Moondance
Jam grows beyond founders' wildest dreams
Benatar, Nugent, Thorogood, REO Speedwagon headline this year's Jam
By TERRY MIKELSON
Tempo Correspondent
Thursday, July 19, 2001
WALKER -- When Bill and Kathy Bieloh created Moondance Jam in 1991,
they envisioned a family oriented "backyard party."
Ten years later the Jam has grown into a four-day bash that attracts
thousands of classic rock and roll fans and some of the best-known musicians
from the 1970s and 1980s.
Pop and rock icons Pat Benatar, Ted Nugent, George Thorogood and REO
Speedwagon, for examples, will headline this year's Jam, which gets under
way July 11 at the Bielohs' rural Walker ranch.
Another measure of the Jam's success is the overall budget, which has
rocketed to well over $2 million this year -- $700,000 just to pay the
bands, Bill Bieloh said in an interview this week.
Marketing, promotions, land improvements and maintenance, and full-
and part-time staffing -- about 300 people during the four-day event
-- eat up much of the rest, he said.
"It's gotten so big we have to weigh whether it's worth it," said
Bieloh, better known as Walker's primary grocer.
He and his family own and operate Bieloh's Family Foods, as well as
the Moondance Ranch and Wildlife Park from which the Jam gets its name.
"If we made really good money, it would be worth it," he added, "but
the risk is high. The reason you don't see a lot of these outdoor festivals
around the country is because it's difficult to make money."
This means little, however, to the 10,000-12,000 classic rock and roll
fans who cough up $100 for a four-day pass, plus additional dollars to
reserve a site in one of six campgrounds on the 280-acre site a few miles
east of Walker.
The three campgrounds with hookups -- 1,700 sites -- have been sold
out since April 1 and the three primitive campgrounds are going fast,
said the Jam promoters.
Jammers come for the music, which Bieloh said "emphasizes quality
over quantity."
Over the years, Moondance surveys at the gate indicate the outdoor festival
appeals most to those in their 30s (the average age is 36.7), the offspring
of baby boomers in search of the music of their youth. Sixty percent
of ticket buyers are women.
"The music reminds them of something they did 20 years ago," Bieloh
said. "It makes them feel young again, and today's music has no
meaning to them."
This year's Jam, however, may be remembered as much for the musical
acts that got away as those who signed to appear on the Jam's main stage.
Bieloh and his booking agent, TEA Productions of Minneapolis, went after
Tom Petty, John Mellencamp and others that rejected the Moondance offers.
Mellencamp gave a verbal commitment but never entered into a signed
agreement, Bieloh said, despite the Jam's offer to pay $220,000 for a
single performance, more than twice the amount paid to any other act
in this year's Jam.
The average price for the Jam's headliners is normally about $80,000,
Bieloh said, with Nugent and Thorogood commanding about $100,000, plus
transportation and other expenses.
In an effort to attract younger jammers, the lineup July 12 will include
the Blues Traveler and the Wallflowers, bands that hit their stride in
the late 1980s and early 1990s.
"We wanted to offer favorites for every generation," Bieloh
said. "Younger music fans don't always like classic rock and roll
but they will come for bands from the 1980s. This year we are offering
bands for every age."
George Thorogood and the Delaware Destroyers will headline the July
13 lineup, preceded on stage by REO Speedwagon, Big Head Todd, Molly
Hatchet and Head East.
Nugent will wrap up the festival July 14, while Benatar, Creedence Clearwater
Revisited, Night Ranger and Dave Mason will appear on stage earlier in
the day.
Brainerd area band Silent Partner will open the festival from the main
stage July 11, followed by the Shufflecats, Treater Band and Mountain
Ash. The headliner is the Little River Band.
Twenty local and regional bands have been selected for performances
on secondary stages. For ticket information, call 877-666-6526. Single
day passes are $75 at the gate.
MOONDANCE NEWS
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