From 10am to 5:30pm on Saturday, July 23, five bands will rock the waterfront campus of the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum during its 4th annual Chesapeake Folk Festival in St. Michaels, MD. With music played from the museum’s Tolchester Beach Bandstand and ranging from honky-tonk, gospel, Latino, country and bluegrass, the Chesapeake Folk Festival will feed the bodies, minds and souls of festival-goers with a full day’s selection of the music, foods and traditions of the Chesapeake region.
From 10 to 11am, the Hugh and Zane Campbell from Elkton, MD start the day’s music with their part-Blue Ridge Mountain, part-Chesapeake Bay ‘new river’ sounds. Self-proclaimed as ‘plain people singing simple songs about plain people,’ the duo will be accompanied by Hugh’s daughter, who will draw in the audience with her on-stage storytelling talents.
From 11:15 to 11:30am, Grupo Gitano of Georgetown, DE, will be spicing up the festival with the Latin flavors of cumbia, ranchero, and mariachi music. Featuring guitar, bass, keyboard, percussion and accordion, this band draws crowds and gets them dancing through a full slate of year-round, weekend performances along the Eastern Shore.
From 12:30 to 1:30pm, Sombarkin’ will bring their dynamic vocal instrumentation and beautiful harmonies to the museum’s festival-goers and waterfront campus. Based in Worton, MD, the group’s Karen Somerville, Lester Barrett, Jr., and Jerome McKinney deliver an explosive performance of spirituals, songs, folk, gospel, jazz and contemporary selections whose uplifting and haunting melodies tell powerful stories of sorrow, hope, freedom and joy.
Performing from 2 to 3:45pm, the Sensational Royal Lights are bringing their tight vocal harmonies, toe tapping tempos, and inspirational messages to the bandstand. For more than fifty years, the Cambridge-based Sensational Royal Lights have drawn fans throughout the Delmarva Peninsula and various other states by singing the gospel. Vocalists Palestine Elliott, Frederick Elliott, Tyrome Elliott, and Earl Slacum join musicians James Crowner, William Dunlap, Gerald Hall, and Walter Caldwell for a memorable performance.
Bringing honky-tonk and country music to the stage and wrapping up the day’s music from 4:15 to 5:30pm will be Arty Hill & the Long Gone Daddys. Originally from Cambridge, MD, Arty Hill is a honky-tonk musician and songwriter who traces his musical heritage back to country greats like Hank Williams, George Jones and Johnny Cash. Hill has recorded three full length albums with The Long Gone Daddys and one solo album.
All the bands will be playing from the Tolchester Beach Bandstand at the 4th annual Chesapeake Folk Festival, Saturday, July 23 at the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum in St. Michaels. Gates open at 9am, with all performances provided free with festival admission.
The event is presented in partnership with Maryland Traditions and is sponsored by Maryland Public Television, What’s Up? Publishing, and Pepsi Bottling Company.
Museum members and children five and under enjoy free admission to the Chesapeake Folk Festival, with other tickets for the July 23 event at $15 for adults, $12 for seniors, and $6 for children ages six through 17. All Museum exhibits will be open during the event and are included in the admission price. Food and boat rides are an additional cost.
For more information about the festival, visit www.cbmm.org or call 410-745-2916.