A Visit to Linda's Mercantile & Springfield Exit

Headed south on U.S. 522 just outside Winchester, VA in August, I remembered the posts David Lay had been making showing vivid pictures of the wonderful harvest he and his wife Linda had had for their farm store this summer. I looked up the store on my phone, discovering we would be driving right past it. I kept my nose on the phones GPS, insisting it was on our side of the road, while Irene drove and we never saw it. Retracing our steps headed north on Monday, it was the same picture, minus our trailer, but this time Irene caught the store as we passed it, on the wrong side of the road, according to the GPS. A quick U-turn and again brought us to the door of Linda's Mercantile, just as the door was being unlocked by Sarah, an employee. A moment or two later, David Lay drove up on his bright green John Deere tractor.

David Lay

David, a native of east Tennessee, comes from a long history of family music, with an emphasis on southern gospel and bluegrass. Tim Stafford, Adam Steffey, and other familiar bluegrass names were contemporaries of his in high school. He met Linda, commuted between Winchester and his home in Tennessee for some time, and they eventually married. When his job in Tennessee disappeared in the mid-sixties, he was casting about for an alternative when the current farm land became available, and they moved to it and began to farm together, while each took jobs in a nearby construction company to actually pay the bills. Since then, farming and bluegrass music have been their life. Their band, Springfield Exit, is currently performing with members Tom Adams on banjo, David McLaughlin on mandolin, Marshall Wilborn on bass, David on guitar, and Linda Lay as lead singer. They will open for Merle Haggard at a sold out concert on November 6 at Handley High School's Patsy Cline Theater in Winchester, VA. David joked that some people have suggested that Haggard will be closing for Springfield Exit. 

In the weeks that had past since we missed finding Linda's Mercantile, summer has passed into autumn and the ripe harvest is now left to pumpkins and apples, including a new variety to us, the wonderful Crimson Crisp.

Harvested Fields & Green Houses

Harvest Display

Cakes & Fudge in the Display Case

David chatted with us for about an hour as he played music from his and Linda's bluegrass history through the store computer and a small speaker. A highlight was David's Dad singing with a southern gospel quartet in East Tennessee during the sixties. And alway, there were examples of Linda Lays clear, resonant, lovely voice from various albums they have appeared on during the years. One that really surprised us was that Linda Lay is featured on one of the first CD's created by Cracker Barrel for its store, a classic country album. Now out of print, we're eager to get ahold of a copy for ourselves. 

Springfield Exit

We had last seen Springfield Exit at the Gettysburg Bluegrass Festival last May, where they opened the day with a well-received program of traditional, classic bluegrass. The performance was particularly notable, as it was one of Tom Adams first shows back on the banjo, after having been sidelined for several years by focal distonia, an injury that has disabled many musicians. Adams spent several years touring with and acting as emcee for Michael Cleveland & Flamekeeper, but his heart was always with the banjo. While he says he's still not back to full bore, it will be the rare banjo aficionado who recognizes anything short of the first rate excellence this three time IBMA banjo player of the year demands of himself. David McLaughlin was a founding member of the Johnson Moutain Boys. Marshall Wilborn performed for years with his wife Lynn Morris in her band as well as playing for the Johnson Mountain Boys and Michael Cleveland and Flamekeeper. He is a four time IBMA bass player of the Year. Linda Lay is a nationally known vocalist and vocal teacher. She is a featured vocalist for the Crooked Road album and has recorded with Sammy Shelor on a dual album.

Linda Lay

 

Tom Adams

Marshall Wilborn

David McLaughlin

David Lay

Springfield Exit - Dark Hollow - Video

As we said our farewells and got back on the road, we were both glad we had had a chance to spend some time and get to know David Lay better. You never know quite what you're going to experience once you get on the bluegrass trail.

A Visit with Wayne Henderson - Master Luthier

Wayne Henderson with Early Henderson Guitar

 We drove west along the Crooked Road through Galax and into Grayson County as the road narrowed and houses became less and less frequent, crossing the badly misnamed New River and beginning to climb into the highlands of Grayson County, headed towards Rugy, VA (pop. 7) including Wayne Henderson. I had wisely asked Wayne for a physical address the Friday before our trip there, because it isn't a place one just happens upon, but the trusty GPS took us right there, despite our reservations. We found the shop around noon, the time when Wayne customarily gets to work, and walked into a beehive of activity.

