By GAIL LOWE
WAKEFIELD—More than 100 musical groups entertained music lovers throughout the town for the first ever Porchfest, held Saturday, Sept. 7 from noon to 6 p.m.
Musical genres included everything from classical to bluegrass, rock ‘n roll, reggae, rap, blues, jazz, pop, folk, country and Latin.
Throughout the afternoon, Porchfest hosts volunteered their lawns and backyards where the musicians performed.
Locations included Main Street, North Avenue, Salem Street, Rochelle Drive, Wave Avenue, Park Street, Crescent Street, Melvin Street, Wakefield Avenue, Summer Street, Chestnut Street, Yale Avenue, Emerson Street, Elm Square, Elm Street, Dell Avenue, Cedar Street, Cottage Street, Catalpa Street, Curtis Street, Pennfield Circle, Coolidge Park, Nelson Avenue, Louise Avenue, Ledgewood Road, Greenwood Avenue, Pine Street, Arundel Street, Morel Circle, Oakledge Road, Woodland Avenue, Strathmore Road, Walnut Street and Bryant Street.
Wakefield resident Ike Adams, one of the event’s organizers, acknowledged and thanked team members who worked on Porchfest to make it a successful event. They are John Natale, Nate Johnson, Lisa Kathryn, Randall Livingstone, Deb Butler and local artist Brandy Bingham, who handled all of the poster arts and logos. Julianne Orsino and Emily Rivera helped lay the groundwork at the beginning of the project.
THE QUIET CEDAR COURT NEIGHBORHOOD came to life with high-energy music played by The Familiar Strangers during Porchfest, held throughout the town on Saturday, Sept. 7. Their song list was an Americana grab bag of everything from western swing to country, bluegrass, folk, blues and even a bit of gypsy jazz. (Gail Lowe Photo)
“This is a team of Superhero Rock Stars,” Adams wrote on Facebook’s Wakefield Community page. “We are thankful for all our Porchfest hosts who really know how to throw parties, the talented musicians who provided six hours of awesome entertainment and all the attendees who came out to show their support of loud music.”
The event was made possible through the support of the Mass Cultural Council and a grant from the Wakefield Arts Council.
Porchfests are free and open to the entire community. For more information about Wakefield’s Porchfest, visit info@wakefieldporchfest.com.
Another Porchfest is scheduled for neighboring community Melrose on Saturday, Sept. 21 with a rain date of Sunday, Sept. 22.
THE SMALL HOUSE band from Brockton participated in Wakefield’s Porchfest, a townwide event held Saturday, Sept. 7. Shown at the mic is lead singer Taylor Mazzali. The band performed from 1 to 4 p.m. outside the Unitarian Universalist Church on Main Street. (Gail Lowe Photo)
TAINTER STREET TWO musicians had their audience singing songs from the past, including “Stuck in the Middle with You,” first sung by the Stealers Wheel rock group. From the left: Tom Langlais, Dan Margarita and Jane Marcus. The band performed at the home of Katie Pimentel, 27 Chestnut St. (Gail Lowe Photo)
REGGAE AND RAP came to Wakefield when The Bosstown Heavy band played at the Public Kitchen restaurant on Main Street during Porchfest, held Saturday, Sept. 7. Jimmy Trapella (Jimmy Treez) is shown at the mic. (Gail Lowe Photo)
