New Riders of the Purple Sage set to perform Thursday

NORWICH – The New Riders of the Purple Sage, originally formed in 1969, are still going strong and set to hit the stage at 7 p.m. Thursday in West Park, the final downtown performance as the Chenango Blues Association wraps up its Summer Concert Series.
The band, which began touring with the current line up in 2005, is in the final leg of its 2010 summer tour, and pedal steel guitarist Buddy Cage said he and his fellow musicians are looking forward to a second trip to Norwich.
Cage replaced Grateful Dead guitarist Jerry Garcia on pedal steel for the New Riders in 1971 – they met for the first time on the famed Festival Express train in 1970, where Garcia convinced him to join the band. Cage said he’s “delighted they wanted us to come back for this concert series,” following last year’s Chenango County Fair performance.
“Everybody was just really nice and they were just wonderful to us, we had a ball,” he added.
With its unique blend of country, pychedelia and rock, the New Riders have seen a number of personnel changes over the years, yet the current line-up may be one of the stronger and most inspired since the band’s heyday.
Original New Riders guitarist David Nelson, along with Cage, will be joined by Michael Falzarano – of Hot Tuna fame – on guitar, Ronnie Penque on bass and Johnny Markowski – of Stir Fried fame – on drums, and while those in attendance can expect to hear some of the groups classic material, Cage said people shouldn’t be surprised to hear a wide range of new material also.
Thanks to the band’s “random setlist generator,” Cage reported it’s simple for the group to “randomly alter” what songs they’ll be performing at the drop of a dime, and with over 300 songs to choose from there are “so many ways to go with it.”
Much of the new material heard on Thursday will feature a number of selections from the bands 2009 release Where I Come From, according to Cage, the first studio album released by the group in over two decades.
Robert Hunter, the iconic 60s poet and lyricist, who penned dozens of Grateful Dead classics back in the day, rediscovered the New Riders in 2006 and immediately flooded the band with “a bucket-load of new lyrics and ideas,” said Cage, who added another album is in the works due to the fact that “we didn’t even have the new album mastered when Hunter sent us a second batch of lyrics.”
The New Riders will also perform much of the music they’re best known for under founding member John Dawson, who passed away in July of 2009, and while “everybody’s sad to see him gone and to see his end,” Cage said he’s “sure he’d be proud of what we’re doing.”
“It’s going to fun. They did a great show for us last time they were here,” said Chenango Blues Association Board of Directors President Eric Larsen. “They’re really looking forward to coming back and the band’s manager said it was one of their favorite stops last year.”
While this will be the last of the downtown Summer Concert Series performances, the Chenango Blues Association will present a special concert, featuring legendary guitarist Les Dudek, set for Aug. 10 at the Chenango County Fairgrounds.
The Summer Concert Series is free for residents of all ages, and in the event of inclement weather Thursday’s performance will be held in the Chenango County Council of the Arts auditorium. For more information on the Summer Concert Series and the Chenango Blues Festival visit www.chenangobluesfest.org. Information on the New Riders of the Purple Sage can be found at www.nrpsmusic.com.

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