Greetings estivarians After 2 weeks of Colorado monsoon rains, the Planet Bluegrass Ranch has turned a verdant green. Now with sun and singing in the forecast, we welcome the best music fans in the world back to Lyons for our 27th annual “Summit of the Song.” This past Sunday, over 200 songwriters and performers from around the world joined together at The Song School. For 5 days, they shared their craft and inspiration, digging deep into the creative songwriting process. With those seeds now planted, our Festival is once again firmly grounded in the songwriter tradition. This weekend join us in celebrating voices new and old from as far away as Scotland, Australia, Egypt and Canada, and as close as the Front Range—and even Lyons! As always, we encourage you to find your place on an empty tarp up front to enjoy the music. As you soak in the warm sun and wade in the cool river, don’t forget to say hi to our festival partners— including New Belgium Brewing and their new Fat Tire Belgian White. We invite you to join the free yoga sessions on the field each morning and intimate musical performances in the Wildflower Pavilion throughout the day. Families will find a forest of musical and planet-minded kids activities next to the Wildflower. For the second year, all our vendors are serving food on reusable bamboo-based dishware. Please help each other form new Sustainable Festivation habits
by ensuring these plates are properly deposited at our new plate/waste stations—and not mistakenly composted, recycled, or (gasp!) taken home. As you savor the music and friendships, don’t forget to drink plenty of free filtered water and slather on the sunscreen. Share a song in a campground song circle, tread lightly on the land, and have the time of your life. We’re so happy you’re here.
With love,
The Folks on Planet Bluegrass
Our Partners
in the light of the sun, we are all one —wailin' jennys
| 1
estival Guidelines Feel free to sit on any open tarp (especially up front) until the tarp’s owners return. Climbing the hillsides or cliffs is strictly prohibited. There is no lifeguard watching your kids in the river. Please monitor your children carefully. Please do not smoke in the audience. Wander over to the smoking tent near the river, and deposit your butts in the proper receptacles. Once placed on, wristbands are non-refundable and non-transferable. If you remove, tear, damage, or lose your wristband, we will not replace it. Please use only low-backed chairs in designated areas. Umbrellas, shade tents, and other view-obstructing items are allowed only along the river and back perimeter. Please be respectful of others, and do not stand in the Festival seating areas. No dogs are allowed at the Festival, in the campground, or in the parking lots. If you leave your dog in your car, we will call Animal Control to safely remove your dog from the car.
Tarp Line Policy Festivarians may begin assembling for the next day’s line numbers no earlier than 11pm. At around midnight, the number line will be led through the customs gate, where we will distribute random numbers and mark wristbands to show receipt of a number. These numbers will be shuffled randomly; each person may receive no more than 1 number. The next morning, Festivarians should reassemble in line-number order beginning one hour before gates. Festivarians will be admitted into the Festival in this randomlyassigned order, followed by all Festivarians without line numbers.
Lost and found is located at the Festival box office.
2|
ain't your little omie wise, i'm not your pretty polly —phoebe hunt
Sustainable
f e st ivat i o n With your help, the Planet Bluegrass festivals aspire to be models of Sustainable Festivation. As we continue to broaden the scope of our efforts, here are a few recent achievements we’re particularly proud of.
waste stream
Last year we diverted 61% of our Lyons festival waste from the landfill. With no landfill containers inside the festival grounds (a policy since 2011!), the majority of this landfill waste comes from the campgrounds. Campers, please help by packing out your landfill waste after the Festival. Inside the festival grounds, our Sustainable Festivation volunteers (members of the Lyons High School Band) are eager to help you properly sort your waste. After the Festival we donate all unused food from our vendors and backstage catering to local charities—amounting to more than 500 pounds of food delivered to EFAA in Boulder after last month’s RockyGrass. While we aim to return all items in our lost-and-found (located at the box office) to its owners, a few weeks after each festival we donate any unclaimed items to Lyons ReRuns (whose proceeds benefit the Lyons Community Foundation). This year’s wine selection is provided by the ecofriendly YOONIT Wines, whose recyclable packaging and gravity fed dispensers remove the need for glass bottles and kegs, as well as electricity for cooling and storage.
4|
carbon footprint
For 14 years, we have partnered with Renewable Choice Energy to offset our festivals’ carbon footprint. Again this year, we are counterbalancing the emissions from all our Festival artists’ travel to/from Lyons, as well as the emissions created by the Festival production, using carbon offsets. Nearly 3 years ago we installed a 54module 13.2 kWh solar array on the south roof of the Wildflower Pavilion. Thanks to the strong Colorado sun, these panels have generated enough electricity to power each year’s RockyGrass and Folks Festival!
the ranch
Goodbye, wood chips! In April, we finished one of our last major flood recovery projects: installing 20,000 square-feet of droughtresistant sod in the backstage campground. All the sod planted on the festival grounds after the flood is a special strain of Texas Bluegrass that requires 2/3 less water than our pre-flood Kentucky Bluegrass. This summer we installed new energyefficient LED lights along the road and new solar-powered lights on the Ranch entrance path. Throughout the year, we protect our local ecosystem by fertilizing the Ranch with organic fertilizers and pumping our irrigation water from the river (where most of the water eventually returns).
