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Betty's list of Area Jams and Festivals, and Reviews |
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List of Area Jams, Festivals, and Contests
Reviews by Betty Westmoreland
Review of Concert by the Grascals at
The Lucy Opry on January 25, 2008
The 2008 concert by the Grascals actually began in the lobby of the Bartlett Performing Arts & Conference Center (BPACC, 3663 Appling Road, Bartlett, TN), with a mini-concert by some potential future Grascals. The crowd gathered there for the Lucy Opry performance was treated to some really fine bluegrass and country music tunes from seven very young violin students. Very young! This writer has socks older than some of those kids! There they were, dressed smartly in dark slacks and white shirts and with violins and bows in their hands. Their leader is LIBBY ARMOUR, who directed the TOSCANINI CHAMBER ENSEMBLE, as the group is known. The kids know their stuff! They delighted the crowd, who applauded enthusiastically and snapped photos as the players worked their way through the short program. We would hope to see more of this fine group of musicians. Who are they? The Ensemble is ETHAN BAKER, MICHAEL KLYCE, RYAN THOMPSON, ELENA VELAZQUEZ, WILL WALKER, MARY WRIGHT, and WES WRIGHT. A fine program from some very fine young musicians!
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Review of
Concert by Steep Canyon Rangers at
The Lucy Opry on November 16, 2007
Sure, it’s an unusual name—Steep Canyon Rangers—but when those five talented young men hit the stage at the Lucy Opry in the Bartlett Performing Arts & Conference Center (BPACC) on November 16, 2007, they removed all doubts about who they were! Fans know that there must be something in the air, the water, or the trees in North Carolina. That state just seems to be filled to overflowing with fine bluegrass musicians, and the Steep Canyon Rangers represent a bumper crop!
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Review of
Concert by Alicia Nugent at
The Lucy Opry on October 20, 2007
What a thrill it is to see fine young bluegrass music artists as they start their own careers! The Alecia Nugent Band came to the Lucy Opry in the Bartlett Performing Arts & Conference Center (BPACC) on October 20, 2007, All the band members are young and eager to prove themselves to a tough, often-unforgiving genre like bluegrass music. While the crowd numbers were disappointing, the troupers in the Alecia Nugent Band ripped right into their show as though every seat were filled!
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Review of
Concert by Blue Highway at
The Lucy Opry on September 22, 2007
When it is time for the best in bluegrass music, one band comes to mind for the discriminating listener—Blue Highway. The band is now a time-honored tradition in Memphis. The Lucy Opry continues to host Blue Highway each September, just prior to the International Bluegrass Music Association (IBMA) World of Bluegrass, which is held annually in Nashville, TN, at the Renaissance Center. Blue Highway came to town on September 22, 2007, filled the Bartlett Performing Arts & Conference Center (BPACC), and completely blew away everybody in the room.
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Review of
Concert by The Claire Lynch Band at
The Lucy Opry on August 11, 2007
Someone wiser than this writer once said, “You can’t improve on perfection,” but in the case of the Claire Lynch Band, that old adage can be put to rest. This wonderful band has always been able to make band changes, mix familiar material with new tunes, and keep right on stepping with delightful performances. They just keep on getting better. The concert on August 11, 2007, at the Bartlett Performing Arts & Conference Center (BPACC) was no exception.
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Review of
Concert by Cedar Hill at
The Lucy Opry on July 28, 2007
Forty years in bluegrass music means that Frank Ray and his incredible band, Cedar Hill, have had time to dig deep to find what they’re looking for, refine it, and work it down to its purest form. The Cedar Hill concert at the Lucy Opry in the Bartlett Performing Arts & Conference Center (BPACC) on Saturday, July 28, 2007, proved again that Cedar Hill has what it takes to be out there some forty years later. They have indeed ‘worked it down to its purest form,’ vocally and instrumentally. Cedar Hill is a major force in bluegrass music! Their many albums, shows, and concerts all over the USA and beyond, are proof that bluegrass music fans recognize the real stuff when they see and hear it.
