Folks Fest-Day 3

August 20, 2007



Richie Havens & Michael

Folks Fest- Day 3

Despite the weariness that had set in after two long days of music and a late night on Saturday hanging at the cottage with “There’s a bear in the kitchen” Katie, we were up and at ‘em again early Sunday morning. Bruce came through again in amazing fashion, fighting off the hoards and once again securing our primo location. Three days in a row is unprecedented and we have to thank Bruce for his dedication to the cause. I think he took it on as a personal challenge and he succeeded mightily.

Ellis

It seems at every festival that I attend there is one artist that I was previously unfamiliar with who leaves an indelible mark on me and I become an instant fan. There were a couple this year, but the singer/songwriter who opened the main stage on Sunday is easily on top of the list. Ellis took the stage alone with her guitar and proceeded to amaze the early arrivals with an incredible set filled with laughs and poignant songs that resonated with the assemblage. Her unique laugh was contagious and her self-deprecating humor had the crowd in stitches. She received the first and one of few standing ovations as the roaring crowd called her back for an obviously unscheduled but well deserved encore.

Kate & Ellis

Next up was something completely different, and certainly difficult to categorize with the arrival on stage of Gandalf Murphy & The Slambovian Circus of Dreams. This band from Sleepy Hollow, New York was unlike anything else to grace the stage during the weekend. Dark and mysterious looking, they performed a set of art-rock eclectic music that won over the audience. They were certainly enjoying themselves and the band came out and hung out in the crowd for the rest of the day after their set.

Gandalf Murphy

I caught the later portion of Peter Himmelman’s kids show in the wildflower pavilion and missed much of the main stage set by Ireland’s The Guggenheim Grotto. Himmelman was great with the kids in a packed pavilion set that saw him invite various children to join him onstage as he played selections from his new CD of kid’s songs, “My Green Kite”. He would return for a much more improvisational and energetic set later on the main stage, but I actually preferred the kids stuff.

Peter Himmelman

Sandwiching Himmelman on the main stage was a pair of women singers, Serena Ryder and Cheryl Wheeler. Ryder, only 24, played an energetic set that seemed pretty good, though I have to admit that much of the time I spent hanging out in the River. Wheeler was good, a funny sarcastic humor imbued many of her songs and she seems to have a wise but witty outlook that infuses her music.

Rain Shower

The final performers were the legendary folk icon Richie Havens and Chris Isaak. Havens, who opened the Woodstock Festival (28 years ago this weekend) and has had an amazing career with more than twenty albums, performed a truly magical set that showed why he has remained so relevant. Chris Isaak seemed at first, to be somewhat out of place in the line-up, but he performed a rocking upbeat finale to the Fest that featured the added bonus of an amazing shooting star that shot across the night sky mid-song that even impressed Isaak enough that he mentioned it from the stage.

Richie Havens

Chris Isaak

It was a fantastic weekend, it is such a joy to be able to relax and spend time with the likes of Kerry & Bruce and their family and extended family. Thanks so much to them and to Kate for joining us from Santa Cruz. We are already planning a return next year.



http://www.ellis-music.com/

http://www.slambovia.com/

http://www.peterhimmelman.com/

http://www.richiehavens.com/

http://www.chrisisaak.com/

Folks Fest-Day 2

August 19, 2007



Ray LaMontagne

Folks Fest- Day 2

The second day of the festival was one that I was certainly looking forward to; I was really looking forward to seeing Brett Dennen again. We saw him first last fall at the ACL festival in Austin and I have become a huge fan since and was thrilled to see him on the Folks Fest bill. We were up and on-site early for another 12 hours of music. Thankfully Bruce & Kerry had managed to score our prime spot again thanks to their camping on-site. Having a large pop-up shelter enables us to be out of the direct sun and any rain and allows us to set up 8 or so chairs comfortably underneath it.





A friend of Bruce & Kerry was playing in the brand new Wildflower pavilion (formerly Wildflower tent) that serves as a second stage as part of a Colorado songwriter circle. Danny Shafer played along with Frank Martin and a brilliant young singer songwriter named Reed Foehl. We were suitably impressed and even purchased one of Reed’s CDs.

