Sunday review

A cooler morning meant a less early rise from the hot tents and then a rush to get organised and into the arena before the acts start. The band news was there had been a spate of thefts in the campsite around us and it made us all feel a bit worried and on guard. The entrance arena toilets were closed after the urinals had leaked or collapsed or something and remained closed most of the morning, before they opened and continued to leak everywhere – not nice. Something I hope WOMAD addresses this in future. After eventually deciding which breakfast to have we headed for the Siam tent.

Wicked Aura Batacuda – Siam tent
Kicking samba rhythms and driving African beats got everyone up and dancing along to this Singapore Samba band. There were loads of them on stage and they had loads of energy and were a totally unexpected delight. A real highlight and their version of ‘Satisfaction’ sure cleared away the hangover.

Modou Diouf and O Fogum – River stage
I’d seen them recently at WOMAD Live8 where they had carried off a lively performance and had everyone dancing, having seen Baracuda I fancied more dancing so headed for the River Stage. As I said previously for some reason this was the hottest part of the site by quite a few degrees, resulting in most people sitting and watching. Even with the dancer on stage shaking her booty as noticeably as humanly possible, it still didn’t get the crowd going and the lack of interaction slowed Diouf down to a more sombre pace. We headed away after only fifteen minutes of so to head for the main stage.

The Idan Raichel Project – open air stage
We were glad of the decision to move passing a huge impromptu drum session outside one of the stalls we settled down under the fluttering flags to listen to some pleasantly uplifting grooves. The music wasn’t as traditional Israeli as I was expecting but had an Eastern flavour and his backing singers looked and sounded gorgeous. Nice music to listen to and those in the crowd that like to sway around to Eastern music were only too happy to join in.

Ilham Al Madfai – village stage
A rock’n’roll band from Iraq? This I had to see. Actually it was far better than I expected. Ilham Al Madfai is a lot older than I expected an unassuming man in a denim beanie with an old acoustic guitar who sat down beside his band to play the most wonderful music to dance to. A heady mix of traditional Arabic rhythms and western flavoured guitar with a kind of jazz sitar like instrument you couldn’t help but tap your toes to it. The crowd liked the Iraqi legend so much he came back for a late encore.

Abdullah Chhadeh and Nara – river stage
Back down to the heat and a sizeable crowd has gathered to watch Abdullah and his 81-stringed zither. Why the extra string I never got a chance to find out. It’s very mellow to listen to and the music rapidly attracts a bigger and bigger crowd and the sun breaks out so I nip into the organic beer tent to discover they have wild hare on tap. Result! Accompanied by a flute player, bass and accordion – presumably the Nara part of the name the tunes are fantastic and he’s very relaxed telling stories to us about the songs and their history in between the tracks.

Farida and the Iraqi Maqam Ensemble – Siam tent
Iraq is well represented at WOMAD this year and Farida is a large lady dressed in blue who I expect to sing like an opera singer but in fact it’s very civilised intricate music. There’s lots of flute and an infectious rhythm and many sections of the audience of all ages are happily dancing along to it. We leave early again noticing that the toilets in this area of WOMAD are also terrible.

Richie Havens – open air stage
I’d been waiting all weekend to see Richie and he certainly didn’t disappoint. He looks not much older than he did when he appeared at Woodstock and opened up with a distinct working of ‘All Along the Watchtower’ and continues with that voice and that guitar sound to mesmerise us. During ‘Summertime’ his pick disintegrates and Richie apologizes saying, “They don’t make them like they used to. Cheap. Cheap.” He then plays ‘Let it Grow’ and suddenly I’m wondering if Richie was made for festivals or festivals for Richie. It’s just about perfect, very laid back but fantastic. ‘Clap your hands’ ends with Richie breaking the spell by leaping a good two feet into the air and performing a high kick. Before returning for an encore of ‘Here comes the Sun’ and singing a moving song unaccompanied. He was truly brilliant and probably the most legendary festival act you can ever hope to see.

We remained in the arena to see the parade pass by and once again I was amazed at the amount of work all the kids had put in over the weekend. It was one of the longest parades I’ve ever seen full of vibrant costumes and floats and many important causes and messages highlighted. The only downside was that their seemed to be fewer musicians amongst the parade and long sections of it were quiet. But it’s a minor point and overall it’s one of my favourite things about WOMAD as it’s so successful and participative and both children and adults enjoy it.

Apache Indian and the Reggae Revolution– open air stage
“Oh no, it’s starting to rain!” Not to worry it’s not heavy and few leave this time around as light rain falls around us and ominous clouds gather to hear Apache and Co. and I’m thinking now this could be really cheesy. It is looking back on it but we all enjoy singing ‘Summer Lovin’, ‘Israelites’ and ‘Boom Shack a Lack’ and have a fantastic boogie about.

Rizwan-Muazzam Qawali Group – village stage
Wow, now I wasn’t expecting anything like this, I’ve never really heard of Qawali and knew nothing of Nusrat Fatch Ali Khan and his musical legacy now being continued by his two nephews after his death. Ten or so men sat before us on the stage and sung and played the most amazing sound. With harmoniums and drums and chanting of extraordinary depth it approaches devotional prayer and desperate plea in equal measure. I can’t describe it. It was striking and different and yet touching and spiritual.

All-Star Gala Finale – open air stage
For the first time I can remember there was a gala on the main stage rather than one of the smaller stages and I felt it worked well overall. The first bit was acoustic and perhaps a little too quiet for the last act. But soon the Terem Quartet brought us something to kind of hum along to a very warped version of ‘Summertime’ playing the hugest guitar I’ve ever seen. Then my favourite singer at the moment Geoffrey Oryema and his distinctive white braids got the crowd participating with chanting during ‘Winds are Blowing’

Dohl Foundation – village stage
Not on the programme but Johnny Kalsi had been announcing the acts on the village stage and said he’d be on at 10pm and sure enough he was. Whipping the crowd into a frenzy of dance. The front was going crazy, beyond the crowd a woman is dancing wildly with a huge flag and though the set was short it worked everyone into a sweat. A fantastic surprise but far too short at only half an hour.

All-Star Gala Finale – open air stage I return to the main stage just in time to catch Richie Havens leaving! Before I know it the stage is spilling over with acts. There’s Modou Diouf and O Fogum, the Terems, Reggae Revolution, The Rizwan-Muazzam Qawali Group and Wicked Aura Baracuda on stage all having a bit of a jam and they play out to Bob Marley’s ‘One Love’ and it’s terrific.

As the open air stage arena clears we consider heading off to see other acts, but even Geoffrey Oryema can’t get us to move. We’re partied out so we head back to the tent shortly before the rains come. They continue all night.

The next day we have to pack up, we do so slowly after having bought breakfast in the arena. The area before the open air stage is littered with puddles of water and it’s muddy underfoot. We wait for the sun to dry the tent before we pack and it’s lucky we do. A steward later tells us on the way out that there was a crash on the M4 which brought Reading to a halt. It still takes us an hour to get offsite but at least we get free water.

Overall a fantastic long weekend and a great and diverse programme of music, stewarding was great (especially those dancing on the towers) and the traders and food stalls diverse. The food was a little too expensive compared to other festivals this year with a main course costing £7. Kids’ drinks were £2 unless you hunted out cheap cans. Beer prices were sensible however there wasn’t enough of it. The policing was sensible and not too intrusive although I witnessed many arrests.

On the downside the toilets were terrible the worst I’ve seen this year with the exception of the Isle of Wight. There was no warning that cars and tents would be segregated so much this year and so we were unprepared for transferring so much stuff so far.

Lastly the security outside the arena in the campsite was non-existent. We constantly came across people in the campsite area without bands and thieving from the tents was rife. It’s never nice to wake up to find a stranger in your tent, or worst still come home to the family to find a stranger leaving your tent. There were no checks on tickets, or early entry passes on our way in, nor were there any checks on those entering the camping areas from Reading. Hopefully the organisers have taken note and will improve security for next year.

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