What do 25,000 dead people and 15 of Portland’s finest musical acts have in common? Aside from a mild geographic association, these two unlikely parties will be uniting this Friday for one of the Rose City’s most ambitious recent musical projects.
The (living) participants in this project include such local heavy-hitters as Adam Shearer (Weinland), Adam Selzer (Norfolk & Western), Nick Jaina, Al James (Dolorean) and the omnipresent Storm Large.
These acts, along with many others, have created a compilation CD entitled (D)early Departed: True Lies Unearthed from Lone Fir Cemetery, in which each band wrote a song based on the life of one of the Lone Fir Cemetery’s, ahem, “residents.”
Also, all the artists are set to play a benefit show at the Doug Fir where each act will play their song, along with actors who will be retelling the haunting stories alongside the rotating array of songwriters.
And what exactly is the Lone Fir Cemetery? It’s a cemetery (surprise!) that lies in the heart of Southeast Portland, between Southeast Stark Street and Morrison, from 21st to 26th avenues. The area was once a 10-acre farm in the 1840s and ’50s.
It was sold while still housing the remains of the previous owner’s father, as well as the victims of an 1854 steamship explosion. By 1866, the then owner, one Colbrunn Barrell, added 20 more acres to the original cemetery and thought the city of Portland should own it.
They didn’t want it. It was too far away from the town. Yes, town, because Portland was a little baby back then, with no bridges or vegans or bikers. The land, however, was eventually sold and rechristened The Lone Fir Cemetery.
To this day there are more than 25,000 people buried there, including many of the city’s notable historical figures. Ever heard of the name Lovejoy? That is one Asa L. Lovejoy, founder of Portland. Or Hawthorne? That name comes from Dr. James C. Hawthorne of the Asylum for the Insane, formerly in SE Portland and part of the story that Storm Large tells in her track on the benefit CD “Asylum Road.”
There are many other famous ex-Portlandites housed there (Curry, Dekum, etc.), and their names are set to find new life this weekend thanks to some other Rose City notables who will be transforming their stories to their preferred medium of song.
Storm Large (2002-present): Should Portland ever need to point to one person as the pre-eminent local rock star, Storm would be it. She is a force. She is a storm. She is Storm Large.
Claiming such friends as Tommy Lee and Dave Navarro, Storm, along with her band The Balls, went from cover band to Portland rock superstars. Whether singing her ass off at gender-bending shows at Dante’s or performing in Portland Center Stage’s production last year of “Cabaret,” Storm’s performances are nothing short of dynamic.
Her track on the Lone Fir compilation is entitled “Asylum Road” and deals with the late Dr. James C. Hawthorne.
Al James (of Dolorean) (2003-present): Dream-folk driven by pianos and acoustic guitar. With a smart pen and hushed (sometimes indecipherable) vocal delivery, Dolorean creates a mood that challenges Portland winters to “Bring it!”
James has helped his group evolve through several albums of mysterious folk-set pieces. “The performances [of new songs] were raw, passionate and loose,” says James of his band’s latest LP, “Everything that we hadn’t been able to capture on previous recordings.” His contribution to the benefit CD is entitled “Age Blue for Rodney Morris”.
Other artists include: Amelia, Chris Robley and The Fear of Heights, Holcombe Waller, James Beaton, Jesse Emerson, Jim Brunberg, Leigh Marble, Matt Sheehy, Pete Krebs, Ritchie Young (of Loch Lomond), The Taciturns and Nick Jaina.
Lone Fir Cemetery CD release party:Doug Fir LoungeOct. 24, 9 p.m.$1521-pus
All proceeds from the CD sales support the education, preservation and restoration efforts coordinated by the Friends of Lone Fir Cemetery. Pick out your burial plot soon.