Jenny Brook - Saturday

Overcast and warm, mist drifting over the mountains, leaves upside down, great music, enthusiastic audience, then drizzle becoming downpour, and rain, rain, rain. Throughout it all, the bands kept playing, people danced in the rain, huddled in the tents, and sat under ponchos and umbrellas in their seats. And the bands played on.

Amy Gallatin and Stillwaters continued the high quality country-bluegrass mix with Amy’s sweet voice perfectly complemented by Roger Williams on the Dobro. Hazel and Mac Magee and their White Mountain Bluegrass Band brought more than fifty years experience of old time country and bluegrass with grace and even elegance. Smokey Greene, seventy-eight years old and sounding like a well seasoned piece of old spruce, sang his own special brand of tunes accompanied by son Scott on bass. Dan Paisley and Southern Grass completed two sets of their hard driving bluegrass, which, after years of regional acclaim but not enough national notice is finally getting the attention they deserve. Acoustic Blue had another fine set. The Old Time Bluegrass Singers sang. The schedule was rejiggered because of a late arrival, but it didn’t really matter. The Gibson Brothers completed their first set as the deluge began. The Seth Sawyer Band, deserving more than to be a host band and play to nearly empty seats, gave its all, which is really quite good. More White Mountain Bluegrass and Dan Paisley. The Gibson Brothers returned to close and in the pouring rain played a five song encore which still wasn’t enough for the fans they own, who sat in the rain and cheered. And the rains continued.

Amy Gallatin and Stillwaters

Amy Gallatin

John Urbanek

Ben Pearce

Amy Gallatin

White Mountain Bluegrass

Hazel McGee

Mac McGee
Jackie Greenwood
Herman McGee
Gary Pomerleau
Smokey and Scott Greene
Kids Academy Rehersal

Leigh Gibson and Family

Lyn Hayes, Corinna Gibson, Allie Gibson, Andrea Rockwood
The Gibson Girls

Leigh and Eric Gibson

Rick Hayes

Clayton Campbell

Mike Barber

The Gibson Cr0wd

Bill Knowlton

Smiles

The sun's breaking through as I post this at 9:45 Sunday morning, but the weather forecast suggests it won't last. I'll post a final set of pictures and an overall assessment of this fine event on Monday or Tuesday. Gotta run.

Jenny Brook Festival - Friday

Friday at Jenny Brook featured great music, large and enthusiastic crowds, a little rain that cleared just in time, and a perfect festival day. I won’t write much today, because time and computer access are limited, and I want to put a bunch of pictures up. A few highlights are worth mentioning. First, for me, Acoustic Blue turns out to be one of those regional bands professional in every way. Their sound is traditional, their on stage personality delightful, and their musicianship exemplary. I’ll have more to say about this fine group in my wrap up next week.

Acoustic Blue

Shawn Batho (Acoustic Blue)

Bear Acker (Acoustic Blue)

Cory Zinc and Mike Van Alstine (Acoustic Blue)

Smokey Greene

Bill Knowlton (Emcee)

Almost exactly two months ago we saw the Dan Tyminski Band close Merlefest on a dreary, wet Sunday afternoon after most of the crowd had gone home. They came on stage to see a huge field of empty reserved seats. I thought they were as drab as the weather, but decided to hold my fire, knowing I’d be seeing them on Friday at Jenny Brook. Dan Tyminski is a native of West Rutland, VT, a home town boy in this small state. Many of the people who play bluegrass in the region picked with him as he was growing up. His father Stosh came over as well as many people attracted by his reputation and name. No one left disappointed. Tyminski is supported, perhaps joined is a better word as this is truly a group effort, by a band including four musicians who have won IBMA best musician awards themselves. In two sets, the Tyminski band fired up an enthusiastic, raucous musical gourmet collection of the tastiest bluegrass anyone could wish for. Never have I seen Adam Steffey enjoying himself so much on the stage. He was always grinning, except when he was throwing his head back in full bore laughter. His communication with Tyminski was electric as they shared the moments. Ron Stewart was animated and lively as his banjo rang out great breaks and wonderfully tasteful backup work. Barry Bales, often seeming to be in his own world, served up wonderfully intricate bass work while always supporting with his beat. Justin Moses, quiet and unassuming on fiddle, contributed high tenor and wonderful instrumental work. When the band invited Dan Paisley on stage for a song, it was hard to tell whether the band or the crowd was more excited. The Tyminski Band is one of those not to be missed groups. Since no one knows whether the core of this band will be returning to Alison Krause after her tour with Robert Plant ends, you’d better see them while you can.

Dan Tyminski

Adam Steffey

Ron Stewart

Barry Bales

Justin Moses

Steffey and Tyminski

Dan Paisley with Tyminski Band

The Dan Paisley Band always offers the best in straight ahead, hard driving traditional bluegrass. Their two sets on Friday showed they can always be relied on. Rounder Records has released an album “The Room Over Mine” by the Paisley band and their well-deserved reputation is growing nationally. Paisley has one of the most powerful voices in bluegrass music. His band has been together for years and their tight work shows it. More about them tomorrow. Meanwhile, David Parmley and Continental Divide had two sets. Parmley, recently returned from heart surgery, has a wonderful baritone voice and is supported by a fine group. Their sets were very well received. In many other settings they’d be a top headliner. Smokey Greene, one of the few solo acts who can hold a crowd, had two fine sets. His mellow baritone and combination of classic country and humorous novelty songs is a favorite with bluegrass audiences up and down the east coast. Dan Tyminski had played in Smokey’s band as a youngster, and Greene’s introduction of him was heartfelt and touching. Not enough people heard the Seth Sawyer band on Friday, but they’ll be performing on Saturday. Sawyer’s fine tenor voice is one of the too little recognized treasures of the music.

Dan Paisley

Bob Lundy (Dan Paisley)

Donnie Eldreth (Dan Paisley)

David Parmley and Continental Divide

Ron Spears (David Parmley)

Dale Perry (David Parmley)

Mike Parker (David Parmley)

Billy Hurt (David Parmley)

Seth Sawyer Band

Faces of Bluegrass

Goat


Alice Waters

Brenda Mathews, Stosh Tyminski, Candi Sawyer
Clyde and Scott
Stosh and Dan Tyminski

Jenny Brook Bluegrass Festival - Thursday

Every year something magical happens to the small Weston Recreation Park just north of the precious hamlet of Weston, VT. On Wednesday morning this field surrounded by the rolling hills of central Vermont is a grassy few acres with a stream-fed swimming hole, two tennis courts, a basketball court, and a ramshackle green trimmed grey stage building labeled Jenny Brook off in a corner. On Wednesday afternoon at three the campers lined along a small dirt road are allowed to enter and set up their rigs. By Thursday noon the vendors are set up, the sound man has arrived and wired the stage, volunteers are ready to assist in all the tasks surrounding a festival, and four days of bluegrass music begin.

