Cambridge Folk Festival 2024
In addition to being the home of one of the world’s oldest and most renowned universities, the city also plays host to one of the oldest and most famous folk festivals. Cambridge Folk Festival has been held annually since 1965 in the beautifully picturesque setting of Cherry Hinton Hall Park which is located just outside of the historic city centre. The festival this year celebrates its sixtieth anniversary and has historically looked to encompass music right across the spectrum which may be considered folk.
The first event back in 1965 included a young Paul Simon on the bill and as the festival has continued to grow, whilst still retaining it’s core values it has attracted some of the most influential songwriters in the history of southern roots, Americana, rock and country. Guy Clark, Patty Griffin, Townes Van Zandt, Jackson Browne, Patti Smith, Steve Earle and John Prine all gracing the stage in the past, with the late great Prine appearing no less than seven times.
The first event back in 1965 included a young Paul Simon on the bill and as the festival has continued to grow, whilst still retaining it’s core values it has attracted some of the most influential songwriters in the history of southern roots, Americana, rock and country. Guy Clark, Patty Griffin, Townes Van Zandt, Jackson Browne, Patti Smith, Steve Earle and John Prine all gracing the stage in the past, with the late great Prine appearing no less than seven times.
“The best traditional folk artists from the UK and Ireland rub shoulders with cutting edge contemporary acts, including the finest American country, blues and roots artists, acclaimed singer songwriters, superstars, rising stars and world music stars” is how the festival describes the events programme of music and you don’t have to look too hard to find how the festival has looked to incorporate the country music which it promises into the event.
Over the last six decades, Cherry Hinton Hall has played host to an array of names who are more than familiar to country and Americana fans on this side of the Atlantic, such as Grand Ole Opry members: Ricky Skaggs, Alison Krauss and Old Crow Medicine Show who were a standout performer at last year’s C2C: Country to Country Festival which is Europe’s largest country music festival. The likes of: Angaleena Presley, Yola, Rhiannon Giddens, Suzy Bogguss, Sam Outlaw, Asleep at the Wheel, Billy Bragg, Ward Thomas, Amythyst Kiah, Gangstagrass and Nickel Creek have not just been past favourites in Cambridge but also at previous editions of The Long Road Festival which is a firm staple in the UK country music calendar and this year will be headlined by another Don McLean who is another Cambridge alumni as he played the Folk Festival twice in 1977 and 1980.
The evident genre crossover where the festival has a history of embracing country and Americana artists, combined with the late July sunshine and a train journey of less than an hour from London Kings Cross enticed us for the first time to experience one of the highest regarded events across the entire British festival schedule starring: Robert Plant Presents Saving Grace featuring Suzi Dian, Bess Atwell, Taylor McCall, Lizzie No, Transatlantic Sessions, Turin Brakes, Darlingside, Larkin Poe and many more.
The first thing that makes the event feel more accessible comes before you get anywhere near the festival site. The location and proximity to central Cambridge allows it to be served by very efficient public transport so there is no requirement for the festival to organise additional transport which they have limited control over whilst in operation and the route is clearly defined on the festival website. On arrival at the site there are a lot of very helpful event staff to provide assistance and directions. The event staff are clearly identifiable and clearly have a passion for the event itself beyond the typical festival experience of security just being there to work rather than having a connection to the event.
Over the last six decades, Cherry Hinton Hall has played host to an array of names who are more than familiar to country and Americana fans on this side of the Atlantic, such as Grand Ole Opry members: Ricky Skaggs, Alison Krauss and Old Crow Medicine Show who were a standout performer at last year’s C2C: Country to Country Festival which is Europe’s largest country music festival. The likes of: Angaleena Presley, Yola, Rhiannon Giddens, Suzy Bogguss, Sam Outlaw, Asleep at the Wheel, Billy Bragg, Ward Thomas, Amythyst Kiah, Gangstagrass and Nickel Creek have not just been past favourites in Cambridge but also at previous editions of The Long Road Festival which is a firm staple in the UK country music calendar and this year will be headlined by another Don McLean who is another Cambridge alumni as he played the Folk Festival twice in 1977 and 1980.
The evident genre crossover where the festival has a history of embracing country and Americana artists, combined with the late July sunshine and a train journey of less than an hour from London Kings Cross enticed us for the first time to experience one of the highest regarded events across the entire British festival schedule starring: Robert Plant Presents Saving Grace featuring Suzi Dian, Bess Atwell, Taylor McCall, Lizzie No, Transatlantic Sessions, Turin Brakes, Darlingside, Larkin Poe and many more.
The first thing that makes the event feel more accessible comes before you get anywhere near the festival site. The location and proximity to central Cambridge allows it to be served by very efficient public transport so there is no requirement for the festival to organise additional transport which they have limited control over whilst in operation and the route is clearly defined on the festival website. On arrival at the site there are a lot of very helpful event staff to provide assistance and directions. The event staff are clearly identifiable and clearly have a passion for the event itself beyond the typical festival experience of security just being there to work rather than having a connection to the event.
