9/29/18 - North GA Folk Fest (ATHENS, GA)

In which Claire engages in social nepotism and eats at almost every food truck.

This is elder sister, Claire Campbell, reporting from the field. An actual field.

T’was the 34th annual NGFF at Sandy Creek Park. Despite the date of Sept 29, 2018… it was most definitely still summertime. This is my first year on the board that puts together this festival. Dick Daniels and I were tasked with booking the bands…. so…. naturally… I booked friends with draws. Yes, social nepotism WAS involved and I readily admit it. I can’t help it if I am friends with VERY talented musicians. I also sought out help from longtime board members, Tommy Jordan & Art Rosenbaum, to make sure we had a well-rounded bill that included old timers and new folksters. Also, I booked myself :). Self nepotism.

We had a gloriously blue-skyed day. It was SO hot out in front of the main stage that we managed to draw a really good crowd to the shaded Fire Circle amphitheater stage. My pal, the Ukulady, opened the show. It was fricktabulous. She sang “KimJongUnicorn” and it soared gloriously over the heads of most kids, but hit their parents smack in the laugh factory. I was all smiles.

I played next and was joined by a tiny child who decided to get on stage during every song. She had on a crepe paper headband and did weird, tiny dances. Sometimes she just stood there and ate a cheese cracker right next to me whilst I was in the middle of an intense ballad about ovaries or some such. It was performance art. We could have been at MOMA. The Ukulady and I had just recently had a convo about parents who let their kids have free reign and crash the stage while someone is performing. I am mostly ok with it, but it is VERY distracting… like when my cat, Tuppence aka Tiny Tupps aka TT, tries to sit on my keyboard while I am typing (this is happening now).

Anyways, I played, as did many of my aforementioned uber-talented friends. The acts I was able to catch were: Ukulady, Jim White, Art Rosenbaum, Amanda Kapasouz, Curtis Eller, Kyshona Armstrong, Clifton Hicks, and the Darnell Boys. Everybody packed a punch, but nobody actually got punched. Blam!

Other highlights were: Gazing upon Meg & Gus Darnell’s tiny newish baby. Eating food from Rashe’s Jamaican food tent. Gossiping loudly with Kyshona and SJ Ursrey. Eating homemade rum raisin ice cream from La Michiacana food truck. Dancing to the Darnell Boy’s. Eating food from Manilla Express food truck.

Then I went home. Kyshona and SJ and Mike and I stayed up until way late talking because there is never an end to discussing the weirdness of life and tasting different whiskies.

Yours,

Claire Campbell