The Marshfield Fair’s Green Harbor Roots & Blues Festival has been around for so long now that its organizer, John Hall, has it down to a science. The bands Hard Case, The Rampage Trio, Soul Box, Fat Cit Band, Gas House Gorillas, and Roomful Of Blues each got to the stage at or about their planned times, and the entire event ran without any major glitches. And that is a good thing because when you have bands this good, you want to enjoy their music, immediately, one band right after the other.
Hard Case opened the event with their own rendition of Bob Dylan’s “All Along The Watchtower” before they eventually got into a feisty guitar workout on The Doors’ “Roadhouse Blues.” Then the trio really came alive playing “Rock Me, Baby,” with more chunk in the bass, more grit in the guitar and more boom from the drum set. The Hard Case performance of “Pretty Woman” by Roy Orbison had lush fulsome harmony vocals over the driving oldies styles rock and roll music and their take on “Folsom Prison Blues” by Johnny Cash had a rockabilly beat and twang that worked. Hard Case is certainly one of the better festival openers in recent memory. The trio played several kinds of rock and roll, and they played them well. They closed their set with a cover of Dion’s “Runaway,” with guitar filling in for the original keyboards, and they still made it feel like the classic.
The Rampage Trio, a long time staple at Marshfield Fair’s blues festivals and area blues venues, were the side stage band. Lead by Brian Owens, The Rampage Trio were a blast to listen to as they kept the music and the party going through out the day. The trio does its own take on classic songs and make them rock when you least expect it. Ray Charles’ “Unchain My Heart” was played down tempo but that didn’t stop Owens from playing a smoldering guitar phrase, and it didn’t stop his rhythm section from playing deep, meaningful grooves. The trio’s mellow reggae groove on “Stir It Up” made you feel it. Their take on The Band classic “The Weight” captured the roots rock authenticity, and you could tell the band knew what the song was all about as they conjured the right spirit. Drummer Kevin Crowley plays a mean harmonica without missing a beat. “Cold Shot” found The Rampage Trio playing with even more power in the groove and snap in the guitar. Some seriously good blues phrasing was the icing on a likable groove for the trio’s “Sweet Thing,” which is on their Turn It Up album. And this was only The Rampage Trio’s first set. Their others only got better as the day went on. “Moondance” featured some of the day’s best drumming, with Crowley holding up the song’s big sound and keeping it tasteful. Brian Owens’ voice has matured and seasoned over the years, culminating in a sweet, smooth croon that allowed him to caress each word with a voice that gently kissed the lyrics. The 1970s Boz Scaggs hit “Lido Shuffle” was another great vocal job by Owens over a rumbling bass run from Jim Ramsey. The Rampage Trio featured another original song, one inspired by Owens daughter titled “Skinny Bone Legs,” that had a nice driving groove, loping bass line, and twitchy guitar lines.
Soul Box soon drew everyone’s attention back to the main stage, strolling right in with a purposeful stride. Zesty guitar licks, layers of barroom piano and smoky organ, hefty rhythms and a singer, George Howard, who sounded very raw, raspy, and powerful, made this band a stomping, authoritative 
funk experience. Opening their set with “Hootchie Cootchie Man,” Soul Box left no doubt about their credentials. Keyboardist Matt Smith, with his swirls of organ chords, helped make the crowd feel the bulbous steady groove that Soul Box conjured in each song. Guitarist Greg Miller offered plenty of blues-drenched licks that spiraled into heavenly dimensions. And that was just their first song. “Hold On” by Alabama Shakes found vocalist Howard full of ebullient soul in his earthy belt as the players created a fulsome, wide swath of real music around him. Capitalizing on their ability to start a song with hefty momentum, Soul Box next sailed into “Could You Be Love.” The funk grooves, riffs, and organ boogie were kicking like a mule. Soul Box have tremendous power when they slip into their ensemble grooves. It’s just as impressive as their moments to shine individually with flashy solos. “One Way Out” was chockfull of fine moments and “Sneakin’ Sally Through The Alley” found them knotting the grooves until they were thick with twists and turns solid enough to build a big house on top of. Wrapping up their set with “You Can Leave Your Hat On” allowed Howard to show true richness in his voice and Miller showed true soul in his spiraling guitar notes.
