Well, in the vaunted Cajun/Zydeco/roots festival category, a clear winner has
emerged, at least here in Rhode Island. You might recall a pair of stories two
summers back when Escoheag's Stepping Stone Ranch (Snap Bean Festival) and
Ninigret Park in Charlestown (Rhythm & Roots Festival) hosted dueling
weekends, competing for an already boutique fan base. Well, Escoheag,
conspicuous in its absence these last two summers, has by default given
Ninigret the crown and free passage to what appears to be an unlimited
upside.
Chuck Wentworth and Mary Doub, producers of the Ninigret event, have turned
Rhythm & Roots into a highly anticipated Labor Day Weekend bash. "It's
growing every ear and doing up to 10,000 for the weekend," says event publicist
Ellen Giurleo. "If the weather cooperates, we should have no trouble doing
that."
Doub and Wentworth have classy festival production pedigree. Wentworth hosts
many area shows, including the muy divertimento Mardi Gras Ball at
Rhodes-On-the-Pawtuxet. Doub most prominently puts on the formidable Grey Fox
Bluegrass Festival in New York, a weekend heavy on the tradition and trade of
bluegrass and folk music.
Together, Wentworth and Doub have transformed a fledgling festival into one of
the local scene's biggest and best musical events in only three years. I could
list the acts here, but that wouldn't tell the whole story. Like many premier
musical events that run more than a single night, Ninigret's version is more
than just a night of music. It's an entire experience, folding food into dance,
people into great music, and an unexpected camaraderie you simply don't get
when you spend $50 for a ticket to the Tweeter Center.
If you haven't been yet, Rhythm & Roots features four great stages of
music. The Mohegan Sun Main Stage, hosted by Steve Riley & the Mamou
Playboys, will feature Cajun, zydeco, blues, swing, folk, and other roots
music. If you can't get comfortable on your blanket or in your beach chair,
head to the dance tent, where you can softshoe all day on a shaded wooden dance
floor. The tent will offer two-hour dance blocks with a variety of step styles.
In the evening the Dance Tent presents its traditional Fais Do Do dances. The
Rounder Workshop Tent allows you to get up close and personal with many of the
talented performers over the weekend, while the Coca Cola Family Stage will
present storytelling, musical performances, and a costume- and mask-making area
for the Mardi Gras parade which takes place around 5 p.m. on Saturday and
Sunday. Also, relating to the kid issue, all tykes under 12 are admitted free
-- which means all you need to do is bring a picnic and it'd be a pretty cheap
day out.
But lest we overlook it, you've really got to hear this musical lineup. It
includes Asleep At the Wheel headlining on Saturday, along with Marcia Ball,
Donna the Buffalo, the Jim Kweskin Band, and Tom Russell. Sunday features
headliner Susan Tedeschi, Natalie McMaster, Big Sandy and the Fly-Rite Boys,
and John Mooney. "It's one of the best lineups yet," Giurleo boasts. "We've got
some first-time performers coming and a lot of acts, like Marcia Ball and Donna
the Buffalo, that blew people away last year."
There's a watering hole nearby and lots of green green grass to stretch out
on. Some merchants line the area, and there's a host of spicy culinary
offerings. But it's the great, intimate spirit of the weekend that makes
Ninigret's Rhythm & Roots Festival such a worthwhile time.
The Fest will take place August 31, September 1 and 2 at Ninigret Park, Rt.
1, Charlestown. See "Concert" listings on page 18 of this section for complete
details.
SCENE OF THE CRIME. Friday, August 31 marks the release of Good Cop Bad
Cop Records first compilation CD. It's called Scene of the Crime and it
features punk bands from, well, all over the place. As you might recall from an
earlier plug for the project, each band that qualified for the disc had one
hour to record at Big Sound Studio in Westbrook, Maine this past May. The
resulting 24 hours produced a barrage of pure punk madness. Produced by Jim
Tierney and Huck Bennert, and executive produced by Meat Depressed's Peter
Walsh, the disc is dedicated to punk-rock legend Joey Ramone and features
original, previously unreleased tracks from Black Market Medallions, Suspect
Device, Darkbuster, Musclecah, Random Road Mother, Rat Fink, the Jabbers, the
Marvels, Cold Coffee, Wedgie, the Wenderlynns, Jonee Earthquake Band, 8 Year
Recoil, the Syphilloids, Freezerburn, One Step Ahead, Blank Tradition, Zippo
Raid, Killer Crush, Disco Stu, Los Filthy's, the Plug Uglies, and the Mice.
Scene of the Crime will be available at Newbury Comics and from any of
the participating bands. An all-ages CD release party will also be held on
Friday at the Century Lounge at 8 p.m. featuring 10- to 15-minute guerrilla
sets by most of the Scene of the Crime bands. One not-to-be-missed
highlight is the appearance of the Jabbers. Yep, GG Allin's old band will be
making their first trip to Providence in more than 15 years. I think it's taken
them (and us) that long to recuperate from the last show . . . More information
is available by surfing over to www.meatdepressed.com, or by contacting Peter
at mdbooking@hotmail.com.
WANDERING EYE. Tonight (Thursday the 30th), Spogga and
Tokyo-born/Berklee-educated pianist Juri play the Green Room beginning
at 9:30 p.m. While many understand the intoxicating nature and wild diversity
of a Spogga performance, Juri is a bit of an enigma to Providence folks. She
defines her music as "spiritual, enthusiastic and danceable." Playing the piano
since she was three, Juri attended her first concert -- Van Halen -- in Tokyo
at four. At 11, she won Japan's prestigious Yamanashi Composition competition.
And when she hit 17, she snagged a World Scholarship to Boston's Berklee School
of Music. Since arriving at Berklee, Juri has won two achievement scholarships,
was named Student Ambassador, and performed with Steely Dan at a commencement
concert last May. She has recorded two discs of her own and a third is in the
works. I don't know what it all means, but combine that mystery with Spogga and
you have one of those anything-goes kinda Thursday nights.
And not to take anything away from the Green Room show, but there's another
great night of local music on the same night at the Call, where the
Fantastics have just been added to a lineup that already boasted Betty
Finn and the Comic Book Superheroes. Rock and roll hoochie koo,
kids!
Congratulations again to the Mockingbirds. This past Sunday the band
competed against a handful of other worthy unsigned bands in the 5th Annual Jim
Beam Rock Band Search at the Gothic Theater in Denver in front of eager fans
and a panel of industry execs. They didn't come away with the top prize, but
they did, I'm sure, put on a great show and stand us Rhode Islanders in good
stead. And besides, it's not whether you win or lose, but how you play the
game. And the Mocks play a pretty great game. Three cheers. Let's hear it!
E-mail me with music news at b_gulla@yahoo.com.
Issue Date: August 31 - September 6, 2001
