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CFF (continued)
In addition to brilliant British performers, there's always been a US and Canadian presence at CFF--right back to the maiden festival in 1964, when a young Paul Simon was shoe-horned onto the bill at the last minute. And this year, for the first time, the US Embassy in London provided financial assistance to the US artists travelling over to play.
Thus we were graced with Steve Earle, Rosanne Cash, Laura Cantrell, John Hammond, Robert Randolph & The Family Band, and The Yonder Mountain String Band. Of course, names like Cash and Earle are well known here, but this was a wonderful opportunity to introduce a whole new audience to legends such as Hammond, or to new bucks like YMSB who gave us a fantastic taste of bluegrass music.
I used to view bluegrass with some disdain until I saw Rhonda Vincent & The Rage a couple of years ago at the festival--they brought the house down and I was hooked. (Rhonda's band had arrived in London to be told their instruments were in Amsterdam. They got to the festival site, explained their situation, and within minutes were furnished with banjos, guitars, and a stand-up bass from fellow musicians and the on-site shop.) continue