the world from afar, gets closer than you think —ben sollee
our community
In 2015, Planet Bluegrass purchased the old Valley Bank property at 2nd Ave and Park Street in Lyons to develop permanently affordable homes for those displaced by the flood. After receiving project approval from the Town of Lyons in 2016, Habitat for Humanity began actively seeking families for these 6 new homes last winter. In December 2015, we became a Certified B Corporation. We joined over 2,200 fellow B-Corps
(including New Belgium Brewing, Renewable Choice Energy, Dr. Bronner’s, and Eco-Products) who aspire to use business as a force for good—meeting the highest standards of overall social and environmental performance, transparency, and accountability. Finally, thanks to you! Your beverage booth tips have helped our local community, including large contributions to the Lyons Fire Protection District, Nederland Fire Protection District, Habitat for Humanity, and St. Vrain Creek Coalition.
things you can do at the festival
1. Carpool to the Festival. One lucky carpool (4+ occupants) will win a pair of limited edition Meier Skis! 2. Visit the Sustainable Festivation booth. Complete our eco-puzzle for a chance to win Planet
Bluegrass merch!
3. Clean up microtrash around the Festival. Bring a baggie of microtrash (wrappers, caps,
cigarette butts) to the Keen booth to be entered to win a pair of Keen sandals!
4. Try morning yoga. Begin your day nourished and relaxed! 5. Return your reusable plate. Always return your reusable plate to one of our waste stations.
(Plates should never leave the inner festival grounds!)
Everyth Flippin ing’s ’ Tasty!
Welcome Festivarians! Festival Hours: 6am-2pm
Organic Espresso, Coffee & Tea
Farm Dinners and Workshops
Scrumptious Baked Goods Killer Breakfast Sandwiches & Breakfast Tacos Bloody Sams, Mimosas & more 5th & High Street 303.823.2345 www.thestonecup.com
no wars, no limits, no borders. earth is everyone's right —ramy essam
| 5
r e u s a b l e
Last year our Lyons festivals became the first special events in Colorado to serve food from vendors on reusable dishware. We traded single-use compostable paper plates for 4,000 sturdy bamboo bowls and plates that we can reuse year after year.
This landmark program required a variance from the state (Colorado law prohibits reusable dinnerware at special events), advice from likeminded festivals in Oregon and Canada, and transportation of all the dishes to/from The Stone Cup’s commercial dishwasher each evening. But the results were inspiring: during last summer’s 2 Lyons festivals we removed over 15,000 items from our waste stream and saved 75,000 gallons of water. (Producing a singleuse compostable plate requires 3-8 gallons of water; washing a reusable plate requires only 0.09 gallons!) Boulder County Public Health called the program “progressive and revolutionary in the realm of temporary events." While many Festivarians told us how much they preferred eating from
6|
“During RockyGrass we lost 13% of our plate inventory.” these sturdy bamboo plates, compared with flimsy compostables. One of our lessons from last year’s program was the need to streamline the dishwashing process. So last winter we received a grant from Boulder County’s Zero Waste Funding Program to build our own commercial dishwashing trailer. By parking this new trailer behind our festival vendors, we’re able to efficiently wash all the plates on-site, thereby decreasing the turnaround time and simplifying our tracking and health code compliance. Thanks to the increased efficiency of this new dishwashing trailer, during last month’s
giving myself papercuts, making wings to fly me to you —korby lenker
RockyGrass Festival we were able to double the reusable plate usage compared with last year. At this current rate, we are on-track to remove nearly 30,000 items from our waste stream this summer! But this program requires your help. Sadly, during RockyGrass we lost 13% of our inventory! Some plates may have been mistakenly deposited in compost or recycling, some broke, and some were taken home by Festivarians. (Unlike your reusable beer cup, these reusable plates should never leave the inner Festival grounds!)
“Planet Bluegrass has long been ahead of the zero-waste curve.” –Boulder Daily Camera In contrast with plate programs at other events, Planet Bluegrass has completely covered the $30,000+ expense of the program. There is no additional cost to Festivarians; no additional fees to our food vendors. This program will only remain environmentally and economically sustainable if these plates remain in the reuse “loop” at our Festivals for years to come. Please help us out this year by carefully depositing your reusable plate in one of our gorgeous new Sustainable Festivation plate/ waste stations. We’ve redesigned these stations to simplify your sorting—with separate openings for compost, recycling, and reusable plates. And if you see a reusable plate in the campground or leaving Planet Bluegrass, help it find its way back home to one of our Sustainable Festivation stations. Years from now, future Festivarians will thank you!
Jorma Kaukonen • Bruce Molsky • Rhiannon Giddens • Ben Sollee Smithsonian Folkways • Compass Records Letitia VanSant • Billy Shaddox • Rob Ickes & Trey Hensley • Colin Hay Nick Lowe • Rising Appalachia • Grateful Dead • Eileen Ivers Finders & Youngberg • Yonder Mountain String Band • Lucy Kaplansky Gregory Alan Isakov • Billy Strings • KC Groves • Jono Manson • Shannon McNally Otis Taylor • Moors & McCumber • The Railsplitters • Danny Barnes
Thanks, Folks!
