By Isabella Hill | Nurture the Creative Mind

Music is a universal language, one’s guitar solo can strike another’s emotions the way that another’s words can’t.

On Aug. 21-23, the Roots and Blues Festival came alive in the wilderness of North Fork.

Hosted by non-profit organization Ogden Friends of Acoustic Music (OFOAM), The Roots and Blues Festival featured musicians like Mad Max and the Wild Ones and Fruteland Jackson.  

Vendors lined along the outskirts of the stage, including Roosters, Grounds for Coffee as well as independent merchants selling homemade jewelry and booth full for the musicians’ merchandise.  Cold drinks and delicious food made the experience all the more enjoyable. Popular items among the event turned out to be the humongous yeti burger and to-die-for sweet potato fries from Rolling Mountain Bistro. 

To the left of the stage children could enjoy face paintings, arts and crafts, games and a drum bus. The drum bus gave children, and even adults, a chance to explore their rhythm with help from the owner Nels Anderson. 

Performers ranged from 13-year-old rockabilly singer Duke Maxwell to 96-year-old jazz saxophone player Joe McQueen. Although different musicians have different styles and come from different walks of life, they all share one goal: to keep the music alive and growing. 

“Festivals like this are important because they keep music alive, they keep blues alive,” said Jackson, an acoustic blues musician.

The music couldn’t feel more alive. When performers would sing, everyone would begin to twirl, jump and stomp along to the music. The music united a community for a weekend of dancing, singing and amazing performances.  

“We have performed in 30 different countries, some that don’t speak English, but we can tell that they still understand our music,” Breezy Peyton, the washboard player from Reverend Peyton’s Big Damn Band said. 

The weekend event proved to be a relaxing and entertaining experience.