CAMBRIDGE, MA - November 14--In America, change is often perceived as being superficial; many believe that the underlying structures always remain in place. For the sake of the President-elect, I hope that this isn’t true—he appears to sincerely have aspirations for a major transformation in our society’s self awareness and global viewpoint. I’m confident that he believes that each of us has the freedom to make of our own lives what we will, but that we also have obligations to treat each other with dignity and respect; the idea that we are responsible for ourselves, but that we also rise or fall as one nation. He said that to us, in Denver, back in August.

The strength of our economy should be measured not by the number of billionaires we have or the profits of the Collective Conglomerate Emirates, but by whether someone with a good idea can take a risk and start a new venture. In that sense, Ryan Green, Cameron Hood, and Owen Plant are artistic entrepreneurs. They may (in jest) refer to themselves as, respectively, The Maestro, The Pop Masseur, and The Beach Bum, but in essence they are sage-like in their vision, both musically and culturally, and I truly believe that they’ve been ahead of the curve in the social transformation I maintain will occur in the near future. As Sam Cooke asserted back in 1964, A Change Is Gonna Come; it’s been a long time coming, for sure, but Cooke’s pivotal proclamation about where he had come from and where he and his people were going will prove to be his ultimate prophesy, and the Green-Plant-Hood amalgamation personify (both collectively and individually as Ryanhood and Owen Plant-the solo performer) the mood of the collective society to come to terms with the struggles Cooke pondered way back then.
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Ryan, Cameron, and Owen were engaged in their sound check obligations as I passed the window looking down on the stage (Passim being a subterranean venue). Upon entering the entrance to the club, I encountered two Ryanhood followers discussing the virtues, or lack thereof, of the three performers sharing the same stage space. Wasn’t this fellow Owen Plant, whoever HE is, going to be playing his own set? Can anybody possibly play along with Ryan and Cameron and not ruin the magical musical symbiosis that the duo exemplifies? They really don’t play altogether on stage, do they?

I’ve heard this more than once, because Owen Plant and Ryanhood have shared the headlining bill on a number of occasions—at Club Passim and other places. It was my want, on this occasion, to put this lovely young couple (she from the U.S. Mid-Atlantic region, he from Ireland) at ease, and explain who Owen Plant is and why performance attendees were going to be getting double their value for their entertainment dollars. Everybody, Owen Plant and Ryanhood fans alike, was going to be hearing something more than they bargained for this evening.

Much to this poor couple’s chagrin, I launched into my standard Owen Plant-Ryanhood stump speech: to wit; “Owen Plant has been both a huge supporter of and benefactor to Ryanhood’s development in the Boston area. Among other things, it was Owen who first encouraged Ryan and Cameron to audition for a coveted slot at the Quincy Market Street Performer’s Festival series (Plant was one of its veteran performers). He was also a defining factor in relation to Ryanhood’s attaining a performing slot at this legendary Club Passim. Owen has been a great friend and advocate of this duo, and Ryanhood are the first to acknowledge his contributions. Ryanhood fans should be aware of them too… I certainly am…” and on and on… at which point the sound rehearsal concluded.

The three performers exited the club area. Ryan and Cameron proceeded to the opposite area of the building. Owen, seeing a couple of individuals he knew (me included) at the entrance area, came over to extend greetings. The Ryanhood fan-couple gave me that ‘oh, you’re with HIM’ look. I, naturally, must be one of HIS fans. No wonder I’m saying these fantastic things about HIM.

The thing is… the Green-Plant-Hood collective isn’t about THEM and HIM. The musical relationship between Owen Plant and Ryanhood has evolved and developed far beyond their earliest stage collaborations when one solo act would lend a hand in the role of mere musical support to the other. These days there is genuine symbiosis present, and they’ve engaged in collaborative song composition, resulting in some of the best songs in both acts’ respective repertoires.

I asked this delightful couple if they’ve heard the song “Around the Sun,” which of course they knew intimately. When I pointed out that it was a Green-Hood-Plant composition, their perception of Owen Plant changed instantaneously. Really? Ryanhood writes songs with this guy? Oh yes, and some others equally as good! For one not on Owen Plant’s public relations payroll, I nevertheless converted yet another couple of new fans, and the ironic factor is that it was Ryanhood that made me aware of Owen. I’m a devoted follower of both acts, but Ryanhood came first.
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This evening consisted of two shows; 7:00 and 10:00 p.m. Owen Plant’s audience typically populates a significant portion of the early show, and tonight was no different. His fans dominated the perimeter of the premises, and were easy to distinguish from the Ryanhood fans who occupied the center area. The Ryanhoodies were encircled by the Planters. If their respective musical repertoires didn’t blend seamlessly, then one would have heard disparate applause from the crowd—which would have been awkward. This wasn’t the case.