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Review of
Concert by the Peter Rowan & Tony Rice Quartet at
The Lucy Opry on May 5, 2007
No sooner was it announced in 2006 about the artists for the grand finale of the 2007 Pickin’ Picnic, than bluegrass fans put it on their calendars and made arrangements to get tickets for May 5, 2007. The Bartlett Performing Arts & Conference Center (BPACC) and the Lucy Opry combine forces each year to provide two days of free picking and performances by local bluegrass bands. The highlight of the picnic is the act which is booked to close the event. BPACC and the Lucy Opry completely outdid themselves this year with the incredible talents of the Peter Rowan & Tony Rice Quartet. The Memphis bluegrass music community owes a debt of gratitude to BPACC’s Ron Jewell and the Lucy Opry’s Will and Beth Mays.
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Review of
Concert by the Charlie Sizemore Band at
The Lucy Opry on April 13, 2007
The Charlie Sizemore Band brought their sound to the stage of the Lucy Opry in the Bartlett Performing Arts and Conference Center (BPACC) on Friday, April 13, 2007. Despite rain and cold temperatures, hardy bluegrass music fans made it to the band’s performance. Attendance was down a bit, and this reviewer attributed that to weather conditions and to the fact that perhaps many locals are unfamiliar with the work of the Charlie Sizemore Band. There is no doubt about the rich musical experiences of each band member.
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Review of
Concert by Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver at
The Lucy Opry on March 11, 2007
As surely as spring follows winter, bluegrass music fans in West Tennessee know that they can count on their annual visit from Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver. On March 11, 2007, the tradition continued at the Lucy Opry in the Bartlett Performing Arts and Conference Center (BPACC) in Bartlett, TN. Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver is the current International Bluegrass Music Association (IBMA) Vocal Group of the Year. The band is also nominated this year for gospel music’s Dove award......
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Review of
Concert by the Dry Branch Fire Squad at
The Lucy Opry on February 17, 2007
When the Dry Branch Fire Squad ambled onto the stage at the Lucy Opry in the Bartlett Performing Arts and Conference Center (BPACC) on February 17, 2007, their loyal followers knew that they were about to be entertained in a major way. Those folks were not disappointed.
Memphis bluegrass fans have loved their Dry Branch Fire Squad for a lot of years. They love the vocals, the instrumental work, the CDs, caps and T-shirts. They even love the Dry Branch Fire Squad Security System, more easily recognized, perhaps, as a little signature pocket knife ......
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Review of Stone County Connection Band Workshop on 2/10/2007
Bluegrass bands and musicians in the Memphis area were pleased to have a guest band to give a free band workshop on February 10, 2007. The Lord of Life Lutheran Church (Satinwood @ Old Poplar Pike) was the site for the first Memphis Area Bluegrass Association (MABA) educational program of the 2007 season. The award-winning Stone County Connection, based in Jackson, TN, brought some lessons which they have learned along the way about how this whole ‘band thing’ works. Perhaps the only negative factor was the sound level from the hallway, which spilled over into the sanctuary where the workshop was being conducted.
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Review of
Concert by the Grascals at
The Lucy Opry on January 26, 2007
The Grascals roared onto the stage to begin their electrifying performance as only they can do! The current International Bluegrass Music Association (IBMA) Entertainers of the Year and winners of awards from the Society for the Preservation of Bluegrass Music of America (SPBGMA), just knocked the fans right out of their seats!
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Review of
Concert by the Kenny and Amanda Smith Band at
The Lucy Opry on November 17,
2006
The Kenny and Amanda Smith Band treated locals to some musical delights with their appearance at the Lucy Opry in the Bartlett Performing Arts and Conference Center (BPACC) on November 17, 2006.
Aspiring guitar players are quite familiar with Indiana native, Kenny Smith, who was recently nominated by the International Bluegrass Music Association (IBMA) as Guitar Player of the Year, an honor which Kenny has previously won twice. He is the ‘flatpicker’s flatpicker,’ and the listener can certainly hear it in his work. He picked up a beautiful elderly clawhammer banjo at one point during their show and demonstrated even more expertise on “Mississippi Sawyer”. A former member of the Lonesome River Band, Kenny Smith has solo recordings and a two-DVD instruction set available. He is a much-sought-after instructor for workshops and master classes.
