The 29th annual South Country Fair got off to an auspicious start, Friday, July 17 in the Fort Macleod Fish and Games Park.
While I missed the Mayoral Workshop which opened this year's festival, the rest of the evening pretty much had something for all tastes.
I arrived just in time to avoid the rain and too catch a strong set from Leeroy Stagger and his band including Matthew Robinson on lead guitar, Kyle Harmon on drums, Ryland Moranz on keyboard and a bassist I didn’t recognize.
The band started slowly with a slower Neil Youngish psychedelic jam, but quickly picked up the pace focusing on Leeroy Stagger's latest CD ‘Dream it All Away” were some immediate highlights to name a few. They kicked it up a notch with “Poison the Well,” and went back an album for one of my favourites “ Dirty Windshields. Other highlights were “ Happy Too”, “Something Beautiful” the Bob Dylanish “New Music Biz Blues” and “Living In America.”
The band played a tight set of gritty alternative country. Stagger and Robinson played well over each other almost butting heads as they traded leads and rhythms.
They wound down their set with “ Something Beautiful.”
For more traditional folk, with a quirky twist, the inimitable Washboard Hank and his wife Sweet Muriel, plus the always entertaining Lance Loree who proved to be a master of roots and country guitar stylings.
Washboard Hank cracked jokes and sang songs about Digger Dan and women at the weigh scale and various Canadiana related story.
He added extra percussion on his homemade washboard, which, as always was full of all kinds of bells and whistles, horns, a license plate, and coupled with his custom build hard hat, was having all kinds of fun.
Sweet Muriel sang sweetly and strummed her mandolin. She sang lead on a couple of songs as well.
Washboard Hank quipped Lance Loree was the only musician on stage, but was no slouch himself as he was a blur of quirky energy in between strumming guitar and banjo. Lance Loree played a lot of hot country licks. The band played some excellent rockabilly as well.
After that, it was time to dance with the Wet Secrets, who supplied all sorts of groove with lots of bass, horns and keyboards backed by a relentless beat.
The band, dressed in their usual red and white ’70s band outfits got the good sized crowd in front of the stage moving their feet.
They marched in place to “Secret March” which had the crowd singing along. Frontman Lyle Bell observed the last time he played South Country Fair, he was with another band and passed out in a pile of puke. He thanked the audience for dancing to a variety of newer material and older songs like crowd favourites “Nightlife” and Sunshine.”
An early highlight was called “ Take Your Clothes Off.”
The main act I wanted to see was Winnipeg blues/ rock/folk musician Romi Mayes and her new band.
They did not disappoint. How could they when they had child prodigy Jimmy Bowskill on lead guitar backed by a crack rhythm section of drummer Jesse Miller and bassist Micah Bell.
They mostly concentrated on new music from Mayes’ latest CD “Devil On Both Shoulders.”
her band was impressive, taking her music to the next level. Bowskill’s skills on guitar allowed Mayes to put her guitar down and focus on singing in between tossing copies of her new CD into the audience.
One song in, she asked if anyone was drinking beer, and jumped off the stage to get one offered by an enthusiastic fan. She stripped off her sweaters as she belted out her music. The title track of the new CD was a highlight as was “Make a Monkey of A Man.”
The full band really made “Lucky Tonight,” an older song from her last album take on a whole new life. another song about guys who try to pick up girls in bars was also a highlight.
I was losing energy after that, though the crowd was sure to keep the party going all night, so I only stuck around for a couple shots of Australian dance music powered by a variety of brass instruments and plugged in didgeridoo and backed by thundering rhythms.
The fun continued today with another superb line up of talented musicians who begin at noon.
Early risers won’t want to miss Calgary bluegrass band Rotary Park though I’m calling them prog-grass for the way they combine traditional bluegrass music with progressive rock, jazz and anything else you can think of.
They open the East Stage at no
on.
If you remember Victoria folk trio the Gruff, one third of them — Jenny Ritter introduces the South Country Fair to her new sound and new band, which includes members of Fish and Bird. They play the East Stage at 1:05. After that Tom Waits fans won’t want to is a workshop of Tom Waits songs re-imagined by Linda McRae, Ben Rogers, Blue moon Marquee, fiddler Scott Duncan and Rachael Cardiello.
there is good stuff happening all day long from bluegrass to blues music to folk music.
The Misery Mountain Boys play some fine bluegrass at 3:30 on the south Stage, which has a wicked line up during the day including Steve Dawson t 2:15.
There is also plenty of blues with Rachael Cardiello and the Blue Moon Marquee, who close off the East Stage at 5:50 p.m..
The evening lineup is pretty strong as well with country/ folk musician NQ Arbuckle performing at 8:15 and much more. the Derina Harvey Band end the South stage at12:30 a.m.
Don’t forge the spoken word stage, where a variety of poets and spoken word artists will be performing.
Admission for Saturday evening is $50 at the Gate; Student Senior at the Gate $45 Saturday or Sunday Afternoon; Gate $30 Saturday all day $60.
East Stage
12:00 p.m. Rotary Park
1:05 Jenny Ritter
2:10 Workshop - Tom Waits For No One: Linda McRae, Ben Rogers, Blue Moon Marquee, Scott Duncan, Rachael Cardiello
3:40 Ben Rogers and the Bloodred Yonder
4:45 Muerte Pan Alley
5:50 Blue Moon Marquee
South stage
1:30 These Hips Hoop
2:15 Steve Dawson
3:15 Poet - TBA
3:30 The Misery Mountain Boys
4:45 Volunteer Photo
5:15 Rachael Cardiello
6:30 Desert Belly Wind Dancers
(MC - Mark Sadlier Brown)
7:00 Workshop: Wendy Mcneill, Sean Rowe, Rotary Park
8:15 NQ Arbuckle
9:30 Songwriter Winner - Cathy Hawley
9:45 The Dead South
11:00 The Good ol’ Goats
12:30 Derina Harvey Band