The Last Revel • Johnny Johnston • Hassan El-Tayyeb • Tellico Jake Schepps • Head for the Hills • Famous October • Joe Jencks
Mastering without borders, for 34 years Dock Boggs • Pete Seeger • Woody Guthrie • Mike Seeger • Doc Watson “The Rise and Fall of Paramount Records” • “The Anthology of American Folk Music”
DAVID GLASSER
Boulder CO
ANNA FRICK
RANDY LEROY
www.airshowmastering.com
CHARLIE PILZER
Takoma Park MD
To book a session, contact: studio@airshowmastering.com • 303-247-9035
i'm gonna be one drop of water in an ocean of hope —steve seskin
| 7
planet bluegrass
Reconstruction around Planet Bluegrass and the Town of Lyons after the 2013 flood offered us a chance to fundamentally reenvision the Festivarian experience: the seating, the river access, the kids area, the campgrounds, the parking… For years, we’ve received comments from Festivarians about the inconvenience of parking nearly a mile from the Festival. The shuttle buses can get crowded, hot and delayed; the walking route involves several unpatrolled traffic intersections. As traffic through Lyons has increased over the years, we’ve worried more and more about pedestrian safety, parking in neighborhoods, and our impact on traffic congestion. If only we could move our festival parking closer to the Ranch… So in 2015 Planet Bluegrass seized the unique opportunity to purchase the adjacent 28-acre property up the North St. Vrain River from the Ranch. Located on the northwest corner of Apple Valley Road and Highway 36, the “Planet Bluegrass Farm” is the next major evolution of the Festivarian experience. The Farm features large, gently sloping meadows (ideal for parking and livestock grazing) and gorgeous wooded areas along the river (ideal for camping and a small number of weddings or farm-to-table dinners). Our goal is to move the parking and camping from Bohn Park for our festival weekends, and operate the property as a farm with livestock and bees the rest of the year.
8|
Festivarians will be able to walk from the parking area to the festival grounds via a short pedestrian pathway and just 1 road crossing (which Boulder County Sheriffs will monitor for safety and traffic flow). And someday, we dream of utilizing a pedestrian underpass between the Farm and the Ranch to alleviate any road crossings! After 18 months spent cleaning up the property from flood damage and re-vegetating the fields and riverbanks, last winter we began the process of annexing into the Town of Lyons from unincorporated Boulder County. The annexation agreement was unanimously approved by the Lyons Board of Trustees in June and approved by the residents of Lyons in a special mail ballot election earlier this month. We look forward to introducing you to our Farm in 2018! In the meantime, learn more on our @PlanetBluegrassFarm Facebook page.
if there's a place to grow in your heart, let me know, i'll be your sunflower —the weepies
10th annual how green is your grass?
Campsite Challenge
With more than 1,400 campers in Lyons this weekend (more than half the size of our town!), it’s more important than ever to be mindful of our camping footprint. In collaboration with the Leave No Trace Center for Outdoor Ethics and EcoProducts (suppliers of free compostable bags for your campground compost), we will again be rewarding campsites that excel in creative, sustainable camping. To nominate your campsite or one of your neighbors: 1. Submit a 1-page entry form at the Leave No Trace booth – explaining how the campsite exhibits cleanliness, sustainability, and creativity.
Each day we select 2 winners —one random, one staff choice— for prize packages that include:
2. Stop by the Leave No Trace booth
• Carbon offsets for your home
each day to view all the campsite entries and vote for your favorites.
• New Belgium beer • Klean Kanteen reusables • Planet Bluegrass merch
Congrats to the 2016 winners: Dad’s Birthday Bash
After the pack-out on Monday we will select grand prize winners to receive a pair of 3-day passes and camping for the 2018 Folks Festival
ain't eatin' crow or cookin' goose, where i am is where i roost —mollie o'brien
| 9
amily Area
Parents: please accompany your children while in the family area.
As we welcome more younger Festivarians into the Folks Fest community each year, join us next to the Wildflower Pavilion and beach for a variety of fun, familyfriendly activities throughout the day – 10:30am ‘til 5:00pm. And don’t miss Peter Himmelman’s kids concert at 11:45am on Sunday in the Wildflower Pavilion.
colorado mountain club
Visit the CMC Youth Education Program booth for their daily schedule of youth-oriented outdoor adventure activities. Try out the slackline, hula hoops, and discover 10 essential wilderness survival tips. Take your knot-tying skills to new heights, while safely ascending a tree! Founded in 1912, the Colorado Mountain Club is the state’s leading organization dedicated to adventure, recreation, conservation, and education.
swallow hill music association
Strum, beat, and play your way through the Instrument Petting Zoo! The entire family can try out ukuleles, hand drums, guitars, mandolins, banjos, fiddles, mini-pianos and more. Swallow Hill’s knowledgeable staff of zookeepers provide the instruments; you provide the curiosity. Serving the community since 1979, Swallow Hill promotes the joy of learning and listening to roots music through classes and concerts throughout the year.
wild bear nature cente
Learn about local wildlife including the invertebrates in the creek. Create your own hand-painted wood cookie necklace or Earth Flag to take home. Complete the Bingo Discovery Game and earn a special prize. Remember, if the bear is sleeping, be sure to stop back at another time. For more than 20 years, Nederland, CO’s Wild Bear has been providing year-round educational programs to people of all ages in Boulder County.
