Folk Buddies at Port Fairy

I was on a plane sitting next to two women who had just met.  They were sharing their thoughts about how fluffy the clouds were and how it seemed to them that they could walk on them. Then they began sharing stories about how fantastic Tasmania is and all the wonderful places they had visited.   It is amazing how friendships can so easily be formed and I wondered whether this new friendship was a fleeting thing or whether their shared experience would see them form lasting bonds.  Either way, it made me feel glad to be alive.  Of course, that could have been the schooner of beer I had in the airport bar or the mini bottle of sparkling I had in my hand that was making me feel that way. Maybe it was the anticipation of what lay ahead in my weekend away.

I was heading for the Port Fairy Folk Festival with The Blonde and Drummer Kid.  It was an odyssey on which I hoped to prove that I was truly a Patron of the Arts.  Travelling to rural Victoria to see live acts surely shows a dedication to the cause.  The festival was to feature a large number of acts that I was keen to see -  Paul Kelly, Mick Thomas and the Roving Commission, The Waifs and Tasmanian convict punk band The Dead Maggies to name a few.  A quick scan of the other acts that were on the program and I discovered a few new acts that I was keen to check out - a Dutch ska punk band called The Bazzookas and a punk pirate band called Eight Foot Felix amongst others.

When The Blonde first suggested that the PFFF was right up our alley and there was much fun to be had, I had a look at the logistics of getting there and I wasn't sure it was something I would be able to do.  Never under estimate the generosity of fellow Arts Patrons.  The Blonde had previous travelled to South Africa on a music tour with our favourite, Mick Thomas & Squeezebox Wally, where she met a bloke from Victoria who is without doubt the biggest Mick Thomas fan I have ever met.  Mick Fan was also heading to the PFFF and offered to organise camping, tents and to pick us up from the airport and drive us to Port Fairy - what a legend!!  Picking us up at the airport meant that Mick Fan was likely going to miss seeing Mick Thomas and the Roving Commission play on the opening night of the festival.  For a man who has travelled to Africa just to see him play, twice, this was a big favour indeed.  His wife, Pocket Rocket, and daughter, Folk Girl set off to Port Fairy early to set up camp for us all.  Great Peeps!!

The Blonde and I got off the plane, our excitement was palpable and there was much squealing with delight.  Poor Drummer Kid was embarrassed to be seen with us. Mick Fan picked us up in his Hilux complete with ice bucket filled with ciders and beers and we were off into the night.  A great warm up for the next three days festivities.

I've been to a number of music festivals before but this felt more like an agricultural show.  It had a relaxed country feel.  There were stalls selling jewellery, folksy clothing, bespoke guitars and mandolins and food stalls of all types selling tacos, ice cream, berries and cream, potatoes and the good old dagwood dog.  Buskers and roaming performers all added to the atmosphere.  Music festivals usually have one or two stages but the Port Fairy Folk Festival has 19 separate venues where you can catch workshop or a live act. Alcohol was only available at one of the stage venues which added to the relaxed and friendly atmosphere.

The first act I saw was Bennett, Bowtell and Urquhart followed by my favourite, Mick Thomas and the Roving Commission.  Mick and Wally were really rocking out and as always the old Weddings Parties Anything song "For a Short Time" made me cry.  My favourite song of all time. What a great start the the weekend.

It was a great day.  The Wilson Pickers, the most fabulous Lior singing Radiohead, James Taylor, Chris Isaacs and his marvellous originals with a string quarter and a double bass, Don Walker and Paul Kelly.  As great as these acts were there was something special about seeing Kutcha Edwards in one of the small venues later in the evening. His interaction with the audience, especially the kids dancing at the front was great and it felt like I had been invited to join a performance specifically for his family and friends.  I felt fortunate to be included.


The most fun of the day was seeing The Dead Maggies in front of a relatively small audience late in the evening.  The small crowd of about forty went off and punk dancing ensued.  This was in a "no dancing" venue which resulted in security being called.  Good luck with stopping a bunch of punk band fans from dancing.  To their credit the security stayed to protect the equipment and people but let the dancing go ahead.  It was fantastic.  I may or may not have given the security guy a hug in appreciation.  Either way, a good night's sleep was assured after that.

Sunday started with The Wilson Pickers.  Their scintillating five part harmony, great fiddling and picking was worth the admission price alone.  They do the most fabulous cover version of Dolly Parton's 'Jolene' sung by Sime Nugent.  He was fast becoming my favourite of the festival.  To be honest, I think that I am a little in love with each of the five boys.  Dancing was required.

Our  all party all headed off to Mick Thomas' launch of his book - "These Are the Days".  This is an autobiographical tale featuring Mick's songs: how they got written, where and why they got written, and why they still get played.   For me, though, it is really about whilst a song can be written about one thing, it is really what you bring to the song that makes it resonate.  The real story behind 'For a Short Time" is tragic and poignant but every time I hear it I think about that boy I snogged in my late teens that I would have liked to get to know better but has since passed away.  It is the also the night that His Grumpiness asked me to dance to this song at my 40th birthday and made me feel like the best and most important person in the world.  Gets me every time.

We went for a beer at the Commercial Hotel in the middle of the day and met up with a friend of Mick Fan, Funky Rock Chick. We chatted about life and politics as you do when you've had a couple of bevvies.  We discussed Mick's launch and mused how a song needs to speak to you spiritually, intellectually, emotionally and physically before we get to call it a great song.  Yes, the beers were going down nicely.

At the Commercial live music was provided by 18 year old, Cooper Lower.  He did some tricky stuff with two microphones and recording tracks to play simultaneously that was pretty cool.  He was quite good but his songs were a little samey once you got past the two mic gimmick.  The thing that got me to move on though were his ill-fitting beige pants that seem to be prevalent among young folk these days.  Buy a pair of decent jeans!!

The day rocked on with a sing-a-long session at the beer stage.  I then went off to see Marlon Williams followed by The Waifs (with every other person at the festival).  The crowds were starting to get to me.  However, I returned to the relatively empty beer stage for a serious punk session - 8 Foot Felix, The Dead Maggies, The Bazzookas.  This was just nuts and made me feel rebellious, young and free.  Until midnight when I just had to lay down due to sheer exhaustion - maybe not so young.

On Monday morning I saw Yirrmal.  He was such an act of such joy.  He and his band were just a bunch of boys from various backgrounds, all mates together enjoying music.  This is how life should be, this is what folk music can bring to the world.

To round out the festival I went to see The Wilson Pickers for the third time.  They were even better than the previous two times.  Then to finish off, Folk Uke (Amy Nelson and Cathy Guthrie) alongside Dog Tumpet (Reg Mobassa and Pete O'Doherty).  They were hilarious.  If you get a chance, listen to their Starf*ker album.  Extremely irreverent and expressed anti-social tendencies of the mature woman and true to the core their set included songs like 'Knock Me Up' and 'Shit Makes the Flowers Grow'.

What I learnt from the PFFF is unless you are prepared to battle the crowds stay away from the headline acts.  If you really want to see them then go and see them somewhere else where they are the only act and the venue is suited to the crowd.  The best part of festival-going is seeing that act you have never heard of before on some minor stage in front of a tiny but dedicated audience.  It is seeing that fledgling act who is excited by the prospect of playing their first major festival.

But the biggest lesson of all was that, whilst the music was fantastic and the festival experience was brilliant, the best festival experience is the new friendship forged.  That shared appreciation of music gives you solid bond on which to build a friendship, you already have a things to talk about and stories to relay.  The best though is that you now have a shared history and experiences that will forever bond you.  I can't wait to experience more days like these with my new Folk Buddies.