This year’s Newport Folk Festival, which wrapped up on Sunday (July 29), saw the kings of pop-bluegrass, Mumford & Sons, close out the festival with a surprise set of 15 songs, including a cover of Radiohead’s “All I Need,” a cut off the band’s phenomenal 2007 record In Rainbows.
The performance was held alongside stellar indie folk singer-songwriter Phoebe Bridgers. However, she was not the only artist to appear next to Mumford & Sons during their surprise set. In a characteristic display of Newport Folk Festival’s sense of harmony, the number of onstage performers continued to grow until the end of show.
Some artists that joined in include pop folk singer-songwriter Brandi Carlile who jumped in for a rendering of the Simon & Garfunkel classic “The Boxer.” Not to be outshined, gospel soul singer Mavis Staples and folktronica artist Maggie Rogers, who had previously joined the Sons last summer at Latitude Festival in Suffolk, England, emerged for the closing numbers.
In fact, Newport Folk Festival, celebrating the best folk and folk-adjacent musicians in the town of Newport, Rhode Island, is particularly notable for its tendency to surprise audiences with unexpected headliners and performers.
Watch a clip of Mumford & Sons’ performance below via an Instagram post from Bridgers.
Photo Credit: Kalyn Oyer
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