The Best of AmericanaFest 2021!

Americanafest 2021 looked a bit different than in previous years. The days, and lineup, were reduced. The crowd capacity was capped. A few long-time venues (Station Inn) dropped while others were added (6th and Peabody). But the biggest change were the blue “Health Check” wristbands seen throughout the festival to signify the wearer had shown their vaccination card or recent negative COVID-19 test. While the requirement was too far for some, it made others (aka me) feel more comfortable getting back into a full concert environment. But what didn't change about Americanafest 2021 was the pure focus on music. Where some festivals spend time ensuring a perfect environment for that perfect selfie, Americanafest is all about the tunes. Here are some of the best things we saw at Americanafest 2021.

Best In Show- Christone “Kingfish” Ingram
If your idea of “the blues” is a gnarled old black man in a rocking chair, Christone “Kingfish” Ingram is here to rocket you to the future. The 22 year old guitar wiz played before the most packed set I encountered all weekend, and much younger than is typical for Americanafest. The crowd was warranted. Kingfish and his stellar band put on an electric blues clinic. The guitar solos soared. The songs of bad lovers, bad loving, hard living, and bad luck that typify the blues were present, but invigorated by Kingfish's pure, unashamed joy at taking this old musical form into the next generation.

Best Replacement for the UN- Abigail Washburn and Wu Fei
This is essentially “Best in Show” 1A, but it belongs more fully here. Let's face it. The United Nations is just a bunch of politicians bickering over whatever politicians have to bicker over this week. But Abigail Washburn and Wu Fei have found the true secret to international harmony; music. The genius of Washburn, arguably the best clawhammer banjo player in the world right now, and Fei, a master of the guzheng (which looks kind of like a harp, banjo, and hammered dulcimer had a baby), is that they found commonality in the folk songs of Appalachia and China. People love, and lose love. People feel joy at new life, and grief at its loss. Laborers toil, and the toil is hard. By mashing up these themes, trading back and forth between them like a ping pong match, they show that we aren't a race, an ethnicity, a culture, a religion. And, despite what some politicians would like to tell you, there is no “other.”

Rookie of the Year- Yasmin Williams
It is, as far as I know, guitarist Yasmin Williams' first time to play Americanafest. Hopefully it isn't her last. Joining Kingfish as a “next generation talent” (if you want to feel really old, she decided to play guitar because she beat Rock Band on expert...), Williams is more jazzy than your typical Americanafest artist (if that exists). Her tapping and percussive techniques owe much less to Hank Williams than to jazz guitar god Tuck Andress. If one woman with one guitar and no vocals for an hour sounds dull, let me fix that notion for you. Even if you're not an instrumental nerd, it's impossible not to be mesmerized by how much sound one person and one instrument can make.

Best Low Key Supergroup- Colin Linden
Just an hour after Kingfish packed The Cannery, a smaller crowd (Linden joked that the only people present were friends of his) got to see a secret supergroup perform an hour of electric blues. Linden is an instrumentalist, songwriter, and producer who can be heard on hundreds of albums. Joining him for this show were long-time John Prine bassist Dave Jacques and veteran blues producer (including of the aforementioned Kingfish) Tom Hambridge. Together they put on a flawless show mostly pulled from Colin Linden's new album. But then it doesn't hurt when you end with a song you wrote that was recorded by your “favorite band”, or in this case Band (as in The), “Remedy.”

Best Use of Found Objects- Jack Broadbent
Brit bluesman Jack Broadbent is the second lap picker I saw Americanafest weekend, but his style couldn't be more different than Yasmin Williams. Broadbent is a straight up wailing slide blues guitarist. Over the years, the slide has been made out of everything from glass to metal. I've seen beer bottles used as a gimmick. But Broadbent's use of a hip flask as a slide is genius. It fits perfectly into your hand. It's got a good grip. And it has the right surface area. It only looks funny for a moment, until Broadbent unleashes some serious in your face electric blues.

Best “So Nice I Tried It Twice” Moment- Early James
I did not go into Americanafest planning to see Early James twice. I went into Americanafest having no idea who Early James was. My schedule just happened to line up for him to be at a daytime set with someone I wanted to see (Sierra Ferrell) and a nighttime set with someone I wanted to see (Kingfish). Lucky me. The latest find by The Black Keys' Dan Auerbach signed to his Easy Eye Sound label, Early James combines the folksy wit of Lonesome Roads with the fashion sense of Al Yankovic. Disarmingly funny (and a James Gunn level fashion disaster in orange overalls and a straw hat with a pig bandana on it), James combines Southern gothic folk, blues rock, and old time elements, all familiar to any Americanafest regular, into something completely unique. Auerbach has shown a talent for finding artists who turn throwback elements on their (pig bandana-covered) ears, and James is up to the task.

Best “Making It Up As We Go Along” Artist- Tim Easton
Poor Tim Easton. If it could go wrong during his 45 minute set on night 1 of Americanafest, it did. A series of technical glitches and outright failures had house techs scrambling and Easton without an instrument. It could have been a disaster. It ended up being one of the most fun sets of the weekend. Easton told jokes. He mused on the advantages of acoustic instruments as techs attempted to perform CPR on a dead amp. He threw to his excellent band for some Phish-style jam extensions while he helped sort cables. At one point he ran into the dressing room and borrowed the guitar of the artist playing after him (a gracious David Newbould). Nashville residents have long known that Tim Easton was an entertainer. But anyone can write up a set of audience patter. It's in those “holy shit, what do I do now?” moments that the true entertainers rise. Tim Easton rose (and finally got to finish his set, using a borrowed guitar to sing an ode to John Prine, who was likely laughing into his Heavenly vodka and ginger ale at the spectacle.

Best Alternative to the International Showcases- Andy's Americana Mitzvah
There were many ways Americanafest looked different in this very different kind of year, but the most depressing was the lack of Saturday international showcases that have been a highlight of many an Americanafest. The Canadian showcases are always rock solid. The British delegation throws a cross-pond bash that includes both English and American artists (and gave a first showcase to a “nearly the last name on the bottom” Yola in 2016). And the folks from Sounds Australia confirm whatever stereotypes you may have about how hard the Aussies party. Trust me, they party harder than that. But not this year, another casualty of COVID travel restrictions. Fortunately there was Andy's Americana Mitzvah at the British Underground's usual home, The Groove Records. Veteran artists like Amy LaVere and Will Sexton joined youngsters like The Sweet Lillies for an afternoon showcase highlighted by the Americanafest appearance of Johnny Dowd.

Worst Americanafest Conflict- Thursday
For the most part, my Americanafest fell pretty neatly into place, with the usual mild regrets... except for Thursday. I could have happily made a weekend out of just the acts playing Thursday. In addition to the show we saw, Abigail Washburn and Wu Fei, Allison Russell was playing across town in what is almost certain to be her final Americanafest showcase as she should be playing The Ryman by this time next year, and two of my longtime favorites Whitney Rose and Boo Ray were playing Musician's Corner. It broke my heart to miss any of them, but in the end rarity won the day and you just don't get to see Abby and Wu that often.

Check out this slideshow from Americanafest 2021 and go to our Facebook page for the full sets.