|
While festivals like Coachella, Lollapalooza and Bonnaroo may attract much bigger crowds
-- Newport is capped at 10,000 per day -- the Folk Festival has proved to be a festival where the old and new come together, where brand-new bands hoping to be discovered by a wider audience jam with icons from their grandparents' day. "I think Newport means a lot to anyone that's at least halfway conscious of what's happened in music in the last 60 years," said Joey Ryan, half of the acoustic duo The Milk Carton Kids. Asked what the band had planned for its first Newport show, Ryan quipped, "We thought we might go electric." Perhaps surprisingly, musicians routinely list the majestic scenery of Narragansett Bay as one of their favorite things about playing Newport. Ramblin' Jack Elliott recalls that when he last played Newport, two years ago, he was sharing the stage with Seeger when the two became "terribly distracted." "These three beautiful schooners were sailing in all at once, and there were about 20 other boats out there, too," he said. "I looked over at Pete, and I think he got distracted, too. I think he forgot what he was singing." Look for next year's festival to continue to expand. While the festival had held Friday night kick-off concerts before, this year's music begins at 2 p.m. Friday. Next year, Sweet said he hopes to start even earlier in the day, making the festival a true three-day event. Elliott, 81, has played Newport 10 or 11 times, he said, going back to the 1963 festival. He said he's delighted the festival has caught on with younger acts and younger fans, and he believes it's in response to the artificially sweetened sound of pop music. "Mississippi John Hurt isn't with us anymore, and Lead Belly is gone. The spirit of Woody Guthrie is still lurking around," Elliott said. "This land ain't your land, and it ain't my land, but the songs are still sung with feeling."
[Associated
Press;
Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.