Beloved Ben

A little report on the fly here from Edmonton Folk Fest - well, no surprise but the hill erupted in applause when Ben Harper took the stage last night - he was charming, appreciative, talkative - everything the legendarily taciturn Mr. Morrison was not. He commented about how great a time he was having in Edmonton and the beautiful candles in the darkness - could he take the crowd with him?

He did many crowd pleasing favourites of course finishing with "Morning Yearning". I saw him graciously posing with many a fan in the backstage area - a class act all around and an incredible guitarist. He even fleshed out his band with a local trio of string players on cello, viola and violin.

Kate Rusby earlier was her usual charming self - always enraptures me with her lovely voice and bubbly repartee - plus she has a great band which includes hubby Damian O'Kane.

Caught a little interview with Jill Hennessey at the CBC stage - looking very relaxed and tanned - looking forward to hearing more of her on the workshop stages this weekend.

Gotta dash! Tonight Calexico and some mini stages - one of whom is Natacha Atlas' Middle Eastern flavoured music.