Crooked Road Way-Sign

Independance, VA

 

Way signs like these are scattered all along the Crooked Road, (U.S. Highway 58) providing a history of local music and people from the early days of recorded music, often with sound samples played over low range FM radio and broadcast to your car. Independence was chosen as the county seat of Grayson County when two other towns competed for the honor. Wayne Henderson's shop is located in the Grayson Highlands.  The four highest peaks in Virginia are also located in Grayson County, as well as rugged country and hills carpeted with Christmas tree farms,which have replaced tobacco as a cash crop.

The Grayson Highlands

 

Wayne Henderson's Shop

Wayne Henderson has emerged as, perhaps, the greatest guitar maker in this golden age of contemporary luthiers. His designs, based upon the legendary work of the pre-war (that is WW II) guitars built by C.F. Martin and Co. in Nazereth, PA, are hand built in his small shop in Rugby, VA. He has built over 500 guitars, as well as assorted mandolins and the occasional ukelele. Wayne Henderson guitars are prized instruments owned by the likes of Eric Clapton (who waited several years for his first guitar) just like everyone else, including country singer Zac Brown, Doc Watson, Peter Rowan, and many others. He recently delivered two guitars to Eric and Leigh Gibson made from the same piece of wood and dubbed "The Twins." Wayne has a reputation for maintaining relatively low prices for his instruments, although they are in high demand and there is a long waiting list to obtain one. A physician located in New England waited seven years for his recently delivered Wayne Henderson D-18, and is said to have cried for joy when it arrived. There is a lively aftermarket for Wayne's instruments which sell for three to ten times their initial cost, but, should an owner decide to sell his, chances of getting another are nil. Other noted luthiers from the region (Jimmy Edmonds, Caleb Smith, Gerald Anderson, Spencer Strickland, and more) all credit Wayne's theories of design and approach to building as having been significantly influential in their own work. In 1995, Wayne Henderson was awarded a National Heritage Fellowship in a White House ceremony. Here's a more extensive article providing additional information about Wayne Henderson and his guitars.

Wayne at Work on a Baritone Ukelele

Wayne Henderson is no local genius working in solitude to build his wonderful and widely sought instruments. His shop is a lively place, filled with friends and visitors come to talk about guitars and gossip about local matters while Wayne keeps on working in their midst, a center of calm concentration surrounded by activity. While we were visiting, Wayne was working on a wedding, a gift Baritone Ukelele, an instrument he hadn't built before. He measured and remeasured to reassure himself that he was placing the fretboard and bridge in the precise places to produce the finest sound. He consulted with design books, checking and re-checking while consulting with others in the room before cutting and placing the diamond shaped inlays on the ebony fretboard. It was only after such constant attention to detail he glued the small, blue diamond shapes pieces in place. 

Consulting with Don Wilson & Harold Blevins

Cutting the Inlays

...and Gluing Them in Place

Herb Key

Herb Key, an employee in the shop, was described as the most knowledgeable Gibson repair man around. Here he works on a thirties era Gibson guitar.

 

Wayne's Filing System

Harold Blevins Sings "Irene, Good Night"

on His 1939 Kalamazoo Archtop 

We found Wayne Henderson not only interesting to watch working, but a warm and welcoming personality with an impish sense of humor and a wealth of stories to tell. I'd really like to go back and record more of his seemingly endless collection of  stories and reminiscences. While he has never strayed very far from the valley he lives in, where he grew up and his ancestors settled, he is a world renowned artist who's work has been recognized both in awards and in the prices his used guitars command.  There isn't an ounce of pretense in him as he seems to have remained the same down home guy he's always been, having continued as postmaster in his small home town for years after it would have paid him handsomely to make guitars full time, as he does now.

Wayne Henderson's First Instrument

...Saved by His Mother

Early Hendersons
 

National Heritage Award

Photo with Hillary Rodham Clinton

Irene off for a Ride with Wayne
in His 1957 Thunderbird 

When Irene and Wayne came back from their ride, Tom and Gail Watts had appeared bearing a delicious pot of chili with all the fixins'. There was plenty for everyone, and we had a very pleasant time visiting as worked stopped for a while. We said our farewells and headed down out of the mountains on a twisty, steep road I'd have liked to stop to photograph, but there were no pull-offs. We had a wonderful day, and hope to get to return.

