin)
Almost
Famous
Film Review
by Katharine
E. Monahan Huntley
"Everyone’s
going."
An
expression doomed to
elicitan
adamant"No."A
desperate
entreaty to sway
the
immovable guardians of
adolescent
virtue and
vulnerability.
The attempt was
futile, nevertheless, I uttered those words to my upright,
uptight father, frantic to dance at the 1975 S.F. S.N.A.C.K.
concert — "San Francisco Students Need Athletics
Culture and Kicks" rock benefit.
"A
what?A rock and roll concert?Hippies?Yippies?I’ll be damned if I let my fourteen-year-old
daughter take part in one of those God knows what free for
alls."
Pleas
and promises and permission (grudgingly) granted.
Performing
artists: Joan Baez/Doobie Brothers/Bob Dylan/Graham Central
Station/The Grateful Dead/Jefferson Starship/Santana/Tower
of Power/Neil Young . . .
Screwdrivers
and cigarettes.Makeout
sessions with beautiful strangers.
My
slice of life occurs in the same era as Almost Famous.Cameron Crowe presents his "It’s all happening”
rock and roll film as a head-trip down memory lane for the
bands and fans.Stuck
in the 70s?No way — Crowe’s affection for the
players and poseurs onstage and off, and his unwavering
belief that music is real, marks Almost Famous as
a resonate think piece with an all access pass for its audience.
A
full-page advertisement in the April 27, 1975 Sunday edition (pink
section) of the San
Francisco Chronicle thanks all who financially contributed
and emotionally participated in S.N.A.C.K.The musicians and the crowd.The celebrities and the corporations.
In
fine print near the bottom a few individual donor names
appear.One is my father’s: Philip C. Monahan.He never intended for me to discover his contribution,
but like the true music fan Cameron Crowe is — I read
every single silly word written about the bands I love.
