Jazz @ FRFF

I know it is the Falcon Ridge Folk Festival, but there are some jazz acts that would fit right in. I'm not sure what sets them apart but in my mind they would. I saw one tonight, Dave's True Story and I"m listening to another right now, Andrew Bird. Madeleine Peyroux is another that I think would fit right in. Is there anyone you can think of? Do you disagree and think no one that plays jazz belongs?

I think lots of other types of music would fit in.... Jim Infantino is one that jumps to mind.

I mean, they had fruvous there... that's hardly "folk".

Yes but Fruvous and Jim for that matter both marketed themselves to folk audiences. I first saw Jim at some folk showcase. That was as a solo act.

perhaps it's a "mindset" thing?

and now, he WILL be there!
:D

I just find it hilarious that he's in the "emerging artist" showcase.

hahaha

yeah, he's only got what, 9 CDs out?

I wonder what he'll choose to play...

It'll be interesting, no doubt.

And... I mean, looking at my CD rack... the earliest cd I have from him is 1993. Emerging my ass. :D

Jim's emerging from your ass?

And yeah...I think it's bogus that he's emerging too. Hasn't he gotten fairly good airplay in the past and stuff as well? I dunno. I discovered him without it having to be sekrit and out of the way, yknow...he was just mainstream in the folky community to me. So it just seems so bizarre.

:P

And, yeah, he got a lot of airplay... though perhaps it was just in new england.. (?)

I remember back when JBE used to play gigs in VT when I lived up there, they were always getting a good amount of airplay....

Yes, it's the Falcon Ridge Folk Festival, not the Falcon Ridge Folk Music Festival. There's some folk music, some folk dance, some folk art, and, most importantly a whole lot of folks go to it. But I don't think the name is at all exclusive, or even meant to be.

True, I think there are acts that would not fit in, but it's kind of hard to say which ones they are or aren't. There isn't a rule that I can think to apply that would eliminate or include large groups of acts, because I'm not even sure what the common thread among the bands who do play there is.

They certainly aren't all acoustic. Moxy Früvous did the whole 'rock' thing, of course, and Erin McKeown plays an electric guitar, and plenty of others do, too.

They do (almost) all write their own songs, but there are plenty of bands who write their own songs who would not fit in at the festival.

They don't all write deep, personal songs, though, no matter how much DVN will try to convince you that certain songs of theirs are autobiographical. It's still not deep. (I know, I know! Bad phrasing. Just try not to go there, all right?) And the Arrogant Worms' songs aren't exactly folky in that 'hey, look, here are my deepest emotions on display for the world' way.

So why did DVN fit in, and why are the Arrogant Worms coming?

And what makes bands like Guster, Barenaked Ladies, They Might Be Giants, and Jump, Little Children not fit in? (besides that they're mostly too big for the festival - even if they weren't, they'd never be invited to play)

(I know this veered way off topic, but I'm curious as to what everyone thinks the festival should or shouldn't be like, as far as inclusiveness goes)

but really, trying to define folk music is a tricky business.

there are some anal-retentive purists who claim that if the author of a song is known, it's not really folk music.

Rebecca Pidgeon!!

And she could play Celtic stuff, too :)

The same rebecca pidgeon in david mamet movies??

Yup. She's his wife :D

I love Rebecca Pidgeon. I know I've seen her CDs in teh jazz section of some stores but I don't hear her as Jazz. She isn't that different from Dar.

I'd even consider Erin McKeown pseudo-jazz. Folk music is such a broad term though, and lots of music can fall under its umbrella. I think most music can be described as belonging in multiple genres. Genres tend to overlap anyway.

I'd concur.

And newpiano!Susie is definitely jazz....

yeah, I definitely wouldn't consider Erin to be folk.

no...she's...a ton of stuff. she's very, blendy. i mean, especially on her albums, there's a whole plethora of stuff going on. so much that you can't categorize it (or her) as one "genre."

Madeleine Peyroux

She's been getting lots of play on FolkTown on Sirius. (as well as Sirius Disorder, Planet Jazz and The Spectrum on Sirius)

Maybe she's jsut another one of those artists that "can't be classified" ?

oh, good god, please don't call andrew a jazz act. we've finally started to get rid of the zoot suit riot kids at his shows.

Yeah, I thought that was a really bad typo or something. I don't really even hear much of a jazz influence in his stuff. *shrugs*

maybe gordon's thinking of andrew's oh! the grandeur and thrills sound--but those albums are, like, light-years away from what he does these days. hell, he barely acknowledges the swimming hour in concert anymore, let alone the old swing stuff.

Ah, gotcha.. I've only heard his more recent albums. *nod*

annnnnnnnnd now i'm earwormed with 'zoot suit riot'---heeeH

thaaaaaaaaaaaanks, care� ;)

however, i think zoot suits themselves are totally hot and should come back in style pronto.

There is Jazz at FRFF.� I learned to swing dance there.� Susan Warner, Jian's fictional exwife, often is playing supporting performances for FRFF.� Erin McKeown borrows from jazz and to a lesser extent, so does Fruvous, DVN, and the Paperboys.� What is folk music, anyways?

Vance Gilbert isn't folk.� He is more Soul.� He just is a guy on a guitar and that lops him into folk.

Rani Arbo & daisy mayhem, who should be a headliner, is a folk band who has a jazz cover album.

Andrew Bird is totally folk.� He just happens to use sampling and looping in his live act.

So what is folk, Gordon?

i agree with you on a few points there, but:

i wouldn't call susan werner "jazz"--she has a folk side and a jazz side and her best performances are the ones where she combines both sides, and her classical background as well.

vance himself says he does folk music, so i wouldn't argue with him. :)

and andrew is not folk. i like to call him unclassifiable, because he brings so many influences to his music, and he's reinvented himself so many times in such a short career. the only true folk album he's done has been music of hair, and even that was trad-style fiddle filtered thru andrew's brain. so i would hate to slap a label on anything he's done.

I'd argue that susan is best when she ignores her jazz side... but.. perhaps I'm biased. :)

ETA: oh, and I totally agree about andrew......

wow, i agree with nate on both points. :D

*falls over*

I compleatly disagree with you about Andrew Bird. He draws so much from Skiffle, Apalation music, blues, jazz, and acoustic grunge, which blends skiffle and punk. Four and a half of his inflewances is a form a folk music. I do think he is folk.

AWW MAN, the topic threw me off.

I thought Jazz from Fresh Prince of Bel-Air was gunna be at FRFF.

DJ JAZZY JEFF!� WILL SMITH!

I need something better to be doing.

2 years ago anne saunders told me she was thinking about a jazz workshop with susan, erin, vance gilbert, and someone i cannot remember. but it never happened.

Though I enjoyed it it was very odd that there was a reggae band last year. . . .