It's Not All Work

Gettin' Ready

Yesterday, at Jenny Brook, something truly remarkable happened. A community was created. It coalesced around a young family whose dignity, courage, and strength dominate this event. Candi Sawyer, struggling against the ever encroaching menace of multiple sclerosis, frail and sweet, maintains the vision that moves the event forward, this year for the eighth time. Seth, her amiable and talented husband, moves through the week with power, taking on the tasks of co-promoter, husband and father in an appearance of calm. Adam, age twelve, and Mathew, nine, both need medical attention, and both perform and help as they can. Mathew, who is slight and near-sighted, resembles his mother. He has had numerous spinal surgeries as he grows and has had to deal with pain for most of his life. Adam, favoring Seth, is a sunny and funny youngster on the edge of puberty who may soon need work on his spinal column, too. These four people, along with Candi’s parents form the core of a group dedicated to making this festival happen each year.

Candi Sawyer

Adam Sawyer - Thursday Emcee

Thursday at most festivals is a day set aside for people to arrive. Music usually starts around 6:00 PM, and, except at large festivals, offers just enough entertainment to divert attention as people wait for the “real” musicians to begin on Friday. Candi has different ideas. The day was devoted to showcasing new talent and to present family and friends associated with the Sawyers to perform. Around this, event itself created a sense of fellowship and appreciation that will pervade these grounds until Sunday afternoon when the few remaining people will form the circle one more time and sing together “Will the Circle Be Unbroken” as they conclude this year’s festival and begin looking forward to 2009. Altogether it will be a celebration of the healing power of music, family, caring, and love.

Breakin' Strings

Holly, Cliff, and Mandy (Breakin' Strings)

Josh Williams (Showcase Winner)

The day started off with four showcase bands chosen from applications. The bands were all enjoyable, and one was excellent. Breakin’ Strings, a young band from Maine offered strong bluegrass with lively instrumentals and solid vocals, especially from Holly Hughes and Mandy Garnet. Cliff Randall sang lead and emceed the group. Bob Hamilton, a very solid flatpicker, and Ed Howe on fiddle, filled out the band. This is a promising group worth watching for. Twelve year old Josh Williams, attractive and precocious won the vote for best showcase band and a performance slot for Friday. Breakin’ Strings had a full set Thursday afternoon.

Derek Corbett and Mathew Sawyer

The Sawyer Family Band

A rather long break was followed, allowing time for a bingo session to benefit the Shriner’s hospital program, which has provided services for Mathew Sawyer’s many surgeries. Derek Corbett, representing the Shriners gave a short introduction about the Shriners hospital programs before receiving a check from the festival with the receipts from the bingo games from Matt Sawyer. The Sawyer Brothers Band then followed with Mathew and Adam singing accompanied by Seth on guitar and Candi on bass. Seth, who has one of the best unheralded voices in bluegrass sang a little, but the focus was on the boys, who audiences at Jenny Brook have been watching develop since they were quite small. Their improvement and the delightful interplay on stage between them and their parents helped set the tone for the evening and the festival.

Brenda Mathews and Friends

Brenda Mathews

R0b Ravlin

Brenda Mathews and Friends followed with an enjoyable set of classic country music. Brenda is Candi Sawyer’s mother. She performed with grace and humor, accompanied by a strong backup band of local pickers.

Family and Friends

Harry Ralph Sr.

Butch Ralph

Harry Ralph III

Linda Ralph

The closing band was Family and Friends, the band fronted by Linda and Butch Ralph, owners of Danby Four Corners store in Danby, VT. This little country store on the back roads of this rural state is one of the top 100 Martin guitar shops in the world. They were joined by their son, Harry Jr. on fiddle and Butch’s father, Harry Sr. (84) on rhythm guitar. They sing classic country songs with the set featuring young Harry, a very fine professional fiddler, closing the set with a fine Orange Blossom Special. The entire tone of the evening set a tone of family togetherness in a special intimacy between performers and audience. The evening finished on a pleasant note as sound man Harry Grant projected cartoons and then a classic Flatt & Scruggs set on the huge screen erected in front of the stage. Jenny Brook will continue for three more days with national headliners and top notch regional bands. Headliners are the Dan Tyminski Band, the Gibson Brothers, Dan Paisley and Southern Grass, David Parmley & Continental Divide. Regional bands will be lead by Amy Gallatin & Stillwaters, Acoustic Blue, White Mountain Bluegrass, Smokey Greene, Old Time Bluegrass Singers, and the Seth Sawyer Band. Look here for pictures and some text each day for the rest of the weekend.

Faces of Bluegras

Bluegrass is my Second Language - Review

When I sat down with my advisor to prepare the defense of my doctoral dissertation, he looked at me and said, “You didn’t write the study you proposed.” I gulped and looked helpless. “But don’t worry about it,” he said, “If anyone brings up the question, we’ll just change the title.” John Santa has written an engaging book he calls a novel, but which really could be more accurately called a meditation on music, the life well-lived, friendship, and the loves of an open and likeable somewhat lost man in the Piedmont region of North Carolina. His persona somewhat reminds me of Ignatius J. Reilly, the hero of John Kennedy Toole’s riotous cult novel A Confederacy of Dunces in that he sort of collides with life as he experiences it, clumsily but effectively winning over those he encounters. Meanwhile, unlike Ignatius, he is won over by them, coming to love and appreciate the bluegrass sub-culture he enters.

John Santa’s Bluegrass is my Second Language is a self published novel describing how a somewhat bumbling musician, composer, video producer, and dog lover is introduced to and then seduced by the bluegrass world of pickers and pickin’ places in central North Carolina. Not really a novel nor a memoir, Bluegrass is my Second Language can, perhaps more accurately, be called a meditation on life, music, and the oneness of it all. It’s easy to be critical about its lack of structure, the need for more editing, its language idiosyncrasies, and more, but that’s all a waste of time because the story emerging in what Santa calls Book One, is a man of generous spirit taking the risk of sharing most of his life with readers. It’s also a coming of age story in that it presents a middle-aged man of significant accomplishment discovering a new self within and developing that self in full.

