Ok, I know it’s late for a report from last weekend, but I’ve been busy, ok?
Thursday I had passes for the reissue of “Stripes”, but Jill didn’t want to go out, so when she went online, I walked over to catch the last half hour of music and see the fireworks. I liked BeauSoleil, didn’t think too much of the Country Gentlemen without their founder. It hadn’t rained too much, but it was cool and I needed my jacket. Fireworks were ok, but I was still at the show and they were too far away.
Friday the rain was misting all night. We walked down to be there at 6 when the music was supposed to start, but they delayed by half an hour to make sure no heavier weather was coming. I took the time to get a beer (hefeweizen) and a burrito from the Tortilla Factory. Jill thought that looked good and did the same. Since there were so few people when we got there, we took a seat down front, but it was loud. The Brindley Brothers were good, have some nice new tunes. Ari Hest was exceptional – I especially like “I’ve Got You”, the tune he’s going to do a duet with Norah Jones with. Glad to have the raincoats.
Saturday started cloudy. A little while after we got to the center stage, the clouds broke, and it was nice the rest of the day. I missed an area on my arma that got burned, and Jill missed a spot, but we were mostly ok, unlike some in the crowd. The afternoon show was local bands. Getaway Car started, playing most of their new CD (I thought it was funny that the sampler I made for the festival had “Big Time Lullabye” and “Losers” on it, and those were the first two songs they played. They played a nice cover of Split Enz’s “I Got You”, and Chris Williams (from the Pat McGee Band) joined them on drums.
Kenin was next. We’d seen them when they opened for emmet swimming, and thought they were ok. We still think so. Cecilia got a number of converts. Their vocals were great, and their stage presence was undeniable. We headed home after their set. We went out and got groceries, then I grilled some steaks and Jill made broccoli with cheese.
Sunday was cloudless but very hot and humid. We got there just in time to see Jim Boggia at the cafe stage. Since no one else asked, I got both of my requests (“Several Thousand” and his cover of the Beatles’ “She’s Leaving Home”) and I know he did well in merch sales, which was good – I want him to keep coming back to the area. We staked out our chairs at the main stage, abandoning them temporarily for the shade of our friends Stuart and Janice’s beach umbrella. We had a big crowd with us by the time Eddie From Ohio started. They used to play Herndon more before they got big, and it was great to have them so close.
It was interesting to look at setlists from the two other times we’d seen them this year and realize almost half the songs hadn’t been played recently. “Santa Margherita” is always a good choice for a revival, likewise “20000 Hearts”. I hadn’t heard a full version of “Drive” before (which they did for a golf reality show); I thought it sounded pretty good (I like Mike’s harmonica solo). Joe Murphy didn’t make it, but the crowd did him proud during “The Three Fine Daughters Of Farmer Brown”. Because it was so hot, no one was dancing until “Operator”, but then a number of people danced ’til the end. And “Old Dominion” drew the loudest cheers of course. We hung around for a while, then invited everyone around back to our place for a cookout. I grilled burgers and dogs, then we chatted. We watched the Tonys for a while (yay Spamalot), then everyone headed home and we cleaned up.