Eureka Springs Ozark Folk Festival Starts Nov. 6

The 61st annual Ozark Folk Festival will be held in Eureka Springs from Nov. 6 through Nov. 9 and will feature Patty Larkin, Melanie Safka, Still on the Hill and others in shows in the City Auditorium, Basin Park and other venues.

The festival begins with a free show at 7 p.m. Thursday featuring Noah Earle and 3 Penny Acre, along with a folk festival queens contest.

The 7 p.m. Friday auditorium show will present singer-songwriter Larkin, plus opening act Vagabond Van, featuring Greg Klyma and Tom Bianchi. Tickets are $ 20.

At 1 p.m. Saturday, there will be a free concert in the auditorium by Still on the Hill, a Northwest Arkansas group that does Ozark-style music.

The annual parade will start at 2 p. m., after the show by Still on the Hill.

At 3 p.m. Saturday, an auditorium show will open with Fran Snyder, followed from 4 to 6 p.m. by Songwriters in the Round, with Natalie Zukerman, Danielle Miraglia, Raina Rose and Maia Archote. Tickets are $ 17.

At 7: 30 p.m. Saturday, 3 Penny Acre will open an auditorium show, followed by another “Songwriters in the Round” which will feature Bianchi, Jonathan Byrd, John Elliott, Klyma, Miraglia and Rose.

Safka — who was known only by her first name, Melanie, when she was one of the few “folkies” at the Woodstock festival in 1969 — will perform at the festival’s closing show, at 2 p.m. Sunday in the auditorium. Tickets are $ 25.

Melanie’s hits in the early 1970 s included “Lay Down (Candles in the Rain ),” “ Peace Will Come (According to Plan ) ” and “Brand New Key.” For more information, call (888 ) 855-7823 or see the Web sites www. theaud. org or www. ozarkfolkfestival. com.

The festival, which calls itself “the longest, continually running folk festival in the United States,” was honored on Wednesday by being named one of two Arkansas festivals (the other was the Magnolia Blossom Festival and World Championship Steak Cook-off ) to make the list of “Top 100 Events in North America for 2009,” as selected by U. S. and Canadian state and provincial tourism offices and convention and visitors bureaus, with judges considering “the events’ broad appeal, their accessibility to motorcoaches and skill at handling large groups, and a variety of other criteria.”

Information courtesy of Arkansas Democrat Gazette