When I started reading BGSL (bluegrass for Bluegrass is my Second Language), I decided to put my preconceptions (fiction or not, self-published, double spaced, ragged borders, written in faux southern dialect) aside and to just experience the book. First, I learned the narrator came to bluegrass from a rich life in music as a multi-instrument musician and composer with broad knowledge of blues, jazz, and rock informing his introduction to bluegrass. He writes of a “blind date” picking experience “…you just…listen until it tells you…what to play. So after a while you just get good at LISTENING and hearing what things ‘need.’ This song would sound great with a little lead guitar and some harmonica fills, this one a banjo pushing it along, that one a mandolin. And of course, the cello.” All of which puts Santa in a league with the great Sammy Shelor who says he just plays in response to what the singer is saying in the song, or Eric Gibson, whose backup banjo is designed to serve the purpose of the song. This is musicianship of the highest order, so I know I’m not dealing with a person hearing a new language, only a different dialect of a language he’s already deeply familiar with.

John Santa

In the second chapter, John is asked to play a gig before a large party of political folks with people he hasn’t met before, playing songs he doesn’t know and magic happens, as it often does in bluegrass. The five men coalesce and make great music from the heart. He says, “…if you play from the heart and open yourself to music and just TELL THE TRUTH, the music will LIFT YOU UP.” Santa is a musician’s writer rather than a writer’s musician. His book is an extended riff on bluegrass music, a multi-instrumental bluegrass break referencing the tune. twisting it inside out, exploring around it, getting the essence while never being slavishly tied to specific format. His background in blues and jazz emerges in every word he writes while he captures the sense, the feel, the reality of the music. Readers know that to find truth, read fiction. Great truths about bluegrass music emerge in every page of Book One of this novel. Perhaps there are more truths to be learned about bluegrass in BGSL than in Neil V. Rosenberg’s great Bluegrass: A History. That’s the nature of good fiction.

Santa does a particularly good job introducing us to his friends in music, taking us into Haleyland or Brown’s Ol’ Opry, delightful venues where musicians come together to make music. (Shameless Plug – look at my Bluegrasser’s Dream Day here or Hometown Opry here) His tributes to people like Pammy Davis the Queen of Bluegrass, the Macs, Keith, Fred Martin, the Yarbouroughs, BJ, and more are affecting and honest. Their reintroduction in the Glossary is redundant and irrelevant. Santa’s journey through bluegrass is accompanied by several dogs who are lovingly and carefully rendered. His relationship with dogs shines with love, respect, and understanding. He’s a little less successful in his picture of women, though he tries hard. Women in bluegrass have been somewhat problematic. Women, you see, have not been, despite Mother Maybelle Carter, Hazel Dickens, Emmy Lou Harris, and Alison Kraus, seen as at the center of the bluegrass world, which has largely been, until recently, a pretty exclusive boys’ club. Similarly, black people represent a tiny minority of bluegrass population in both performance and audience, despite the fact that their instrument, the banjo, imported from Africa, is absolutely indispensible in bluegrass, as is much of the blues and jazz they also contributed to American music in general and bluegrass in particular.

Pammy Davis, Queen of Bluegrass

At about the halfway point in this volume, Book One ends. I found the story complete and shed a tear at its ending, just as one should when finishing a good book and wishing it would go on. Unfortunately Santa gives in to the urge to give the reader what he thinks the reader thinks he wants. More. He therefore follows up providing two hundred and fifty pages of back story, Glossary, and acknowledgements. This addendum is not completely without merit, as it provides some interesting insights and some moving moments. All of these, however, with good editing could have been folded into the original text, where they belong. As they are presented, however, they’re self-indulgent and irrelevant. They serve to weaken a strong book. And there’s the weakness of self-publishing. It’s like walking a tightrope blind-folded. Good editorial advice and competent copy reading pull a book together, make it coherent, give it form and structure, all the things Bluegrass is my Second Language is missing. Much of Book Two would more appropriately be placed in a blog, which I dearly hope John will undertake to write and maintain.

John on TV

In the end, Bluegrass is my Second Language is worth your time and effort. Book One is a thoroughly delightful excursion into a mostly rural world which the more or less urban sophisticate stumbles into and comes to love. That’s an experience many of us have had in some way or another. John Santa brings the ear of a professional musician, the eye and sensitivity of an artist, and the wonder of a child to exploring an exciting and new world to him. You can purchase this book directly from the author for $25.00 plus $7.50 for shipping or handling or from a number of independent book stores in the University triangle.

Blink by Malcolm Gladwell - Book Review

Blink’s subtitle is The Power of Thinking without Thinking and that’s pretty much what it’s about, except it’s not. Early in the book, Gladwell, a staff writer for the New Yorker, tells several stories that set his point up for him. He describes a sculpture thought to be ancient Greek the Getty Museum acquired and was about to put on display when several noted art historians expressed instant doubt about its authenticity. He tells of an experiment in which subjects are asked to play a game with stacked cards that subtly favor the red cards over the blue cards. Players began to alter their playing behavior way before they were able to determine that card color was the determining factor. In another example, he examines the work of a psychologist who has learned to predict with a high degree of accuracy the likelihood of a marriage’s lasting or not based on a fifteen minute conversation between the couple. In each case, the knowledge of the outcome preceded the understanding of the reasons for the knowledge.

On the basis of these and many other interesting illustrative examples, Gladwell’s thesis emerges. He says the subconscious often knows the truths of which the conscious mind is unaware. He says the subconscious mind is behind a “locked door” and this is a good thing, as we open the door perhaps to our peril. He calls these insights “thin slicing,” suggesting that we can often make correct decisions based on very little data. In fact, he says, sometimes too much data works contrary to good decision-making. He talks about “priming” as a way to effect decision making without people’s know it. For instance, showing pictures of successful black people to black students about to take a test has a tendency to increase their scores.

In one chapter, Gladwell describes the “Warren Harding error” as an example suggesting that thin slicing may not always work. Harding was an extraordinarily handsome and likeable man with a deep voice and a seeming concern for people. His image was so good that people elected him president of the United States without every discovering that he was neither bright nor thoughtful. He turned out to be one of the worst presidents we ever had.

In the chapter concerned with Paul Van Riper’s war he shows the advantages of deeply informed experience over theory and data. Van Riper was a retired Marine officer with extensive combat experience in the Vietnam was as well as command experience throughout his career. Van Riper was asked to command the Red (enemy) team in a large war game conducted by the joint chiefs shortly before September 11, 2001. In these games, the Blue (allied) team had the full resources of all the systems the joint chiefs could bring to bear on conducting a simulated war in the Middle East. Van Riper, using unconventional insurgent strategies and defying behaviors expected by the Blue team commanders quickly won the war. This would all be fine, except in a second run-through all Van Riper’s assets were taken away from him and the Blue team won going away. Much of the doctrine growing from the unearned second victory became the strategy for initiating the war in Iraq. The lesson learned from this experience, says Gladwell, is that rational decision making not informed by deep experience but based on process principles takes too long and often leads to wrong decisions. In the fog of war, the neat and clean decisions made in war planning often blow up in the faces of the decision makers.

The nagging question for me, as I read this book, revolved around the situation we’re now in. A president who trusts his gut and derides book learning has made bad decision after bad decision. He met Vladimir Putin, looked into his eyes, and knew he could trust him and work with him. Putin, during the Bush administration, has managed to re-create a near dictatorship in Russia, ruthlessly crushing freedom of expression and enriching a group of vicious oligarchs. Furthermore, he catapulted us into a war based on his instinct and the bad advice of close advisors without ever listening to or acknowledging the reservations of people who had greater knowledge and expertise. In fact, he ridicules expertise frequently.

Gladwell states pretty clearly that our quick judgments improve with expertise and deep knowledge. In example after example, he shows how people’s learning helps them prepare to make the quick decisions stress situations require or to make the informed judgments required. He also shows how to avoid the unconscious prejudiced judgments we often are capable of making. For instance, in one story he describes how using a screen to hide the performers in orchestra auditions led to a German symphony’s hiring its first woman trombone player over their preconceptions that women weren’t strong enough or forceful enough to do the job. He points out that experts internalize objective criteria, making their judgments more precise. Whether the field be analyzing food’s taste, couples interactions, or musical performance, an informed critic’s assessment trumps that of a novice. He says, “…whenever we have something we are good at – something we care about – that experience and passion fundamentally change the nature of our first impression.” (pg. 184) This may be the reason that having a professional politician who’s also an attorney might generally yield a better president. Why watching a professional musician listen to music, his own or someone else’s, is such a revelation.

In the end, the lesson of Blink is that our subconscious can help us see with more insight and make better decisions, but our subconscious informed by education and expertise is an even more powerful tool. Finally, there are times when finding ways to mask our unconscious mind can allow us to avoid mistakes we might otherwise make. Gladwell’s book provides an interesting and informative stroll through the workings of human decision making and helps us understand ourselves and others in a most readable format.

Blink: The Power of Thinking without Thinking by Malcolm Gladwell is published by Back Bay Books, a division of Little, Brown and Company, New York, 2005 and is available on-line, at chain book stores and from your local independent bookseller.

Stormy Weather and Skinny Dip by Hiaasen - Review

I far as I’ve been able to determine, there’re only s couple of recurring characters in Carl Hiaasen books, but what characters they are. Skink, the foxily crazy former governor of Florida lives in the Everglades dispensing justice and serving as the most delightful dues ex machine in contemporary crime literature. Skink appears in both Stormy Weather and Skinny Dip, but I’ll leave it to the reader to discover where, why, and how. The two books share some common elements that contribute to many other Hiaasen novels:

1. A young and beautiful woman,

2. An older, somewhat jaded and lost man who saves himself in rescuing the girl.

3. A cast of gooney and grotesque villainous or saintly characters.

4. A raging anger at the destruction of Florida’s beauty by developers, crooked politicians, rapacious farmers, and other people of no moral or social conscience.

5. A rip roaring page turner plot

6. Laugh out loud situations that make the reader think about power, honesty, integrity and the state of the world.

While there are plenty of silly scammers, the real bad guys and the genuine target Hiaasen keeps focusing on are developers, builders, farmers, and crooked politicians who destroy the land in order to make obscene amounts of money. Whether they’re breaking building codes or pumping phosphates in the once pristine waters of the Everglades doesn’t matter. They’re blaspheming what was one wild, beautiful, and eternal.

In Stormy Weather, Bonnie and Max Lamb awaken during their honeymoon at Disney World to learn that Hurricane Andrew is bearing down on Homestead, just south of Miami. Max grabs his video camera, hustles Bonnie into the car and drives south to capture the destruction on tape. Max and Bonnie are soon separated as she becomes increasingly disgusted by his behavior. Along the way, readers meet a mafia killer seeking revenge because his mother has been killed in the hurricane, a crooked building inspector and the developer who bribed him. We also meet Augustine, the seemingly lost and shiftless collector and juggler of human heads, who helps Bonnie gain a new perspective on life.

On the opening page of Skinny Dip, Marine biologist Dr. Charles Perrone nonchalantly throws his wife off a cruise ship in the middle of the Gulf Stream. The wife, Joey, once a college swimmer, manages to re-orient herself in the air and knife into the water, unharmed. She begins swimming toward shore and is eventually rescued by Mick Shanahan who lives alone on a small island off the coast of Miami. Together, they hatch a plot to wreak revenge on Chaz Perrone, a worthless human being whose brain dangles between his legs. Chaz has been falsifying data about phosphate pollution from Red Hammernut’s farms in the Everglades in order to save Red the millions of dollars it would cost to stop the pollution. Again, the collection of characters brightens the landscape and keeps the action moving.

Hiaasen, a columnist for the Miami Herald, focuses his column on these same targets. He’s also written a longer non-fiction work about the effects of Disney on the state. Recently, he has published a golf memoir called The Downhill Lie, which, like many such books, examines the complex relationship often existing between the game and the father-son relationship. His greatest claim to fame, however, remains his novels. These are filled with mordant humor, satire, and, not too deeply hidden, passion for his home state and its natural wonders. A question arising from all this has to do with whether his columns or his novels contain more power to move the reader to action. Perhaps this is an unfair question, because his Florida readers are better situated to respond with votes or other actions to affect the outcomes. Nevertheless, my recent travels in Florida have been significantly informed by his views. My appreciation and understanding for what I’ve seen have grown. I doubt my political behavior has been affected.

