I’m especially looking forward to these seven favourite performers on the eve of the Edmonton Folk Festival 2018.  Of course, a big part of the fun is discovering “new to me” musicians, so who knows who those will be.  But I’d buy tickets to see any single one of the performers below, so seeing all seven in one venue will be very exciting.

1) The Decemberists have been performing for over 15 years, and now have 8 albums to their credit.  Many of theirs songs tell stories set in an American historical context.  This is from their performance on Austin City Limits.

2) Regina Spektor‘s ballad, Samson, from her 2006 album, Begin to Hope, remains a favourite, although she’s recorded many great songs since.

3) I’m looking forward to seeing slide guitarist extraordinaire Ry Cooder, who has been around since the early 1970s.

4) This session with Lord Huron made my year end list in 2015.

5) And this video featuring Nick Mulvey was my number 2 selection last year,

6) Molly Tuttle was also on my 2015 list and demonstrated her virtuosity on the guitar in this session.

7) Both Anna and I have been following the Milk Carton Kids closely since their appearance at EFMF in 2013.  This session was number 2 on my 2015 list, and was recorded in Toronto.  This time around the duo will headline on the main stage.