Review: THE LAUREL CANYON BAND at Axelrod PAC

Mark Hudson has achieved a lot in his lifetime. He was one-third 1970s sensation the Hudson Brothers and co-writer of Aerosmith’s Grammy-winning smash “Livin’ on the Edge” and Celine Dion’s “The Reason.” He recorded some of John Lennon’s solo hits off 1971’s Imagine with Ozzy Osbourne and produced albums for Ringo Starr and Hanson, among countless credentials as a seasoned musician and hitmaker. But the uncle to actress Kate Hudson, who serendipitously starred in 2000’s iconic film “Almost Famous” about a gutsy 1970s rock band whose mission was to use their spunk as soulful musicians to influence a culture, finds himself in a similar position in the present day. His purpose? Not to become famous or perform for the ecstasy of crooning the songs of that tender era that he holds so dear, but to introduce Generations Z and Alpha to the epoch that reared some of the greatest musicians in music history. Namely, the mesmerizing harmonizing abilities of David Crosby, Stephen Stills, Graham Nash and Neil Young— the folk supergroup baby boomers, Gen X and Y know well as Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young.  

As a history lesson for those who don’t know how this powerhouse formed, Hudson paints a starry-eyed picture circa 1967, the so-called Summer of Love, in Laurel Canyon. The mountainous neighborhood in the Hollywood Hills region of the Santa Monica Mountains within the Hollywood Hills West district of Los Angeles was home to 1960s icons Joni Mitchell and Jim Morrison. A place Cass Elliot— the long-haired, vibrant and outspoken entertainer with the biggest smile, heart and long, flowy dresses that treated each show with celebrated sunshine-pop group The Mamas and the Papas like it was her last — would throw groovy parties. Everyone from the likes of Eric Clapton (widely known as Slowhand and God for his prowess as one of the greatest guitarists of all time per Rolling Stone), the Monkees and all four members of the supergroup congregated. The proverbial light bulb, Hudson explained, went off when the men sang together in perfect harmony and realized the seed of a beautiful flower that would soon bloom given nurturance, commitment and dedication. 

Like Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young, Hudson formed his own supergroup while discovering the harmonizing abilities among himself, Hall of Fame songwriter Gary Burr and singer/songwriter Mark Mirando during the notorious lockdown of the Covid-19 pandemic. He would christen the band The Laurel Canyon Band, re-imagining the music of the arresting quartet with a mission to carry the torch of the group’s blazing legacy.

“[We’re] copying that wonderful sound,” said Hudson in a phone interview. “You don’t hear a lot of that today. It was all that time in the '60s, there was Ohio [The Kent State shootings], Woodstock, the Vietnam War… [We want to] bring that back to the consciousness of the audience.”

Though the musical landscape of today is a lot different than it was 30 and more years ago with the domination of rap and synth-pop in this digital age, the more things change, the more they stay the same, at least when it comes to current events. And while there are less musicians equipped with their acoustic guitars fervently telling the stories of the tragedies of the day while they’re unfolding like in the turbulent 1960s, The Laurel Canyon Band is here to inspire the next generation to put their devices down and appreciate the music that went before and how the musicians of that era, like Neil Young, put their sensitivity to work to make stunning, unforgettable art. 

“They all came from other bands… the Hollies, the Byrds, Buffalo Springfield. All of them had hits on their own and they decided to make that dynamic work,” explained Hudson of Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young. “Up until that point, you never heard harmonies like that. They were the first guys to do it, and from them came The Eagles and Jackson Browne and America that followed in their footsteps. Three-part harmony doing songs about love, peace and that generation. We could really use to bring that back into our consciousness now in this day and age with what’s going on in the world. We want the audience to sing and to teach our children, and it makes us feel really special recreating that music.”

Though today’s children are dancing over swaying to artists that are also mesmerizing (but in a sultry way), like pop queens Dua Lipa and Katy Perry (Hudson’s daughter Sarah was the co-writer behind hits like “Levitating” and “Dark Horse,” respectively) Hudson is using his mantra of love, peace and music to reach and capture the hearts (and attention spans) of these smart-phone-tethered youngsters. 

“I’ve passed the baton onto my kid,” said Hudson of Sarah. “She was raised on Joni Mitchell, Carole King, The Beatles. That’s what’s in her heart. A younger version of what I’m doing now.”

Laurel Canyon will perform at the Axel Rod Performing Arts Center in Deal, NJ on Thursday, August 17 playing hits from Neil Young’s “Cinnamon Girl” and “Only Love Can Break Your Heart,” to “Turn, Turn, Turn” by The Byrds, “Love The One You’re With” and much, much more.

More than the “slamming” acoustics, Hudson’s hoping the children in the audience zero in on the lyricism to get an intimate look into how the musicians’ unmanageably intricate emotions shaped their songwriting and their tumultuous generation through which they sought understanding and healing. 

“The message of peace and love is all around our act,” said Hudson. “We’re not hippy/dippy. The concept of what they were and what they still are… as I watch our audience grow, it lets me know it is still viable. Love, peace and music… that’s my mantra, and I feel that way as a human. The pressure is off of us, because we don’t have to write these songs. They’ve been written. We have to do it justice.”

Tickets are $38-58. The Axelrod Performing Arts Center is located at 100 Grant Ave., Deal Park, five minutes from downtown Asbury Park, with plenty of free parking. For more information, call 732-531-9106, ext. 14 or visit www.AxelrodArtsCenter.com.  

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