The main stage had a steady stream of top notch talent which started with last year’s winner of the Planet Bluegrass songwriter showcase, Mitch Barrett. Each year there is a week long songwriting school in advance of the festival as well as a songwriting competition with over 7000 entries. The ten finalists perform and a winner is selected. Mitch won last year and it was easy to see why. This year’s winner was Sarah Sample who was excellent, but my favorite was a woman named Amy Speace.

The eclectic Zoe Lewis & her Rubber Band were next on the main stage, followed by Arthur Lee Land who performed his looping overlaid creations. Next up was a more traditional singer/songwriter Catie Curtis who played folk-rock with a joy that was contagious. She was easily my favorite of the early performers.

Catie Curtis

St. Vrain River

The late afternoon brought a return to the stage of David Rawlings and Gillian Welch, this time performing as The Dave Rawlings Machine which focuses much more on the guitar mastery of Rawlings on his vintage 1935 Epiphone Olympic archtop guitar. It creates a sound unlike any I’ve heard and it was an amazing performance. We saw the first drops of rain during their set, but our shelter worked like a charm, even when the drops later turned into a brief torrent.

Dave Rawlings Machine

Dave, Gillian & Michael

The rain was mostly over when Brett Dennen took the stage, and his performance did not disappoint. He pretty much had the crowd captivated from the first notes. If you are not familiar with his music, do yourself a favor and click on the link below. After Brett, Folk legend Judy Collins performed an amazing set of classic songs that included a number of Beatles covers and terrific renditions of “Cat’s in the Cradle” and “Both Sides Now”. Her magical voice has not lost a thing in the 40 years she has been wowing audiences. Her performance was so good that she probably should have had the closing set.

Brett Dennen

Judy Collins

Instead that honor went to Ray LaMontagne. It was the third time in the last year, Kathy & I have seen Ray. We saw him last summer with Guster and also at ACL, but this performance was the best we’ve seen. His voice was strong and he commanded the stage. It must be said that the sound system at Planet Bluegrass was as good as I have ever heard. Crisp and clear, even through the rain, which returned during Ray’s set. By the time he finished, we were fairly exhausted from another amazing day; thankfully there was a cold Old Chub beer and a hot tub waiting back at the cottage.

http://www.reedfoehl.com/

http://www.dannyshafer.com/

http://www.myspace.com/brettdennen

http://www.catiecurtis.com/

http://www.raylamontagne.com/

Folks Fest -Day 1

August 18, 2007



Mary Gauthier

Folks Fest- Day 1

We awoke bright and early and made our way the short distance from our cabin at Shelley’s cottages in Lyons to the Planet Bluegrass facility. We had arranged a parking spot just across the street, so we didn’t have far to carry our pop-up sunshade. The grounds are in a beautiful location along the St. Vrain River and the event is so well organized that the area in front of the stage is divided into three areas, tarps only up close, and then high backed chairs and finally pop-ups shelters. The trick is to try and arrive early enough to get a prime location in the front row of the pop-up section. We scored a perfect spot on the far left of the front row, closest to the river and right on the path that lead to the front of the stage then headed over to the Barking Dog Café for a quick breakfast.



Bruce & Kerry

It was a perfect start to 12 hours of music. It’s difficult to describe the amazing ambiance of the Folks Fest; it’s relaxing and enjoyable with delicious beer supplied by the New Belgium Brewing Company and tons of excellent food vendors. The river provides a cool respite from the heat and the beach area has been improved so that kids can play in the sand and still see and hear the stage.



And the music is amazing. The folk music genre as it pertains to this particular festival is pretty inclusive, so there is a wide diversity of artists that range from traditional folk artists, to Americana, to country to rock and about everything in between. The first day line-up kicked off with a set from Vance Gilbert which was followed by what was for me anyway the high-light of the first day, Mary Gauthier.

