Buskin & Batteau, The Decemberists, Enter the Haggis, John Flynn, The Folk Brothers, Sara Hickman, Sonny Landreth, Marcy Marxer and Cathy Fink, the Del McCoury Band, Ellis Paul, Rebirth Brass Band, Tom Rush, Jill Sobule, Tony Trischka and the Derek Trucks Band are among the dozens of acts slated to perform during the 48th annual Philadelphia Folk Festival, August 14-16, at the Old Pool Farm near Schwenksville, Pennsylvania.
Featuring an eclectic mix of traditional and contemporary music, as well as dance, crafts, an array of children’s activities in the shady Dulcimer Grove, and a unique late-night scene (with jamming into the wee morning hours in the 40-acre campgrounds), the Philadelphia Folk Festival is the longest continuously running U.S. festival of its kind.
Eager to retain its vitality, continue to attract crowds and broaden its appeal to younger people who are not part of the aging core audience of folk music aficionados, the festival brought in Point Entertainment’s Rich Kardon and Jesse Lundy to shake things up a bit last year.
“We wanted to shake things up even more this year,” asserts Pat Gourly, the festival’s chairperson. “By featuring The Decemberists, The Derek Trucks Band and more of the contemporary, cutting-edge acts, we’re boldly going after the younger audience needed to sustain the Philadelphia Folk Festival over the next 20 to 30 years,” he maintains.
Among the newcomers on the bill, in addition to the Portland-based quintet The Decemberists, with their British folk revival sound, and guitarist Derek Trucks and his band, are the gypsy jazz and swing-flavored string band Caravan of Thieves, Justin Townes Earle, Heartless Bastards, Jill Hennessey (best known for her starring roles on the TV shows “Crossing Jordan” and “Law and Order”), Iron and Wine, and The Low Anthem. Locally based artists of note playing this year’s festival include socially conscious singer-songwriter John Flynn, who recently released America’s Waiting as the follow-up to his impressive Two Wolves album; solo artists Adrien Reju and Chris Kasper, who impressed two years ago as part of The Lowlands; a seven-piece roots collective known as Wissahickon Chicken Shack; singer-songwriter Zach Djanikian; and Boris Garcia, a group of guys who have been a popular presence at the late-night campfires and none of whom are named Boris. Burning Bridget Cleary, Danagher & McCloud, and Shannon Lambert-Ryan & RUNA bring their very different styles to Celtic showcases; world music fans may recall Shannon from her stint with the Guy Mendilow Band.
In addition to a number of talented acts on the Martin Guitar Stage, to be hosted for the 48th consecutive year by longtime WXPN folk DJ Gene Shay, many of these and other fine artists will strut their stuff on the Camp, Lobby and Workshop Stages during the festival. The Lobby Stage, a 3,500 square-foot covered pavilion, will feature Groovemama and other dance bands, as well as showcase concerts and special musical programs for children. On the Workshop Stage, a two-hour Saturday afternoon workshop entitled “Happy Songs for Hard Times” is slated to feature folk luminary Tom Rush, the talented and witty duo of Buskin & Batteau, gifted singer-songwriters Sara Hickman and Ellis Paul, and Philly’s own Chris Kasper. Hickman, Paul and Jack Hardy also present a Songwriters Workshop on Sunday, while David Massengill, Hardy’s partner in The Folk Brothers and a gifted singer-songwriter and dulcimer player, joins John Flynn, Austin Lucas and Joe Pug for a Topical Songs Workshop.
World Café’s David Dye hosts a special concert on the Camp Stage – exclusively for all-festival camping ticket holders – on Thursday night, August 13. It will feature singer-songwriter Jill Sobule (best known for her 1995 hit “I Kissed a Girl”) and the alt-country/folk-flavored sounds of Deer Tick. Both acts will be recorded for a future broadcast on Dye’s syndicated NPR radio show. An acoustic tribute to Led Zeppelin by Get the Led Out will close out the evening.
For more information about the Philadelphia Folk Festival and to order tickets, visit www.folkfest.org or call 800-556-FOLK.
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