|
 It
was packed Monday, August, 5, 2002, at the MALIBU INN, and it
took some patience to get
through the thick
crowd of friends, family and local musicians there to
celebrate the life of one of Rock n' Rolls greatest unknown
legends, Chris Williams. Sam Khoury (general manager of the
Malibu Inn), Greg Soloman (Backbone69 manager), and Alex
Orbison (Backbone69 drummer) decided to do the Monday night
tribute on the exact one-year anniversary of the death of
Backbone69's founding member -- and to cap the night with the
long-awaited return of Backbone69. It was a gathering of
family, friends and musicians from all over the country,
playing and talking about a man whose impact they will never
forget.
The
evening started off with an acoustic set  from
friends and family such as John LaLaine and Brittney O'Neal
(Backbone69 backup vocalist), and proceeded to a jam featuring
seemingly every local musician,
where everyone was lucky enough to see that magic once again.
Jose
Hernandez (Backbone69 promoter) describes it as, "Felt
like he was there last night, not as good, but the vibe was
definitely there. The women went crazy like Chris would want
it. He wouldn't have expected less."
Blake
Mills explains that, "It takes someone like Chris
Williams to bring all these people together."
 Backbone69
revisted consisted of all original members Alex Orbison
(drums), Berry Oakley and Damon Webb (bassists), and Duane
Betts (Guitar, Vocals) and friends Blake Mills, Kevin Soloman,
and Marc Ford.
Sam
Khoury: "Every path Chris crossed became a part of his
heart and soul. Every path that Chris paved, he paved with a
tremendous amount of intense passion and integrity. Chris
'Wheels' Williams inspires a living, loving legend in every
one of us. 'Wheels' will always turn from the snowcapped
mountains to the evergreens. All season long not only in the
autumn breeze and so much closer than a distant dream. There
is a piece of Chris Williams between every seam."
Damon
Webb: “Williams taught me to be strong, how to play, and was
there in spirit. It was great Mayhem and I will never forget
him."
Alex
Orbison (Backbone69 drummer): “An unorthodox  memorial
assured everyone was going to have a great time with no drama
so the sadness wouldn't be mixed up with other people's
personal problems. Starting off with an acoustic set.... it
moved onto a large gathering with a short speech by yours
truly and a 21 cork salute in which we cracked 3 cases of
champagne and popped the bottles and passed them around
carrying and sharing in the finest of rock n' roll fashion.
Then went on to have a moment of loudness in which the large
crowd screamed their lungs out for 5 minutes straight such as
Williams would've wanted it, and then quoted the world famous
Chris Williams' staple of life ‘Wherever we go trouble seems
to follow.’ The music was fine, the people were rockin', the
atmosphere was great, and in the midst of the sadness I think
overall we had a great time.”
Dean Deleo (Stone Temple Pilots): "Chris's soul and
spirit are immense. He merely outlived his body."
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