10 |
when i die, sweet tooth in hand, i'm begging peter send me to the candy land —dave rawlings
-9Y PM
L
10 D OP AM A EN I
Mystic Nature
FAST • FRESH • LOCAL Glacier Ice Cream • Soft Serve Burgers • Hot Dogs • Sandwiches Shakes & Malts • Fresh Cut Fries FREE SOFT SERVE CONE WITH ANY PURCHASE WITH YOUR WRISTBAND
PAINTINGS BY JENNY HAHN
138 MAIN STREET, LYONS
Instagram: jennyhahnart
303.823.5800
LYONSDAIRYBAR.COM
WWW.JENSPAINTINGS.COM On display at The Stone Cup 442 High Street, Lyons, CO
of little birds catching fireflies, until the darkness pulls them down —mandolin orange
| 11
Songwriter Showcase We open the 27th Annual Rocky Mountain Folks Festival with our internationally-recognized songwriting competition. The Songwriter Showcase is open to performing songwriters, who are not currently signed to a major recording or publishing deal. Past winners include: Deb Talan (of The Weepies), Robby Hecht, Caroline Spence, and 2016 winner Korby Lenker. Last winter artists from around the world submitted original songs to be considered by our panel of music industry experts. After carefully listening to more than 400 entries, our panelists selected the 10 finalists who will each perform 2 songs for us on the Folks Festival stage this Friday morning. To select the winners, a panel of judges drawn from different facets of the music industry—songwriters, radio DJs, producers— independently evaluate the performers’ original songs based on our scoring criteria: • 50% Quality of Composition depth, insight, cleverness • 25% Quality of Vocal Rendering vocal quality, pitch, tone • 25% Quality of Delivery instrumental technique, charisma The winners will be announced from the main stage following the contest finals.
Showcase Finalists ANDREW DELANEY
JANELLE LOES
BRIAN DUNNE
MIA ROSE LYNNE
CHASE GASSAWAY
HEATHER MAE
MIKE HERZ
LIZ RYDER
LEAH GRAMS JOHNSON
IRA WOLF
Arlington, TX
Scottsdale, AZ
Brooklyn, NY
Nashville, TN
Austin, TX
Washington, DC
Newton, NJ
Sacramento, CA
Nashville, TN
Each of the 10 finalists will also perform in one of the “Showcase Finalists In-The-Round” sets in the Wildflower Pavilion. Please support these talented artists—and discover your new favorite songwriter!—by joining them for these intimate performances and purchasing their CDs in the Country Store.
12 |
Nashville, TN
1st Place: 2018 Festival Main Stage set, Taylor Guitar, and $400 2nd Place: $500
4th Place: $350
3rd Place: $400
5th Place: $250
so afraid to lose what we were each too afraid to win —peter himmelman
6th - 10th Place: $150 each
you were my raincoat, now you're the rain —amy speace
| 13
s c h e d u l e o f ev e n ts
main stage Saturday
Sunday
10:00am Gates Open
10:00am Gates Open
10:00am Gates Open
10:30 - 12:30pm Songwriter Showcase
11:00 - Noon Korby Lenker
11:00 - Noon Ramy Essam
12:45 - 1:45pm Phoebe Hunt & The Gatherers
12:15 - 1:30pm The Mae Trio
12:15 - 1:15pm Mollie O’Brien & Rich Moore
Friday
august 18
th
august 19
th
august 20th
2:00 - 3:15pm Rachel Sermanni
2:00 - 3:15pm Ben Sollee & Kentucky Native
3:45 - 5:00pm Peter Himmelman
3:45 - 5:00pm Mandolin Orange
3:15 - 4:30pm The Wailin’ Jennys
5:30 - 6:45pm The Weepies
5:30 - 6:45pm Loudon Wainwright III
5:00 - 6:15pm Josh Ritter
7:15 - 8:30pm Rhiannon Giddens
7:15 - 8:30pm Elephant Revival
6:45 - 8:00pm Lake Street Dive
9:00 - 10:30pm Gregory Alan Isakov
9:00 - 10:30pm The Revivalists
8:30 - 10:00pm Dave Rawlings Machine
14 |
1:30 - 2:45pm SHEL
i've heard the road to every truth, it's just a cul-de-sac —gregory alan isakov
wildflower pavilion
Friday
Saturday
Sunday
12:30 - 1:00pm Emily Scott Robinson
11:15 - 11:45am Ali Handal & Jill Brzezicki
1:15 - 2:00pm Jenn Adams & John Linn
Noon - 12:45pm Bill Nash & RJ Cowdery
11:45 - 12:15pm Peter Himmelman's Kids Show
2:15 - 2:45pm Ramy Essam 3:15 - 3:45pm Amy Speace
1:00 - 2:00pm Showcase Finalists In-The-Round: Chase Gassaway, Leah Grams Johnson & Liz Ryder
4:00 - 4:30pm Justin Roth
2:15 - 2:45pm Steve Seskin
4:45 - 5:15pm Mary Gauthier
3:00 - 4:00pm Showcase Finalists In-The-Round: Mike Herz, Mia Rose Lynne & Heather Mae
august 18
th
5:30 - 6:00pm Vance Gilbert Join us for free yoga inside the festival each morning at 8am. Mats provided.
