Fun, Sun, and Great Music was yet again on the minds of Atlantic Canadians and visitors alike this weekend at the 5th annual Lotto Max Presents Cavendish Beach Music Festival, and they were not disappointed! The festival began in true PEI fashion as fans flocked to the site on foot, bag chairs in hand to start the first day! Despite the extremely hot weather on Friday, it didn’t deter music lovers one bit as the first act of the day took to the main stage!
Mike Robins and Tareya Green, better known as Autumn Hill were the first to grace the main stage. With songs like,“Anything At All” and “Can’t Keep Waiting”, their dynamite harmony vocals had the crowd hooked! Next up was a duo who was not a stranger to the CBMF main stage. Amanda and Tyler Wilkinson, formerly of the Wilkinsons, with father, Steve have banded together to become the duo known now as Small Town Pistols. They had the crowd singing along with new songs like “Living on the outside” and “Color blind”. They also reprised some of their songs with The Wilkinsons with “26 Cents”. They were a definite crowd pleaser and a pleasure to talk with briefly during the meet and greet session after their performance (Pictures on Facebook!) Up next on the main stage that day was Del McCoury Band. Known to this day as the most awarded band in the history, they did not disappoint on-lookers and traditional bluegrass lovers as their sound was as if you were seated at the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville. Their songs varied from love songs to high placed foot stompin’ bluegrass and almost all songs performed were by request from members of the audience! A great add to the show was a tribute to the late Rita MacNeil and Stompin Tom Connors by Tim Chaisson, Leon Gallant and Kelley Mooney. Outlaw country singer/songwriter Shooter Jennings, son of Country music legend, Waylon Jennings was next who was the perfect combination of talent, energy and crowd interaction! Multiple Juno and Canadian Country Music Association award winnerCarolyn Dawn Johnson played the main stage next! She ROCKED her set! With hits like “I don’t want you to go” “The Whole Thing” and “Georgia”, the multi-talented songstress had the crowd singing loud along with her, myself included! She too was an absolute delight to sit down and chat with Friday night before her performance. She was actually someone I wanted to meet since her beginnings, so it was a real treat for me, personally. My interview with Carolyn Dawn Johnson will be posted later this week! To close out the amazing first day was country music superstar, Dwight Yoakam. He sang hit, after hit through his career such as “A Thousand Miles from Nowhere” and “Little Sister”. He also sang some of his new material as well that went over very well with the crowd! This made a perfect end to the first night of the festival.
Day two of the festival kicked off with singer/songwriter Jaida Dreyer. She is known well for her song writing and it shows in her performance as a strong, and raw artist who you will be seeing a lot of in the future if her performance at CBMF was any indication! Tim Hicks was up next on the bill, and he brought with him a ‘Hell Raisin’ Good time” to the people of the festival! His high energy got the crowd going and everyone loved him! Phil Vassar was up next on the bill. He’s known throughout Nashville for his amazing song writing and musicianship. His performance was awesome. When he wasn’t tickling the ivories he was all over the stage and interacting with the very excited crowd! I had the chance to chat with Phil earlier this week, and that interview will be posted later this week! It was an absolute pleasure to also get to meet him at his meet and greet after his performance, as well! The next act that day was one the greatest Female country acts around, and a Canadian to boot! A great surprise to the day was a second performance by the Small Town Pistols who did a nice acoustic set! The incredibleMichelle Wright and her amazing alto vocals astounded the crowd with not only her classics such as “He would be 16”, “Safe in the Arms of Love” and “Nobody’s Girl”, but she also performed music from her new Upcoming album, “Strong” which is to be released Canada wide on July 9th! I too had the pleasure of meeting this incredibly charismatic woman before she performed at the festival. She is a woman who is beautiful both inside and out and she is someone I highly recommend seeing live! The highly anticipated quartet of Karen Fairchild, Kimberly Schlapman, Jimi Westbrook and Philip Sweetotherwise known as Little Big Town were second to last on the bill Saturday night. Their mind shattering harmony blew the audience away, and with hit songs like, “Little White Church”, “Tornado” and “Pontoon”, everyone was dancing and singing the whole set! The last performance of the night came from a man who was highly sought after since the festival’s inception in 2009. That’s right; Kenny Chesney finally made his way to Prince Edward Island. The anticipation showed as well, as the attendance was record breaking that night and rivaled only that of Taylor Swift’s performance in 2010. His genuine love for our “island spirit” only added to his amazing performance. He was quoted on stage as saying, “You love music and you love life, my kinda people!” His presence at the festival was definitely the major piece that brought all together and was a performance not to be forgotten for a very long time and was a perfect end to our island summer night.
Country-Rock group, The Mike Biggar band kicked off the third and final day of the festival. The New Brunswick native got the crowd moving with his wonderful sound and stage presence and was an excellent act to start of the day! Up next was Canadian bluegrass trio, The Abrams Brothers made up of John, James and Elijah Abrams. They had that old traditional bluegrass sound with a real modern take that made for an unforgettable performance, and actually made a huge fan out of me! Up next was Canadian country music heartthrob, Jason Blaine. His range of songs made him a real fan favorite with songs like, “Rock it Country Girl” and “On a night like this” he had the crowd singing loud and hearts pounding for this great singer/song writer. Another singer songwriter and CBMF Three time performer, Deric Ruttan graced the main stage to a packed front area. With his high energy and infectious songs like”Up All Night” and “Sing that song again” he had the crowd in the palm of his hand the whole set! I had the pleasure of getting to sit and chat with Deric about his music, and his inspiration as well as his experiences while in Atlantic Canada. It will be up later this week. I have to say one of my favorite moments of the weekend was getting to talk to fellow Islander and incredible talent, the lovely Trinity Bradshaw. She is a beautiful soul and a real gem to speak with! I had the opportunity to listen to her sing on the Front Porch stage and folks, with her seductive raspy sound with that fun, energetic country music; she is a force to be reckoned with! Check out her single ‘Boy Crazy” on her website http://trinitybradshaw.com. Second to last on the main stage last night was Canadian country super group Emerson Drive. Brad Mates, Dale Wallace, Danick Dupelle, Mike Melancon, and David Pichette had an amazing set of songs like “Let it Roll” and “Fall Into Me” , to name a few, to get the crowd pumped up. From the very first song, to their last, they showed that they are still a group to be reckoned with! The last act to cap off the amazing weekend was none other than the Dixie Chicks! Since the announcement of their coming to PEI, there was nothing but excitement from fans and they surely did not disappoint. They began their set with probably the most wanted song of the set. Yep, you guessed it, “Goodbye Earl!” Not one person was quiet or not shaking their booty to that one! They also played other fan favorites like“Cowboy Take Me Away”, “Landslide”, and “Travelling Soldier”. From the beginning to the very end of their set, everyone was on their feet, clapping and singing along. They left everyone wanting more, even after their two song encore of “Wide Open Spaces” and “Sin Wagon”! I think it’s safe to say that The LottoMax Presents the Cavendish Beach Music Festival had another very successful year and people are already looking forward to 2014!
On a side note, as a first time reporter at this amazing festival with ACR, I have to say this. I was completely blown away by the promoters, the event staff, the artists and their management as well as the vendors and volunteers. This weekend made me feel very proud to not only be from Atlantic Canada, but from the host province of the amazing festival in Prince Edward Island. Readers, I tell you, if you are looking for a great time, with great people and unmistakable talent, you need to take a trip to PEI and head to the Cavendish Beach Music festival. It is arguably the best music festival in North America for a reason and I promise you will not be disappointed.
See you in 2014!!