Friday at the Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver Bluegrass Festival offered one of the finest single days of weather we've ever enjoyed at a bluegrass festival. It was warm and sunny with a slight breeze keeping it from becoming hot. For most of the day it was cool under the shed roof, only becoming chilly as the program wore on into the late evening, with Josh Williams starting his second set around 12:15 AM, long after we were happily in bed and snoozing away. Vendors were kept busy, the crown entertained, and everyone's spirits high throughout the day.
Balsam Range
With the return of fiddler/lead vocalist Buddy Melton from a serious head injury in March Balsam Range is fully restored and has picked up as the hottest young band in bluegrass. Combining instrumental versatility and drive with extremely well selected original materials and a clearly recognizable signature sound, Balsam Range generates huge excitement whenever they appear. The line at their merchandise table says it all:
Darren Nicholson
Caleb Smith
Mark Pruett
Buddy Melton
Tim Surrett
The Roys
Months of hard touring have helped The Roys, a brother/sister duo, sharpen their show on every level. They've developed a solid act working with a band of young sharpshooters as sidemen. It's enjoyable to see these pleasant young people who started out in Fitchburg, MA develop.
Elaine Roy
Lee Roy
Clint White
Harry Clark
Sterling Masat
Royal Masat
The Golf Cart Brigade
The Grascals and Friends
Kristin Scott Benson
The great J.D. Crowe, one of the most distinguished musicians and influential banjo players of the second generation of bluegrass artists, has wisely decided to retire while his picking still gives a magnificent example of musical elegance at its best. While he may make a few appearances in the future, his retirement means people will remember him while still on top of his powers. Hopefully, his fine band will remain together and continue to tour, developing a distinctive sound and personality of its own.
Ricky Wasson
Dwight McCall
Matt DeSpain
The Claw
J.D. with friends
Ricky Wasson, Mark Pruett,& Eric Ellis
Photo by Mike Lane
Doyle Lawson
Suzana Lawson
Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver
Doyle Lawson's band is at the highest level of musical performance we've seen since we've been involved in bluegrass music. The addition to the band of Joe Dean on banjo has greatly increased the chance that the Doyle Lawson School of Bluegrass Music won't have any graduates soon. A highlight of yesterday afternoon's performance was Mike Rogers' (also a recent addition) rendition of "Precious Memories." Outstanding!
Joe Dean
Mike Rogers
Cory Hensley
Jason Barrie
Josh Swift
Doyle Lawson
Our Rig
The Grascals
The Grascals continue to be energetically pleasing and solidly musical. Their new CD is coming out soon and will be sure to be a first rate production. Danny Roberts is, sadly, too little recognition for his excellent work on the mandolin.
Terry Eldredge
Danny Roberts
Kristin Scott Benson
Terry Smith
Jeremy Abshire
Jamie Johnson
Joe & Shirley Huckaby
Jason Barrie & Family
Josh Williams
Josh Williams had the unenviable chance to close last night's show late into the early morning. We were long past gone, but Mike Lane tells us his evening show was a bangup event, because Josh continued to play an un-amplified set after hours. Josh has consistently grown as a musician, emcee, and band leader. The fortunate catch which became the so-called bird video I took last year has, we both hope, helped give his career a boost. Nonetheless, he's become a first rate performer as well as singer/guitarist.
The Bird Video Behind the Singer
Josh Williams
Randy Barnes
Jason McKendree
Nick Keen
Josh After Midnight
Photo by Mike Lane
Chris Jones Interviews for Sirius/XM
Photo by Mike Lane
Always enjoy reading your posts Ted.
ReplyDeleteI believe the banjo player for Josh Williams is Jason McKendree, not McKendrick.
Keep up the fine work!