I’ve been thinking about this folk singer business. Maggie and I just returned from playing the Will McLean Festival in Central Florida. Will was a writer of Florida songs, and in 1987 Pete Seeger called him the “greatest living songwriter in America today.”
He died in 1990. I doubt anyone outside Florida (and precious few inside) has ever heard of him.
We played the festival, and were asked to perform one of Will’s songs in the closing ceremony. Just as important, we had the chance to spend time between shows with friends like Grant Peeples, Jubal’s Kin and so many other singer/songwriters and bands. People we ricochet off of a few times a year, mostly at folk festivals.
It made me wonder how many of these festivals there are across the country – regional heroes, incredible songwriters. I’m sure it would be startling, at least to me.We’ll be playing the Florida Folk Festival in White Springs this Memorial weekend. It’s said to be the largest and oldest continuous folk festival in the country. 58 years, I believe. 20 miles away, in Lake City, people have no idea it’s there.
Would it be a good idea, here at ND, to maybe make a list of these festivals? Who knows, maybe we could meet there. What could it hurt?
