Saturday and Sunday, Sept. 2-3—PLYMOUTH—During Labor Day Weekend the Calvin Coolidge State Historic Site in Plymouth Notch, comes alive with the 18th Plymouth Folk and Blues Festival on Saturday, Sept. 2 and Sunday, Sept. 3, 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. both days.
Stars from Vermont and internationally known musicians team up for a lively two-day festival of folk and blues music performed in the pure country air of historic Plymouth Notch, birthplace of Calvin Coolidge, the 30th U.S. president. All concerts are free, and donations are appreciated. We are also taking food donations of non-perishables for the Vermont Food Bank.
Dana and Susan Robinson: Saturday 2-3 p.m. This Americana roots and folk duo from Cabot, Vermont, blend old songs and new with a driving guitar, banjo groove and harmony vocals. Their latest album, “The Town That Music Saved” has been awarded a Times-Argus “Tammie” for Best Vermont Album of the Year, 2019. They’ve been featured in Ken Burns’s “The National Parks, America’s Best Idea” and “The Dust Bowl.” Seven Days writes, “Dana is a master storyteller, spinning his yarns with the precise skill of an artisan loom weaver. A native of the Pacific Northwest, Dana relocated to New England, where he discovered both a thriving songwriters scene and the deep well of traditional mountain music. Susan grew up with her dad’s jazz big band rehearsing in the basement in Manchester, Vermont, and learned classical piano as a child. As an adult she turned to oboe and Scottish fiddle. After Susan and Dana met in 2002, she took up old-time banjo and learned from the banjo-greats in and around Asheville, North Carolina. Since 2003 Dana and Susan have performed hundreds of concerts across the United States, Great Britain and Canada.
With his down-to-earth appeal and sharp songwriting ability, Jesse Terry plants himself firmly among the most promising singer-songwriters of his generation. Michael McCall of Nashville Scene lauded Terry for offering “a sophisticated melodic touch to his tender musings about love and finding his place in the world.” Indeed, while the sounds of popular music become increasingly inflated, Terry wades into the fray with graceful, understated arrangements that embrace his ambitious songs. The stage has been Jesse’s home for a decade. He plays around 150 shows a year, from Bonnaroo to the Philadelphia Folk Festival, the 30A Songwriters Festival to AmericanaFest. This after earning a degree from Berklee College of Music, netting a five-year staff writer gig on Nashville’s Music Row penning material for major TV networks, and winning many prestigious songwriting awards.
Danielle Miraglia: Saturday 4-5 p.m. Danielle Miraglia comes armed with a strong, steady thumb on an old Gibson and an infectious stomp-box rhythm with tunes ranging from heart-felt to socially conscious that will move both your heart and hips. Her latest “Bright Shining Stars” debuted at #15 on the Billboard Blues Charts. Cascade Blues Association calls it “… tough as rawhide, but smooth as blended whiskey.” It includes originals as well as a collection of songs she’s been covering at live shows over the years, paying homage to influences like Big Bill Broonzy, Bob Dylan, Janis Joplin and more, plus the title track “Bright Shining Stars,” written by her husband, Tom Bianchi. Danielle has toured and played major venues across the United States and beyond, shining in both the folk and blues circuits. She has opened for Buddy Guy, George Thorogood, Joan Osborne, John Oates, Colin Hay, John Mayall, Johnny Winter, Bettye Lavette, John Hammond Jr., Sonny Landreth, Robert Cray, Rodney Crowell and performed side stages at events with The Black Crowes, Mary J Blige, The Indigo Girls and many more.
Krishna Guthrie: Sunday 2-3 p.m. The Guthrie family story is woven into the fabric of American music. While Krishna Guthrie incorporates elements of his lineage, from the folk roots of his great-grandfather Woody, to the masterful storytelling of his grandfather Arlo, he’s not afraid of adding influences from his own generation as he carves his own initials in the family tree. At a young age, Krishna began touring internationally with his family as well as playing in local bands when off the road. Becoming skilled at several instruments, he also started writing his own songs. In the winter of 2013/14 Guthrie found himself playing regular gigs with a band in Vermont, and he decided to make Vermont his home. Krishna started paying his dues, without fanfare, in local bars and restaurants around the Rutland area, determined to make a name for himself. While never leaving behind the roots of his family’s music, Krishna turns it up a notch, infusing rock, blues and modern influences.
The Kennedys: Sunday 3-4 p.m. In a career that now spans two decades, New York duo Maura and Pete Kennedy have traversed a broad musical landscape, surveying power pop, acoustic songwriting, organic rock rooted in their early days in Austin, and a Byrds-inspired jangle that drew the attention of McGuinn, Steve Earle, and most notably Nanci Griffith. At well over a million miles of roadwork, including two stints as members of Nanci Griffith’s Blue Moon Orchestra, Pete and Maura Kennedy show no signs of slowing down, either on tour or in the creative realm. The Kennedys’ live sets seamlessly weave their influences over the last two decades: Buddy Holly style roots, the tuneful cadences of the Everly Brothers, and the ringing 12-string jangle of the early Byrds, interspersed with darker moments that recall British folk rock à la Fairport Convention.
The Art of DonnCherie : Sunday 4-5 p.m. The Art of DonnCherie, a Burlington, Vermont, singer-songwriter, has been described as “honey-covered-rawness,” she is dark, ominous, playful and a little naughty, her music influenced by blues, folk, soul and country music, and does not ask you to pick a genre. Her music is as eclectic as her many interests, with powerful lyrics and rhythmic melodies. An unrefined and soulful singer, she has a unique vocal style that is both fresh and familiar at the same time. She brings so much heart to the lyrics and life to the story she’s bringing you. DonnCherie’s songs take you on a journey with a musical conversation that moves your soul and allows you to see a little of yourself in each line.
