Elvis shows Newport what it truly means to go electric; Seeger shines a light.

All-star festival encores often shed more heat than light but leave it to Pete Seeger to be the exception, leading a capacity crowd last night at Newport in a moving sing along of “Turn Turn Turn,” and “Where Have all the Flowers Gone,” at the apparent invitation of headliner, Emmylou Harris. The conscience of a generation (or two) of folk fans, Seeger's frail voice still moved many to tears, capping the first ever Newport Folk Festival to sell out in advance. And what a memorable festival it was.

For those shut out, the good news is that many of the performances are available at NPR.org. But as always, a festival's true power is experiential – the feel of the ocean breezes (!) along with the the smell of sunscreen, the grit and sweat. And, of course, the musical discoveries; hustling from stage to stage to catch just a taste of each band.

Which performer plays which stage is always the source of some controversy. Some complained that Justin Townes Earle deserved to be on the Fort (main) stage while Seattle's “The Head and the Heart,” all but burst right off the tiny “Harbor” stage,” so spritied was the set and so appreciative the crowd.

But Elvis Costello may have provided the biggest bang for the buck; billed as solo acoustic, he brought the band, instead and ripped into a snarling version of the Byrd's “So You Want to be a Rock 'n' Roll Star,” (then listen now to what I say / just get an electric guitar... ) Costello certainly electrified the crowd by doing just as he pleased – pairing some of his most raucous rock hits with Americana classics like Johnny Cash's “Cry, Cry, Cry,” the Band's “This Wheel's On Fire.” He did it all with a swaggering smile that stopped just short of a sneer and even gave a shout out to Pete Seeger.