In the end, a Hiaasen novel does what a good book should. It entertains and enlightens. Because his books are so entertaining, the enlightenment comes with little pain and less defensiveness. He doesn’t come across as hectoring or looking down on his readers. Even though something of a formula has emerged (the winsome damsel, the older and somewhat estranged man, the magical help from outside) the stories remain fresh and lively, always a good read. Carl Hiaasen’s novels are to be enjoyed and treasured. I recommend they not be read successively, because his style requires a little rest between exposures not to become overwhelming. The books are not serial and don’t need to be read in sequence, nor are they so topical as to become obsolete, at least in the short term of a decade or two. Read, enjoy, learn.

Hiaasen’s books are available on-line or from you local chain or independent book seller.

Rick Hayes "Fly by Night" - CD Review

Rick Hayes has played mandolin with the Gibson Brothers for four years. At first he was the guy on the end with the terrific smile who played the mandolin. Over the years we’ve watched him with this group whose national reputation just keeps growing. Rick, too, has taken on personality and developed his role with the band as crucial to the percussive sound along with Mike Barber and playing increasingly intricate and skillful mandolin breaks. At the same time, as a bandsman in a group featuring the brother duos of Eric and Leigh Gibson, his singing voice has never been heard, although his lips move, and he seldom talks from the stage. With the release of his new solo project “Fly by Night” Rick sings (apologies to Al Jolson). Not only does he sing, but he plays almost all the instruments in the band of this tour de force project.

Jim Van Cleve

Rick Hayes

While Rick’s web site says he’s all about music, what makes him interesting is the surrounding interests and experiences putting the music into context. While raised in Cincinnati, he spent many weekends of his childhood returning to his parents’ home in rural Kentucky, where he was surrounded by music. He played guitar from around age 8 and added the mandolin soon after. During his teens he played guitar and drums professionally in rock bands in central Ohio and Kentucky. For a time he worked for Kenner Products designing toys where he became the youngest senior toy designer there. During this time he also played high level competitive tennis, being ranked in doubles before an injury cut short that career. He began working as a graphic designer doing graphics and photography, adding a recording studio after a few years. During this time he also played in heavy metal bands. In the early 1990’s he owned a bluegrass record label called Legend Records where he recorded first solo albums for both Dwight McCall and Clay Hess. He joined the Gibson Brothers on mandolin late in 2004. Recently he has begun building the Hayes mandolin, seeking the look of the classic Loar with the feel of his beloved Stelling, turning a hobby into a business. A few years ago, he and spouse Lyn added video production to their studio, making it a full service recording, production, and distribution outfit. “Fly by Night” combines many of these skills and experiences into a pleasing package for bluegrass fans.

Dwight McCall

The Rick Hayes Band will probably never tour or perform on stage. With all members performing in major national touring bands as well as working in production and as much sought after side men in Nashville, there won’t be a chance for them to see the light of day. Thus, “Fly by Night” stands as a testimony to Rick Hayes’ skills as a producer and as a master of studio technology. Jim Van Cleve serves as fiddler for Mountain Heart and as a noted producer in his own right. Ron Stewart is currently touring with the Dan Tyminski band on banjo, but was also named IBMA fiddler of the year in 2000 as well serving as producer and engineer on several bluegrass projects. He is a much in demand session player on both banjo and fiddle. Dwight McCall plays mandolin and sings for J.D. Crowe and the New South, but contributes tenor vocals on the present disk. Josh Swift, on Dobro, has recently joined Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver. Clay Hess, now with Mountain Heart after a long stint with Ricky Skaggs and Kentucky Thunder, as well as working on numerous other projects contributes baritone vocals as well as three of his own songs to this collection. Of course Leigh and Eric Gibson, The Gibson Brothers, perform on the disk and one of Eric’s songs is included, too. I looked for a connecting link bringing all this talent together, and the common thread, with the exception of the Gibsons, turns out to be Ohio. Finally, in a touching bonus track, Rick’s dad Green contributes the vocal as Rick supplies banjo accompaniment. Suffice it to say there’s a whole lot of talent contributing to this effort.

Clay Hess

Eric and Leigh Gibson

Musically, each participant in this thirteen track CD contributes fine moments. Hayes, however, is always at the center. In addition to picking his principle instrument, the mandolin, he sings lead on most cuts and even supplies his own harmony tenor part on one. He plays guitar and bass as well. Rick’s singing is more than adequate, although less than stellar. His instrumental work, on the other hand, shines out in each track. The songs demonstrate characteristic bluegrass drive in the up tempo cuts and are pure misery for the murder ballads. Rick demonstrates the expressiveness of his voice on Marty Stuart’s “Oh What a Silent Night.” On a number of other cuts, notably “Marty Stuart Visits the Moon” and “Broken Hearted Lover’s Ride” he takes advantage of the opportunity to shine and doesn’t miss a beat. “New Whitehouse Blues” by Clay Hess is a wrenching song about the assassination of JFK. In mixing and synchronizing all the elements of this disk, Rick Hayes has taken his own musicianship to another level by creating a sound and a musical environment on the mixing board. In “Fly by Night” a bunch of side men have demonstrated why they are invaluable in the music world and to the music profession, and Rick Hayes has shown himself to be a worthy member of the fraternity.

Ron Stewart

Samples of this disk may be heard at Rick’s web site where the disk may also be purchased. Information about the Hayes Mandolin can be found here. Hayes Productions stands ready to help professional musicians achieve their production goals for all elements of the recording and producing process.

Smiley

The Strolling of the Heifers - Brattleboro, VT

Vermont is home to about 625,000 people and 162,500 cows. Dairy farming gives the state much of its identity and represents a crucial element of its economy. While tourism is Vermont’s largest industry, agriculture helps to create the economic and visual character drawing millions of people to the state as tourists and second home owners. Driving through the lush valleys bordering Lake Champlain on its western border or the Connecticut River to the east, visitors find beautiful, bucolic vistas around every curve. A dairy farm in the foreground backed by the ridge of the Green Mountains running through the entire state seems to highlight each turn in the road. Given its rural nature, it’s little wonder the first weekend in June ushers in Dairy Month with the Heifer Stroll through the streets of Brattleboro, VT.

On Saturday morning we joined our daughter in law, Sandra, and two grandkids, Anna and Luke, for this most down home and informal of parades, a major event in the three day celebration of Brattleboro’s uniqueness and the states dairy economy and heritage. Googling Brattleboro provides two prevailing views of this small city which capture the very interesting contrasts characterizing it. The Chamber of Commerce portrays one view while another site highlights the risks of the nearby nuclear generating plant and the tradition of social activism alive and well here. These contrasting, yet complementary, views capture what makes this an interesting town. For a somewhat different picture, consult the crime novels of Archer Mayor. Mayor has written nineteen Joe Gunther detective novels, the early ones set almost fully in Brattleboro.

