Photo Credit: Dean Budnick

This weekend, Newport Folk Festival returned for its annual musical weekend event. Saturday saw a surprise appearance by Paul Simon during Nathaniel Rateliff & The Night Sweats’ “American Tune Review,” a tribute to the rock luminary. The sit-in occurred at the end of the set, which initially began with Lucius joining the group to cover “Mother and Child Reunion.” 

Following the opener, Rateliff and his band took on three numbers, including “Kodachrome,” “Me and Julio Down By the School Yard,” and “50 Ways to Leave Your Lover,” which also saw accompaniment by Lee Fields and Lucius. “St. Judy’s Comet” arrived next, with assistance from Midlake. Then, Natalie Merchant stepped out alongside Adia Victoria and The Silk Road Ensemble on “El Condor Pasa” before Lukas Nelson helped out on “Homeward Bound.”

The tribute set continued with Marcus Mumford and Merchant adding their talents to “Cecilia” before Courtney Marie Andrews assisted with “Slip Slidin’ Away.” Next up, Simon surprised the audience by taking the stage and sitting in with Rateliff & The Night Sweats on “Graceland,” “American Tune” with Rhiannon Giddens, and then a massive group sing-along on “The Boxer.” Finally, the set ended with a solo acoustic take on “The Sound of Silence.” 

Friday’s festivities saw hot on-stage collaborations between Courtney Barnett and Dinosaur Jr. Additionally, Anaïs Mitchell, Cassandra Jenkins, Adia Victoria and Hannah Georgas joined The National during their set. 

Early in the day on Sunday, Sylvan Esso surprised fans with a performance of their entire new album, No Rules Sandy, which was also announced today, marking the official launch of the next chapter for Amelia Meath and Nick Sanborn. Meath offered, “[it] feels like who we actually are. It just feels like us. We’re not trying to fit into the mold, just happily being our freak selves.”

Many more surprises and sit-ins were expected to follow as the day unfolded.

Nathaniel Rateliff & The Night Sweats

Newport Folk Festival – Newport, R.I.

July 23, 2022
Set: Mother and Child Reunion (Nathaniel Rateliff & The Night Sweats, Lucius), Kodachrome (Nathaniel Rateliff & The Night Sweats),  Me and Julio Down by The Schoolyard (Nathaniel Rateliff & The Night Sweats), 50 Ways to Leave Your Lover (Nathaniel Rateliff & The Night Sweats, Lee Fields, Lucius), Slip Slidin’ Away (Courtney Marie Andrews, St Judy’s Comet (Midlake) El Condor Pass (Natalie Merchant, Adia Victoria and Silk Road Ensemble), Homeward Bound (Lukas Nelson, Nathaniel Rateliff), Cecilia (Nathaniel Rateliff & The Night Sweats, Marcus Mumford), You Can Call Me Al (Nathaniel Rateliff & The Night Sweats, Lucius), Graceland (Paul Simon, Nathaniel Rateliff & The Night Sweats, Jerry Douglas), American Tune (Paul Simon, Rhiannon Giddens), The Boxer Paul Simon (Nathaniel Rateliff & The Night Sweats, Jerry Douglas, CJ Camerieri)