Donavan Frankenreiter

I made it to the venue with time to spare. The first thing I saw was Donavan's merchandise stand. He was selling all of the usual things, except for one item. There were dozens of little packets that had a cartoon picture of his face and a costume mustache covering where his would be. These were a dollar. And I had to have one. Donavan was in a brightly lit corner taking photos with fans who were wearing their 'mustaches'.
     I got to talking to who turned out to be a close friend of his. Donavan was a pro surfer in Hawaii many years ago and was friends with Jack Johnson long before his fame.

  

The band's guitarist, Matt Grundy, opened and sang a few songs from his personal CD. It set the mood for the night. He stood on stage alone, with only an acoustic guitar, singing of camping under the stars. I don't know if I was the only one that started to really feel how much I have been anticipating summer or not.  One lyric really caught my ear, "The only difference between medicine and poison is the dose."




   After Matt finished, I used the time between bands to smoke a cigarette (hideous habit, I know). But as I walked back inside I only waited a few moments before Donavan came onstage.

   The music he played had the soft sound of Neil Young mixed with an acoustic Jack Johnson; but, there was an undertone of '70's funk that definitely made his music his own. Throughout the show there were instrument changes, the ukulele being my personal favorite, and a harmonica, which was definitely a crowd pleaser.
   This was summer music! My ideal place to listen to Donavan's music would be at a backyard barbeque, or sitting around a camp fire. I imagine him playing some acoustic music on the beach watching his old surfing buddies hit the waves. This makes me smile. Some real, down to earth, remember the small things kind of music is always a great change of pace. A touching performance of a song called "Swing On Down" made me question the priorities and importance of belongings in my own life.
   At the end of the encore, he brought some little kids on stage that knew the words to sing with him. Then, he threw the mic up to the second story to have a drunken man sing along as well. This was definitely a fun show. I looked over the crowd and saw that the majority knew the words and were singing along. I have a feeling his following is only going to get larger.
   As I left, I walked into the middle of a rainy night, but I felt enlightened, and grateful to feel the raindrops. This is DEFINITELY a show I would like to see again. But, I have a feeling the next time I see him he will need a larger venue.