3 posts tagged “dirty river band”
Attendants at the Bluemont Vineyard tent
19 September 2009: at Bluemont, Virginia
OK, surprise me. That's always been my attitude in life. It's early fall here near the Blue Ridge Mountain foothills and time for numerous Fall Festivals throughout Northern Virginia and the Chesapeake Region. Our region is not just politicians or who's on top of the National Capital pecking order. Besides, that ilk wouldn't know a Dobro if they tried to go to bed with one (as noticed at the wine festival after Dirty River got done with their set. A rather well-dressed local horsey-person female came up to Michael Barton and inquired about the unusual instrument he was playing. I have to hand it to you, Mike, I wouldn't have had the patience!). So the afternoon wore on as the locally produced wine flowed. I don't drink, so the whole experience of sitting in the middle of horsey-people getting crocked on a beautiful afternoon was a total trip for me. I came for the music - what else is there in life? - and as I've mentioned so many times before, we live in the heart of what traditional, hard-core, Bluegrass Music is all about. I'm constantly amazed at the local talent we have, and the local talent Northern Virginia has launched into the Big Time.
I have to admit I went to the annual Bluemont Event once, a long time ago. Back when there were only two-lane country roads up to Bluemont, Purcellville, and all those little villes past Leesburg, heading toward the West Virginia border. Gary Cole, bass-player for Dirty River Band, said to me some weeks ago, "Hey. Come up and catch our act at Bluemont!" God couldn't have picked a more beautiful weekend. The weather and scenery on the way up were spectacular. The old horse farms along the way are still there and so are the low rock walls that separate some of the farms. I'm shocked that local rat-bags haven't stolen the walls, like they do so frequently now up in New England. The old two-lane country roads are still there too, but you have to go beyond Aldie now to experience their beauty.
I got up to Bluemont early and I'm glad I did. The Chamber of Commerce and the local police shut down the whole town for the two-day event. After I parked, floods of vehicles started pouring in. The Fair and Wine Festival covers the whole expanse of the town and there were thousands of people. With traffic shut down on the main drag it was easy to walk the whole event. Someone yelled my name and I was surprised to run into Marc Leepson, author, noted art critic, and one of the national editors for Vietman Veterans of America. We chatted a while as I perused my town map and tried to figure out the location of Plaster's Field. There were different music venues everywhere. I listened to some of it and wasn't much impressed, but I have to admit that the Fair organizers and the good folks in Bluemont really out-do themselves when it comes to throwing a communal gathering.
I finally figured out my destination and headed toward the other end of town where all the wine vendors were located. There was a small grove of trees, hay bales, some old farm equipment, and a few bulls and cows watching the whole scene behind a barbed-wire fence. In the distance were the foothills of the Blue Ridge. The wine-tasters had already started imbibing and so had a husband and wife musical duo. Butch and Michelle Nielson, local Bluemont musicians, were mellowing out the growing audience with old country and western numbers and classic rock and roll. I like it when people stop gabbing and drinking and begin to listen - and it was obvious Butch and Michelle were winning over the crowd. The music, the banter, was perfect for the setting. A grove of trees, a light breeze, dappled sunlight on an early fall afternoon. It got even better when Evan Sands and Gary Cole of the Dirty River Band joined them for some impromptu jamming on some old Johnny Cash and Beatles numbers. Gary's group took over at the appointed time. Main Street (Snickersville Road) became a log-jam of foot traffic and people trying to enter the Fair. It was nice that the Wine Festival portion of the Fair was off the beaten track. Dirty River went through the entirety of their newly released CD plus a few old bluegrass chestnuts. "Banks of the Ohio" never sounded better. These guys excel on the instrumental side, and will get better with time on the vocal side. Of particular note are Evan Sands on Banjo and Michael Barton on Dobro. These guys are top-notch and Barton plays some of the best Dobro I've heard in the area. It should also be noted that these guys were playing in the hardest possible conditions - no sound equipment, no frills, in a grove of trees, and before a crowd that definitely didn't come to hear the music. But Hey - support your local Virginia Vintner - I think I read somewhere that Virginia wine production is Number Two or Three in the U.S.
Dirty River Band will be opening for Audie Blaylock and Redline at the Old Lucketts Schoolhouse on Saturday, December 5th, 2009. Contact them at www.dirtyriverdc.com
Butch and Michelle Nielson, Bluemont musicians
The Dirty River Band at Bluemont
Marc Leepson at Bluemont - one of Virginia's best historical authors and a nationally recognized art critic. And yes, Virginia, he's also a Vietnam Veteran.
Evan Sands, Billy Park, Gary Cole, Michael Barton, John Relph
19 September 2009: Bluemont, Virginia.
This is God's Country. The perfect afternoon and the perfect place to catch the Dirty River Band in two hours of performance at the Bluemont Fair and Wine Festival. Although they've been on the Washington D.C. gigging scene for a couple of years now, the relatively new line-up is beginning to make some waves with some local air-play and important interviews. More to follow . . . . .
Dirty River Band: Billy Park - Guitar, Evan Sands - Banjo, Michael Barton - Dobro, John Relph - Mandolin, Gary Cole - Bass. New Graveyard Train CD is available on CDBaby. For more information and Calendar go to www.dirtyriverdc.com
23 August 09 - Lucketts, Virginia Event
"The Practitioners" arrived at Lucketts again for the 37th Annual Lucketts Fair. A yearly meeting of the true-believer Alchemists of the Bluegrass profession who come out of the hills of the region (and the Washington/Baltimore city suburbs) to brew up special concoctions of old-time string-band magic. There are Practitioners and then there are wannabees. Lucketts rarely fails in delivering two full days of strong chemistry from the Practitioners - those groups that have foresaken modernity, the easy way out, the cheap thrill, to deliver up real music without the baggage of slick packaging, stage gags, mechanical bulls, or having to swing out into the audience on ropes to make yourself known. This is entertainment the way it's supposed to be seen and heard. It's even more incredible to think that for Five bucks a day, you can listen to some of the best nationally known bluegrass Practitioners in the business of Bluegrass today.
I'm partial to Ernie Bradley and Grassy Ridge - I'll make that admission right now. This is one of the hardest working bands around. But right behind them is every other band that appeared on this year's roster. Each band was different in its own way, with different levels of talent, but you don't attend the Lucketts events to see shooting stars or inducted members of the Bluegrass Hall of Fame (believe me, they were there - talk about being shocked) you attend this event to immerse yourself in musical purity at the gut-level. Unadulterated vocals around one microphone. This is about the power of the voice, the words to the story, and the accompaniment of simple stringed intruments. Leave all the flowery and complicated stuff to people who wrote 19th Century Ballet music. The true believer Practitioner is born out of that simplicity of the Appalachians and mounts the stage knowing that he isn't there to hoodwink anybody out of their hard-earned pocket change - unless it's to buy a CD. Every act ends with, "Be sure and drop by our CD table and pick up our latest." Even with that I never feel cheated - it costs money to produce these things and we all know everyone is out to rape the artist who just might have the potential to make it big someday.
You know these guys are never going to get rich - the best they can hope for is deserved fame and recognition that somehow they'll be remembered long after they're gone, for carrying on a tradition that hopefully will never be forgotten by music lovers. At the root of it, the Practitioner delivers up his or her talents with the most amount of humility and honesty they can muster. That, my friends, is an appalachian tradition.
Members of Grassy Ridge tune up at the Lucketts Fair
Tom Gray of "Eastern Tradition" and bass-player Gary Cole of "Dirty River Band."
