Home County Folk Festival...The Original

This past weekend was a weekend of renewing old friendships. Starting Friday with a 25th wedding anniversary of my good friends "Crow" and Sandy (followed by a local performance by Sean and Kevin Graham et al at the local), followed by a Saturday 60th birthday bonanza for my long time mate Jim Graham. Many familiar faces, known smiles and recognized laughs all gathered for 2 nights of long time,no see...what's up with life...so good to see you...remember when good times. Saturday night's festivities even had a flash from the past performance of local favorites Backstreet Jimmy (Larry Dingman, Wayne Ross, James Brown and Louie Santandrea, along with Stratford's very own Garth Logan and St. Mary's harpist (mouth harp, that is) Chris Campbell), playing as if they hadn't missed a note since they went separate ways at the dawn of the 90's. A perfect and ideal segueway into the relaxed and warm atmosphere of the 36th annual Home County Folk Festival in London's Victoria Park, whose welcoming atmosphere I hadn't felt in years either.
Started in 1973 as a fest for local folkies and their Leary inpired, intellectually free fans, the festival is still going strong and, although the sweet smell of pot inspired conversation has given way to a much more sanitized family atmosphere, the music and essence at the heart of the festival still beats strong. With the likes of Joel Plaskett, Jill Barber, Elliot Brood, Connie Caldor, personal favorite and moving lyricist Katherine Wheatley, local harmonica master Jory Nash, The Dixie Flyers, must see discovery Madison Violet, crowd pleaser Danny Michel and Canadian Legend Murray McLaughlin, most performances, with the exception of the 2 club shows, not costing more than a voluntary donation.
This year's festivities were bittersweet with the passing of long-time regular performer Jackie Washington who passed away only 3 weeks before the stage lights turned on in the park band shell. His spirit was felt throughout the performers who knew and played alongside him and when the sun broke through Sunday evening and painted the park in all it's rich and familiar glow, it was as if Jackie was giving his approval as another year of Home County drew to a close. As I wandered the green space, watching the children play, the teens enjoying a moment of beautiful urgency, the regulars sharing welcoming hugs all coloured with the sweet sounds of an acoustic palate, I certainly felt I was HOME:-)

http://www.homecounty.ca/index.php




...one of the best low budget videos ever made...and a GREAT song to boot...

The Scene...

The Music...New Cumberland, Madison Violet, Tim Posgate Horns and Jory Nash

My Unc....and the Local Legend

On a sunny Sunday evening, stage left, at the Home County Folk Festival, my uncle stumbled upon an old friend, poet, busker, eccentric and local legend Roy Mc Donald. An old chum of both my almost equally eccentric father and uncle :-D, and an acquaintance of mine, Roy has been a part of the London landscape for years, known for his tweed jacket, long braided beard, which he says he has been growing for decades, sharp humour, laden cloth bags and friendly demeanor. To the uneducated and unaware population, Roy is often mistaken as a street senile, but for those in the know and for those open minded enough to listen, absorb and observe the likes of Roy Mc Donald, the reward is a true one-of-a-kind gem, unafraid to express, reflect and spread happiness and intelligence lost in a world of self centered protectionism.
When we parted on that perfect evening, he not only took time to send best wishes to my Dad and other long parted friends, he told us to open our hands and placed a single polished stone in our palms with a prayer for friendship and happiness. Some may think that is crazy, I think they are crazy. Thank you Roy and right back at ya':-)

Roy on Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roy_McDonald_(poet)

Summer is for Sunsets...with Lucid Musings

Ask anyone what there favorite part of summer is, things like holidays, beaches, swimming, camping, cottages, fishing, long days and for some, even longer nights come to mind. Between these long days and long warm nights is definitely one of my favorite moments of summer, a time when the warm golden tones of summer reach their peak, a time when the shadows grow long and the crickets begin their serenade for the parade of fireflies. A time when diamonds form over the rivers and streams and a silent peace settles over the countryside. Sunset is without a doubt the pinnacle of any summer day for me.
What better way to celebrate this magic hour than with a portrait from Lucid Musings. If my imagery wasn't enough to get you thinking, then certainly 20% all mid-week location sittings during the month of August should. Come join me and let's watch the sunset together...really...you won't regret it:-)

Just Passing By...A View of Weekend 3, Summer 2009

The weekend of July 11-12 was one of quick visits, quick passing rain showers, quick Indian and Afghan dishes, quick Belizean, Malaysian and Arabic instrumentations on stage, quick performances from aerial silks in downtown St. Marys, quick visits with my father and step-mom, visiting from Toronto and a quick and ubiquitously mandatory hot dog from my good friend Shawn, served by my other good friend Shawn (must be confusing during busy times...:-))).....and yes, quick pictures.
As many people who know me know, a big part of my working and non-working summer is spent absorbing as many new sights, sounds and smells at the myriad of festivals near and far and this weekend was no different, just the time allowed to sponge these senses was a little more limited. The summer like weekend in this un-summer like summer kissed Victoria Park in London for our Friday night visit to the always fantastic free offerings at the 15th annual Sunfest. This is the first time I had been to Sunfest in 2 years, due to my project in the Balkans last year and a Tobermory escape the previous year and I can only say it has unbelievably, even got better. The promoters and organizers of this fest have really put London on the map, providing not only the area's best multi-cultural event, but a national star, all free, all for the taking and all in our backyard. Sunfest has grown organically since its 1995 inception, providing a family friendly event on a caliber usually only seen in cities with a much larger population and ethnic demographic. The beauty of the "culturefest" verses your straight up music festival, especially for those who love to travel is that it allows you to capture a snapshot, or a fleeting memory of a past trip. In the short period I was able to visit this year, the sounds brought me back to a dusty road in Cambodia, a street performance in Mostar, Bosnia and the backstreets of Dangriga, Belize, enroute to buy a Garifuna drum that matched the performers on the stage Friday evening, ten years ago Christmas. It is the option to taste and taste again flavours of the world in compact (almost too compact at times, considering the 1000's flowing through the food court) patchwork of Indian, Afgany, Jamaican, Cuban, Mexican, Greek and many more. The last piece of the jigsaw puzzle that makes the perfect world map that is Sunfest is the vendors, that save for the 2 or 3 felt blanket, pressboard laminate Kramer, pot leaf flag selling (really...why does Sunfest need this shit?) , provide an endless maze of world handicrafts and my favorite T-Shirt vendor "Unlearn", where I bought my yearly token "So-Con-T", as the last rays set over another successful year at Sunfest, can't wait for next year:-)
http://www.sunfest.on.ca/

While the Sunfest was raging down in London, St. Marys had a quality act all its own with the 14th annual Heritage Festival. Again, due to other engagements, I didn't get to soak up as much of this annual cornerstone event as I would like to, but I know it was a great success, with fireworks, street dance, a new local performers stage and the crowd pleasing, talented and subtlely adult humour tinged Aerial Angels. If you where there you know what I mean, if not, imagine a good Spongebob episode, where the adult inuendos are woven seamlessly into a childrens performance without even making a blib on the thought process radar of anyone under 15...a true art...LOL:-) The attendance throughout the weekend was apparently very good for all the free events. A big hats off to Kelly Lyn at tourism and her staff in pulling off another wonderful and ever improving mid July shining of our historic core.
http://www.townofstmarys.com/discover/discover.aspx?id=1422

St. Marys Heritage Festival...The Sky is the Limit

Sunfest...The Best "Freefest" Around