Newport Folk Fest: Day 1

It’s hard to define exactly what folk music is.  But Liz Longley started the 2010 Newport Folk Festival off in the right direction today: alone on stage with cowboy boots and her guitar.  Channeling Joni Mitchell, the recent Berklee graduate serenaded her crowd at the festival’s newest venue, The Quad, located inside the stone walls of Fort Adams.  Longley shared new personal songs of heart break (“they’re kinda relevant right now,” she said) and covered folk classics like Joni Mitchell’s “River,” and Van Morrison’s “Moondance.” But even Longley, proved folk is hard to define ending the set with her tongue in cheek original rap song, “Dough for dough” – a tribute to Girl Scout cookies.  Stay tuned for a WERS exclusive interview with Longley later today.