Magnolia Fest Was Sublime

Sunny days, cool nights, a full moon, and a ridiculous amount of talent conspired to make the 14th Magnolia Festival at Spirit of the Suwannee Music Park in Live Oak, FL. a lovely event. The park was full of happy campers, but as is usually the case, it never felt too crowded.

Suffice it to say -- whether on stage or in the campground in the wee hours, these folks were here to PLAY. Standouts were the super-fast picking of Keller & The Keels, Cornmeal, the transcendent Dread Clampitt-Tornado Rider late-night jam on Saturday night, the slow and easy Seven Walkers set, Wet Willie's rocking vocals and cool sax, the super loose Donna The Buffalo family show Sunday night, and Joe Craven, a unique performer with a big heart.

There was a lot of talk about this being the last Magnolia Fest, and a lot of folks have been asking me about what's next. That remians to be seen. Founders Beth and Randy Judy are transitioning out of their role as main producers. We're all so grateful for the fatastic events they've put on all these years, starting back with Big Cosmo's Sunshine Daydream.

Paul Levine anad Lyle Williams (of Bear Creek Music & Art Festival) are taking over for the March 2011 Suwannee Springfest, and they have already announced that The Avett Brothers will headline.YES!

Paul and Lyle have excellent taste and new energy, so I'm thinking it's all going to work out just fine.

I'll post some Magnolia Fest videos later, but in the meantime, here are some pics from the weekend!

Joe Craven plays the jawbone

Peter Rowan with Keller & The Keels

18 South Rocks It!

Scramble Campbell paints Joe Craven

Peter Rowan tells it like it is

Sam Bush plays with Dread Clampitt

Wanee Review

So that picture above is Tara Nevins from Donna the Buffalo, playing with the Bill Kreutzmann Trio at 2009 Wanee festival in Live Oak, Fl. In a weekend of stellar performances, this one was a standout. Tara sang lead on Grateful Dead classic "He's Gone," and she did a kick-ass job of it, the trio also did one of my fave DTB songs, "...Walking, Talking, too Far from the Light, Living, Breathing, in Colorless Black and White..."

Wanee was a mudfest, but none of the shows were cancelled by weather, amazingly. The crowd was super-giant compared to other Spirit of the Suwannee fests. There was also an abundance of what I call "Bowlegged Whiskey Walkers," some of them fixin' to fight. Mostly peaceful, though, and a hell of a lot of fantastic music! Here's a few show reviews for ya:

The Doobie Brothers - They did some classic old tunes, my favorites were Black Water, Listen to the Music, and Takin' it to the Streets. What struck me was really how great their playing is (and was) beyond just being catchy. Their 70's hair --completely unchanged! -- was hysterical.

Grace Potter and the Nocturnals - This was my first time hearing Grace, and she ROCKED it! She's a super-sultry bad-ass with the attitude of Marcia Ball, and the sound of Bonnie Raitt and Nora Jones. Her band was impeccable.

The Wailers - Did the entire Exodus album at midnight on Saturday as the show closer.Their sound system was curiously low-fi, but it was awesome to hear those old tunes live.

The Allmans, Derek Trucks, Susan Tedeschi -- This is what the crowd came for, and they delivered -- blistering guitar solos, soulful singing, nice long, fat sets.

Little Feat - Were a disappointment, and I'm a real fan. They seemed bored, and Lowell George's daughter, who had been wailing out lead vocals last year, wasn't with them. The set was predictable and forgettable.

The Radiators - LOVED that New Orleans sound! Ditto Ivan Neville's Dumpstaphunk, I had to sit down after that funk-fest!

Col. Bruce Hampton and the Quark Alliance - Never disappoints! He laid it DOWN with fancy riffs and super soulful vocals. The thing about Bruce is, even though he's been performing for so long, he never seems stale to me. He's just got that funky thing going, deep inside. I had a HUGE smile on my face and a spring in my step!

Arc Angels - Lots of people were loving this band, I was not one of them. Sounded like boring Southern rock to me, I left.

Keller Williams - Was just precious and fascinating to watch his one-man band, plus his very ardent fans.

Umphrey's McGee - One of the best shows of the whole weekend. Their jazzy, jammy riffs were tighter than tight, and they just played the hell out of their afternoon set. Super standout in a weekend filled with Guitar Gods.

I've only got one real complaint -- there were very few sit-ins. With all that talent, I expected a little more cross-pollination among groups. Warren Haynes was stage-skippping for sure, but he was the rare one.

I'll be back next year!

Wanee and Full Moon Fest

BIG WEEKEND!!!!

First off is the amazing Wanee I can't say enough about the off-the-hook lineup for this festival. They've posted the schedule on the site. Thursday night kicks off with New Orleans' kick-ass band, The Radiators, along with a personal favorite of mine, Bobbie Lee Rodgers out of Georgia (of the Codetalkers). Then, my God, a parade of killer music ... Allman Brothers, Col. Bruce Hampton, Derek Trucks, Buddy Guy, Drive By Truckers, Gov't Mule, Grace Potter and the Nocturnals, Doobie Brothers, Little Feat, the Wailers, Jorma Kaukonen, Keller Williams, Bill Kruetzmann, the Wailers, Ivan Neville, Susan Tedeschi, Lord, that doesn't even tell HALF the story, so go to the link and get the rest of the info.

Wanee ends Saturday night, but there is a special benefit later that day at Spirit of the Suwannee for Zach Deputy, who is one hell of a nice guy and a great player. Somebody ripped off his equipment, so he's raising bucks to replace it. He's a looper like Keller Williams, though his music isn't like Keller's. I LOVED the Deputy show at Bear Creek last year, I couldn't believe how many things he was doing at once. He's funky, he's reggae, he's folky, he's really, really cool.

There are two Zach Deputy shows Sunday, one in late afternoon and another in the evening. The shows are brought to you by the folks at Bear Creek Music festival.

SO.....Get yer butt to Suwannee and rage it!

OK, so if you can't swing the ticket price at Wanee, the kind folks at Farm To Family are holding their Full Moon Fest outside Gainesville. Check the link for the lineup. See previous posts about this groovy little fest that costs $10 to $20, sliding scale.