august 19
th
august 20th
12:30 - 1:30pm Showcase Finalists In-The-Round: Andrew Delaney, Janelle Loes & Ira Wolf 1:45 - 2:15pm Chicago Mike Beck 2:30 - 3:15pm The Mae Trio & Rachel Sermanni 3:30 - 4:15pm Christopher Smith & Paul Reisler
4:15 - 4:45pm Mai Bloomfield
4:30 - 5:00pm Rebecca Folsom
5:00 - 5:30pm Arthur Lee Land
5:15 - 5:45pm Ellis
jagged edges, broken parts, where you end and where i start —mary gauthier
| 15
Phoebe Hunt & The Gatherers
friday
12:45 - 1:45pm
Rachel Sermanni friday
2:00 - 3:15pm
Peter Himmelman friday
3:45 - 5:00pm
16 |
An accomplished instrumentalist with foundations in jazz and swing music, Phoebe Hunt has just released her newest recording, Shanti’s Shadow. It’s the culmination of a 5-year journey from her Austin roots through Music Row, Brooklyn, and even to India to study with a seventhgeneration master violinist. Along the way, Phoebe found her voice to deliver her most inspired set of songs to date: a soundtrack to her self-discovery. “My goal for this album was to be
as vulnerable and raw as possible in order to share my shadow,” says Phoebe. With the virtuosic Gatherers— Dominick Leslie (mandolin), Roy Williams (guitar), Jared Engle (bass), Sam Reider (accordion), Nick Falk (percussion)—Phoebe pulls together seemingly disparate elements into a dazzling kaleidoscope of lushly coherent sound and rhythm patterns. Sit back and enjoy the surprising and comforting sounds of this Folks Festival debut—an artist on the rise.
The music of 25-year-old folk-noir balladeer Rachel Sermanni has the flesh of folk, but if you were to cut the skin you’d find it pumped with contemporary, genre-blended blood. Born under a rainbow in the Scottish Highlands, Rachel was influenced by both the traditional music she was learning in school (and would later play in pubs around Glasgow), as well as musicians like Eva Cassidy and Van Morrison as she began transforming her own vivid dreams into songs. By
age 22, Rachel had already played more than 600 shows, jammed with Mumford & Sons on a beach, shared the stage with Elvis Costello, released several critically acclaimed albums, and tramped around the world finding her own gracefully enchanting voice— showcased beautifully on last year’s sublime EP Gently. In all that she creates, Rachel values the pure and the mystical, symbolized by that beam of fragmented light that shone 25 sun-spun years ago.
Every Folks Festivarian has their of creativity (through his Big Muse favorite Peter Himmelman set: har- project), and a critically lauded rock poon man, the unplanned Festivarian troubadour with 12 solo albums wedding, the Hava Nagila circle, to his name—including 2014’s the “Rockin’ in Lyons” conga line expressive The Boat That Carries Us. around the Ranch. No artist on this For more than 3 decades Peter has year’s lineup has played more Folks been writing and performing music Festivals (2017 marks his 10th!); and “with the same emphatic edge and no artist has brought more unique aesthetic urgency that impelled the creative energy to each of those Lost Generation to write novels" (Time sets. Peter is an Emmy-nominated Magazine). On this Friday afternoon composer, a beloved creator of we are gifted with another only-atchildren’s music, an inspiring teacher Folks Himmelman experience.
you will not give in, says the soul to the skin —rachel sermanni
The Weepies friday
5:30 - 6:45pm
Rhiannon Giddens friday
7:15 - 8:30pm
Gregory Alan Isakov friday
9:00 - 10:30pm
18 |
Singer-songwriters Deb Talan & Steve Tannen began writing together the night they met. (Both were finalists in both the Telluride Troubadour and Folks Songwriter Showcase contests!) The duo soon formed the indie band The Weepies, releasing their debut in 2003. On the strength of their warm, insightful songwriting and distinctive harmonies, they quietly sold more than a million records, with over 20 million views on YouTube. They married and had three children, rarely
touring but continuing to release music—5 records over 7 years. Then just before Christmas 2013, when their son was just 17 months old, Deb was diagnosed with Stage 3 breast cancer. She was in chemo by New Year’s Eve, and in a year she beat cancer and recorded the best album of The Weepies’ career—the sprawling 16-song collection Sirens. After too many years away, we are thrilled to welcome Deb and Steve triumphantly back to Planet Bluegrass.
“Know thy history,” says Rhiannon Giddens. “Let it horrify you; let it inspire you. Let it show you how the future can look, for nothing in this world has not come around before.” Since forming the Carolina Chocolate Drops in 2005, Rhiannon has investigated and promoted the foundational role African-American performers and songwriters have played in folk-music history, while making recordings that are vital, contemporary, and exuberant. The Grammy winner has performed
for President Obama, won the 6th Annual Steve Martin Banjo Prize, and made her acting debut with a recurring role on CMT ’s recently revived Nashville. Last February she released her second solo album, Freedom Highway, a raw, personal collection of mostly-original songs, recorded over 8 days in Louisiana. As a veteran of all 3 Planet Bluegrass festivals, we welcome Rhiannon back to Lyons for another profoundly energizing set on the Folks stage.
“A sense of place creeps into my writing a lot.” Born in South Africa, raised in Philadelphia, and now residing on a farm in Boulder County, Gregory Alan Isakov has been traveling all his life. Traveling and observing. In 2007, Gregory won the Telluride Troubadour contest. His songs were instantly captivating—sparsely detailed, quietly dramatic, and honest. Gregory kept traveling, bringing his music to audiences around the world— including 7 much-adored albums and
high-profile television soundtracks. And like a trained horticulturist, Gregory cultivated these personal songs into dynamic, compelling pieces of music: through vocal collaborations (Brandi Carlile), epic orchestration (The Colorado Symphony!), and sophisticated use of sound and space. Played live with his evocative band tonight, the songs of one of Colorado’s great musical treasures draw us into their own place—on the starlit banks of the St. Vrain.
the words that never left your lips, love, but i heard week after week —rhiannon giddens
Korby Lenker saturday
11:00 - Noon
The Mae Trio saturday
12:15 - 1:30pm
Ben Sollee
& Kentucky Native
saturday
2:00 - 3:15pm
20 |
After raising $20K in a crowdfunding campaign, 2016 Songwriter Showcase winner Korby Lenker purchased some recording gear and a high-end battery, and set out to record his latest album on the road. He began in Idaho, in different places that are important in his life—recording during the day, camping overnight, and blogging along the way. After recording the basic tracks on his own, he spent several months driving around the country, recording
more than 30 friends where they lived, in backyards and hotel rooms, in Seattle, Austin, Madison, Boston. And then, in full-circle flourish, Korby finished the album, Thousand Springs, at his home in East Nashville. This deliberate approach to music is the mainstay of a career now tipping into its third decade, encompassing 7 albums and a collection of short stories (Medium Hero). Says Korby, “You’ve got to tell your own story, and no one else’s.”
