♪ Ma Lanois, how do you do?
Mon nom est Erin Lee, mon ami
I come from west of Toronto
Mon nom est Erin Lee, mon ami ♫
The first year I attended the Greenbelt Harvest Picnic, it was because our cousin Mandy called and said, “Ray Lamontagne is going to be in your area! I’m driving the kids down for it! Can we stay at your place?!” Mandy lives in New Brunswick, and, as you can tell, is a HUGE Ray Lamontagne fan. So she came on down, three kids in tow. My buddy Holly (Buddy Holly?) drove in from London, and we all spent a glorious, sun-soaked day at beautiful Christie Lake Conservation Area, just northwest of Hamilton.
The GHP is the brainchild of Daniel Lanois (and put on by producer Jean-Paul Gauthier), who wanted to promote awareness of local farmers and farming. Lanois was quoted in 2011, saying “I’m going public for my love of Ontario tomatoes in August.” The event, held on September 1st, 2011, was a smashing success. Twelve hours of live music, including performances by Gord Downie, Emmylou Harris, Sarah Harmer, Rocco Deluca, headliner Lamontagne and Lanois himself. The park was overflowing with local farmers selling the fruits of their labors (yes, including vegetables), the food vendors were amazing (big slice of watermelon or a plate of udon noodles, anyone?), the artisans varied and original. Over 6,000 people attended.
Year Two: I was chomping at the bit by Spring 2012 to get my tickets, this time attending with my friend Lesley. We arrived in decent time, got our camping chairs set up, slapped GHP temporary tattoos on our arms, grabbed a cold Steamwhistle each and happily settled in. The lineup that year was equally impressive; regulars Lanois, Harris, Downie and Harmer were joined by guitarist Jesse Cook, powerhouse Brady L. Blade, Sr. and the Hallelujah Train, and headliner Feist. Great music, great farmers, great food, great artisans.
Great price.
Tickets for the 3rd annual Greenbelt Harvest Picnic have now been on sale for a week. This year’s lineup sees the return of Lanois protégé Rocco Deluca and includes veterans Lanois and Harris, with celebrated Canadian Neil Young to headline.
Ticket price for adults: $129.50 plus whatever fees the fee people put on it. Just so your brain doesn’t start to hurt, that is an 86.3% increase from years one and two.
Oh, but hold up…that $129.50 is just the Early Bird ticket price, to be applied only to the first 1,000 tickets sold. As of June 8th, they’ve already surpassed that number, and so the rest of y’all will be paying $149.50 (plus whatever fees the fee people put on it). That, my friends, is a whopping 115.1% increase since 2012.
Er…whatthefuck, Daniel?!
I know that these events cost some serious coin to put on, I do. But let’s just look at the reason this whole thing began: to boost recognition of local, non-GMO farmers. Who’s your demographic? If the answer is: people who can afford, without checking their bank balances, to shop for everything on their grocery list at Goodness Me, then I guess the GHP is on the right track. But seriously, folks – if we take an attendance of 6,000 (which is a low guess, based on 2011 numbers), with a thousand tickets at $129.50 (let’s say, 145.00, including fees) is $145,000.00. Add another 5,000 at $149.50 (let’s say 169.00, including fees), and you have $845,000.
That’s $990,000 in ticket prices alone, never mind $10 parking for all vehicles (and there are a LOT of vehicles, one does not simply saunter over to Christie Lake), plus all the musician merch, GBP swag, beer, food, impulse art & jewellery purchases and veggie hoarding.
What am I missing, Daniel?
I want to be there, I do. From the first, I had dedicated myself to seeing the show each and every year. But this as-yet unexplained hike is insane. I would love to hear the justification for it. Do you want this kind of event to be available solely to those with disposable income? Or do you sincerely want to turn everyone’s attention to the issue at hand?
Humbly, I await your reply.
The author, in happier times.
Erin's Clishmaclaver 