Adam Ezra

In Episode 52 of The High Note, I talk with Adam Ezra of the Adam Ezra Group ahead of the band's return to the Philadelphia Folk Festival, where they close out Friday night, Aug. 14, at the 63rd annual festival at the Old Pool Farm in Upper Salford Township, Pennsylvania. Adam looks back on the band's unforgettable 2024 Thursday night debut – including getting called up from the crowd during Miss Emily's set – and shares the story behind "Revelate," the band's new album recorded live in Austin, Texas, with producer Gordy Quist of The Band of Heathens, and the first the band has ever pressed to vinyl. We talk about the Traveling Village, why the band never uses a setlist, the Live Sound Project that puts same-night recordings in fans' hands at the merch table, and the pay-what-you-can philosophy behind it all. Adam also digs into RallySound, the band's nonprofit empowering community through music and activism, and The Ramble, the all-volunteer festival fighting veteran homelessness in New England, returning for its 17th year Saturday, Aug. 29, in Massachusetts. Plus: balancing van-tour life with fatherhood, a first album from Weird Al Yankovic, a first concert with The Monkees, a rite-of-passage Allman Brothers show and a "Firefly" deep cut for his favorite score. Read my review of the Adam Ezra Group at the 61st Philadelphia Folk Festival. Subscribe to The High Note podcast anywhere you subscribe to podcasts including Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, Stitcher, TuneIn and Google Podcasts. Follow @HighNoteBlog anywhere you go on social media including TikTok, X, Instagram, Pinterest and Facebook. Subscribe to The High Note E-Zine. Paul "Dawg" Dixon wrote, composed and recorded the intro and outro music. The voices you hear at the end are Graeme Armstrong, Steve Poltz and Keller Williams.