After showering and packing my cooler, I made a quick stop for some Wachusett Nut Brown at the Depot Package Store in Westminster, and headed down to the lake. It was finally the day of the music festival I have been planning & producing since January, Wyman's Pond Music Fest. Kevin was already putting the finishing touches on the stage he built for the musicians, and Ted and his brother showed up soon after with a canopy and two long tables.
People slowly started trickling in around noon (Sarah & Jon were the first, then Rob, Brian & Nikki). And the kids spent the first hour or so in the water. Over the early part of the afternoon close to sixty people showed up for the event, with a few latecomers.
Right around 1:30 Almanac Mountain (Chris Cote) showed up, with Erik F. in tow, and at 2 pm, he played the first notes of the event. It was a mesmerizing set, he projected well for the space, and everyone (especially the kids) loved it. He sold a few cds, and after his set I raffled off a copy that he'd donated, along with one of five "to be printed post-event" t-shirts. I was a bit distracted while he played, as I had to meet & greet other musicians as they arrived, but I paid close attention during his unplugged versions of "Spiral Onion Shoots" and "Surry Hospitality", plus several of his older tunes. It's always fantastic to hear my old friend perform live. Plus, he finally got to meet all the Lebanese members of my family in attendance (haha).Then at 3 pm Elizabeth Lorrey went on. Her voice was somewhat
softer, and didn't project as well as AM's, but she sounded great. Once again, I was so busy making sure everyone was having a good time, and greeting stragglers, that I didn't have much time to just sit and listen. But I love her songs "Awakening" and "She", and I took a moment to listen to them up close and personal. You could tell that the inspiration for them was drawn from her life. When she finished, I repeated the raffle act (a copy of her cd and a t-shirt), to another two fans' delight. Elizabeth is very down to earth, and quite cool. I tried to make sure she & Lee were well-attended over the course of the day, but they didn't seem to mind making their ways through the crowd (they knew Pete from other gigs, and Luke of course, when he arrived), and they spoke to a great many revelers.
Next up at 4 pm: Lee Villaire belted out her bluesy set at a high & energetic volume. My dad really enjoyed her rowdy songs, and she definitely knew how to interact with the crowd. Once again, the kids (there were close to 20 in attendance!) were entranced. Though at times they kept coming up to me and asking "how many songs are left? We want to see Vanessa!", which was cool, but I felt a bit embarrassed for the other musicians' sake. But hey, kids know what they like! After Lee was done, there was a 20-minute break or so (the other 'intermissions' had been about ten minutes), in order to give people a chance to grill and eat something (and make the kids eat!), and for Vanessa's ensemble to gather themselves on stage.Then at 5 pm it was time for Vanessa Kafka! Accompanying her were Carl Puglisi (djembe) and Brian Sargent (guitar and mandolin) from her band, with their friend Kenneth Budka sitting in on bongos. They were fantastic. Having more than one musician playing (and two of them singing) really made it a sight to see (and sound to hear), and they were easily heard by all. They played a bunch of songs from "Into Place", a couple of older tunes ("Better" & "Gold"), and some new ones ("Good as New", "Don't Believe
Me" and "What am I Falling For?") - I was in heaven, and it was definitely a highlight of my day, personally. The crowd loved them too, and the kids flooded the stage after the last song with their parents' money to buy copies of "Into Place", and have Vanessa personalize them with a few kind words and her autograph. She even let my nieces sign their names to her guitar case with a sharpie! What a sweetheart. Helena, Georgia, Jackie and Celia all came away from that set in a glow of happiness and wonder. It was quite the sight to see....After all three of the female performers did a quick round of exchanging copies of their respective cds, next up was Rob's friend James McGarvey III. He had driven all the way from Maine with his girlfriend to play, and arrived around 5:30. James had a strong high voice (which Jon later said he could hear across the lake), and chatted up the crowd constantly. He also played a lot of covers, which was a fantastic way to prevent a veil of 'festival fatigue' from settling over the listeners, which could have otherwise fallen over the crowd. After 12 or 13 songs (he could have gone on all night, he said), a final raffle of his cd and one last t-shirt, and he was done. Finally, Kenneth Budka, who had accompanied Vanessa Kafka & her crew to the event, was game to do a set of his own. He played several of his original songs, and wrapped up the music part of the day (a span of six hours!) quite nicely.
After the music was over, people lazily dispersed. They ate, mingled, caught up on old times, made new plans, and headed home at their leisure. Jon & Sarah, and Kevin were going to set off fireworks after dark, but I was too drained to stick around. So after a quick clean-up of my stuff and major trash receptacles (Kevin graciously offered to clean the rest up in the morning), I headed home around 8:30.
The day was mostly a blur. I did my best to make sure everyone was having a good time, and tried to spend a few minutes with every attendee. Rob did a kick-ass job throughout the day, taking snapshots of the event, and Jon was kind enough to grill for the guys in Vanessa's band after their set. Plus, it was fantastic to have so many old friends from Oakmont, my time in New Hampshire, and beyond in attendance (it's not a true 'Ken Party' unless many eras in my life are represented at once!). And I now have a successful 6-act live music festival under my belt. I guess that makes me a professional!
All photos taken by me, except this last one (taken by Jon S.)
Sounds fun
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