Reggae fest at Nelson Ledges

This is the first year at Nelson Ledges for the festival, now in its 16th year.

By JOHN BENSON

VINDICATOR CORRESPONDENT

The Mid West Reggae Fest is on the move.

After 15 years at the Meadowridge Farm in Huntsburg, the annual reggae event, which is one of the premier reggae festivals in the country, is setting up camp at Nelson Ledges Quarry Park. That’s not the only change as the Mid West Reggae Fest expands from a one-day affair to a three-day celebration, taking place Friday through Sunday at the popular Nelson camping site.

“It’s been growing a little bit every year for the last 16 years, and I think this year is going to see a big-time growth,” said Mid West Reggae Fest Producer Patrick “Packy” Malley, who is also co-owner of Malley’s Chocolates. “It’s a fantastic venue. They have a great stage and sound system, and a fantastic swimming quarry, a great beach, a great place to watch the bands and really great vendors. Plus, they have fantastic camping out there. It’s all kind of built in right there.”

Malley said all of the aforementioned amenities justified increasing the festival into a three-day event.

“I think demand makes it relevant because I lose out on a lot of out-of-town people who like to go to festivals and camp for the weekend,” Malley said. “The previous spot I had it at, the festival ended and everybody had to clear out of there by 9 p.m. So people can be here for one, two or all three days, and kind of really soak it all in.”

What they’ll be soaking in is a cornucopia of national and regional reggae acts, such as headliners Ken “Mr. Rock Steady” Boothe (Friday), sibling act Morgan Heritage (Saturday), South African act Lucky Dube (Saturday) and harmony vocal trio the Meditations (Sunday). Malley said the latter threesome is on record as being Bob Marley’s favorite singing group.

Also on the bill are Cleveland’s Afro-electronique outfit Mifune, which includes 1997 Chaney High School graduate Christine (Dorbish) Fader, Carlos Jones & the PLUS Band and I-Tal. A celebration of unity and diversity can be expected on stage, as well as in the audience.  

“It really is a cross section of people that enjoy this,” Malley said. “You’ll have a lot of college kids that will enjoy it but you’ll also have a lot of people in their 40s and even older that like the laid-back atmosphere of a good concert. So you’ve got young people, old people, black people, white people. It really is a cross section of culture.”

He added, “It’s a value concert. You can bring in your own beer, food and camp, so it makes it easier if you come with the spouse and friends. In the long run, it’s a pretty inexpensive festival.”

Invariably there’s something about reggae music in the warm weather that just makes sense.

“It comes from Jamaica, which is the land of sunshine, of course,” Malley said. “So it’s like the perfect summer concert.”