Fayetteville Roots Festival 2014 Bryan and Bernice Hembree seem to improve the Roots Fest each year. The Roots Fest is held in late summer; this year the last weekend of August. Fayetteville is clearly the second cultural capital of Arkansas next to Little Rock, the actual state capital, so it is no surprise a festival celebrating American roots music, is an amalgamation of folk, rockabilly, rock and roll, country, blues, jazz, and so-called outlaw country all referred to generally as Americana. Aside from the musical celebration, food, visual art, and the documenting and informing of folk traditions in the Natural State are experienced front and center for the weekend. The festival circuit is crowded during the summer time, but the musical talents gathered here in Fayetteville are the same names as the bigger festivals, like Hardly Strictly Bluegrass in the Bay Area of California and the countless festivals from sea to shining sea. The past year leading up to the spectacular August weekend, the Roots Fest sponsors additional shows, usually held at Georges, but also at Crystal Bridges in Bentonville. In February, legendary performer Patty Griffin was hosted, opened by August performer Anais Mitchell. In May, Shovels and Rope performed, opened by another August performer, Hurray for the Riff Raff, the band headed by the multi-talented Alynda Lee Segarra. Later, Jim Lauderdale, supporting his new album Im a Song appeared for a Roots sponsored show. Those are the performances I attended. There were others. Important sponsors make it all possible, including the Garner family, who host the Thursday night kickoff performances on their farm in east Fayetteville. It is not uncommon to see sponsors working at the merch table or doing the hard work required to put together a five day festival. 20 plus groups and solo performers with the crowds of people takes a lot of work to host successfully. Brian Bailey is one of the most visible sponsors, owner of Mustache on the east side of the square. I swear I saw Bernice Hembree less than 3 hours before her set with Smokey and the Mirror dressed down in shorts and t-shirt lugging a cart across the Town Center plaza, where the festival main stage performances were held because of a structural issue with the WAC. In the lobby of Town center, Farmers Table, Greenhouse Grille, and Ellas Restaurant sold food along with Joy Ice Cream and New Market Naturals provided fruity water for thirsty patrons. Mothers Brewery, Ozark Brewing, and Fossil Cove Brewing libations were served, including wine. The Ozarks have lately become a center of Americana music with the arrival of Wakarusa (all musical forms are included at the Mulberry Mountain festival), Harvest Music Festival(also at Mulberry Mountain), headlined by local favorite Yonder Mountain String Band, and Medicine Stone Festival held at the Illinois River near Tahlequah, Oklahoma, a brainchild of another local favorite Turnpike Troubadours. Our city is fortunate to be a center for musicians, visual artists, local-vore restauranteurs, prose writers, poets, playwrights, actors, and other creative people one might expect to find in the most important college town in the state of Arkansas. UAs creative writing program included one of my favorite Mississippi writers, Barry Hannah, professor and head of UA Press, also father of Festival headliner Lucinda Williams, poet Miller Williams. Incidentally, Miller Williams is a native of Hoxie, Arkansas. I was fortunate in one way to be able to attend the Friday performances at Town Center, maybe not so fortunate as to why I was able to attend. The first artist I saw was Apache Relay. I was happy to hear them. The Secret Sisters, a band from Muscle Shoals, another center of the musical world with many famous recordings of some of my favorite musical performers, rattled our bones and sang about historic, bloody Iuka, Mississippi, where their parents were married, not far from Muscle Shoals, Alabama. Iuka was the scene of one of the most needlessly bloody battles of the Civil War that included a number of survivors of a local battle, Pea Ridge/Elkhorn Tavern, in late 1862, not long after the mind-numbing brutality of Shiloh in April 1862. The sisters Laura and Lydia Rogers have attracted the right kind of attention, aided by expert production of T Bone Burnett for their two albums , have a bright future. Willie Watson followed in support of his new album, produced by Americana superstars Dave Rawlings and Gillian Welch, Folk Singer, vol. 1. Willie was a member of Old Crow Medicine Show, a group heavily influenced by Dave Rawlings. Willies distinctive voice and energy were on display at the Garner farm Thursday night and he didnt disappoint the Friday night crowd. Darrell Scott, a 2013 Festival performer and bluegrass legend Tim OBrien followed Willie supporting their new duo album Memories and Moments. I love both performers as solo acts as do the Wood Brothers who closed the Main Stage performances, following their Thursday night set at Georges.Wood Brothers proved their worth in the world of musi;, fine musicians, great songs and the rowdiest crowd of the entire Festival greeted them. They performed Fox on the Run with Darrell Scott and Tim OBrien, which, they admitted, was a singular honor. We were all honored to hear them on stage together. Next, my wife and I ventured to Georges for the late performances featuring Tony Furtado Trio and one of our favorites, Hurray for the Riff Raff, the breakout New Orleans band who opened for Shovels, as aforementioned. Delightful to see them any time they perform in this town. Cutty Rye ended the nights shows at Georges in the bar and an excited crowd enjoyed their performance. Saturday, the morning session at the outdoor performance area hosted two of our favorite emerging artists from two cities we have visited and loved, Oxford, Mississippi and Little Rock, Arkansas: Water Liars and Elise Davis. We have both grown to love Oxford, a cultural capital of Mississippi where Jimbo Mathus and Cary Hudson (Blue Mountain) spend much of their free time. Cary, I believe lives there. Jimbo grew up nearby in the Hill country of Mississippi, the true home of Delta blues. Square Books and End of All Music attract us each year. Water Liars record with Big Legal Mess/Fat Possum Records. Elise won a contest and a recording contract, moving to Nashville a few