GTP 2024

 

Looking towards the Main Stage

Dear Mumford & Sons: It's not your fault.

As I write, you're down at Roger Sherman Baldwin Park, rocking the crowd.

Don't worry. I see the videos being posted on social media. You guys are doing great.

But we're not there.

Sean is in his room, talking with his friends, and winding down.

I'm sitting on the couch, waiting for the Yankees game to start.

The thing is, the Greenwich Town Party is a long day of great bands, all of whom put on wonderful performances.

We're there from the very beginning, walking in right around when the gates open.

Then we're setting up, looking for power and, most of all, an audio feed from the sound tent.

I mean these are the same things that we look for every year.

I kid you not. Every. Year.

We rarely have what we need when we show up.

Today, the tent was set up. We had tables and chairs and even power. A sign hung atop saying "WGCH.com 1490 am"

Once again, we were shoved off to the side of the park, a result of the year the Eagles were the headline act. My only conclusion was that Don Henley was afraid of us. I mean, what else could it be?

(Mr. Henley didn't want some small-town radio station around. I'm sure he somehow felt we'd take money from his pocket and one does not do that to him. Maybe Mojo Nixon was right years ago.)

In any event, we've been there ever since, and despite our protests, nothing will change.

Look, fair enough, We can't see anything in terms of either stage but we're sort of used to it. The staff in the area we work is awesome, allowing us access to food and drinks all day.

But it's the audio cable fiasco that warps my vinyl every year.

It's no secret that we are there to broadcast the event. Every year. Thus, we need access to the direct audio from the stages. Every year.

And yet, we have to basically beg for an audio cable. Every year.

We were escorted to our tent after initially being told we weren't allowed to walk down that path. But we were quickly helped out.

Then we were told the audio cable was in our tent when we arrived. It wasn't. Then we were told it was on the way. 

We were also given different badges so that we could have a little more access around the grounds. To that end, we didn't take advantage of what we were given. We make sure to not overstep our boundaries.

The first band was scheduled to take the stage at 11:40 a.m.

11 a.m. No cable. We went on the air a few minutes later to do a brief scene-setter and announced we'd be back around 11:30.

Not long after this, "The Star-Spangled Banner" and "God Bless America" were performed. A band performed after that but they weren't on our schedule. Still, I would have liked to get that on the air. But, OK, we were still on schedule.

11:15 a.m. No cable. I grabbed a bottle of water and stalked around looking for help.

11:30 a.m. No cable. Bob Small is now going on the air to say he thought he'd hear from us.

11:35 a.m. No cable. Sean and I have to hunt down Quincy, the man who runs the area we're stationed in. It's not his thing to get the cable but he rattled a few cages. He went above and beyond.

As that conversation happens, we watch Fashionably Late take the stage and they were fashionably early. We were the ones who were now late.

I'm calm overall, telling myself there's nothing I can do.

Sean is actually annoyed. Very. 

"This is disrespectful to the band and us," he said.

He's right, and I recognize that energy. I think I know where he inherited it.

Fashionably Late is on stage and crushing it. These kids -- seniors from Greenwich Country Day School -- are rocking through a great set of covers.

Yes, we really did that

Finally, we made a decision, which was to set up a wireless microphone near one of the speakers.

That's how we'd broadcast the band.

Bob interrupted the repeat of "Meet the Beatles" that was airing to throw it to me at the park.

We made it work.

As they played, members of the audio staff told us that they didn't know we were supposed to have the audio.

I mean, we've only done this for every GTP but what do I know?

In the end, we got the cables and, eventually, everything worked. Shortly after Noon, it all sounded like it should.

From there, it was as it should be. Sean and I guided the day, airing each band and having conversations to fill the gaps. 

We stepped away to grab food, including Sean's traditional Chipwich.

Drew Angus plays Pop-a-Shot while being interviewed
by the GTP social media crew

It wasn't the same as every year but it wasn't all that different either. In fact, a new wrinkle was that I was twice whisked away to speak with performers. I talked with Drew Angus and members of The Cameroons and then ran the interviews during breaks from the music.

We were off the air not long before 6 p.m. as Nathaniel Rateliff and the Night Sweats began a fantastic set.

But this was also our time to bail. We weren't allowed to run bands after approximately 5:50 p.m.

If you've done this, you know that it's a long day. So I got a taste of Rateliff and his band and was content to listen as we walked home.

So, Mumford and Sons, it's not your fault. The Greenwich Town Party is a commitment.

I got fried in the sun the year Eric Clapton played and took off.

Steely Dan and Lynyrd Skynyrd couldn't get me to stay either.

The Eagles? Nah. I was pretty turned off by getting shoved to the side of the park due to them.

Then again, I've seen Clapton and the Eagles.

Only Billy Joel could get us to stay and even that year it was a long night.

Oh, but it was worth it. So, so worth it.

You've got a great crowd there tonight.

You'll put on a great show.

Admittedly, if Sean had been interested, it might have talked me into staying.

But I'm content to beat the crowd and not walk out among them with a heavy case of radio equipment.

Have a great show, guys.

Thank you, Greenwich Town Party. See you in 2025.

But I'm begging you: electricity and an audio cable.

We use it.

Every.

Year.