Charlotte’s music community said goodbye to one of its favorite sons Sunday in a fittingly warm tribute to multi-instrumentalist/Sea of Cortez leader Rodney Lanier, who passed away suddenly Dec. 9 after a bout with esophageal cancer. After short but beautiful sets from Columbia’s Sunshone Still (Lanier played pedal steel and guitar on the band’s upcoming TheWayTheWorldDies) and his Sea of Cortez bandmates, as well as moving remembrances from friends and family, the music community sent the man they call Oso Grande (Big Bear) home with a New Orleans style second line hundreds strong that wound through the streets of North Davidson.

With Lanier’s friends from Fire Station No. 7 leading the way in Engine 7, hundreds followed after the horns-and-drums band with sparklers blazing in the night. The procession wound from the Chop Shop — where Lanier played his last gig in late October — to the Evening Muse, where he worked as doorman for years leaving a favorable mark on most everybody who walked in. The night before at that venue, local surf rock outfit the Aqualads hosted a multi-act release party for their CD, An Oso Grande Christmas, featuring vocal contributions from a host of Charlotte acts that benefited the Rodney Lanier Support Trust.

On a personal note: Rodney was a humble guy and noticeably uncomfortable with self-promotion; frankly, he was pretty terrible at it, which endeared him to me because his music did all the talking necessary in a business where too often too many bang their own drum too loudly. So maybe all the attention at this weekend’s celebrations might have made him slightly squeamish. But his love of genuine music and friends, as well as his fascination with the quirkier side of human behavior, would no doubt have overcome that discomfort. Sunday’s memorial and procession was one of the most beautiful and moving events I’ve been honored to be a part of, which seemed to be the unanimous consensus afterward. If you measure the man by the love and friendship he inspires…well, we should all be so lucky.

Finally — thanks go out to Rodney’s closest friends who, while burdened by their grief, were still able to celebrate the remarkable life of a remarkable man. To all of you, the staff at Shuffle tip their collective caps to say ‘job well and beautifully done.’ —John Schacht

All photos by David Massi.