with slideshow: Ann Arbor Folk Festival's Saturday night show offered plenty of musical highlights

The night’s biggest disappointment was the cancellation of Doc Watson. The influential folk guitarist was grounded due to severe weather in the southern part of the country. To help make up for the loss, Hoots and Hellmouth, a favorite on Friday night, were brought back to open the show on Saturday, providing the crowd its first opportunity to leap to its feet in approval, thanks in part to the band's raved-up version of “Samson and Delilah.”

Hot Club of Cowtown also created a well-deserved uproar with its swing-flavored songs. Jake Erwin is a crazy man on the upright bass, and Elana James proved a singing, fiddling dynamo. They’ll be at The Ark for a full show April 16, and it’s bound to sell out — this threesome could well be the buzz act from the festival, along with Hoots and Hellmouth, coming to The Ark the night after Hot Club.

I must say Havens didn’t make much sense between songs (Aliens? The mothership? Huh?), which mattered not a bit, as his music spoke volumes. Accompanying himself on acoustic guitar (with guitarist Walter Parks alongside), he started his set with Bob Dylan’s “All Along the Watchtower” and also tapped the Dylan catalog for “Maggie’s Farm,” which blended nicely into a bit of The Who’s “Won’t Get Fooled Again,” for which the fans went nuts. “You Are So Beautiful,” made famous by Joe Cocker, followed, and the set closed with Havens’ Woodstock anthem “Freedom.”

Cash, accompanied on guitar by her husband, John Leventhal, played several selections from her current CD, “The List,” including Hank Snow’s “I’m Movin’ On,” Dylan's “Girl From the North Country” and the traditional “Motherless Children.” Since the CD includes some duets, Leventhal happily stepped up for the Bruce Springsteen part on “Sea of Heartbreak” (to shouts of “Bruuuuuce”) and the Jeff Tweedy part on “Long Black Veil.” Cash’s 1981 hit “Seven-Year Ache” was also part of the mix, as was “Radio Operator,” from 2006.

As M.C., Patty Larkin said in introducing Raul Malo that the Cuban-American vocalist is all about the voice, and the former lead singer of The Mavericks delivered on the buildup with a set that more than earned its standing ovation. The plaintive trumpet accompaniment on “Lucky One,” the title song of Malo’s most recent CD, was a nice touch, and it was easy to hear why his sound has been compared to Roy Orbison. As usual, Malo’s voice worked its magic, and I felt transported, perhaps to a tropical island nightclub with those big fans spinning lazily on the ceiling. Malo’s been a fairly frequent performer at The Ark in the recent past, so look for him back on the schedule.

In retrospect, the Canadian-Scots band Enter the Haggis, with their loud, alt-rock sound, might have been a better fit on Friday, but the biggest disappointment with them was that it seemed as if bagpiper/multi-instrumentalist Craig Downie’s mic wasn't working. They reminded me of another Canadian group, Great Big Sea, and the stomper “Gasoline” was a hit with the crowd.

Many performers touched on the importance and uniqueness of The Ark, Ann Arbor’s not-for-profit folk music and more venue.

“This is a national treasure,” Larkin remarked. “You can count on one hand the number of places like this in the country.” From the sound of the crowd, 3,500 strong, no one was going to disagree.

Watch a slideshow from the festival's second night: