This Labor Day weekend, like every Labor Day weekend for the past 26 years, you will find me in Charlestown’s Ninigret Park for the annual Rhythm & Roots Festival.

From Friday, Aug. 30 through Sunday, Sept. 1, the cool sounds of Cajun, zydeco, New Orleans jazz, Nashville and gospel fill the air with good old foot-stomping roots music.

GoodWorks Entertainment out of Connecticut has picked up the management of the festival created by the late Chuck Wentworth who had devoted his life to making Rhythm & Roots one of the greatest music festivals in the country.

You’ll find the absolute best in R&R music, starting with Cosmic Country bandleader Daniel Donato on Friday, and ending Sunday night with the Old Crowe Medicine Show, the old-time Nashville string band who for the past 26 years has been one of America’s most beloved bands.

Over 30 bands will perform on three stages over the weekend. Fans bring their lawn chairs and blankets and secure their spot on the grassy field in front of the main stage.

The workshop tent, where artists perform up close and personal, attracts music lovers who get a chance to hear the music and engage in dialogue with the accessible performers.

The 4,400 square-foot dance floor tent swings day and night with Cajun and zydeco favorites. Festival favorite Steve Riley will be performing with his band.

And the food! Led by the Chili Brothers and their famous jambalaya and crawfish, the food venders offer a large variety of Greek, Thai, pizza, BBQ and seafood.

Arts and crafts venders line the field with their wares.

The music is nonstop and includes Grammy-nominated Larkin Poe, the gritty, soulful roots singer sisters, and the New Orleans Rebirth Brass Band on Saturday.

The highlight of the weekend is 13-time Grammy winner and member of the Country Music Hall of Fame Emmylou Harris, who will close the Saturday night show lineup.

Ticket prices range from $59 for Friday to $219 for the entire weekend.

Go online to www.rhythmandroots.com for more information and a chance to listen to some of the music.

Rhythm & Roots is one of the most laid-back festivals I’ve ever been to. People from all over the country travel to Rhode Island for the event, camping at Ninigret and listening and playing music way into the night.

It is an experience that you will long remember.