Cambridge Folk Festival 2016
Festival guide
Featuring a staggeringly diverse line-up that ranges from Appalachian bluegrass to Irish reels, gypsy jazz to gothic Americana, there’s something for everyone at this year’s Cambridge Folk Festival. Check out our pick of the acts heading to Cherry Hinton Hall, and head back here during the festival to watch video highlights. For further line-up information head to the official Cambridge Folk Festival website.
Top picks
This Is The Kit
As evidenced in the array of rave reviews their last LP received, Kate Stables’ folk-collective possesses real crossover appeal. Part of this can be attributed to the fact that Bashed Out was produced by The National’s Aaron Dessner - and released through his Brassland imprint - but the truth is that both Stables’ ukulele-flecked songwriting and her crystal clear tones are irresistibly beautiful. Look/listen out for Lost Map-signed folkie Rozi Plain on Sunday too - she’s a regular fixture in Stables’ live band.
Charles Bradley
Charles Bradley’s story is one of perseverance against all odds. Surviving poverty, homelessness, tragedy, chronic illness and severe stage fright, the former James Brown-impersonator found fame at the age of 62 via his solo debut for Daptone Records, No Time For Dreaming, and the film biopic ‘Soul Of America’. Although his solo material since has been largely uplifting, those hardships manifest themselves in both the authenticity of his live performances, and the ragged soulfulness of his deeply-moving voice.
Sam Lee
Boasting a Mercury Prize nod, an Arts Foundation Award, and a clutch of BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards nominations, Sam Lee is one of the most celebrated folk singers in the UK right now. Lee’s interests lie in traditional folk, and he approaches the genre with an almost scholarly fervour by unearthing, rearranging and covering lesser-known songs. Expect this weekend’s live show to be heavy with the highlights of his most recent LP, The Fade In Time, which is reappraises music learned from gypsy travellers.