The Heifer Stroll is a three day event whose web site very adequately details its activities. What follows here is a somewhat impressionistic portfolio of pictures of the parade and its immediate surroundings highlighting its celebration of farming, local culture, and quirky good fun. For your own enjoyment, plan on attending this delightful festival next year.

The Bag Monster

Union Soldier Guarding Town Square

Jenny Brook Bluegrass Festival - Weston, VT

The Seth Sawyer Band

The Jenny Brook Bluegrass Festival will kick off its eighth four day season on June 26, 2008 at the Weston Recreation Area a mile or two north of the picturesque village of Weston, VT off Greendale Road. This delightful, small festival will feature the strongest lineup in its history. National bands are led by The Dan Tyminski Band and include The Gibson Brothers, Dan Paisley & Southern Grass, and David Parmley & Continental Divide. Supplementing these bands will be local and regional bands, many familiar favorites at this annual get together. Although the park offers no hookups, camping spaces will be a premium. The gates open first thing Thursday morning, and wise campers will arrive early.

Camping at Jenny Brook

While the Weston Recreation Area has no water or electricity, it is not without its charm. There’s a pond on the premises for children to swim in, a playground area, and a tennis court used for basketball during this festival. The views of the surrounding hills are lovely and the air bracing and refreshing. This year Jenny Brook is being held a week later than it has historically been held. The site, the crowd, and the Sawyer family make this a family friendly event. Hosts Candi and Seth Sawyer’s two young sons, Mathew and Adam, are listed as co-hosts, are very much in evidence, and are truly part of the charm of this event. Candi’s valiant battle against multiple sclerosis and Mathew’s medical history are an integral part of this festival, making it a celebration of their struggles as well as a testimony to their love of the music. Seth Sawyer is a gifted songwriter as well as singer, whose contributions to the festival are quiet and very important.

Dan Tyminski

Adam Steffey

Jenny Brook bills itself as a traditional festival and tends towards booking traditional bands. This year two of the headliners are among the hottest traditional bands on the circuit and offer an interesting contrast. The Dan Tyminski Band has come together for a year while Allison Krause is on tour with Robert Plant and Union Station is on hiatus. Tyminski and Barry Bales, also from AKUS, have joined with Ron Stuart on banjo, Adam Steffey (on leave or having left Mountain Heart) on mandolin, and Justin Moses on fiddle. This band has garnered lots of attention and rave reviews from those who’ve seen them. They’re a straight ahead bluegrass band playing familiar songs and ones that sound familiar, even if they aren’t. Tyminski, a native of Rutland, VT, has a familiar and well-liked voice. He has lead a musically first rate band into the most desirable venues right out of the box. Getting him at a small festival like Jenny Brook is a real coup. Each of the individual players in the Dan Band, as it has come to be known, is at the top of the profession in acclaim as well as in terms of national recognition.

Ron Stuart

Barry Bales

Justin Moses

Dan Paisley and Southern Grass (Publicity Photo)

An interesting contrast will be between the Dan Band and Dan Paisley & Southern Grass. The Paisley band has long been a favorite at this festival and in the northeast. They, too, are a straight ahead, traditional bluegrass band playing some of the best covers of any band in the business as well as some compositions of their own. While together for a long time, first under Dan’s late father Bob and more recently under Dan Paisley’s leadership, this band comes from southeastern Pennsylvania where their performances have been centered. In the past year they have ranged more widely to great acclaim on the forums and the bluegrass press. They’ll be performing at Nashville’s historic bluegrass venue the Station Inn this October. Two Paisley brothers and two Lundy brothers along with Don Eldreth, Jr. on mandolin combine to present traditional bluegrass and benefit from having years of playing together.

Dan Paisley and Southern Grass

Eric Gibson

Leigh Gibson

The Gibson Brothers will be appearing on Saturday and then again with their sister Erin on Sunday. While their national reputation continues to grow with their appearances spreading across the nation and their new CD Iron and Diamonds rising in the charts, New Englanders continue to feel a sense of ownership in this great band, and nowhere is that more apparent than at Jenny Brook. Their Saturday evening set is often the highlight of this festival. On Sunday the band will be appearing with their sister Erin Gibson LaClair, whose sweet voice and tight harmony blend so well with her brothers. The Gibsons have been touring hard this year, spreading their brother harmonies and musical arrangements, calling on influences from bluegrass through country to rock music to create their own unique sound. This sound challenges the edges of bluegrass without ever going outside the acceptable limits of this genre. In some ways, they define the way to further develop bluegrass music without being revolutionaries. Neither progressive nor traditional, they’re merely superb.

Erin Gibson LaClair with unidentified accompanists

David Parmley

David Parmley and Continental Divide is a band with deep southern roots and a strong western influence. David Parmley, an original member of the renowned Bluegrass Cardinals, which moved from California to Virginia in the mid-seventies, formed the present band in 1994. This band will be at Jenny Brook on Friday. Look for first rate music from an accomplished band.

Jenny Brook always offers plenty of local and regional talent. The friendly voice of Smokey Greene will be heard again this year. Now well into his seventies and engaged on a long farewell tour, Smokey sings old country songs with the emphasis on Ernest Tubb and humorous songs of his own composition. Fans request favorites like “I Don’t Look Good Naked Any More” and “Waltz around Texas with You.” Smokey has a very pleasant baritone voice accompanied by his own playing on the guitar. Family and Friends is a band composed of members of the Rolf family who usually sing on Thursday evening. They also own and operate the Danby Four Corners Store selling quality acoustic instruments. They sing old time country and Linda’s compositions. The Seth Sawyer Band performs several times during the festival. They’re very solid. Seth’s song for Candi “Green Mountain Girl” vies for recognition as the quintessential New England bluegrass song. The Sawyer Family Band, featuring Candi and the Sawyer’s two sons Adam and Mathew will also perform.

