Masters Festival of Music Entertains 6,000 at SPAC

by Marilyn Nason, The Post-Star, August 17, 1970

The Masters Festival of Music, otherwise known as Chet Atkins, Boots Randolph, Floyd Cramer and company, offered a wonderful all-family show last night at Saratoga Performing Arts Center for some 6,000.

Making a return appearance from last year, this famed group provides a potpourri of just about every type of music from folk, rock, country and western to concert Spanish guitar, jazz, big band and show tunes.

Atkins, Mr. Guitar himself, played both the Spanish and electric guitars and what a professional he is. Just as he began a medley of some quiet, mood tunes, the thunder, lightning and rains came but the audience never made a sound, intent on hearing this true virtuoso of the guitar at work.

And his bits of dry humor, his effortless playing made his performance even more effective. “You’ll probably go home saying I spent the whole night tuning up,” he quipped by way of apologizing for a new string on his guitar, which was stretching and going off key constantly, forcing him to make constant adjustments.

As for Boots Randolph, well, this man has to be the world’s greatest jazz sax player. He offered a series of songs culminating with his own famous tune, “Yakety-Sax,” and this later was played again in a crazy, madcap version by Cramer, Atkins and Randolph.

Floyd Cramer is the master of the piano, the subtle chords and the beautiful melodic tone and he offered several tunes including “On the Rebound”; “Going Out of My Head”; and the Simon and Garfunkel hit, “Troubled Waters.”

Some 19 musicians backed the three performers and the whole show was headed by Randolph, who serves as an inimitable master of ceremonies, playing, singing, talking, offering a bit of footwork and some real corn humor.

The audience loved every minute and, had the storm not become so severe, they would undoubtedly have sought and gotten several encores.

Tonight Les Ballets Africains will appear in a special performance at 8:30.