18th Suwannee Springfest Brings The Good Stuff

Uproot Hootenanny- Whew, they are good! festgrrl photo

If I had a dollar for every smile I saw at Suwanneee Springfest – OK, make that $20 – I wouldn't have to work for the rest of the year.

As many musicians who play this fest at Spirit of the Suwannee Music Park in Live Oak, Fl., over the years have told me, there is an indescribable something about that place, that gathering.

Well, I’ll describe it: the setting is gorgeous, the people who organize the fest are laid-back and kind, the food is good, the place has plenty of room, beautiful art is everywhere, you are with some of the finest string players in the world, it's the first whiff of spring for Northern performers, and the audience pays good attention.

Father of Newgrass Sam Bush. festgrrl photo

Multi-instrumentalist Tara Nevins, Donna the Buffalo. festgrrl photo

And so that is how we spent four days in the woods of North Florida by the Suwannee River listening, dancing, picking, singing, visiting, and swinging in hammocks under blooming dogwoods and Spanish moss.

Ahhhh.. hammocking in the ampitheater stage. festgrrl photo

And let’s not forget the legendary picking circles that go on all night, every night, in the campgrounds, because that’s the Suwannee sweet spot. In my neck of the woods, South Florida’s Uproot Hootenanny were hellacious late-night ragers. 

Adorable Del McCoury. festgrrl photo

Adorable  Del McCoury fan. festgrrl photo

2014 marked the 18th Suwannee Springfest, and the promoters were able to get four of the world’s current folk and Newgrass “it” bands – The Punch Brothers, The Avett Brothers, The Sam Bush Band, and 2014 Bluegrass Album-of-the-Year Grammy winners The Del McCoury Band. Each band gave a standout performance that had people buzzing all weekend. Canadian roots band The Duhks also performed a goosebumps-inducing set. 

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Another stellar show was Sunday’s Southern Soul Assembly, which featured a songwriter-in-the-round setup with JJ Grey (Mofro,) Luther Dickinson (North Mississippi All Stars) and Louisiana musicians Anders Osborne and Marc Broussard. The set drew a well-deserved standing ovation in the ampitheater.

Anders Osborne. festgrrl photo

Luther Dickinson (left), Marc Broussard. festgrrl photo

JJ Grey. festgrrl photo

One blow-my-mind Springfest moment was when Saturday night headliners The Avett Brothers took the old roots-music standard “Cluck Old Hen” and turned it into a dark, exhilarating punk throwdown with stage theatrics. 

That’s pretty much Springfest in a nutshell – the fest is rooted in a traditional form but, year after year, it brings innovation and a sense of humor. Like the hot young picker kids who showed up at my camp and played a bluegrass cover of Gloria Gaynor’s disco anthem, “I Will Survive.” Or one year, late night,  when Wisconsin bluegrass band Sloppy Joe broke out Beyonce’s “Put A Ring On it.” 

This is joie de vivre, people, the good stuff. Get it while you can. 

Wildman Steve. festgrrl photo

Camground pickin' with a washtub bass. festgrrl photo

Grant Peeples and Elizabeth Fravel. festgrrl photo

Jeb Puryear (left) and Kyle Spark of Donna the Buffalo. festgrrl photo

Willie Sugarcapps. festgrrl photo

The New 76ers - wowed the crowd. festgrrl photo

The Henhouse Prowlers, one of the best bands I saw. festgrrl photo

Fiddler, Singer Tania Elizabeth of The Stacks, The Duhks, and, we hear, soon joining The Avett Brothers
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Grateful Dead archivist and musician David Gans. We love him.
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Steep Canyon Rangers
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'Til Next Time!
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