Giggin' in Gettysburg

Thanks to our inimitable booking agent, Jim Roe, we slipped onto the roster at the Gettysburg Bluegrass Festival at the last minute.  That sure was our good fortune, because our visit there turned out to be a wonderful experience.  The crew piled into a caravan of vehicles and drove ten hours through the spectacular Allegheny Mountains to arrive in time to set up, rehearse, and enjoy some splendid back-stage fare provided by the promoter.  The festival actually is held in May and August -- this was its 34th year -- and wizened veterans tell us that usually the weather in August is steaming hot.  Well, all those gospel tunes we sing must've struck a chord upstairs, because the weather for our day there was near-perfect, upper 70s, glorious sunshine, dry ground and light winds.  It was a relaxing day of music, networking, and marketing our wares.  Peter got a chance to get a few pointers from the great Mike Cleveland, and to try out his five-string fiddle.  Mike hit the stage for rousing sets not only with his own great band but then sat in with J.D. Crowe's band, filling in for Dwight McCall.

Our sets felt wonderful.  This festival has a new, spacious stage, a powerful sound system, and a broad expanse of grass for a large and appreciative audience.  This was our first outing since Missy's "Lovin' Liza Jane" made #2 on the Bluegrasstoday.com weekly chart and we got a warm reception from the audience.  The festival also set up a nice workshop tent where we did a "Detour Drive-by" performance and answered questions from listeners.

This was one of the best -organized and -equipped festivals we've played at, and we sure hope we'll be back again!