Photo: Robert Beachley

Photo: Robert Beachley

By Don Jordan

When I first heard “Let Love Rule” by Lenny Kravitz, I knew something exciting was happening in music and I wanted to be a part of it. I would be. It was 1989.

I was on a jobsite in eastern North Carolina where pine trees, intense heat, mosquitoes and sand ruled the days. “Let Love Rule” poured from my dusty, van’s speakers and smacked me right between the eyes. It was brand new, yet instantly reminded me of what Rock and Roll was all about. That song was painted from the same palette used by John Lennon and others. I heard it in the lyrics and the music and felt it in the production. “Let Love Rule” was raw, powerful, simple, sweet and true. That was 1989.

By the time Lenny’s Universal Love Tour rolled into Charlotte, NC, in 1993, I was a fan. At that time I was working in a local smoke shop aptly named Infinity’s End. On this particular day Craig Ross, Lenny’s lead guitar player, wandered in. I immediately recognized him from his huge afro. I shook his hand and asked if he needed any assistance. He was admiring our lava lamp display and asked if he could borrow a few to decorate Lenny’s dressing room for that night’s show.

I explained that we weren’t accustomed to loaning out merchandise, but I felt sure we could work something out.

After discussing this with my boss, Jon Pietras Sr. (a big hearted, wonderful guy,) he agreed, with one stipulation–that all merchandise be accompanied by yours truly.

I knew this task would be big and would need some help, so I grabbed my friend and coworker, Robert Beachley, and we were off. We packed up various tapestries, posters, black lights, incense, lava lamps, and Infinity’s End swag. Robert and I headed down the street to the original Charlotte Coliseum, accompanied by Lenny Kravitz tunes blasting from my pickup truck’s sound system.

With our “All Access” passes displayed with pride, Robert and I began to decorate Lenny’s dressing room backstage. When we finished we were told to help ourselves to the catering facilities. For me this was limited to the free beer. I never knew decorating could make a fella so thirsty and this was a rock concert environment, so I figured when in Rome….

The sound checks started around 3:30-ish. The excitement was electric and building fast.

By the time the lights went down and the sold out crowd began its roar of approval, the opening act, Blind Melon, started for the stage. That’s when I received a tap on my shoulder.

A guy identified himself as the manager of Blind Melon. “Hey, man, I love your shirt! I’ll give you 30 Blind Melon t-shirts for it!”

My shirt was a long-sleeved, George Clinton Dope Dog design shirt, given to me by none other than P-Nut Johnson, George Clinton’s friend and singer (P-Nut Johnson recently passed away but I’ll always treasure his gift to me.)

“30 Blind Melon shirts? What the hell am I gonna do with 30 Blind Melon shirts?” was my beer infused reply. “No thanks!” The evening’s tone was set.

Robert and I wandered around backstage, soaking up the scene and free beer. I suggested we have a quick peek to double check our design work. We opened the back door to the dressing room and lo and behold there was Lenny Kravitz struggling to get into his black leather pants. (If you’ve never worn leather pants you should know they are a pain in the ass to get on and off.) He was being assisted in this struggle by a very attractive lady, who later identified herself as Lenny’s manager. Both their heads snapped in our direction.

Robert and I excused ourselves, closed the door, looked at each other and simultaneously broke out in silent hysterics. Mainly from embarrassment for us and the struggling Mr. Kravitz.

His manager quickly shot out the door and demanded to know what the hell we were doing. When I explained that we were there to decorate Lenny’s dressing room, she relaxed. I asked why there wasn’t any security stationed at the door and volunteered to stay until they arrived. She agreed, thanked me, and went back inside.

Then Lenny Kravitz and band took the stage. They proceeded to blow the roof off that arena. Robert and I positioned ourselves behind Cindy Blackman’s drum kit. Being a drummer myself that’s just where I wanted and needed to be. Soon I wanted a different perspective and wandered to stage left. At that point Lenny descended the stairs, running right past me, heading for the crowd. I thought “okay,” if he comes back this way I’m gonna high five the man. He did just that.

I threw my hand up and he grabbed it. I yelled, “You’re kicking their asses Lenny!”

The man smiled ear-to-ear and yelled back, “Think so? Thanks, Brother,” and returned to the stage.

My hand was sweaty from his, my only thought being, I’m Lenny Kravitz’s brother. THAT’S WHAT’S UP!

The show finally ended with my beloved, “Let Love Rule.” Robert and I positioned ourselves outside the dressing room, preparing to tear down our handiwork when I heard someone inside ask if they could keep these lava lamps. I latched onto Robert’s arm and said, “That’s our cue.” We hurried into Lenny’s dressing room.

We found ourselves in the back of the large dressing room with the entire staff and band reviewing the playback. Lenny was critiquing the performance when he looked in Cindy Blackman’s direction and said, “You kicked ass tonight Cindy.”

I then blurted out a little too loudly, “Damn straight she did.” (Remember the free beer?) All heads immediately turned my way. Uh-oh, did I just interrupt their post show meeting? Then the room erupted into laughter, breaking the tension.

Lenny headed straight for me. His manager also approached and explained who I was, that I was the decorator/impromptu security.

Lenny said to me, “Cool, I really dig what you did for me tonight, man. I felt right at home because of your efforts. In fact, I felt as if I was in my own apartment in NYC!”

“Cool,” was my immediate reply and sheepishly asked for a couple of autographs.

“Hell, yes, Brother, no problem.”

Brother again! As he signed my CD inserts and t-shirts, I said, “You know, Lenny, you’ve been taking a lot of crap in the press lately for sounding like John Lennon, Jimi Hendrix and countless others.” This got his full attention and our eyes locked. “I just wanted to say those criticisms weren’t fair and in my opinion if you’re influenced by great artists, great art will emerge from that.”

The man broke into a huge smile and I knew I had him. “One more thing.” I continued, “In 1989 I heard, “Let Love Rule.” I’d moved to the North Carolina coast, having walked away from performing and music in order to clean myself up from 8.5 years of cocaine use (truth.) When I heard “Let Love Rule,” that song reminded me of the true power of Rock and Roll. One afternoon I went out to my shed where my drum kit was waiting for me, and put on my headphones, cranked up the radio and played my heart out, just to see if I still had it. As I was playing, I opened my eyes and through the window I saw four kids dancing in the middle of the road and knew instantly it was time to return to my music.”

Lenny’s smile never faded.

I stuck out my hand to shake his. He took it. I said, “I just wanted to thank you for following your inspiration which in turn inspired me to return to my music. Thank you, Brother.”

Lenny’s smile was as wide as ever. “Wow,” he exclaimed. “Really? Dude, that was a beautiful story. That all happened because of me?”

“Yep,” I grinned.

Lenny then grabbed me by the shoulders, hugged me tight and said, “Don Jordan, you are one beautiful cat.”

I said nothing.

The evening soon wound down. Robert and I collected our stuff and the Universal Love Tour prepared to move on to the next night’s show in Columbia, SC.

One last thought. Rock stars aren’t just musicians living lives based on clichés and debauchery. They are creators who supply the rest of us with inspiration. But most importantly they give us the soundtrack to our lives and all the memories that come with it. I for one appreciate that.
Thanks, Lenny. You too, are a beautiful cat.