Smokey Greene

Family and Friends

Amy Gallatin and Roger Williams

Ben Pearce (Amy Gallatin)

Amy Gallatin & Stillwaters leads the regional bands coming to Jenny Brook. Gallatin’s pleasing voice and spritely appearance on the stage coupled with Roger Williams’ very fine Dobro playing and Ben Pearce on mandolin provide an enjoyable mix of bluegrass, country, and western songs. A transplant from the west, Gallatin is based in Connecticut. Her band has not previously appeared at Jenny Brook. Attendees will receive a very pleasant surprise. We haven’t heard White Mountain Bluegrass, The Old Time Bluegrass Singers, or Acoustic Blue yet. The first two are veteran bluegrass bands who play festivals in New England during the summer. White Mountain Bluegrass also has a regular weekend gig at Applecrest Orchard Farms during apple harvest time in the fall. The Old Time Bluegrass Singers claim musical descent from Joe Val. They play New England venues. Acoustic Blue is a younger band whose web site and MySpace page suggest they play their own material as well as covers. Jenny Brook is very good about showcasing bands many people may not previously have heard. It’s always good to get to hear new bands, and sometimes one really sticks out as a surprise. Those are bands worth highlighting and supporting.

Acoustic Blue (publicity photo)

Candi and Mathew Sawyer

Adam Sawyer

Seth Sawyer

Jenny Brook Bluegrass Festival succeeds because the Sawyers have learned how to put on a festival, a cadre of hard working volunteers returns year after year to support their efforts, there are plenty of opportunities for field jamming, the vendors provide a variety of tasty foods, and the fans love the festival and respect the grounds. It’s truly a family friendly event where children are able to roam the grounds safely. Mike Robinson, widely known, along with his wife Mary, for his Sunday bluegrass gospel jam and his ministry to bluegrass, will emcee the event. He does a thoroughly professional job.

Will the Circle Be Unbroken

Strawberry Park - Sunday and Assessment

Dry Branch Fire Squad

Strawberry Park Bluegrass Festival finished on Sunday with four very strong performances surrounding the delightful on-stage debut of this year’s Kids Academy. After a short rain delay and some mugginess on Saturday night, the day dawned misty and a little muggy but quickly cleared into a warm, dry, sunny day – perfect for bluegrass. The morning’s music opened with Dry Branch Fire Squad’s traditional gospel set. Now, considering that it’s Dry Branch Fire Squad and Strawberry Park is in New England, you might expect something quite different than you would find a bit further south. And different it was, although filled with respect at the same time. DBFS sang, Ron Thomason was funny, thought provoking, and an ardent advocate for personal faith, openness to individual differences in belief, and adherence to the precepts of love and forgiveness advocated in Christianity as well as other faiths. Dry Branch Fire Squad inspires while always reserving a little zinger which forces those who really listen to examine themselves and their world. Thomason manages to include the creatures of nature, particularly dogs and horses, as examples of those whose lives set examples for the rest of us.

Ron Thomason

Brian Aldridge

Dan Russell

Tom Boyd

Laurie Lewis

Nature and the power of God’s creation remained before the audience with Laurie Lewis’ very fine set. Lewis’ lovely voice blended with Tom Rozum or Scott Huffman in close harmony explores lost love, the beauty of the outdoors, lost friends, and more. Her song in memory of Charles Sawtelle “A Hand to Hold” if filled with the haunting sense of loss experienced when a crucial member of one’s support system is gone. In this week after the death of Utah Phillips, she also remembered him with some thoughtful remarks and one of his tunes. There’s a gentleness to Lewis’ spirit reinforced by the strengths of her band. Craig Smith, on banjo, ranges from hot and bluegrassy to cool, thoughtful and melodious. Tom Rozum emphasizes voice in his singing, tone and intonation in his mandolin play. The combination provides pleasing solo singing and fine harmony work. Scott Huffman on guitar brings a sonorous baritone voice and excellent flat picking. Bassman Todd Phillips, very solid, hides in the rear and provides the beat that informs the group.

Craig Smith

Tom Rozum

Todd Phillips

Scott Huffman

Strawberry Park Kids Academy

Shortly after noon, the Kids Academy trooped into the amphitheatre from the rear and paraded to the backstage area where they tuned and prepared. The children, ranging in age from perhaps six or seven to early teens played three songs, took instrumental breaks, and even sang harmony. They were warmly greeted by the audience. The staff is to be complimented for the progress the kids made during three days of intensive practice. The kids looked and sounded great and will all make their own contributions to bluegrass music.

Kim Cyr - Connecticut Bluegrass Association

Tim St. Jean (Academy Co-Director) Leads Kids In

Kids Warming Up in the Woods

Kids on Stage

The Grascals

The Grascals have been busy on the festival circuit and in the recording studio for about three years now. They have made a couple of personnel changes, first adding Aaron McDaris at banjo and recently replacing Jimmy Mattingly on fiddle with Jeremy Abshire. McDaris took over with barely a ripple. The fact that he doesn’t sing has added bassist Terry Smith to the trio, improving their vocal sound. McDaris is excellent on banjo and the band has manufactured a personality for him in performance, calling him “Boo” and encouraging audiences to boo him roundly. He encourages the booing with a huge smile, and the Strawberry Park audience gleefully participated in this fiction. Abshire’s joining the group posed a greater potential hazard, as Mattingly is a dynamic fiddler who brought life and enthusiasm to the group. Fortunately, he has been transitioning out of the group for some months, and even more important, Abshire is a fine fiddler with lots of life and enthusiasm to him. The Grascals present a lively and fast moving show that’s entertaining and musical at once. Danny Roberts on mandolin is one of the very best, smiling to himself as he rips off fast and accurate breaks. Jamie Johnson serves as emcee for the group, communicating sincerity and enthusiasm. He sings lead and tenor, both well. Terry Eldredge on guitar also contributes terrific vocals. His rendition of IBMA award winning song “Me and John and Paul” is always a winner. The Grascals have continued to build on their early success and should be around for quite a while, growing and changing as they need, but adhering to the formula that’s made them successful. Their 2006 and 2007 IBMA awards as Entertainers of the Year were well-deserved.

