BMACC Notes The Bluegrass Music Association of Central Canada Newsletter—Volume 3 Issue 3—August 2009 HARD RYDE tearin’ it up at BEAN BLOSSOM 2009 www.bmacc.caBMACC Notes—August 2009 Page 1 BOARD OF DIRECTORS OBITUARY President – Denis Chadbourn DOYLE, Garret "Dude" Home: 705-776-7754 Work: 705-474-2271 Garret Doyle passed away peacefully on July 19, 2009, with his loving wife Sandy and family at his side in Hamilton. He is sadly missed by family, friends and fans. Vice-president – Donald Tarte Survived by: his mother Mabel, siblings Douglas, Charmaine Smith (Kenny), and 888-876-3369 Darren, children Garret Jr. and Amie, grandchildren Carly and Haley and godchildren Secretary – Wes Lowe Tracy and Kimberlyn. He was predeceased by his father John. 519-539-8967 Garret was an inspiration and mentor to many in the Bluegrass Community, Treasurer – Roland Aucoin entertaining throughout the years with many bands, most recently Level Crossing. 905-635-1818 One of the highlights of his career was playing on the Ryman stage with Blue Mule. Directors at Large Friends and family gathered at DODSWORTH & BROWN Funeral Home in Kitchener to reminisce. Gord deVries 519-668-0418 Cindy deBoer-Winterbottom 905-331-9915 Karen May 705-788-4362 ADVERTISING RATES Steve Pritchard Publicize your event, band or organization in “NOTES” or on 416-696-1241 our website. Bernie Melosh BMACC NOTES Larry Johnston 519-576-9768 Single Issue Annual Brother Brian Powley 1/8 Page (Business Card) $26.67 $ 96.01 613-374-3888 1/4 Page 33.33 119.99 1/2 Page 53.33 191.99 Full Page 80.00 288.00 Envelope stuffing is 10¢ per insert WHAT”S INSIDE WEBSITE From the President—Page 3 River Valley 25th Anniversary—Page 4 Quarterly Annual Out Among the Stars—Pages 5/8 100 px X 250 pixels $20.00 $ 72.00 Bean Blossom 2009—Page 9 200 px X 250 pixels 26.67 96.00 Orono Festival—Page 10 400 px X 250 pixels 46.67 168.00 Ottawa and Seaway Valleys—Page 11 Organizational Memberships – Pages 12/13 The meeting dates below are provided to allow members to make their concerns Bluegrass on the Radio—Pages 13/14 and issues known to a Board Member in advance of the meetings. Bluegrass Bands & Helping Hands—Page 14 Quinte’s Isle Festival—Page 14 Board Meeting Dates—2009 Annual General Meeting Sally Creek Festival—Page 17 September 19th November 21st Letter to the Editor—Page 18 Editorial Comment—Page 18 Please consider becoming a Board Member. You only need to be a member in good standing and share a passion for this music that we all love and want to preserve and promote. We will make you welcome at the Annual Meeting in Huntsville. BMACC Notes—August 2009 Page 2 A MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT time they hear it...but at the very least…the seed gets planted. (It FINDING NEW MARKETS FOR will not grow otherwise). Some listeners in the audience will BLUEGRASS already have heard bluegrass in the past, at a family gathering or something, and it will strike a nostalgic chord with them. It can be extremely rewarding when someone you’ve just won over, I would like to start out by approaches you back stage after your performance, and wants to recognizing Eleanor Bell, for getting buy your CD. For some people, the hillbilly-deliverance stigma bluegrass included on the bill, at that haunts bluegrass, is still out there. We must do our best to one of Northern Ontario’s largest dispel it. Right now, bluegrass is caught somewhere between, music festivals, the Mattawa being on the fringe, and being mainstream. All of us who love Voyageur Days. Bringing bluegrass bluegrass must work together to tip the scales in our favor. before new markets, is integral to its’ survival. We need more go- So, to all you bands and fans out there… YOU are bluegrass getters, like Eleanor, who are actively promoting bluegrass, salesmen, looking for new markets for your product. Image is and who verily believe that more people need to be exposed everything. You are the machinery that sows the seeds, and to it. reaps the harvest. The rewards are commensurate with the risks you take. You are limited, only by your imagination. Look for new I’ll say it again…we, who practice the craft of bluegrass, need opportunities to play gigs, outside of obvious ones. But most to realize that the best way to grow our fan-base, is to importantly, the real key to succeeding is PERSEVERENCE!!!. If expose more people to it. It sounds simple enough, but it’s you knock on enough doors, some new ones will open, just like actually a very difficult thing to do. Sometimes it means they did for Eleanor Bell. travelling long distances just to play for free, or, if