The format for both shows this evening departed slightly from the conventions of past Green-Plant-Hood shared billings. Owen Plant began with a solo mini-set consisting of his standard repertoire of original songs such as “Freedom Was” and “Grandfather Clocks,” along with some new material such as a song called “Beach Bum.” Ryan Green joined Owen, but as a supporting vocalist and percussionist (Plant played the infamous red Ryan Green Ovation guitar). Cameron Hood then joined as the “lead” acoustic guitarist (and he was terrific in that role!) and third singer. After a short intermission, Ryanhood performed their set, to be joined at the end by Owen Plant for the inevitable surprises and encores (audience demanded!). The difference this evening is that the trio performed new material only; each individual act did their standard repertoire, if there is such a thing as a typical standard set with either of these acts.

It was very evident that there is a cooperative, mutually beneficial relationship between these two acts that far transcends the music. I could elaborate, but I’ll leave it at that for now.

Owen’s two solo sets demonstrated how far he has evolved from his standard repertoire back in his Boston days. The ska and reggae rhythms of his native Jamaica are even more pronounced today as a result of his latest musical venture with Producer/Songwriter Christopher Tyng (The Sunshine Brothers) and therefore effortless to detect. There are West Coast elements that Owen amalgamates in his musical mix which is at once easy and almost impossible to describe. We heard less of his folk and blues roots influences, and more of his percussive and pop sensibilities. He sounded less the reflective Nick Drake and more like a Caribbean Toad the Wet Sprocket. Owen Plant fans liked what they heard, and Ryanhood fans responded enthusiastically to him.

Ryanhood’s early set began with a resurrection of what was once their signature opening number, “Oh No.” This time the entire song was performed, and not just the opening verse, which has been the truncated version most Ryanhood audiences have heard from them on stage. The slightly slower, mellower and ultra-harmonic “Welcome You Into My Head” (a la the On the Radio version) followed, making for a strong contrast and excellent segue to the remainder of the set. Both sets included “Stopless,” which sounded even more dramatic than usual, and “Alright,” featuring new voice arrangements that transformed the song into something different than it once was. “Gardens and the Graves” now features an extended mandolin intro that builds up into an even more effective beginning to one of Ryanhood’s surest crowd pleasing tunes.

The two Passim audiences got something more for their money; something more for their time; and something more for their involvement in either act. Owen Plant fans could witness, first-hand, the pop sensibilities that Cameron and Ryan contributed to Owen’s “Put It in a Letter;” Ryanhood fans could hear for themselves the world and percussive elements that Owen amalgamates in his musical mix which is at once easy and almost impossible to describe, and which have been gradually incorporated into the Ryanhood sound as well.

The evening’s best moments (both shows) emanated from the new material performed. Owen’s highlight was his ingenious “Beach Bum.” Ryanhood treated fans to a brand new Ryan Green song titled (appropriately for the evening) “Something More.” It’s a gemstone. Ryan has managed to encompass the sum of all the brilliant elements (harmony, instrumental complexity, musical accessibility, etc.) of his past compositions in one song. Cameron surprised everyone with a brand new song with a seminal (or quasi) political theme. The song is titled “In Congress,” and it weaves a complicated tale of a mythical member of Congress who dreams that s/he did the right thing—sung within a song structure that has all the Cameron Hood-musicality to make one love the song even if the words aren’t readily understood.

Both audiences were also treated to some Cameron Hood rarities, such as “I Am for You” and “Heart on Holiday,” songs not often performed but nonetheless always appreciated for their exceptional nature. We got “Something More” literally, and ‘something more’ in the symbolic sense.
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I’ve seen both acts headlining this venue without the other. The musical mix is entirely mutual of the other by themselves, but there is one commonality; the sense of purpose between the performers and the audience. That’s endemic in an Owen Plant show and a Ryanhood show. As a society, the challenges we face require tough choices. We’ll all need to cast off the worn-out ideas and politics of the past, and restore the most important thing we’ve lost, which is primarily our sense of common purpose. Common purpose is what Ryanhood and Owen Plant are all about. Their shows, individually and collectively, are a great place to begin that restoration.