Danny Roberts

Terry Eldredge

Jeremy Abshire

Jamie Johnson

Aaron (Boo) McDaris

Terry Smith
The Trio (Johnson, Smith, Eldredge)
Lonesome River Band

How many festivals save one of the all-time great bluegrass bands for closing on Sunday afternoon? Not many, but Strawberry Park does. What’s left to say about the Lonesome River Band. Sammy Shelor, four time IBMA banjo player of the year, has established his own style as a standard for others to emulate. His rock informed indisputably bluegrass style looks backwards and forward simultaneously. He stalks the stage, working the microphone, encouraging his band mates, stepping in to sing, saying little else, and always, always enjoying himself and the music they make. Mike Anglin on electric bass closes his eyes while he rocks and bounces, lost in his own world while providing an always tasteful and powerful beat. Andy Ball on mandolin seems to sing more than his share of murder ballads and lost love songs, but he brings a strong voice and powerful mandolin picking to the job. Brandon Rickman is on his second tour with LRB. His dusky voice and impish look sell well. Because he picks so powerfully, he breaks a lot of strings. Watching him move his chaw, put his pick between his lips, and change a string on the fly while not missing a singing note is worth the price of admission. Mike Hartgrove, an experienced fiddler and original member of Doyle Lawson and Quicksilver, is also returning to LRB after an absence. His fiddling is strong and melodic, fitting right in with the band’s sound. The Lonesome River Band is not to be missed.
Sammy Shelor

Mike Hartgrove

Andy Ball

Mike Anglin

Brandon Rickman Changing String

This year, when we arrived at Strawberry Park, we were concerned to see the third new sound crew setting up. Cobra Sound of Berwick, PA provided the best sound we’ve heard in some time. I cannot remember a single squeal of feedback during the entire weekend. That’s pretty unusual stuff. Furthermore, the level of the sound was always appropriate. Each band was modulated to sound its very best. Never was the sound too loud, but everyone could always hear. Singing is crucial in bluegrass and every word was clear and crisp.

Strawberry Park is well laid out to permit all-night picking in a designated area while providing a large area where those who want a quieter setting can have quiet observed from midnight until 8:00 AM, or so the rules say. However, consideration for the concerns of others seems low on the priority list of those who want to jam late into the night and party on. Unfortunately, this places management in an awkward position, as challenging people to observe the rules can only irritate them. In the end, consideration for others is necessary for everyone to have a good time. One other point: How many ways do people have to see signs that say “NO SMOKING” before they get the idea it means them? Sadly, cupping a cigarette in your hand or hiding it under a seat doesn’t keep the smell from being irritating if not dangerous.

The staff and management of Strawberry Park are professional and friendly. The park offers a better than average snack to meal plate bar, so there is little need for additional food vendors, although the Chili Brothers offer delicious Cajun food and there was a vendor selling vegetarian wraps and plates that looked and smelled fine. With the exception of one craft vendor who made cutouts and jewelry on a foot peddle saw, the vendors were of little interest.

Overall, however, Strawberry Park provides a strong lineup throughout the weekend. The amphitheatre is wonderfully laid out, there’s lots of shade, and space is provided for people to dance without disturbing others or interfering with sight lines. Artist’s merchandise tents and tables are conveniently placed. Strawberry Park is one of the best run festivals we attend. Put it on your schedule for next year if you haven’t been there before.

Strawberry Park - Saturday - Picture Bloggin

Despite threatening weather all day long, the only rain we actually experienced came along just at Doyle Lawson and Quicksilver were preparing to take the stage. Weather radar said it was narrow storm, so festival officials called a half hour rain delay. Music was resumed in a little over the alloted time, the rain stopped as scheduled, and the festivities continued. I was enough concerned about the weather to leave camera in the trailer so I have no pictures of Doyle Lawson's performance or the Grascals' very energetic closing set. The Grascals appear again today; I'll post a full set on them tomorrow. Saturday marked Alan Johnson's last performance with Doyle, as he's leaving the road to spend more time with his family. His wonderful fiddle and fine bass voice will be missed.

We've heard people complain about half an hour or so being put aside for festivals to feature Kids Academy performances. If you're so inclined, remember that the future of bluegrass music may depend on these kids having good instruction and early performance opportunities. Precious few young musicians are growing up on the farm and taking up acoustic instruments at Grandpa's knee any longer. This year Tim St. Jean and his spouse Vicki Baker led a team of four other counselors in working with twenty or so kids for the weekend. These people give up their daytimes at the festival to work for the future of bluegrass.

Kids Academy Staff

Back at the stage, Tony Trischka kicked off the day with his Banjo Spectacular band featuring Noam Pikelny on the second banjo. Young Michael Barnett, having graduated from high school on Friday, more than ably took on the fiddle chores, while Michael Daves, another young picker, sang lead and played a fine guitar. But as might be expected, the focus was on the marvelous
banjo work of Trischka and Pikelny. Several times during the performance, a glance of surprised appreciation would pass between the two, as if to ask, "How in the world did you possibly do that?" Seeing and hearing this incredible banjo work was worth the price of admission.

Tony Trischka Banjo Spectacular

Tony Trischka

Michael Barnett

Michael Daves

Noam Pikelny

Banjo Workshop
with
Tony Trischka, Noam Pikelny, and Bruce Stockwell

After the Trischka set, Dale Ann Bradley hit the stage. Dale Ann has lost a lot of weight, but not an ounce of her voice. She still has the best pipes in the business. Supporting her on fiddle was Meghan Lynch, who provided strong fiddle and pleasing harmonies.

Dale Ann Bradley Band

Dale Ann

Meghan Lynch

Dry Branch Fire Squad presented their usual combination of "aggessively traditional" music leavened by Ron Thomason's alway well-aimed satire. They've added new material and continue to be one of the most entertaining and few thought provoking acts in all bluegrass. Thomason has a carefully cultivated and sharply honed wit that pierces without hurting and skewers without killing.

Dry Branch Fire Squad

Ron Thomason

Carl Shiflet Big Country Show

Laurie Lewis finished up the afternoon session. Her lovely brand of love songs and nature music mixed with just enough humor brings a California sensibility and lilt to bluegrass. Her voice is wonderful and the level of cooperation and friendship in her band, The Right Hands, which has been together for years, is obvious and real. Tom Rozum on mandolin sings both harmony and lead. Craig Smith is one of the best on banjo. Scott Huffman sings well and is a first rate flat picker on guitar, while Todd Phillips on bass is unobtrusive and strong. Her song, "Your Eyes" is catching, worth buying an album for. "Bury Me in Bluegrass" is a touching song with several meanings. "A Hand to Hold" is a deeply affecting song dedicated to Charles Sawtelle. All told, her set was one of the highlights of the festival.

Laurie Lewis and the Right Hands

Laurie Lewis

Tom Rozum

Craig Smith

Todd Phillips

Scott Huffman

Sorry about not having pictures of Doyle's excellent set. I'll cover the Grascals today. The sun is rising, it's going to be warm, and Sunday at Strawberry Park should be great. LRB is the closing act.