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Review of Concert by Blue Highway at
The Lucy Opry on September 23, 2006
Neither rain, nor wind, nor threats of thunderstorms with the possibility of tornadoes, could keep the enthusiastic fans of Blue Highway out of the Lucy Opry on September 23, 2006. Bluegrass musicians and fans thrive on adversity, especially where it concerns weather, and there we all were to see the International Bluegrass Music Association-nominated band perform. The house was full of folks who follow and support Blue Highway. Popular favorites at the IBMA and everywhere else they go, Blue Highway makes an annual stop at the Lucy Opry in the Bartlett Performing Arts & Conference Center (BPACC) before they head out to Nashville, TN, and the World of Bluegrass, which is held at the Renaissance Center. Going to a bluegrass search site for groups which represent the tightest vocals and finest instrumental work, the reader would find Blue Highway right there at the top of the list.
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Review of
Concert by the Claire Lynch Band at
The Lucy Opry on August 5, 2006
The concert on August 5, 2006, at the Lucy Opry in the Bartlett Performing Arts & Conference Center (BPACC) by the Claire Lynch Band was another wonderful opportunity to see and hear one of the finest vocal and instrumental groups in bluegrass music! While this reviewer heard the band at the Concert for Ataxia in Huntsville, AL, only two weeks prior to their appearance at the Lucy, she was more than eager to hear them again. This kind of interest began about 25 years ago, when the reviewer first heard the Front Porch String Band, which was Claire Lynch, husband Larry Lynch, Herb Trotman, and Andy Meginniss, as they performed what is now a signature song for Claire, “Kennesaw Line,” written by Don Dunaway. “Kennesaw Line” cuts right through to the heart of the listener. It reveals a story by a Confederate soldier named Sammy Watkins, and Company H of the Maury County (TN) Grays, as Sammy tells of the events which happened north of Marietta, GA, in the War Between the States. The years have brought personnel changes in the band, many new songs, and new fans to be added to their huge following. At the core, the heart and the soul of this band, stands world-class songwriter, vocalist, and guitarist, Claire Lynch.
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Review of
Concert by Chris Stuart and Backcountry at
The Lucy Opry on July 8, 2006
The concert on July 8, 2006, at the Lucy Opry in the Bartlett Performing Arts & Conference Center (BPACC) by Chris Stuart and Backcountry was wonderful, to put it mildly. Despite the low turnout, the band delivered as real professionals do. They played for us as though the house was packed, which it should have been. It is just such a thrill to see and hear bands from other parts of the country, and to experience their interpretations of bluegrass music.
Review of Concert by
Laurie Lewis and The Right Hands at
BPACC/The Lucy Opry Pickin’ Picnic on May 6,
2006
The Bartlett Performing Arts & Conference Center (BPACC), along with the Lucy Opry, have once again outdone themselves for another successful Pickin’ Picnic. The annual event was held on May 5-6, 2006, and a huge crowd turned out for the event. Many thanks are in order for Ron Jewell and his BPACC staff, and for Will and Beth Mays and the crew of the Lucy Opry. Thank you to everyone who had a hand in the picnic and the ticketed show which closed the weekend of bluegrass, food, and fun.
While the event’s closing artists are usually a rather well-kept secret for a short time, it became big news this season when ardent bluegrass music fans learned that LAURIE LEWIS AND THE RIGHT HANDS were making their only stop in Tennessee for the whole remainder of the year right here at the BPACC/Lucy Opry Pickin’ Picnic. With such an appropriate name, no wonder it is obvious that they are indeed ‘the right hands’ for the job of playing some of the finest bluegrass music ever performed in that venue. They were just magic—so pleasing to the eye and the ear, as they played with each other, for each other, and most importantly, for their audience.
Claire brings with her one of the finest bands in bluegrass music: Jim Hurst (guitar, vocals), Missy Raines (bass, vocals), and David Harvey (mandolin, vocals). Guest performers on the album are Stuart Duncan (fiddle), Andrea Zonn (fiddle), Charlie Cushman (banjo), Alison Brown (banjo), Larry Atamanuik (drums), and Rob Ickes (Dobro). Claire also gives a great amount of credit to engineer Ben Surratt, who she says has “a subtle ear for recording sensitive, acoustic music [which is a] big, big contribution!” This CD just has ‘power-packed’ written all over it!