As the daughters of prominent Australian community group singing leaders, Maggie (banjo, guitar) and Elsie (fiddle, uke) Rigby grew up going to music festivals, music camps, and choir rehearsals. Harmony and song was in their genes. When the sisters invited cellist Anita Hillman to record with their family band in 2011, they embarked on an adventure which would soon see them throw in the towel on their regular jobs/degrees/ lives. With impeccable Melbourne-
accented harmonies, 3 distinct songwriting voices, and a sweetly quirky stage presence, the Mae (acronym for their first names) Trio began winning awards and releasing gorgeous recordings—including this year’s absorbing Take Care, Take Cover. The Folks Festival has long nurtured a relationship with Australian roots artists: The Waifs, Xavier, JBT, Kasey, Missy. This Saturday afternoon we introduce our next obsession from down under.
We first fell for Ben Sollee on the morning after the 2006 RockyGrass. As he sat singing in front of the silo at sunrise, his exultant Kentucky voice and soulful cello were totally transportive. In the decade following, Ben has recorded roughly an album a year, in a daunting variety of settings: as a member of the Sparrow Quartet with Abigail Washburn and Béla Fleck; collaborations with Jim James and Daniel Martin Moore; projects with DJs, ballets, software specialists, and
visual artists. Ben has toured 5,000 miles by bike, towing his cello “Kay” behind him; he has relentlessly made and thought about art and the environment. For his third Folks appearance, Ben comes full-circle to his RockyGrass beginnings, sharing the stage with an eclectic bluegrass(y) band—Julian Pinelli (fiddle), Bennett Sullivan (banjo), Alex Browne (bass) and longtime collaborator Jordan Ellis (percussion)—in songs that ache and sing and soar.
who will find their faith, formed in the patterns in the sky —the mae trio
DS-LASI_RockyAd-3.indd 1 decide? —vance gilbert 8/3/17 21 6:39 PM can't god show up anywhere, what if we let him
|
Mandolin Orange saturday
3:45 - 5:00pm
Loudon Wainwright iii saturday
5:30 - 6:45pm
Elephant Revival saturday
7:15 - 8:30pm
22 |
It’s been an auspicious journey for Mandolin Orange, a pair who casually met at a bluegrass jam session in 2009. Since then, Andrew Marlin and Emily Frantz have steadily earned fans from long stretches on the road, including tours with Gregory Alan Isakov and the 2016 Telluride Bluegrass Festival. Their 3rd full-length, last fall’s Blindfaller, magnifies the intimacy at the heart of the North Carolina duo’s music, as if they created their own musical
language as they recorded it. As the principal songwriter, Andrew is sharpening his lyrical prowess with economy and grace, touching on broad themes of growing older and feeling helpless in a world torn by injustice. Sure, the country tearjerkers, honky tonks, and folk songs sound classic, but they are rooted in the here and now of our daily lives. We are thrilled to welcome Mandolin Orange back to Lyons, enriched by their 5-piece live band.
Though Rufus closed the Folks Friday in 2009, and Lucy was a Folks Showcase finalist, it has been 12 years since their Grammy-winning father graced the Lyons stage. That fact would feel unforgivable were we not all about to lose ourselves in laughter and piercing insights this Saturday evening. Born the son of revered Life magazine columnist Loudon Jr.—the subject of LWIII’s recent one-man show—for 50 years now, LWIII has been applying his wicked humor and tender obser-
vations to songs about the complexities of life and family. Along the way, he has recorded 23 studio albums— including 2014’s wonderful Haven't Got The Blues (Yet); had songs covered by Johnny Cash, Bonnie Raitt, and Earl Scruggs; and landed numerous acting roles including Knocked Up and M*A*S*H. Says Judd Apatow, “In my head, Loudon Wainwright is Bono." For Folks Festivarians, Loudon is a testament to the biting, hilarious, cathartic power of song.
The members of Lyons-based Elephant Revival have made a career out of opening their creativity into wider musical territories. A true collaboration of songwriters, their music has many layers yet seemingly one constant source of inspiration: the natural world. The band—Bonnie Paine (washboard, musical saw), Bridget Law (fiddle), Charlie Rose (banjo, pedal steel), Dango Rose (bass), Daniel Rodriguez (guitar), and Darren Garvey (percussion)—
shares a commitment to responsible stewardship of the planet and its inhabitants, working with organizations such as the Conscious Alliance, Trees Water & People, and the Wildlands Restoration Volunteers (at the Festival this weekend!). Their very name was chosen out of empathy for a trio of Elephants who, upon being separated after 16 years, died within months of each other. Please welcome these tune weavers back for their third Folks Festival performance.
