BIG BILL BURNS 'EM

I can't say I'm a huge fan of Bill O'Reilly, but I do listen to him on occasion and he is — even at his extremes — a legitimate, vocal, sane alternative to the malfeasant subjectivity of most of the liberal press.

Was at a rock show last weekend called Hippiefest. [Some outstanding performances by both the Zombies and Mountain. The Zombies absolutely rocked the place, and Mountain was Mountain and did a version of "Blowin' in the Wind" which West dedicated to O'Reilly, that was one of the most unique and best renditions I've ever heard. Flo and Eddie and the Turtles were there and had the crowd in hysterics as well as singing along, and Mitch Ryder rocked with "Devil With a Blue Dress."]

Music critique aside ...

Turned out O'Reilly was sitting front row in the open-air theater and got razzed by "Country" Joe MacDonald, he of Woodstock's [My Woodstock story. Home after first tour. Girl says, "Wanna go to a concert upstate this weekend." Me: "I can't. I get a six hour malaria attack every night." Couldn't go to the VA or they wouldn't let me go back. Dumb ass!] "Gimme an F" and "Feel Like I'm Fixin' to Die Rag" (which, apparently, Joe never figured out, was sort of a "The Ride of the Valkyries" kinda tune for all of us going into combat ... seems he still thinks we sang it because we were anti-war. Oh well.)

Anyway ...

Joe claims he doesn't know what O'Reilly looks like and rags on him about being conservative, stupid, arrogant and whatnot, due to something O'Reilly said on his show about Joe, and then did the usual raving lefty anti-Bush, etc., crappola.

But then ...

As soon as ol' Joe took a breath, so many people ran down to O'Reilly for autographs and to have their pictures taken with him, that they had to get security down to keep things orderly. This went on well into the third hour of the four-hour show at every break.

Ol' Country Joe, who was supposed to be emceeing, became decidedly scarce and was no where to be seen pretty much from then on.

Best — and most accurate — comment about O'Reilly, however, was by Mountain frontman Leslie West who said (paraphrased), "I don't agree with what you say, but you sure do ask the right questions."

West also had the best line of the entire evening when he spoke to the crowd about his 40-year relationship with drummer Corky Laing. "If I'd have shot him in the head when I should have 40 years ago ... hell, I'd be out of jail already."