What would summer be without a music festival or two? My camera and I once again spent the weekend at scenic Fort Adams State Park in Newport, RI for the 2015 Newport Folk Festival. This is what day one looked like.
The day kicked off with the New Breed Brass Band playing some tunes at the gate while the crowd waited for the gates to open.
I made my first visit to the Harbor Stage to catch some of Haunt The House.
Then, It was off to the Quad stage to catch a bit of The Goodbye Girls. With so much to check out, I was off to another stage after a few songs.
Next, I made my way to the Fort Stage where the New Breed Brass Band played a lively set.
Already, that's a fair amount of music but this was only just the first hour!
I dashed over to catch some of Joe Pug's set on the Harbor Stage before making my way back to Quad for a bit of Bahamas before I had a short break.
Up next I caught a few songs from Elephant Revival on the Fort Stage before dashing off to see what Angel Olsen was all about on the Harbor Stage.
The day is only half way done! Next I headed to the Quad to check out Leon Bridges who has been getting lots of hype and comparisons to Sam Cooke. He was good, worked up a sweat and the crowd loved him. I hate when people are really hyped because I always walk away feeling a little underwhelmed even though I enjoyed it well enough.
My next stop was the Fort Stage to catch The Lone Bellow. While I enjoyed their previous appearance at the festival, this time they really upped their game. They were on-point. They were joined by The New Breed Brass Band for a couple of songs, Sarah Watkins joined them for a bit as did Leon Bridges. They did a nice cover of "When Will I Be Loved" with Lucius, who popped up lending their vocal talents.
Up next was a trip to the Quad for Calexico before taking a break.
After my break, I headed to the Fort Stage to catch some of Tallest Man On Earth before running off to catch Iron & Wine and Ben Bridwell. I'm not the biggest Iron & Wine fan and had only heard a little bit of Ben Bridwell so I figured I'd catch a few songs and move on. I found myself staying for more of their set than I initially planned. Well done fellas.
I made my way over to the Harbor Stage to catch that stages last act of the day Heartless Bastards.
I soon dashed off to catch the weekends "Unannounced" main stage act. By that point, the audience had already figured out who it was and appeared seemingly en masse and packed themselves in for My Morning Jacket who did what they are known to do and was joined by Lucius for a bit.
I made a quick trip to the Quad to catch some of that stage's headliners the Watkins Family Hour which included Fiona Apple who was properly and satisfyingly dramatic.
The day ended with rock legend Roger Waters closing out the the day with My Morning Jacket and GE Smith backing him. Of course, the rain decided to join in on the festivities but, at least it was mild! Sara Watkins and Amy Helm joined him for a couple of songs. I've never been much of a Pink Floyd or Roger Waters fan but he did "Wish You Were Here" one of my favorite songs and that's all I wanted and needed.
Check out more photos in the slideshow below or see the photo album HERE.