we fell in love and we fell out, both times there was no net —loudon wainwright iii
UPCOMING AT Aug
eTown Live Radio Show Taping:
28 Andrew Bird
& Leif Vollebekk
Sep
7
Sep
eTown Live Radio Show Taping: at Red Rocks Amphitheatre - FULL CONCERT
Jason Isbell & The 400 Unit & Amanda Shires
eTown Live Radio Show Taping:
McClinton 12 Delbert & Special Guests TBA
Oct
1
Oct
eTown Live Radio Show Taping:
Väsen
& Special Guests TBA eTown Live Radio Show Taping:
Wainwright III 22 Loudon & Special Guests TBA Join our mailing list for news about upcoming tapings and concerts: FRUITION, DEER TICK, OVER THE RHINE, DAR WILLIAMS and more
TICKETS AT eTOWN.ORG
The Revivalists saturday
9:00 - 10:30pm
Ramy Essam sunday
11:00 - Noon
Mollie O’Brien & Rich Moore sunday
12:15 - 1:15pm
24 |
In rock’n’roll, you’ve got to walk the well-trodden path of the genre’s forefathers one step at a time. It’s a proverbial rite of passage, and The Revivalists didn’t take any shortcuts. For the past 10 years, the 7-piece New Orleans band logged countless miles on the road, mixing Southern blues, R&B and soul with a decidedly alternative rock persona—and a genuine desire to connect one-onone with an audience. That time and dedication came to a head on
the group’s third full-length, Men Amongst Mountains, which debuted at #2 on the Billboard Alternative Albums Chart, all through wordof-mouth. As much as it’s the culmination of their work thus far, it opens up a new chapter for the exciting young band—David Shaw (vocals), Zack Feinberg (guitar), Ed Williams (pedal steel), Rob Ingraham (saxophone), George Gekas (bass), Andrew Campanelli (drums), and Michael Girardot (keys, trumpets).
On this Sunday morning we celebrate the spirit of song as a force for change. With musical influences that include Rage Against the Machine and Nirvana, Egypt’s Ramy Essam exploded into international fame as the bard of the 2011 Egyptian revolution—setting his fellow Egyptians’ protest chants to the music of his acoustic guitar. During the height of the uprising, Ramy performed in front of millions in Tahrir Square. But fame came at a heavy
price. Ramy experienced brutal torture and arrests that were meant to silence his voice. Instead, he resolved to work even harder against oppression: “In the revolution I was born again. The struggle became the purpose of my life.” In 2014, Sweden offered him a safe haven—and with his voice freed, he continues to reach millions of listeners worldwide, earning the prestigious “Spirit of Folk Award,” and rave reviews for his show at this summer’s Edinburgh Fringe Festival.
For nearly 30 years Mollie O'Brien and her husband Rich Moore have quietly made it their mission to find, mine and reinvent other artists' songs. Mollie initially caught the music world’s attention as a singer's singer when she and younger brother Tim released 1988’s Take Me Back. Eventually, Mollie recorded 5 equally well-received solo albums of her own, won a Grammy, and became a regular on A Prairie Home Companion. Powerhouse guitarist Rich Moore
creates a band with just his guitar, following Mollie’s twists and turns from blues to traditional folk to jazz to rock’n’roll. After their daughters graduated from college in 2006, Mollie and Rich began performing as a duo, releasing 4 albums— including this year’s Daughters. Together, they are geniuses at the craft of interpretation, carrying on the American roots music tradition of great singers inhabiting the songs of their era.
we stayed up in the city, until the stars lost the war —the revivalists
Nov. 3–5 2017
Tom Paxton & The Don Juans Darrell Scott Band • Cheryl Wheeler Donna The Buffalo Mark Erelli • Penny and Sparrow Laura Cortese and the Dance Cards Front Country • Cosy Sheridan Chastity Brown • Brock Zeman Quicksand Soup Festival Pass: $130 • Single Venue: $40
MoabFolkFestival.com
if you know the sound, then play the record backwards now —shel
| 25
she.2l sunday
1:30 - 2:45pm
The Wailin’ Jennys sunday
3:15 - 4:30pm
Josh Ritter sunday
5:00 - 6:15pm
26 |
Sarah, Hannah, Eva, and Liza Holbrook are all twenty-something sisters, born within a 5-year span and raised in a bohemian, art-loving family in Fort Collins. Each found an instrument to master early on— studying classical music, while composing and arranging songs for their sisterly instrumentation: violin, mandolin, piano and drums. The billowing curtains of sound on their sophomore album Just Crazy Enough is both familiar and far-out, drawing
from a broad collection of influences: the daring rock of the ‘60s, the contemplative composers of the 18th Century, waves of modern electronica. Co-produced by Eurythmics co-founder Dave Stewart, the recording captures the intensity of SHEL’s spellbinding live performances. SHEL’s longawaited 2016 Wildflower debut was a revelation for many. In a scene that’s crowded, genre-twisting, and attuned to mastery in live performance, SHEL is a must-know young band.
While our summit on the song often focuses on the solitary synergy of words and music, on this Sunday afternoon we are reminded of the transcendental musical power of 3 voices singing in close harmony. And few voices blend with more achingly, perfect beauty than the Juno Award-winning songbirds of The Wailin’ Jennys. What began as a happy accident of solo singer/songwriters getting together for a gig at a guitar shop in Winnipeg, has yielded 4 essential albums (their
2009 live record spent over a year on the Billboard bluegrass charts!), frequent appearances on A Prairie Home Companion, and a reputation as one of today’s most beloved international folk acts. Soprano Ruth Moody (accordion, banjo, bodhrán), mezzo Nicky Mehta (harmonica, drums, ukulele), and alto Heather Masse (upright bass) each contribute healing songs of redemption and unity, delivered with the irresistible vocal power of three.