Fat City Band was next up on the main stage, starting their set with a kicking “I Told You So,” nailing it with soulful abandon and raw energy. Yet, their Mardi Gras flavored blues that came into fruition on their second number “Where Did All My Money Go?” The tune jumped and swung with thick dollops of bass guitar, bass organ, and a Big Easy flavored horn section. “Good, She’s As Good As Gone” began with a bang of rhythmic oomph from the bass and drums and the three piece horn section they had for that day. One of the sax players, Zac Zinger, was flown in from New York City for the gig and the trumpet player, Yaure Muniz, was flown in from Havana, Cuba. The two horn guests fit right in with Fat City‘s regular guy, saxophonist Tucker Antell. “She Rocks,” from the new Fat City Band CD/DVD, was a rocking original take on Chicago blues. Singer Paul Redmond injected his vocals into the open spaces with hip surefootedness as the band jumped, swung, and sizzled behind him. “Ode To Beer” was a fun party number that they wrote in honor of America’s favorite beverage. Lead guitarist Mark Andersen created an inviting intro to “I’m Losing You” as the rest of the band exploded with energy, eruptions of organ, hammering grooves, and melodic lines from the guitar and horn section. “Done Deal” was a kicking piece of horn-fueled jumping blues and Redmond was at his strongest belty strength of the day. Man, watching Redmond do his thing made it hard to believe he’s a senior citizen with grandchildren. “I Got It Bad” and “Take It Or Leave It” showed why Fat City Band have been around for 39 years. Wiry guitar, chunky grooves, and a blaring horn section made an indelible impression on each song.
After another stirring set by The Rampage Trio, New York City’s Gas House Gorillas took to the stage and blew everyone away with their marriage of rockabilly and punk rock aggression. It’s hard to know where to begin and end praising these boys. They played and moved around the stage, and in and around the audience so swiftly, dropping nuggets of talent as they went along, that it was actually hard for a music reviewer to keep up with them. Just after one impressive flash or flourish, they were sending out another zinger. Their particular brand of wildly loose musicianship and frenetic pace was driven by its upright bass player Crusher Carmean who kept things planted in a roots genre while kicking it like a mad man. Everything around him was edgy, riffy guitar and blaring saxophone in particular, especially on “Swing That Thing.” These guys are like musical scholar who are also good in a street fight. They know their stuff but they never let it get too serious but rather keep the action going nonstop. “Memories Of You” found lead vocalist Rick Fink crooning in old fashioned vocal style reminiscent of 1950s jukeboxes. His voice, during this ballady number, showed itself to be full of range, power, colors, and tone, something not as evident during the clipped pace of their up tempo numbers. “Rumor In The House Of Love” was pure rockabilly fun played with a tight oldies style ensemble work. “King Kong” pulled even more people onto the dance floor(grassy field) with its jungle rhythms before their rendition of Cheap Trick’s “I Want You To Want Me” was beautifully complimented by slapping bass technique to keep it rockabilly-ized.
Roomful Of Blues were the headliners, and they held up pretty well considering it was starting to rain and they just got back from playing with James Cotton in Canada the night before. Phil Pemberton continues to be the best vocal match in years to the ever evolving Roomful sound. There is something in that Pemberton timbre, soft and smooth, that fit like a glove the blues drenched guitar from Chris Vachon, the jump piano and smoky organ, and that three piece horn section. “All Right, OK, You Win” found him making the most of that silver throatiness. Rich Lataille, after 40 plus years, still blows intricate sax lines that make you want to cry because they’re so pretty and so full of feeling. Upright bassist Big John Turner still keeps the pulse with deep feeling and perfect timing, even in the rain. “I’d Rather Be Blind” by Freddie King gave trumpeter Doug Woolverton a chance to let loose a blasting melody that was probably responsible for scaring away the rain with its range and resonance. Throughout the Roomful set, guitarist Vachon unleashed several earthy, soulful phrases that were full of informed blues education. A guy just can’t play that way unless he’s been around the block and back a few times. Brittle but meaningful, his guitar lines, some short, some sustained, showed an evenness and easefulness of tone even when he had sparks of furious notes flying all over a number. Keyboardist Rusty Scott proved to be a particularly sound replacement to that other young fellow who recently left the band to have a baby. Scott, with his extensive background and training in jazz, was a master of all the styles utilized by Roomful and he held his own against the talent of caliber assembled. The ensemble strength of Roomful stood out the most. The entire eight piece soared whenever their combined sounds flew out of the speakers with a majestic lift, like an eagle that can suddenly swoop upward, smoothly, like a magic carpet. It was another fine performance from the inexhaustible Roomful and the boys were called back out for two encores.
The festival organizer, John Hall of Rhythm Room Records in Marshfield, has much to be proud of. Hall brought in six outstand bands, kept them all on schedule, and he had a professional sound system in place.
The other treat was host Bill Bailey, owner of Marshfield’s The Bailey Pub, home to one of the finest blues jams in New England. Anybody who missed yesterday’s Green Harbor Roots & Blues Festival at Marshfield Fair can go back this coming weekend, Saturday August 24 and Sunday August 25 for the North River Blues Festival at Marshfield Fair. The magic continues.