For years, Ithaca Festival has hosted some of the greatest live music and performance in the region - and this year is no different ~ oh, wait, yes it is! We are offering more!
This year, in an effort to decongest The Commons and provide a legitimate concert environment at our event, I-Fest is bringing in a Main Stage to host an incredible Sunset Concert Series from 3pm - 9pm on Friday and Saturday and Sunday at Stewart Park!
I-Fest is happy to announce that we are reuniting Ithaca with another hugely popular band with strong roots in town! Enjoy an evening of dancing and swaying with Orleans on Sunday June 22 as headliners to the Sunset Concert Series at Stewart Park on Cayuga Lake.
If you were in town before '72, you probably got turned onto their music during pre-Orleans days, however. The band actually got its start in Ithaca and played a lot of shows in I-Town as a group called Buffalongo, regularly playing weekend gigs at the Salty Dog in the early 70s.
Officially, formed in Woodstock, NY in 1972 by John Hall, brothers Lance and Larry Hoppen and the late Wells Kelly, the band's name was inspired by the legendary city of New Orleans. As Orleans went about perfecting its recipe of eclectic material, including R&B seasoned with Cajun and second-line roots, Alan Toussaint, Neville Brothers and Meters tunes were among the mix. The quartet's music evolved and refined in a more mainstream direction as they developed their unique pop/rock sound, which led Rolling Stone magazine to christen them "the best unrecorded band in the country."
From their earliest days as a favorite at colleges and clubs in the area … to studio and live collaborations with industry greats Bonnie Raitt, Jackson Browne, Little Feat and others … to Top 10 success with bona-fide classics … to now celebrating their 35th year of creating musical history together, Orleans has continually demonstrated “depth”.
Orleans has been performing live nearly every year since 1972, ALWAYS with at least half the original members. They do it the old-fashioned way – they sing and play their own stuff. Their oldest fans are bewildered and amazed at the fact that they still sound as good as - or even better - than ever … especially their vocals! Younger fans are simply impressed. Everyone agrees - these guys “still have it”.
Enjoy an evening with Orleans at I-Fest and kick back, old school! Warm up with these vids...
