View From The Field - Kev Boyd
This is only my third year at the Festival but I'm determined to secure myself a camping spot close to the area I'd stayed in the previous two years. The organisers clearly have different ideas as the side entrance that would have brought us out right next to my preferred camping place doesn't open until an hour after the main entrance. It's a pity they chose not to tell us until we'd already queued for half an hour but we eventually secure a spot near the main arena entrance (fortuitously close to the 24/7 bacon sarnie stall) and - with a little assistance from FATEA's Allan - set up camp. I've travelled to the festival with Allan and we meet our friend Sarah in the queue. Our other friend (and Allan's niece) Michelle is held up with urgent family business but promises to join us on Friday so, as Allan will be tied up with FATEA business for a few hours, Sarah and I find time to relax a little, exchange our tickets for wristbands, buy a programme and plan our weekends.
One of the things I've always found a little frustrating about Cambridge is that you don't get to know precisely who's on, when and on which stage until you purchase a programme on site. A lot of other festivals publish detailed programmes online in advance but here you're completely in the dark until you have that small booklet in your hand. On the plus side, it does help to generate a small buzz of anticipation on the first morning as you check through the bill, hoping that not too many of your favoured acts clash with each other. Traditionally this activity takes place whilst sat on the sparsely populated main stage field with the weekend's first pint of Guinness in hand and this year is no exception.
There are a couple of clashes and it's possible that I'll miss at least one of the artists I was looking forward to seeing but I'll deal with that problem nearer the time. For the past two festivals I've tried to take in as much music as possible and found myself rushing from stage to stage in order to catch various acts. This years I've already vowed to relax a bit more which probably means I'll hear less music but I'm hoping it will allow me to take in more of the festival atmosphere. However, this isn't an issue on Thursday afternoon as the music doesn't start until 6 pm so there's plenty of time to study the programme, have a few more glasses of Guinness and read today's Guardian which comes with a handy free gift of moistened loo paper (Low on glamour. High on practicality!)
Thursday's musical highlights are Alabama's Secret Sisters and Kent's very own Chris Wood. The Secret Sisters offer up beautiful old school American country harmonies but suffer somewhat in my opinion through the lack of a full band. Chris Wood gives one of his usual articulate and humorous performances, singing a selection of mostly self-written sings from his last few albums.
We end Thursday in the bar (where else?) where I have a chance to catch up with the full FATEA team - Neil, Phil, The Jacket and Allan - before catching the end of festival stalwart Peter Buckley Hill's al fresco after-hours set of surreal original songs and bizarre re-writes. I think I may have had one too many drinks, or maybe it's the effects of the blistering heat, but even the relative discomfort of my inflatable camping mattress and the sounds of the surrounding camp site don't stop me from falling fast asleep almost immediately when I eventually return to my tent.
Friday is going to be much busier but I'm up quite early and after a strong coffee and a bacon sarnie I'm ready to face the day. I take an early morning walk around the main arena to check out some of the David Owen artwork that's a regular feature at the festival and take a brief look at the morning's paper (today's free gift: a handy Guardian-branded plastic water bottle). The day proper starts in the Club Tent with Brian McNeill's excellent sing along-style fiddle workshop quickly followed by the Mojo interview with members of Bellowhead. After these I find time to check out the concession stalls and to choose that essential item - the festival hat. Actually, if I'm honest I like to think the hat chose me!
I take my hat over to the main stage where we both enjoy a great set by Justin Townes Earle. Earle is a mean guitar picker and no slouch when it comes to the business of song writing. He's also the best (and possibly most eccentrically) dressed act at the festival so far in his tweed jacket and snazzy bow tie. Later, over in the Club Tent, I catch the second half of a set by Katriona Gilmore and Jamie Roberts whose take on song writing is as authentically English as Earle's is American. Jamie is a guitarist with more than a few tricks up his sleeve and Katriona a fine singer, fiddler and mandolin player. I notice that she plays right handed fiddle and left handed mandolin which I imagine is no mean feat but must surely make life more difficult than is strictly necessary.
During the course of the afternoon I also take a wander over to the new Flower Garden area where the local Portland Folk Club are hosting a sing around. A handful of people get up to perform a song or two each with varying degrees of success. This is a nice contrast to the acts appearing on the larger stages even if the general level of proficiency falls somewhat short of Main Stage standards. At various points during the day I also spend some time in the Hub area where there's usually a lively session or workshop taking place and where you can get hold of a decent sandwich and a cup of coffee at a price that won't blow your festival budget.
Later on I take in a somewhat disappointing set by The Robert Cray Band which is livened up considerably by the appearance of a stunning sunset outside the main stage marquee. By this time our friend Michelle - now an extremely proud auntie - has arrived, so we end the night watching Bellowhead on the main stage. It's a predictably packed affair so we don't have the best view possible but it doesn't seem to matter as the energy of their performance easily translates to the back of the marquee. I have to admit that I wasn't particularly looking forward to Bellowhead's set but with the addition of a number of songs and tunes from their 'Hedonism' album they are much improved from the last time I saw them a couple of years ago. Afterwards there's just enough time to catch last orders in the bar.
I find it hard to sleep for too long once the sounds of the camp site start to penetrate my tent in the morning so it's another early start on Saturday. I ponder whether to break with my two day old tradition and choose something other than a bacon sarnie for breakfast but my will power just isn't strong enough. Today's newspaper freebie is a natty bright green cotton shoulder bag with dual Guardian/Primal Scream branding. Nice… and practical too!