Longshoreman’s Hall, the same venue where the notorious Acid Test’s were held in the mid 1960’s, is hosting a concert and special benefit fundraiser this Saturday night. While it’s very unlikely that Ken Kesey or Jerry Garcia will be in the neighborhood, their spirited disciples and old friends sure will, and carrying a torch for a special charity.

If you were down with The Summer of Love or would just like to carry that spirit with ya into the current millennium perhaps you’ll dig this “Far Out” benefit concert event for the “Hope and Beyond” Student Service-Learning Project.
Amongst the organizers are John Helms, the brother of legendary rock promoter and Family Dog member, the late Chet Helms.

Saturday’s benefit concert at the historic labor venue near Fisherman’s Wharf will be fun for all involved and raise much needed funds that go to India to get AIDS testing and prevention programs rolling in that populous but unprepared region.

Amongst the performers participating in this benefit gig are Summer of Love survivors like Mike Wilhelm of The Charlatans and the remaining members of The Quicksilver Messenger Service. Members of the younger generation might want to check out the band Lane Four, a recent KFOX radio contest finalist featuring Gregg Allman’s 14 year old daughter Layla. She’s the co-emcee for the evening and student body president of her school in the Redwood City School District. The event is open for FREE for the first 100 + adult San Francisco residents pledging to be HIV TESTED, and $25 thereafter for all pledging HIV testing.

The charity this event is sponsoring provides culturally sensitive educational services for students in the US and the people of India regarding HIV/AIDS Prevention and Testing. This project is especially crucial in India which is in the unfortunate position of rapidly becoming the number one nation with HIV/AIDS infections and is expected to surpass the African continent in the total numbers of infected individuals by the end of this decade.

The mere process of AIDS testing can save many lives as the a-symptomatic incubation period of HIV/AIDS gives the disease the potential to exist undetected in an individual for years and without the benefit of testing, the infection can be unknowingly spread.

For more info on the Hope & Beyond charitable group see their website at http://hopeandbeyond.org

Lane Four’s MySpace page

MySpace.com/LaneFour