Editor's note: This article originally appeared in Sun Life Magazine, an Independent Newsmedia publication.
Folk music is one of the oldest and most meaningful genres in American culture, although its ponderance isn’t always rooted in the distant past.
At age 81, Lon Austin, the founder of the Glendale Folk & Heritage Festival, which wrapped its 2026 event this past weekend in its customary spot at Sahuaro Historic Ranch, was under the weather and didn’t participate this year. Austin grew up in the 1950s immersed in the world of Zane Grey adventure stories and has dedicated his life to Western music, poetry, and culture.
