John
McCutcheon Encourages Festival Fans to Vax up Before Coming to Winfield
Winfield, KS -- The past year and a half have been
difficult for everyone, but performing artists have been hit particularly hard,
with many of their gigs cancelled in 2020 and early 2021. Now, just when it
appeared that musicians could return to touring and giving concerts, those
plans are threatened by the emergence of new COVID variants, especially in
areas with low vaccination rates.
One performer who has
lent his talent to bring attention to the need for everyone’s support in making
it safe to return to live music events is folk singer and songwriter John
McCutcheon. McCutcheon enjoys a special status at the Walnut Valley Festival,
which is held every September in Winfield, KS, and has played at 38 of the 48
festivals held so far. A strong supporter of Walnut Valley, John decided to get
involved by lending his voice in song, a song encouraging people planning to
attend this year to do their part to create a safe environment for everyone by
getting their vaccinations.
McCutcheon began by writing a song which he titled “Like
We Did.” In the tradition of generations of beloved folk songs, this new
song tells a story that reminds listeners of tough times when everyone worked
together, including the war years of the 1940s and after the attacks on
September 11, in 2001. People unified to defeat a common enemy, and this song
reminds us of that and calls for everyone to work together to defeat a new
common enemy, the COVID virus.
Writing “Like We Did” was just the
beginning of this call-to-action song. John produced a video of his new song to
share on social media, to challenge fans to get their vaccinations prior to
their arrival in Winfield, to help keep all lovers of live music safe and
healthy.
McCutcheon’s then reached out to additional
performers scheduled to be at this year’s Festival. John asked them to record
short vignettes, encouraging festival attendees to help create a safe
environment for the Walnut Valley family of attendees and
performers.
By the time he had completed the project and the
video was ready to release, McCutcheon was able to include numerous well-known
artists such as Tom Chapin, Missy Raines, The Steel Wheels, Bing Futch, Linda
Tilton, Chris Jones, and Beppe Gambetta, along with other well-known performing
artists.
John McCutcheon: “There is a common thread here
about the world as it is currently, when professional musicians have been
waiting over a year to be able to share their music with their fans at live
concerts. And if people want to be able to continue to enjoy these live
performances, we all need to do our part and get vaccinated. Large numbers of
musicians as well as the live music venues will not survive to host the
concerts, workshops and festivals we’ve all enjoyed for years unless we all
take responsibility for doing our part to create a safe environment to once
again enjoy live music in person.”
Music has often been a source of inspiration for
change, a rallying call for people to work together for a common cause; let’s
hope this song becomes yet another example of music history that will be
remembered for helping to bring about a much needed action for the good of
humanity, both young and old.
Below is the Facebook link to the finished video of
John McCutcheon’s new song – “Like We Did.”
https://www.facebook.com/218893178146958/videos/420445439371343
To learn more about John McCutcheon, his
live performance schedule, read lyrics to other songs he has written, see other
videos of his songs or to purchase his recorded music go to -
https://www.folkmusic.com/
For more information about the 49th
Walnut Valley Festival go to –
https://wvfest.com