Darrell Scott & Mary Gauthier

Gauthier songs about the cast-offs who inhabit the underbelly of America are at once mesmerizing and haunting and she performed a wicked set that thrilled the audience. At one point she was joined on-stage by Darrell Scott who played his own set after she finished. After Scott, Grace Potter & the Nocturnals played a set that was much more rock n roll than anything else. It was another great set and you could tell the way the band won over the audience that the band is going places. I was totally unfamiliar with them and they were my find of the day.
The Los Angeles based duo The Ditty Bops were next. They played a fanciful and fun set of their Western Swing influenced music which was well received by the enthusiastic crowd. They certainly have a unique sound and approach to playing that features intricate harmonies and wistful and socially conscious lyrics.

The Ditty Bops

The Ditty Bops

Grace Potter & Michael

The headliner for Friday night was the amazing Gillian Welch. Playing with her masterful guitarist husband David Rawlings, Welch delivered a powerful set of Americana at its finest. Rawlings is an amazing guitarist and their performance was wonderful. While seemingly surprised to be in the headliner spot, they certainly proved they belonged. The crowd was ecstatic and the first day ended on a great high note.

David Rawlings & Gillian Welch

http://www.planetbluegrass.com/

http://www.myspace.com/marygauthier

http://www.gracepotter.com/

http://www.thedittybops.com/

Colorado

August 16, 2007



Kathy, Kate & Michael

Colorado



We started our annual trek to the Folks Fest on my birthday, and as a present, Delta airlines managed to provide us an on-time and incident-free trip to Denver via Atlanta. It was flawless, which is saying something in this day and age. We arrived in Denver just after noon and waited there for our friend Kate, who arrived from Santa Cruz with-in an hour. We made our way to the car rental agency where we were upgraded to a nice SUV that was plenty roomy for all of us. It was an excellent start to the trip and a harbinger of the ease and fluidity that our trip would bring.

We arrived a couple of days early for the Folks Fest, and for our first night in Colorado, we stayed in Boulder at this amazingly cool hotel that had been recommended by our sister-in-law Kari Kilroy. The Boulder Outlook hotel is located near the campus of CU in Boulder and bills itself as, “The cure for the common hotel”. It certainly is that, a socially and environmental-friendly as well as colorful and hip place, the hotel is comfortable and fun place to call home while visiting Boulder.

Pearl Street Mall

Boulder Outlook Hotel



After settling in, we headed downtown to the Pearl Street Mall for some shopping and dinner. The Mall is a wonderful example of urban planning in which Pearl Street has been blocked off as a pedestrian only mall which features an eclectic array of locally owned shopping, bars and restaurants as well as the occasional performers and special event. We found a great Mexican place and enjoyed a wonderful meal.

Rocky Mountain National Park

The next day we headed up to Estes Park, where we stopped for lunch at the Egg & I restaurant before doing a bit of shopping downtown before heading into Rocky Mountain National Park to enjoy the perfect Colorado weather. The park is an amazing place, the mountains are so beautiful. We drove up the one way Old Fall River Road. The dirt road, an amazing 9 mile series of switchbacks and twists is at once beautiful and scary, with steep drop-offs just off the shoulder. It’s worth the drive though, as it offers wonderful vistas and incredible views as it winds up the mountains. We stopped at the Chasm Falls and again once we reached its culmination at the alpine visitor center (11,796 ft.), before heading back down into Estes Park. On the return, we passed some of the many herds of Elk which frequent the park and we even saw a black bear run across the road.



Kate & friends

The Rock

Once back in Estes, we went straight to The Rock Inn Mountain Tavern. The Rock is owned and operated by our good friends, Kerry & Bruce Darby and would be on our must stop list even if our friends did not own the place. The food is excellent, and is complemented by a wonderful selection of some of Colorado’s finest microbrews. We manage to pry Kerry & Bruce away from the business to attend Folks Fest every year with us, this year they even decided to do the on-site camping option to be better positioned to get a choice spot for the Fest. After a wonderful meal, we were off to Lyons to check into the cabin that we had reserved 3 miles from the venue.

Kate, Kerry & Kathy

Inside The Rock Inn


http://www.boulderoutlook.com/

http://www.nps.gov/romo

http://www.rockinnestes.com/