Living the folk life: Behind the scenes at the Humboldt Folklife Festival
As promised, Joanne Rand played her altered version of Woody Guthrie’s “This Land Is Your Land” on the Arcata Plaza on Independence Day, fitting it into a medley of sorts. She began with a song that seemed to be composed just for that day. As the opening act for the town’s “Fourth of July Jubilee,” she’d been asked to sing “The Star Spangled Banner,” which she agreed to do with some trepidation: She’s not exactly the flag-waving type. Strumming her guitar, she told of a conversation she had with her 81-year-old mother. “I asked my mama,” she sang, “if I should sing the National Anthem, and she said ‘Yes, yes please.’” The song goes on to question the nature of patriotism in a time of war and turns anthemic with a call to “take back our country.” With a “Star Spangled” snippet as a segue, she shifted into Guthrie’s classic, her band weaving in fiddle lines and electric guitar. She added a few lines of her own, pulled out some of Woody’s more obscure verses and turned it into a sing-along, the crowd joining in on “This land was made for you and me,” before she concluded, “It’s up to you and me.”
Was it folk music? Without a doubt. To borrow a phrase from one of our wrong-righters of the past, it was music “of the people, by the people and for the people,” and that’s really what folk music is all about.
The 29th Humboldt Folklife Festival is July 15-21, 2007. For complete schedule and tickets, visit www.humboldtfolklife.org or call (707) 822-5394. Tickets are also available in Arcata at The Metro, The Works and Wildwood Music, in Eureka at The Works and at the event at the Dell’Arte ticket office.
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on the cover
Railroad!
Proposed lines ‘set rich blood a-tingling’ in early 1900s
Some Other Proposed North Coast Railroads
Choo-choo Fantasies
Exposing this east-west rail nonsense
seven-o-heaven
Undeterred Will
Will chides Andrew for lack of attention to detail and makes plans for his inevitable victory.
Recent on the cover
May 17
Ring of Fire
Sun and moon will perform a rare pas de deux in Humboldt skies on Sunday
May 10
District Soup
Racing for the top county seat in the 1st, 2nd and 3rd districts
May 3
A Place in the Woods
As park closure deadline nears, a scramble to save what we can
Today
44th Annual Kinetic Grand Championship Race
STAFF PICK / events, art, outdoors, sports, for kids, free / 9 a.m.-6 p.m. A 3-day, 42-mile kinetic sculpture race over land, sand, mud and water! LeMans start at the Noon Whistle on the Arcata Plaza. Follow the race through Manila, Eureka and into Ferndale on Memorial Day for the Glorious Finish. kineticgrandchampionship.com. 889-3024.
Flow 2012 Fashion Show
STAFF PICK / events / 8 p.m. Arcata Theatre Lounge, 1036 G St. Student designed and produced clothing. Fundraiser for Arcata Arts Institute. $35/$25 students. artsinstitute.net. 822-1220.
Woodside Preschool's Rummage/Bake Sale
events / 8 a.m.-noon. Woodside Preschool, 900 Hodgson St, Eureka. www.woodsidepreschool.com. 445-9132.
Lanphere Dunes Restoration
STAFF PICK / outdoors / 9:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. Meet at Pacific Union School. Help remove non-native invasives at the Lanphere Dunes Unit of the Humboldt Bay National Wildlife Refuge. Tools and gloves provided, wear work clothes and bring water. Carpool to the protected site. 444-1397.
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