Credit Aaron Parsons
As an event, Cambridge Folk Festival attracts a similar number of attendees to what we see at Black Deer and The Long Road but the arena site feels smaller and a lot busier, however, this could be more to do with the way that the space is utilised, meaning that things appear closer together and you can move around to gain the full experience with ease. However, there is one thing that does hamper moving around the arena, which if you have ever read any of my previous festival reviews, you will be all too familiar with what my biggest hate at events like this is. If you haven’t come across any of my coverage of other festivals, this is the point where I get on my soapbox to express how much I HATE CHAIRS!!!!!!!!!!
I have very limited observations that are not glowingly positive about my first visit to the festival (beyond the absence of a food truck selling Mac and Cheese) so we’re not going to go too far down this road but whilst the amount of chairs is excessive and I passionately advocate for the day where all festivals ban them in their entirety, the audience at the festival were very adhering to them not being directly in front of stages and were generally positioned to not impede walkways or disrupt the vantage point of others. The way that the event manages the dreaded “C” word is actually a blueprint that our own country festivals can learn a lot from. The audience is generally older and with a lot of the music being more stripped back or mellow compared to what we are familiar with, I understand there is a demand for people wanting to sit down but there are a large number of very evident markings on the floor for where they are not allowed and the event staff were very good at reiterating this.
The event ticks a lot of the sustainability boxes and one of my biggest observations (beyond so many chairs) was how clean the site was with a lot of bins for general waste and recycling along with regularly seeing staff walking round on litter picking duty. There were a really good number of food outlets which appeared to offer choice and variety to serve all dietary preferences and requirements whilst the bars were large, well-staffed, served a good choice of products and not only were serving beverages in recyclable cups but the deposit charged for them was refundable and were branded to the festival to make a good souvenir from the event for anyone that wished to keep them to reuse even further.
I have very limited observations that are not glowingly positive about my first visit to the festival (beyond the absence of a food truck selling Mac and Cheese) so we’re not going to go too far down this road but whilst the amount of chairs is excessive and I passionately advocate for the day where all festivals ban them in their entirety, the audience at the festival were very adhering to them not being directly in front of stages and were generally positioned to not impede walkways or disrupt the vantage point of others. The way that the event manages the dreaded “C” word is actually a blueprint that our own country festivals can learn a lot from. The audience is generally older and with a lot of the music being more stripped back or mellow compared to what we are familiar with, I understand there is a demand for people wanting to sit down but there are a large number of very evident markings on the floor for where they are not allowed and the event staff were very good at reiterating this.
The event ticks a lot of the sustainability boxes and one of my biggest observations (beyond so many chairs) was how clean the site was with a lot of bins for general waste and recycling along with regularly seeing staff walking round on litter picking duty. There were a really good number of food outlets which appeared to offer choice and variety to serve all dietary preferences and requirements whilst the bars were large, well-staffed, served a good choice of products and not only were serving beverages in recyclable cups but the deposit charged for them was refundable and were branded to the festival to make a good souvenir from the event for anyone that wished to keep them to reuse even further.
Credit Aaron Parsons
After enjoying the festival ambiance (along with quite a few wild berry ciders) for a couple of hours, it became time to properly sample the focal point of the event and seeing some music so I am going to start with what was a clear and unexpected highlight of my Saturday. “K-Folk” was definitely not something which was on my 2024 bingo card but after seeing a band called Sangjaru I am 100% here for it and trust me it is even more wonderful than the image which you probably have in your head as you read this. The South Korean trio are so captivating to watch on stage and their sound is one of the most creative things I have discovered since I began covering music. Blending traditional Korean melodies with elements of rock, soul, funk and blues to create such a big and dynamic sound played with instruments I have never even seen before combined with slick electric guitar is completely unique and something you never knew you needed in your musical arc.
Credit Aaron Parsons
The other standout performance of the day came from Darlingside who were the act on the bill that presented the most appeal and who I was most familiar with. Since we first came across the delightful harmony quartet from Boston, Massachusetts two years ago at Black Deer, David Senft has stepped back from life on the road, meaning it was down to the now live trio of Don Mitchell, Auyon Mukharji and Harris Paseltiner to return to the UK and tour last years ‘Everything Is Alive’ album. Joined by Molly Parden on bass and Ariel Bernstein on drums, the harmony sound combined with the indie folk melodic charm which they create, along with a really captivating way of telling stories filled with wit and great humour between songs really draws you in and are the perfect band for what I would want to see on the main stage at a festival and also the sort of act who are able to draw casual attendees into the world of “folk” music.