years back. We first saw her at Sticky Fingerz in Little Rock, appearing with Mando Saenz. Not the best show, the band didnt know her songs, but her songwriting and her personality are charming and she has a beautiful voice. Mandos album Studebaker is a must have and he puts on a great show. Cheap Date by Elise is one of my favorite recordings I own and I must listen to it regularly. I missed her night show with a full band at Georges. The WAC mess forced us to drive from Town Center instead of walk across the lot to the Georges performances. Lucindas set went overtime, but worth every second. I wish Lucinda could have played all night. Sorry, Elise. I know you love Lucinda and understand. Parking was a disaster on Dickson Street. We are fortunate to hear most of these performers on satellite radio. Water Liars should be on everyones list of shows to see if they perform near you. Same with Elise. The Main Stage Saturday night line-up included Tony Furtado Trio, Anais Mitchell, Smokey and the Mirror, the Hembrees newly electrified folk band with incredible results. Jay Farrar, a man of few words, but beautiful, introspective music, erst of Uncle Tupelo, the legendary alt-country group very popular in the mid-90s followed the dinner break and awarding of Crazy Chester Award. Hurray for the Riff Raff, again, more Alynda Lee is the best Alynda Lee. She is a great songwriter, performer, and producer with a solid band behind her. To cap off the night, it was sing-along time with Lucinda, supporting a new double album, I believe I have heard. She sang all the new songs I have heard on satellite, including a poem by her father. What a grand performance, ending her third of three encore selections with a sing-along to Neil Young: Keep on rockin in the free world!!!!!!Points the mike at the crowd : Keep on rockin in the free world. What a great ending on the Main Stage, which turned out to be the last performance of the festival we enjoyed, since we couldnt get near Georges for Elise Davis, the Water Liars second set or Ben Kweller. Also, we were sad to miss David Ramirez, whom we saw open for Joe Ely and Jeff Plankenhorn at Granada in Alpine, Texas in the spring. Nevertheless, we left satisfied that the cultural phenomenon and brain child of the Hembrees and Jerrmy Gawthrop was possibly better than last year. 2013 Roots Fest was mighty impressive though. Iris Dement, native of Paragould and John Prine headlined the festival. Hayes Carll and Rev. Peyton were on last years line-up and it was quite a festival. Rev. Peyton was back last Mardi Gras and was a crowd favorite in Clarksdale, Mississippi later, not far from my hometown. The Hembrees have been an important part of the square the past few years, having owned Terra Tots when it was on the south side on the Town Center plaza, since relocated to the Campbell-Bell Building next to Mustache, Brian Baileys business (also a Bentonville square location). The Hembrees band later will perform in Fayetteville with Black Lillies: I hope to make that show. Their new live album along with Rebecca Loebe and Raina Rose recorded live in Texas and Oklahoma is an album everyone should own. I am glad and Fayetteville is fortunate to have those two creative, driven people setting roots in this town and beginning the Fayetteville Roots Festival. Yet another reason to want to live in this community is its appeal for creative looking for a great place to settle. It was great to have the festival in town, not in Rogers or Bentonville after the WAC was declared structurally unsound for performances. I believe I saw Kagey Parrish, who along with Laura Wortman comprises Honey Dewdrops, who performed at the past two festivals. Sorry the live recording of their Starr Theatre performance of 2013 was not available at the merch table. Get every recording of Honey Dewdrops if you see it in a music store some time. You wont be disappointed. The Festival brings big named talent to the Ozarks, true. But, local artists add their contributions. A couple of years ago, the low tenor, high baritone voiced Shawn James was performing on the southeast corner of the square just outside the old post office building playing guitar and belting out his songs while dripping with sweat in the scorching sunshine. The past two years, he has been welcomed into air-conditioned venues Kingfish and Maxines. Hes an impressive songwriter; Shadows is a great album and hes released a new album I am told might be just as good. His song Omen was featured on an ad for a television show Yukon Men lately. Hes been touring the country and should be one to watch for at your local live music venue. Another local talent with a new album, Candy Lee of Candy Lee and the Sweets, Human Conditions is 13 tracks including her hidden track Here in Arkansas , a Song of Arkansas finalist. Any artist who mentions my native Delta and Arkansas beautiful mountains is certain to be a favorite of mine. Her song Beautiful Day has been an important song for me recently with my difficulties. It has been a tough summer for me and Im hoping I can see the other side of these health difficulties. Every day is a beautiful day for me and I hope to wake up to many, many more beautiful Arkansas days. I recently purchased her 80 minute self-produced album The Gate and it is another must have for those who love the live music scene in Fayetteville. I would like to thank all the sponsors, volunteers, performers, and anyone who had any positive impact on the success of the Fayetteville Roots Festival, including the Hembrees for making the live music scene possibly the best in Arkansas. When I first arrived in Fayetteville, the local music scene was little more than the Cate Brothers and the memory of Ronnie Hawkins, the Hawks, Levon Helm, and the Band of Canadians when they spent time here. Matt Millers painting of Levon playing the mandolin was the clincher to this week of celebration of live Americana music. The man behind the drum with the sweet voice from my native Phillips County and the proclamation of Levon Helm Day is what its all about. If you are reading this and have never experienced the live music scene in Arkansas: Little Rock, Fayetteville, wherever great artists perform, I advise you to take advantage of the moment. Until next year, adieu.
Posted on: Mon, 08 Sep 2014 00:46:42 +0000
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