“I wanted to play messianic oracular honky-tonk.” Such was the inspiration for Josh Ritter’s 8th studio album Sermon on the Rocks. After the relentlessly inward-looking examination of his post-divorce psyche in 2013’s The Beast In Its Tracks, Sermon marked a return to the wise, witty wordplay that has endeared Josh to Festivarians since his unforgettable 2008 Soaks Fest debut. For more than 2 decades the Idaho-native has followed his creative muse: as a
sought-after co-writer (Punch Brothers, Bob Weir), best-selling novelist (2011’s Bright’s Passage), film composer (The Hollars), and painter. Each new outlet or album has revealed a new approach, subject, or form to Josh’s art; and his infectiously grinning live performances have continued to deepen and grow. As we welcome Josh back to Lyons for his fourth Folks, we look toward his upcoming album Gathering and another new way to rejoice in Josh’s muse.
a box of wine, an alibi, and the hunger in her eyes —josh ritter
upcoming shows CHAUTAUQUA COMMUNITY HOUSE OCTOBER 14 THE BLUE CANYON BOYS OCTOBER 29
AUG 25
AUG 29
THE STEELDRIVERS WITH GINNY MULES
THE GIPSY KINGS
DON ALDER NOVEMBER 17 THE MULLIGAN BROTHERS DECEMBER 16 THE AARON WALKER QUARTET: A GYPSY HOLIDAY
SEP 1 TREVOR HALL WITH SATSANG
JANUARY 19 GRASS IT UP
SEP 3
FEBRUARY 23
INDIGO GIRLS WITH BECKY WARREN
GRANT GORDY & ROSS MARTIN MARCH 16 DANA LOUISE & THE GLORIOUS BIRDS
SEP 8 SEU JORGE THE LIFE AQUATIC: DAVID BOWIE TRIBUTE
SEP 21
TICKETS
STEEP CANYON RANGERS WITH THE STEEL WHEELS
chautauqua.com
www.pcigrafx.com
CRIST MORTUARY
MOUNTAIN VIEW
SE N I OR L I V I N G
MEMORIAL PARK
900 BASELINE ROAD • BOULDER CO
coloradochautauqua
colochautauqua
Lake Street Dive sunday
6:45 - 8:00pm
Dave Rawlings Machine sunday
8:30 - 10:00pm
28 |
“We continue to try to make music drummer Michael Calabrese, bassist with integrity and creativity,” says Bridget Kearney, singer Rachael Price, bassist Bridget Kearney. “Sometimes and guitarist/trumpeter Michael people hear about, and sometimes "McDuck" Olson—is reinvigorating the they don’t.” Though formed 14 years sounds of Motown and Muscle Shoals, ago while students at New England with girl-group swoon, Beatlesque Conservatory, 5 years ago people melodies, and hip-manipulating finally heard: as an infectiously sultry mojo. Their latest, 2016’s Side Pony video of “I Want You Back” was rabidly has been called “irresistible” (Rolling shared online (by Kevin Bacon, among Stone) and “triumphant” (Paste). others). Jazz-schooled, DIY-motivated, It’s time to make room on your tarp and classically pop obsessed, the for dancing feet as we celebrate the remarkably democratic quartet— return of Lake Street Dive. When the Dave Rawlings Machine debuted at the 2007 Folks Festival, the then-duo was distinct from “Gillian Welch & David Rawlings” only by virtue of Gil wearing jeans and a wealth of surprising classic rock covers (“White Rabbit!”). In the 10 years since, the iconoclastic guitarist/ songwriter/producer has released 3 brilliant solo albums—including this summer’s career-best Poor David’s Almanack (half of which are co-writes with Gillian Welch)—and grown the
Machine into a spirited hootenannyof-your-dreams 5-piece, with fiddler Brittany Haas, multi-instrumentalist Willie Watson, and bassist Paul Kowert. The songs remain at the Machine’s core: deliciously singable, with dark humor lurking underneath timeless folk melodies. But the band shares a jamming freedom and raw joy that generously stretches and bends around Dave’s 1935 Epiphone Olympic guitar, bringing together all that we love about folks music.
i've been a good girl for so long, i deserve to do something wrong —lake street dive
Dates to Remember 45th Annual
Telluride Bluegrass Festival June 21-24, 2018
RockyGrass Academy
2018 tickets
Visit Bluegrass.com in October for details about purchasing tickets through our online lotteries, including RockyGrass Academy, RockyGrass on-site camping, and Telluride Bluegrass camping in Town Park & Warner Field. All other 2018 tickets go onsale in early December.
FSC
Printed on FSC-certified 70# Neenah Conservation text — a 100% post-consumer recycled fiber, made with 100% renewable energy
July 22-26, 2018
RockyGrass July 27-29, 2018
The Song School August 12-16, 2018
Rocky Mountain Folks Festival August 17-19, 2018
and we spin, another day, another dawn, another year, another song —elephant revival
| 29
THE AMERICAN CRAFT BEER ICON
™
Fat Tire®, New Belgium® and the bicycle logo are trademarks of New Belgium Brewing Co. ENJOY FAT TIRE RESPONSIBLY
©2017 New Belgium Brewing, Fort Collins, CO & Asheville, NC