From Chris Traugott:

Drove down to CT on Sunday and finally got to meet Tootles and Rob. Also met Jared and friends, unfortunately Zard and I were out of pins by that point, so if anyone has extras, please post!

yEP put on a great show, including a very fun version of "Electric Avenue" with a bass solo (big happy grin on my face, believe me!) that sent Zard, Colleen and me scurrying down the hill to get closer to the stage.

All the bands were having problems with the sound system, I don't know the technical reasons why, but there seemed to be a lot of feedback and buzzing sounds coming from the speakers. Trevor did a yeoman's job in getting fruvous set up, and when the band came on the fruheads came out of the woodwork and were front and center ready to dance. A few broken guitar strings, a microphone that wouldn't work, and a shoulder strap that came disconnected from the bass in the middle of Medicine Show caused a few moments of difficulty on stage, but as usual the guys took it in stride with hardly a break in the music. What amazed me the most was when Dave broke the third string on his guitar during Fly, right at the point when he is picking out the melody on the top three strings. Almost without missing a beat he re-tuned the second string, adjusted his finger placement on the guitar neck, and continued playing the melody with only two strings. Same thing with Murray's bass problems, he got the strap re-attached almost before I knew it had come off and picked up the vocals in exactly the right place. I wish my brother had been there to see that!

Anyway, despite the technical problems, the Woodbury show was fun. It was a nice sunny day, neat crowd of fruheads (including Susan from the Bottom Line and apparently most of the office, whose names I have forgotten, sorry!) and good music. I'm looking forward to a bunch more folk festivals this summer. And Clinton in two weeks, hope to see some of you there!

From Colleen Campbell:

Up until god only knows what hour that night, as Chris said in another thread, discussing philosophy, literature, religion, etc, far too keyed up to sleep, and with my cousin Christy driving down from New Hampshire later that morning, having only a couple of weeks before been introduced to Frumusic. We drove in shifts down to Woodbury CT (amazing how many accidental scenic detours you can make when you have no idea where you're going!) with plenty of time to spare before yeP! went on. And the difference between the show at MIT and the one at Woodbury was astounding. Both were unique experiences for me, but in totally different ways. Woodbury was the first folk fest I'd ever attended, if that's what it should be called--several bands playing on two stages, skateboarding, all the typical jewelry and blankets and Deadhead paraphernalia and such being sold, and neo-hippies perched all the way up a very steep hillside for the music. Oh, and ludicrously overpriced drinks. :) The weather was absolutely perfect (very sunny, as can be attested by the current glow of my face), the atmosphere was congenial and relaxed, the skateboarders were lacerating their knees. . .wait. Concert info. Sorry.

I don't have a set list, explained simply enough by the fact that Jason didn't have time to tape the show for me before I winged it back home at Godawful Early O'Clock this morning. I do remember vaguely, tho, and in no particular order: Authors, River valley, I love my boss, Johnny saucep'n, Horseshoes, Get in the car, Incredible medicine show, Sahara, Fly, King of Spain/GE&H, Michigan militia, YWGTTM, Your new boyfriend, Love potion #9 (with all new song-tidbits toward the end, but the only one I remember is Jewel), and the Billie Jean medley. Pardon me if I missed something. I also can't provide a set list for the yeP! show, explained simply enough by the facts that Jason didn't have time to tape the show for me and I wouldn't have known the names of the songs anyway. I knew "Northbound girl" and "Stealth," and they wedged "Electric avenue" somewhere in there, and it was great, and we danced like maniacs--okay, *I* danced like a maniac, with Zard and cousin Christy keeping me company--but you'll have to poke John Greene, someone else from the band, or Rob, if you want specifics. There were constant references from both bands to each other; I personally would have liked to hear yeP!'s version of King of Spain, but hey, ya can't have everything.

I haven't seen Fruvous outside since Edinburgh in '94, and that was in a tent, sitting down, a mini-set. This was fabulous. Dancing barefoot, in hay, with all the room I wanted. . .! We hand-jived, we square danced, we did a can-can chorus line even! It was a small crowd in front of the stage (I wouldn't care to estimate) but extremely energetic and responsive to the music. Fruvous was a little tired from the night before (Jian actually stood in the same place for more than 3 seconds at a time), but the music and banter didn't suffer at all and, as Trevor promised us beforehand, it was a good loud show.

If the MIT show was a nexus of net-Fruheads with whom I was largely familiar, the Woodbury show was a chance to meet lots of new people or people I'd only seen once before. Jared Irish and a carload of his friends (thanks for the hand jive, guys!), all the yeP! guys (yah yah, I owe you the rest of a massage, Matt), Caiti's best friend Christa (you remember, Tootles, the two identically-dressed redheads dancing together in Providence?), Tootles himself, Rob, and again, many others I don't remember due to the brain being sunny-side-up. Fruvous was out and about for several hours, just enjoying the music and the day (well, I assume they enjoyed it; I'm not aware of any masochistic tendencies), signing albums and t- shirts (woo! including mine!), and Trevor and Marcus were commingling as well. Got that folk festival coctail party vibe goin'. . . Also weird to have lots of people I don't know at all coming up and asking if I'm "the one from Florida." What, do I have a neon sign above my head or is the blonde beach bunny look a dead giveaway?

Okay. I think I've run out of steam on this thing. If I'm very lucky and say my prayers ever night--er, or something--I'll see the guys one more time, June 10th, in Atlanta. (Or hell, if they decide to play Nashville the day before, twice more.) Howbout you all join me there, instead of me flying up, this time, eh? (Join us for the sequel to ceecee's "eep!" experience, where Fruvous publicly notes that she's utterly psychotic and should seek professional help. . .) So thanks again to Fruvous and to all those who joined me this weekend and made it, quite possibly, the best of my entire life.

Some other tidbits from the performance include:

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