Fred Eaglesmith at 2001 Ottawa Folk Festival

Fred Eaglesmith

At the Ottawa Folk Festival, August 25, 2001

Fred Eaglesmith performed the final concert on Friday, August 24 at the Ottawa Folk Festival, following Cape Breton fiddler Ashley MacIsaac. Although many in the audience left after MacIsaac's show, a sizeable number remained. Many of those who stayed were obviously hard-core Fredheads in a city with a large Fred following -- his concerts here normally sell out in advance.

Fred performed a good mix of old and new stuff. I had not seen him live since May 2000, shortly after he formed his new band in the wake of Ralph Schipper's departure. The new band has gelled very well. It was a much different sound from that when I first discovered Fred in 1997, but I like the more rock oriented sound a lot, especially with the pedal steel of Roger Marin. This was one of Washboard Hank's last performances with the band before his apparent departure.

I did not take any pictures of Fred's main stage concert due to the difficulties of photographing at night, especially from far back in the audience. The following are pictures from Fred's acoustic-based performances in the workshops on Saturday. More pictures will be posted when time permits, and if there is sufficient interest. The pictures below were taken with an old fashioned analog camera instead of my usual digital.

Fred performed in several workshops Saturday: This one was dedicated to artists who have performed at the Black Sheep Inn, in Wakefield Québec, just outside Ottawa. The workshop was hosted by Paul Symes, who runs the Black Sheep, and his given exposure in the Ottawa area to many great musicians of a wide variety of styles from world to folk to jazz, blues and country.

Other performers in this workshop were Darlene, Susan Werner and Jim Bryson.

In the workshops, Fred played acoustic guitar, and was unaccompanied by other band members.

His other workshop was titled Have Song, Will Travel, and was hosted by Jim Bryson, and also included Kendall Sullivan and Stephen Fearing. Fearing is a member of Blackie and the Rodeo Kings, a tribute band to Fred's mandolin player Willie P. Bennett. Fearing is also a great singer songwriter in his own right.

Fred sings in The Black Sheep Inn workshop. To his left is Darlene, described as a "gypsy troubadour" whose music reflects her travels and many cultures.

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