Michigan, Day 2...Detroit, Rock City

 Friday, June 2, 2023

    In June of 2007, I took my first trip to Michigan.  That was a weekend in Detroit for a concert.  The Dio era Black Sabbath were touring and recording under the name Heaven and Hell.  Since they weren't playing in Atlanta, I had to go to them.  So, I bought a ticket for the Detroit show, found a cheap flight and made a weekend out of it.  

     On the flight home, I mentally counted how many states I had visited.  This made twenty-five.  That's when I decided I needed to visit them all.  And it only took eight more years.  

     I considered bypassing Detroit altogether and just driving north from Lansing.  Then I checked concert listings...  More on that later...

    

      First another note about the Quality Inn.  Not only to they offer free breakfast, they have a guy who will make yours to order.  That's Tom in the window.  It was definitely worth sticking around for.

     

     Downtown Lansing has an eight mile series of paved trails they call the River Trail, for good reason.  I decided to explore a stretch before leaving town.  I chose the trailhead at Clippert Street simply because it ran under two railroad bridges.  Perhaps I'd get lucky.

      That's the old Grand Trunk Western coaling tower in back.

      While I didn't luck out with trains, I did encounter quite a few mosquitos.  After a half hour of slapping them, I decided to turn back around and leave.

      There was just one more spot to check out before moving on,  The Grand River flows through downtown, complete with a dam. 

    Since spawning fish can't get by the dam, they built a fish ladder.  Not something you find in many cities.

     On the walkway by the dam...

     Seen on the way out of Lansing...

     I left Lansing and made my way to Detroit for the night.  One gripe with the Michigan DOT, their signage in construction zones was pretty bad.  There were small signs posted after the point where you're already committed to a travel lane.  

     Meanwhile, in downtown Detroit there were road closures and a heavy police presence.  I had checked Detroit concert listings, but not other city events.  This was the weekend of the Detroit Grand Prix.  They block off a loop of streets and then race through the city.  You can see some highlights of the race here:     

     Eventually, I did make it through the detours and found the entrance to Belle Isle State Park.   This was the first of many on this journey.  While some states have free parks, and others charge a fee, Michigan requires a pass.  Knowing this, I spent $35 for a non-resident pass beforehand.  This would save me a bundle before the journey's end.  

 

     Belle Isle is a city park in the middle of the Detroit River.  Native Americans called it Swan Island.  The French raised pigs there and renamed in Hog Island.  The island changed hands numerous times until the city bought it in 1879.  

      For reference:

      They hired Fredrick Law Olmstead to turn it into a park.  He decided to split the park into three sections.  On the western end would be the formal zone with a fountain and walkways.  The middle he considered the active zone and the eastern end would be the natural zone with limited development.

      The centerpiece of the formal zone is the James Scott Memorial Fountain, designed by Cass Gilbert.  Over the course of his career, he also designed statehouses for Minnesota, Arkansas and West Virginia.  His most famous work is the U.S. Supreme Court.

     

     The statue of James Scott sits off to the side, as if an afterthought.  That was by design. Scott was a real estate investor who seemed to like filing lawsuits against his competitors for fun.  He was considered lazy and kind of obnoxious.

     When he died, he left money to the city of Detroit to build a public landmark.  The only stipulation being, it had to include a life sized statue of himself.  Considering how people felt about him, there was debate back and forth whether they should accept the money.

      

    That's why the statue is off to the side and in the direction the wind most often blows the fountain's water.  

     Over in the natural zone,  I chose a walking trail by Blue Heron Lagoon. 

      It's an out and back that also includes the William Livingstone Memorial Lighthouse.  It's the only lighthouse in America made out of marble.         

      Livingstone started a shipping business in 1865.  It was so successful he was able to buy a newspaper and a bank.  He was also president of the Lake Carriers Group which successfully lobbied the federal government for lighthouses as well as a series of locks in the St. Mary's River.  

     When I left the park, I was thinking food and a cold one.  Detroit is the home of numerous microbreweries.  So, I looked for ones with food that were far enough away from the closed streets of the race.  There was just something about the Motor City Brewing Works.  Sure, the place across the street had air conditioning and didn't rely on the breeze.  But, definitely the right choice.  

     After buying the ticket and booking a room for the night, I started seeing Detroit news pop up in my Facebook feed.  In late April, there was a story of a brewery closing just up the street from the concert venue.  One of the comments described it as being in "a weird neighborhood."  I asked the poster to define weird.  It sounded more like weird as in quirky.

     It's on the fringe of an area they call Greek Town.  It's also relatively close to Ford Field, where the Lions play, Comerica Park where the Tigers play and Little Caesars Arena where the Red Wings Play.  

    My home for the night was a short walk from the concert venue at a place called the Viking Motel.  With the name and the price, I read a lot of reviews before booking a room.  They generally boiled down to limited amenities, but fine.  

     I've never seen this at a motel before... 

     Just a few blocks away is the Masonic Temple.  The original design included three theaters.  That's where I was headed for the evening.  The cornerstone of the building was laid in 1922 using the same trowel George Washington used when the cornerstone was laid for the U.S. Capital.

     Last spring, I ended my roadtrip in Oklahoma City with a Primus concert.  Les Claypool, their singer and bass player, has numerous side projects.  One of which is the Fearless Flying Frog Brigade.  How could I pass this up.   

     The lighting isn't great, but this is the Masonic Temple.  

    You can't see it very well, but the line to get in stretched all the way to the end of the street, around the corner and two more blocks.

      My tickets were general admission in the balcony.  I was surprised I scored front row.  What an amazing venue.

     The concert opener was Neal Francis and his band.  You can see the video for his song "Can't Stop the Rain" here:  The band was really good,

    But, I've never seen a whammy bar on a keyboard setup before.  Rather odd.  You can see him use it about 2:30 into this video.

     Les Claypool came out with his band around 9P and played for a little over two hours.  They did original songs, some from their individual bands and Pink Floyd's "Animals" album start to finish.  Someone recorded their entire Buffalo show.  You can see that here:

     Touring with him on guitar, Sean Lennon.  On keyboards is Harry Waters, Roger Waters kid.  On drums is Paulo Baldi, best known for his playing in the band Cake.  On xylophone and assorted other percussion is Mike Dillon, who has played with pretty much everyone.