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WINSLOW, Arizona – When Station to Station pulled in to the depot here it was hard – nay impossible – to get away from the mantra of "Take It Easy," the Eagles' song that famously put the town on the map. From the myriad folks in some form of Winslow-themed T-shirts to the fact that nearly all of the sets were enjoyed by fans curled up on the grass, it had the feel of a small-town music festival (which it kind of was) or even a community picnic with an exceptionally high-profile line-up. It was, in a word, chill. Even when dark wave duo Cold Cave took to a stage in the middle of a hay maze – yes, really, see above – things were mellow.
The night began – following an epic dinner of Ed Ruscha omelets/frittatas – with the R&B/hip-hop duo THEESatisfaction kicking things off with a smooth performance that set the mood for Cat Power's Chan Marshall. Marshall went electric in Winslow – she'd played acoustic in Santa Fe – but was still soulful as ever, playing reverbed-out versions of her song "Bully" and the Rolling Stones' "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction" and singing in that husky, pained voice which seemed to implore the trains passing behind her to carry her demons away. She played until they shut the lights on her, then apologized for running long, because she's the sweetest, most easy-going rock star that has ever picked up a guitar.
But just because the evening was mellow, doesn't mean it was downbeat. Almost as soon as Marshall wrapped, Giorgio Moroder and Bruce Sudano – the two men she'd taken a selfie with during sound check – took the stage for one song and one song only. The track, titled "Willoughby," was created, Moroder told the audience, "on the way from Albuquerque to Winslow, and we recorded some tracks of the trains passing and one track had a great rhythm" so it was used in the song, which has a very Euro-disco vibe (not surprising considering Moroder's pedigree). Despite its hasty composition, the song went over well and again folks were asking for more (the audience shouted "encore!" to no avail) as the lights shut off.
Then it came time for the man who is probably most responsible for Station to Station's Winslow stop (after, presumably, Doug Aitken himself): Jackson Browne. He co-wrote "Take It Easy" with the Eagles' Glenn Frey and even though it's commonly understood that Frey is responsible for the actual Winslow, Arizona lyric, Browne did clear one thing up during his performance: "I wrote 'standing on the corner,'" Browne said. "He came up with the part about the girl."
In addition to the song he came to play, Browne – like Moroder – also performed a new song written specifically for Station. With the on-point chorus, "Station to station, coast to coast, ain't got much of anything in mind/To expectations, way less than most, but I wanted to see Winslow one more time," Browne dedicated the song, to hobos and "the filmmakers, the literary figures, [and] the folksingers, who ride the rails." However, while the song sounded complete, its title was not – Browne has been struggling to find a way to make it original.
"You know how many songs are called 'The Train Song'?" he noted wryly.
True – but there's probably room for one more.
All photos: Bryan Derballa/WIRED
