50 Years of Newport Folk

This past weekend marked the fiftieth anniversary of the Newport Folk Festival. Pete Seeger headlined, and legendary artists like Ramblin’ Jack Elliott and Joan Baez shared the stage with younger acts like Fleet Foxes, The Decemberists, and Providence, Rhode Island bands The Low Anthem and Deer Tick.

Tension between traditional folkies and new interpreters has long been in the air at Newport. Bob Dylan going electric in 1965 was just one scrap in an ongoing feud over authenticity that some continue to fight. On this anniversary year, however, the mood was one of unity and the circle was unbroken.

Word of Mouth producer Avishay Artsy talked to some of the musicians about the connection between old and new folk, and put together this audio postcard.

(Photo of Iron & Wine's Sam Beam by Avishay Artsy)