Robert Plant headlined the Friday night with his Saving Grace project featuring Suzi Dian as the festival’s star attraction whilst Saturday’s top billing fell to a UK festival exclusive performance from Transatlantic Sessions. The collective ensemble was first established in 1995 and gone on to deliver six television series of collaborative performances from artists across the worlds of folk, bluegrass and country from both sides of the Atlantic (and with Tommy Emmanuel, a native of New South Wales in Australia amongst this shows guests, you could even deem this a global session) under the watchful eye of fourteen time Grammy winner and Alison Krauss & Union Station dobro player Jerry Douglas who has acted as the productions co-director since 1998. Joined by a number of notable guests who accompanied a house band stacked with talented musicians, the ninety minute performance highlighted that folk music is about the collaborative ensemble nature of performance to really appreciate the musicianship and the sense of community that results from it. Whilst it may not have been something I am overly drawn to, I definitely appreciated the craft and observed why it had the appeal amongst the folk music fanbase.
Robert Plant headlined the Friday night with his Saving Grace project featuring Suzi Dian as the festival’s star attraction whilst Saturday’s top billing fell to a UK festival exclusive performance from Transatlantic Sessions. The collective ensemble was first established in 1995 and gone on to deliver six television series of collaborative performances from artists across the worlds of folk, bluegrass and country from both sides of the Atlantic (and with Tommy Emmanuel, a native of New South Wales in Australia amongst this shows guests, you could even deem this a global session) under the watchful eye of fourteen time Grammy winner and Alison Krauss & Union Station dobro player Jerry Douglas who has acted as the productions co-director since 1998. Joined by a number of notable guests who accompanied a house band stacked with talented musicians, the ninety minute performance highlighted that folk music is about the collaborative ensemble nature of performance to really appreciate the musicianship and the sense of community that results from it. Whilst it may not have been something I am overly drawn to, I definitely appreciated the craft and observed why it had the appeal amongst the folk music fanbase.
Credit Aaron Parsons
The festival has a lot going on and whilst bell ringing, Irish dancing and craft demonstrations are not things that appeal to me there is great theming and there are fun artistic installations that you can’t avoid having to fill your Instagram story with. It felt very welcoming and inclusive for all where you really did see the full range of ages from the very young to the incredibly young at heart. There is camping very close by and despite not experiencing this aspect myself, from conversations I had on the site, it appeared there was a lot more organised activity than you would typically find at any other festival. I go to festivals for music and to socialise with my friends, where most of my money on-site is spent goes over the bar so beyond how things look visually, I am not really motivated by other things that are going on. Side note as a useful piece of information here as after leaving I found out that as long as you were not bringing in glass, the event were quite happy for you to self supply within reason (and openly bring alcohol with you, none of the smuggling operations which Jack Sparrow would be proud of as many people attending festivals are used to attempting) inside the arena which definitely brings no complaints to anyone.
The festival arena has three tented stages so is not reliant on perfect weather, it has a very relaxed atmosphere that is incredibly chilled out and the way that the space is used makes it feel very homely. It is incredibly welcoming and very organised on every level so is very inviting even before you get to the musical programme. Musically it does run well beyond 11pm which means it is slightly harder if you just want attend for the day and are reliant on public transport (like I was meaning I had to leave before Larkin Poe which was a real shame because I think the Lovell sisters are not just incredible as artists but also one of my favourite live acts in any genre) but festivals with less restrictions and have a good relationship with the local community are obviously a really good thing so more bang for your buck as such is further motivation to want to stay over and camp.
I'm not going to pretend to have vast knowledge of folk music in terms of artists or the industry and I'm not sure the festival this year will have any impact on my playlists but I definitely enjoyed hearing different music, I certainly recommend it for people to experience, I loved the vibe of the event and if there was a greater country and Americana presence on the bill (like in previous years) I would return again in a heartbeat which I hope to do once again in 2025 and then becomes its own staple in our own summer festival diary.
The festival arena has three tented stages so is not reliant on perfect weather, it has a very relaxed atmosphere that is incredibly chilled out and the way that the space is used makes it feel very homely. It is incredibly welcoming and very organised on every level so is very inviting even before you get to the musical programme. Musically it does run well beyond 11pm which means it is slightly harder if you just want attend for the day and are reliant on public transport (like I was meaning I had to leave before Larkin Poe which was a real shame because I think the Lovell sisters are not just incredible as artists but also one of my favourite live acts in any genre) but festivals with less restrictions and have a good relationship with the local community are obviously a really good thing so more bang for your buck as such is further motivation to want to stay over and camp.
I'm not going to pretend to have vast knowledge of folk music in terms of artists or the industry and I'm not sure the festival this year will have any impact on my playlists but I definitely enjoyed hearing different music, I certainly recommend it for people to experience, I loved the vibe of the event and if there was a greater country and Americana presence on the bill (like in previous years) I would return again in a heartbeat which I hope to do once again in 2025 and then becomes its own staple in our own summer festival diary.
Credit Aaron Parsons
The Cambridge Folk Festival will return in 2025 to Cherry Hinton Hall, Cambridge for the fifty-ninth running of the festival and will take place between July 31st and August 3rd. You can find more information about the festival and stay in the loop for news about next year’s event on their WEBSITE whilst you can relive some of this year’s highlights on INSTAGRAM TIKTOK YOUTUBE TWITTER & FACEBOOK.