I have no idea if the folk music at the Fringe occurred yesterday as planned, or if it was rained out. I heard the later activities went inside, the Dramaturkey being interrupted by rain), but nothing about the folk music.
This is one reason I don't like the blender of the peripheral things at the Fringe. There is a whole lot more reason for me to take in the Folk Festival at the canal than many other of the festivals, but since it happens during the Fringe, I won't go. So why are we seeing a segment of Folk at the Fringe?
To make matters worse, John Sebastian is performing on Thursday June 16th as part of the Folk Festival. I never really gave much thought to whether I'm willing to spend $50 ($60 after May 31st) to see him because it happens right in the Fringe. I miss so much while the Fringe happens , in those prime early hot days of summer, it's not fair to tempt me. Details are here.
Coincidentally, Thursday night on Channel 57, the Plattsburgh PBS station, they are running "John Sebastian presents Folk Rewind" from 9pm to 11pm.
This reminds me of the time I replied to someone in rec.folk.music:
> Harvey Reid says the autoharp will never come into vogue until
teenaged boys ask for one for Christmas to impress teenaged girls.
But didn't that happen at one point in time? I barely remember seeing
the Beatles on the Ed Sullivan show, but I've seen footage of the Lovin
Spoonful, and John Sebastians playing an autoharp. I can imagine that
that sort of thing did lead teenage boys to ask for autoharps to
impress teenage girls. Indeed, was John Sebastian's use of an autoharp
traditional, or a prop to impress teenage girls?
That is an exaggeration of the situation, but there was a time, and
John Sebastian came out of it, where "traditional folk players" would be
using the autoharp in non-traditional settings (ie, folk became hip), and
then the newer generation like John Sebastian took it up and rose to greater
visibility. Once it was out there, surely there were people who took
up the autoharp because John Sebastian played it.
I must have somehow been impressed by the autoharp, because there was a
time when I'd thought of getting one, to take up actually playing an
instrument. I guess I gave up on that idea when I mentioned it to
someone, and he said the autoharp was very easy to start to play, but
beyond that it was much more difficult.
That's when Happy Traum jumped in to point out that John Sebastian had made an introductory video on the autoharp for Homespun Tapes, which was Happy and Arti Traum's educational business.
In other folk music news, Roger McGuinn apparently has a new CD out, full of sea songs. I've seen him perform twice, once with Gene Clarke at one of those old clubs near Place des Arts, about 1978 and then less than a decade ago when he played the Concordia Concert Hall with Ritchie Havens (and I'm too tired to look for the date). he's a real gadget freak, there was a time when he'd post to rec.music.folk and the newsgroup about The Byrds, until someone stalked him away. if he came to town, I'd give him an early Sony transistor radio for his collection.
Tomorrow, Tuesday June 14th, "Phil Ochs: There But for a Fortune" is playing in Ottawa, presented by the Ottawa Folk Festival. The details I saw are here. Too far and the wrong week. But it doesn't matter, it will be out on DVD on July 19th (and yes, I'll buy it).
