USA, 24-26 June 1983 © 2010 Patty, Boston, MA, USA
Patty's Memories:
"I borrowed my Dad's van, got my friend Penny to agree to go, drove into Boston to get her from work (OY - I do think I drove over a curb or 3 - and then we drove west down the Mass Pike till we found our campgrounds in the dark. I do recall waking up the next morning to find that I had almost pulled INTO the lake. Hey, we thought we were big spenders - I think this grand locale cost us $10 a night ... a non-lakeside spot would have been $8. a night.) 

I recall that the Dubliners, Makem and Clancy, Barley Bree were in the festival line up. Someone who played the piano accordion too - Dermot O'Brien?? - but beyond that my memory is too fuzzy. 

I wonder if there was a festival brochure?? I recall one for one of the festivals I went to but now can't recall if it was for this one or not. In the early 80's, Boston was the place to be for great Irish folk music!!! Festivals galore, always someone new to broaden our musical horizons ... we really had the best of Irish traditional and folk music here. Tommy and Liam lived just over the Massachusetts border in New Hampshire, Robbie O'Connell lived here (lol, just down the street from my cousin), Joe Burke (outstanding button accordionist from Galway) was living either in Boston or New York, Paddy Cronin (fiddler) and Andy McGann (fiddler) played down the street from the house. We had the Shaskeen Ceili Band here (they stayed with my accordion teacher, Billy Caples).