PORT FAIRY FOLKIE – STORIES, RESPECT AND A WHOLE LOTTA MUSIC
By Alan Calder.
Proudly flying under the new Folkie branding and having been named Victoria’s Best Regional Festival in 2022, the Port Fairy Folk Festival again showcased diverse music and stories of many cultures and communities. There is something magical, as Festival Ambassador Derek Guille suggests, about the way we as punters engage with the performers and they with us. Smart program planning and different sized stages appropriate to the artist, were the keys to this engagement at yet another outstanding event on Victoria’s Labour Day long weekend (March 10-13, 2023).
Inn Echo’s mastery of traditional and contemporary Celtic fusion was on display on Friday night in St John’s Church, a venue with superb acoustics and atmospherics to match. It seems that every year Program Director, Justin Rudge, brings us yet another impressive band from Canada’s Prince Edward Island.
Scottish songwriter, Collin Lillie, also shone in this intimate venue with his songs often centred around finding new love, life and purpose in Alice Springs. These small venues (the historic Lecture Hall, Reardon Theatre and St John’s Church) also brought out the best in other acoustic acts such as Folk Bitch Trio (Emerging Artist of the Year), Scott Cook, Dani Larkin, Niamh Regan, Tim Easton, John Smith, Norwood, Early James and others, all of whom delivered assured and enchanting sets. And when it comes to performing on the big stage, nobody does it better than The Waifs who first performed at Port Fairy 26 years ago, and who invited Jen Anderson (Weddings, Parties, Anything) up for a few songs in acknowledgement of the support she and Mick Thomas provided them in their early days.
We are fortunate to see so many highly regarded international acts touring our country at this time of the year. Vieux Farka Touré warmed up with a packed crowd on their toes at the Tanks Arts Centre in Cairns before delivering his ‘Hendrix of the Sahara’ laced set to a similarly enthusiastic opening night crowd in Port Fairy. Mary Coughlan also won over her audiences with beautiful blues and jazz-tinged renditions of her songs. Coughlan’s passion, honesty and wit continue to resonate long after her performances. 
And what a treat it was to see the passion on display from a couple of rabble rousers from the olde country like Billy Bragg and Grace Petrie who not only delivered some great music to packed houses but also skewered their political targets with devastating accuracy and humour. Steve Poltz has toured Australia over twenty times and once again had his audiences in stitches with his unique combination of unhinged comic genius and musical finesse. Eric Bibb also delivered his usual unique brand of effortless blues and provided one of the better one-liners of the festival: “Tuning is like airplane maintenance. It’s worth doing”.
Themed concerts were once again a feature of this year’s Folkie including the Tribute to Uncle Archie Roach. Artists included Sally Dastey, Emma Donovan, Deline Briscoe, Bumpy, Amos Roach, Radical Son, Gina Williams and Guy Ghouse, David Bridie and many others. Emerging and established acts performed throughout the long weekend on the Archie Roach Foundation Stage which is a lasting tribute to this beloved song man and storyteller. The Guitarists, a crowd favourite hosted by Nick Charles, included some jaw-dropping playing from the likes of Jerry Miller from Eilen Jewell’s band, a tight quartet that had earlier delivered an inspired set of blues, rock and country from a self-described ‘left wing swine’ perspective. Other guitarists included Tim Easton, Jeff Lang, Liz Stringer (Artist of the Year) and Jon Boden. Jamie McKew hosted a concert titled Troubadours of the World featuring performances and stories from Kim Churchill, Grace Petrie, Hannah Crofts (Baby Velvet), Jim Lauderdale and While and Matthews.
The Women Out Loud concert is a Sunday morning institution at Port Fairy, with the highlight this year being Mary Coughlan and Gina Williams telling heartfelt stories of struggle and triumph that brought a tear to the eye for many in the audience and on stage. Gina Williams and Guy Ghouse closed this session with a rousing singalong in the Noongar language of WA.
Another Folkie institution is the pumping Shebeen venue where punters get to sing along to classic songs in The Big Sunday Singout and the Find Your Voice Collective, or dance until they drop to high-energy festival favourites like 19-Twenty (what was John Gwilliam doing to that double bass?), The Langan Band, The Badloves and Claymore. And what a bonus it was to see three award winning Australian blues artists – Jimi Hocking, Fiona Boyes and Frank Sultana along with Blues Roulette, having the time of their lives on Sunday night.
There were over 90 acts at the Folkie this year and audiences clearly enjoyed many more talented artists than are mentioned here, and that’s not to mention the Writers, Kids and Circus Programs as well as Workshops, Conversations and Special Events. The artists, volunteers, organizers and the community of Port Fairy once again did a great job in delivering a world-class festival.