you are It need not be a rock festival that you solicit an appearance at… lucky enough, just to break even. (Actually, playing for free bluegrass, by its inherent make-up, includes gospel, old time can be profitable at the right venue, for bands with country, folk, fiddle, and the list goes on. It is up to you to make merchandise for sale.) Sometimes it means stepping outside the venue owners and the music festival directors see, that of our comfort zone, and playing in front of audiences with bluegrass must be heard. non-bluegrass interests, despite the risk of rejection. Let’s face it, playing bluegrass festivals is easy; the audiences there expect to hear bluegrass music; however, exposing a Warm regards, non-traditional audience, (a rock audience for example), to Denis Chadbourn bluegrass…takes guts. I’m sure some of you are shaking your BMACC President heads, thinking…bluegrass at a rock festival? That’s just not right! Well, respectfully, I beg to differ. Listen-up! Without going into are lengthy dissertation on the influence of bluegrass on rock, (we will save that for another day), who among us hasn’t heard cross-over tunes played at a bluegrass festival? Who has not heard “I’ve Just Seen a Face,” a Beatles’ classic, performed on a bluegrass stage? Or have a listen to “Hot Dog,” by Led Zepplin; the beat falls squarely on 4/4 timing, and it is quintessentially a bluegrass song. One of my favorite bands of all time, The Eagles, started out as a country-roots-rock band, regularly featuring banjo and four- part harmony, especially on their earlier stuff. More recently, and closer to home, the Abrams Brothers have had huge success with the Cold Play hit “Viva la Vida.” Breaking through genre barriers is a tough and sometimes painful thing to do. Attempts to do so, frequently result in disappointment. Hey, not everyone likes bluegrass the first Eleanor Bell BMACC Notes—August 2009 Page 3 HAPPY 25TH ANNIVERSARY RIVER VALLEY FESTIVAL DEBOER FAMILY The Bluegrass Music Association of Central Canada, would like to congratulate Mr.Tony Deboer, and the Rivervalley Festival crew, for celebrating their landmark 25th anniversary this year. This 2009 milestone event ran from July 29th to Aug. 2nd, for 5 days consecutively. This is rumored to make it the longest Canadian festival, playing live music on consecutive days. Tony, and his family of volunteers, work so very hard each and every year, to bring this longstanding gathering to fruition, and each mem- ber of the team deserves credit. Headliners for this year’s event included the silky sounds of Russell Moore & III Rd Tyme Out, the blistering guitar mastery of Josh Williams, and the award winning vocals of Dale Ann Bradley. The anniversary also included a reunion of the Grassworks bluegrass band, and an especially endearing original song, written to commemorate the event, performed by Scotia Junction. The Rivervalley festival has now been officially recognized by our federal government, vide Can- ada Post, by virtue of the local post office adopting the festival’s Bucky Beaver logo as it’s emblem, which shall be affixed to outgoing mail. From my perspective, there were record numbers of attendees, and the music was some of the best I have ever heard. But you can bet, that Tony will not rest on his laurels, and that next year’s event will be one you won’t want to miss. “Col. Tony Deboer, I salute you sir!” (Tony is a Kentucky Colonel) Denis Chadbourn President BMACC Tony taking a break BMACC Notes—August 2009 Page 4 Once Clifton's recording was released, it Tony Hazzard OUT AMONG THE STARS was recorded by The Country Gentlemen, but by then, I was no longer Random Bits of news in the band. The Gents on that Now here's a sales pitch: Ability to play from the world of recording were John Duffey, Charlie the banjo soon places one in a social Bluegrass Waller, Eddie Adcock, and Ed Ferris. position to pick and choose from scores of By Tom McCreight Another historical note: on the album social invitations. Everywhere, the cover of the "Bringing Mary Home" banjoist is assured of a hearty welcome. David Davis and the Warrior River Boys album, is a photo, taken through the From THE BANJO, a pamphlet published have a new CD entitled "Two Dimes and dashboard of a car of a girl dressed in by Gibson, 1927. a Nickel". You can listen to some of his white, representing Mary the ghost. The music from his last Rebel recording on person who posed as the ghost girl was myspace at http://www.myspace.com/ Ann Hill, ex-wife of Pete Kuykendall, and East Tennessee State University to daviddavisandwrb mother of Glen Kuykendall.