The 20th annual Black Potatoe Music Festival takes place July 13-17 on the grounds of the Red Mill Museum in Clinton.
The Black Potatoe Music Festival celebrates a big milestone this year, hitting its 20th year of showcasing independent musicians. But nothing out of the ordinary is planned for the event, which takes place July 13-17 on the grounds of the Red Mill Museum in Clinton.
More than 40 pop, rock, folk and blues acts — including familiar festival faces such as Ellis Paul, Sarah Borges, Willy Porter, Gregg Cagno and Kathy Phillips — will perform on two stages over these five days. At least two bands (Nalani and Sarina, and Blue Light Bandits) that presented well-received sets on the small River Stage last year will move to the bigger Quarry Stage.
“We do have a lot of new faces — independent artists who we’ve never had before — as we do every year,” said festival founder Matt “Angus” Williams, who will headline the Saturday night (July 16) show, as he usually does, with his band The Matt Angus Thing. “But we didn’t feel the need to get a bigger name, or somebody we hadn’t had before. That just didn’t seem to be in the spirit of what we do. I really just wanted to get the most talented people that we could find.”
Over the years, Black Potatoe has gotten many well-established — and, in some cases, legendary — musicians to perform, including Levon Helm, Jimmy McGriff, Bernie Worrell, Honeyboy Edwards, Andy Summers of The Police, Kevin Hearn of Barenaked Ladies, John Hammond, Graham Parker and The Smithereens. But most of the slots go to lesser known and, often, Jersey-based performers whom many audience members will be hearing for the first time.
“I think 75 percent of our pre-sales are before we announce the lineup,” says Williams. “Because they know it’s going to be people they haven’t heard of.
“I think we have a pretty decent track record of getting artists before most people are hip to them. People like Sarah Borges and Danielia Cotton — we have them both playing on Thursday, this year — we had them both early on. Grace Potter, we certainly had early. Lake Street Dive, Eryn Shewell, Ollabelle … these are all bands that we had years before other people were picking up on them.
“I always joke about the Grace Potter thing. … Grace Potter, we had in 2006, and in 2010, Rolling Stone made her one of the top new artists of 2010. I was like, ‘Way to get there on time, Rolling Stone!’ ”
NJArts.net will be giving out a pair of tickets for each day of the festival. For information on entering, visit njarts.net/ticket-giveaways.
Here is this year’s schedule. For information, visit blackpotatoe.com. And for a collection of 20 videos by artists performing at the festival this year, click here.
Sarah Borges will perform on the Quarry Stage, July 14 at 9:30 p.m.
JULY 13
QUARRY STAGE
6:30 p.m.: Nalani and Sarina
8 p.m.: Karl Dietel Five
9:30 p.m.: James Maddock
RIVER STAGE
6 p.m.: PD Brody
7:30 p.m.: Chelsea Carlson
9 p.m.: Andy Dunn
JULY 14
QUARRY STAGE
6:30 p.m.: Jenny Cat
8 p.m.: Danielia Cotton
9:30 p.m.: Sarah Borges
RIVER STAGE
6 p.m.: Lara Herscovitch
7:30 p.m.: The Glimpses
9 p.m.: Halley DeVestern Band
JULY 15
QUARRY STAGE
6:30 p.m.: Electric Gumbo
8 p.m.: George Kilby and Sherman Holmes
9:30 p.m.: Chris Bergson Trio
RIVER STAGE
6 p.m.: Tyler Sarfert
7:30 p.m.: Matt Sucich
9 p.m.: Joy Ike
JULY 16
QUARRY STAGE
12:30 p.m.: Scott Wolfson and Other Heroes
2 p.m.: Blue Light Bandits
3:30 p.m.: The Partners
5 p.m.: Shannon Söderlund
6:30 p.m.: Brent and Co.
8 p.m.: Willy Porter
9:30 p.m.: The Matt Angus Thing
RIVER STAGE
Noon: The Collins Brothers Band
1:30 p.m.: Sid Whelan
3 p.m.: Mike Montrey Band
4:30 p.m.: The Caren Kennedy Trio
6 p.m.: Jessy Tomsko
7:30 p.m.: KC Cary
9 p.m.: Evangeline Joy
JULY 17
QUARRY STAGE
12:25 p.m.: Jack Tannehill and Renee Paddock
1:30 p.m.: Sharar Sisters
2:45 p.m.: Kathy Phillips
4 p.m.: Gregg Cagno
5:30 p.m.: Billy Hector Band
7 p.m.: Ellis Paul
RIVER STAGE
Noon: Donna Sparacio
1 p.m.: Cliff Hillis
2:15 p.m.: Jean Rohe
3:30 p.m.: Diana Zinni
5 p.m.: American Beauties
6:30 p.m.: Jann Klose
