农业+生活方式
“我离开的时候比我发现的时候更好”
发布于2020年9月28日12:00 AM
There have been lots of written words and plenty of talk about the talents of Chuck Leavell. 他不仅是世界著名的键盘手, playing regularly with the Rolling Stones and on occasion with Eric Clapton and John Mayer, 他也因对林业的热爱而闻名. And that’s evident when you walk among the pines at his home in Central Georgia.
“你看，这都是我妻子的错，”查克说. “Rose Lane’s family has been connected to the land, literally for generations. She inherited some land from her grandmother back in 1981 and it just became our responsibility to carry on what we saw as a heritage of stewardship of the land.”
Chuck and Rose Lane Leavell own Charlane Plantation, located in Twiggs County. 自1792年以来，这处房产一直属于罗斯·莱恩的家族, 利维尔一家从80年代中期就住在这里了. Chuck said that caring for the land through conservation and tree farming provides a nice balance to months spent on the road as a musician.
“我只是相信在土地上工作, 拥有像我们这样强大的家庭, 帮助你脚踏实地, 你知道. And those are the really important things in life,他说. “It’s such a great opportunity for me to be able to go out and play with these wonderful artists, but when you come back and you’re connected to the land you realize what your priorities are, 这当然是我们的首要任务.”
The Leavells have a few employees who live on the property full time, and help care for it while Chuck and Rose Lane are away.
“正如我们所知，林业是一件长期的事情. It’s not like farming where you’ve got row crops that need tending more often, 或者桃树或山核桃树. That’s one of the reasons that Rose Lane and I decided to go forward with forestry when she inherited this land,”查克说。. “林业符合我们的要求, I could go tour and record and follow my musical career without having to worry about it day to day.”
In the years since they’ve taken over Charlane Plantation, 利弗尔夫妇关注的不仅仅是环境保护, but on growing the business of running the plantation – especially in terms of offering traditional Southern quail hunts.
“我想我们大约在20年前就开始这么做了. 慢慢地，它真的成长了. 现在, 大部分都是回头客, 很多公司客户都来了, developers that are entertaining their various people that they work with; we love that. For me, it’s like bringing the audience to me instead of me having to go out on tour,”查克说。. “Certainly, we have fast flying birds, great dogs and courteous guides. 这里的食物令人难以置信——Rose Lane确保了这一点. I’ll sit down and play them a few songs or tell them some rock ‘n’ roll stories from the road. That’s become one of the most enjoyable things that we do out here. It’s seasonal, so it lasts about four months and then we’re on to other things.”
Music fans know those “other things” include touring and playing keyboard for the last 37 years with the Rolling Stones. When planning their tours, Chuck plays a big role in helping curate performances as musical director.
“So, here’s the deal, 你知道 you’re going to do the iconic songs. I mean, people would go away upset if you didn’t do all of those things. But what you want to do is to fill in the rest of it with some interesting material. 作品的主体是如此令人难以置信. I mean, hundreds of songs that Mick Jagger and Keith Richards have written. 你当然不可能把它们都放进去, but what you try to do is get some interesting ones that the hardcore fans would recognize, 但也许公众会这么说, “那是什么?”?’ ... I gladly take the responsibility because I think I have a fan’s perspective. 我不仅是乐队的一员, but I was a fan of the Stones when I was 14 years old playing that stuff at the YMCA with my first band. So, I think I have a certain perspective of what the fans would like to hear and how the set can flow,”查克说。.
For those who may not know much about Chuck outside of the Rolling Stones, it may come as a surprise to learn that he’s also a television host, 生产商, 网站联合创始人，纪录片主体.
“America’s Forests with Chuck Leavell” airs on PBS stations around the nation, 在网站上也是如此, americasforestswithchuckleavell.com. 这些剧集探索了美国的各个州.S.，触及每个地方独特的户外问题.
“The idea came some years ago through the fact that there’s so much misunderstanding about forestry. 在我作为音乐家的旅行中，或者也在推广林业, you get people that don’t quite understand what sustainable forestry is all about,他说.
One of the ways Chuck has shared information about forestry and the environment is through the Mother Nature Network, 他在2009年联合创立了一个网站.
More recently, he was the subject of the documentary, “Chuck Leavell: Tree Man,” by Allen Farst. The movie won the “People Choice Award” at the 2020 Sedona Film Festival and took several years to film.
“这部纪录片有三个组成部分. 一个组件, 当然, is music and the career that I’ve been so fortunate to have and the different artists that I’ve worked with,”查克说。. “第二部分是林业. The third component, and most important, is a love story. 罗西和我已经结婚46年了. 我们有两个可爱的孩子和四个孙子.”
他的家族来自中乔治亚州, 尽管巡演日程和拍摄日期都很紧凑, Chuck’s thoughts remain centered around home and Charlane Plantation.
“You know, sometimes it just drives me absolutely crazy. 我要去巡演了，那真是太棒了. You get to visit these great cities and play in front of bring crowds, 演奏音乐，那总是很棒的, 但是你知道, 我脑子的一部分还在这里, 说, “好吧, 我们有足够的雨吗? 一切都好吗??“这是一件经常发生的事情，它一直在我的脑海里. But I will say this, it is a wonderful balance to be able to do both,他说.
From playing tunes on one of his grand pianos to planting pine trees, his hope for his home is this: “That I left the land better than I found it.”
The Leavells could live anywhere in the world, but they are proud to call Central Georgia their home.
“I am just a die-in-the-wool Southerner, born and raised in Alabama. 罗斯·莱恩说我叛逃到乔治亚来了. 但是你知道，我在南方有根. The South has been so good to me, and there’s nowhere in the world I would rather live.”