 Wayne Henderson's Shop

Road Trip with Darin & Brooke Aldridge

We gathered at Darin & Brooke Aldridge's home in Cherryville (that's Churvil for those who don't speak North Carolinian) on a warm, clear Saturday afternoon to drive in their van to Blowing Rock for an evening concert. It was the height of leaf peeping season, and we had heard that traffic up on the Blue Ridge was expected to be heavy. Each year in mid-October, people flock to the Smoky Mountains to enjoy the colors, attend autumn festivals, celebrate the end of the tourist season. We sardined ourselves into the red van with Darin & Brooke's picture on the side as well as the Sun Drop logo, and headed out. Rachel, along with members of her family and Brooke, who had spent the weekend with her parents, would meet us there. 

We had forgotten that Blowing Rock was high along the Blue Ridge Parkway, a mountain village surrounded by seasonal homes and filled with trendy shops and restaurants. A village of about 1200 residents, it swells in season to many times that number. It is at an altitude of around 3500 feet, and on a clear, fall afternoon there's a chill wind blowing through our too light clothing. The streets are filled with similarly garbed people, many eating, unimaginably, beautifully constructed ice cream creations. Restaurants had long waiting lists, many not having a place until 9:00 PM, but we finally were able to get seats for our large party in The Mellow Mushroom, where we enjoyed delicious pizza, sandwiches, and salad. Considering the day's crush, service and quality remained remarkably high.

The Street Scene in Blowing Rock

Meeting and Greeting New Friends

Band Members on the Trip
Dwayne Anderson & Elizabeth Hollified

Colin Willis

Matt Love & Mackenzie

The Blowing Rock School

The concert series sponsored by Mountain Home Music has produced well over 200 concerts in its history, and is now located in the pleasant auditorium of the Blowing Rock School. Under the leadership of Director Joe Shannon, the series continues to offer a strong schedule of concerts to the Blowing Rock community. 

Series Director: Joe Shannon

Mark & Julee Weems

While the program had an unusual structure, the duo of Mark & Jullee Glaub Weems offered a sample of their traditional music between sections of the Darin & Brooke Aldridge show. Billed on line as Little Windows, they were, in part, presenting a preview of a house concert the next day as well as leading a sing-a-long interval in the show.  Julie's clear, warm, Celtic lilted voice led the audience in two songs, leaving me wanting to hear more. I'll look for them in the future. 

Mark Weems

Julee Glaub Weems

The Darin & Brooke Aldridge Band

We've been friends and fans of the Darin & Brooke Aldridge band since before they were a band, having met them through Bobby Jones (Dr. Tom Bibey), when Darin was still singing with The Circuit Riders while he and Brooke had just become engaged.. We've followed them through the foundation of their band, their marriage, and the progress of their band from a local gospel group to a nationally recognized bluegrass band strongly influenced by gospel music. They've developed a catalog of love songs, driving bluegrass songs, and fervent gospel music that draws people to the performance area even when they're scheduled at hard to fill hours bringing people to their feet calling for more.  Through appropriate personnel changes and the addition of fiddler Rachel Johnson Boyd, they've consistently broadened their repertoire and their outreach. Nominated twice as IBMA Emerging Artist of the Year, they continue to draw fans from a wide spectrum of music lovers. 

Darin Aldridge

Brooke Aldridge

Rachel Johnson Boyd

Dwayne Anderson

 Colin Willis

 Matt Love

Darin Aldridge

Brooke Aldridge & Rachel Johnson Boyd

At the close of the well-received show, we loaded sound equipment, instruments, and ourselves back in the van for the trip off the mountain back to the Piedmont. There's a temptation to romanticize the life of a road musician. Many songs and stories tell the truth of the rigors of this life, but there's nothing like riding in a not too comfortable van over narrow, curvy mountain roads at midnight to drive home the truth that this is, at best, a difficult way to make a living and to express one's love for performing great music.  I dozed while Darin drove into the night.....