Suwannee Springfest Spotlight: Sam Bush, Del McCoury

Sam Bush

They call Sam Bush the Father of  Newgrass. Bush will tell you that his definition of newgrass is simply "contemporary music played on traditional bluegrass instruments." That covers a lot of territory.

In the years since Sam Bush's 1970s breakout band, the Newgrass Revival (with John Cowan and banjo impresario Bela Fleck) started bending genres, the morphing of musical styles has grown to jazzgrass, bluesgrass, folkgrass, jahgrass, funkgrass, and now, there's even punkgrass. Those old Newgrass Revival recordings still stand the test of time, and Bush has remained a tireless performer, innovator, and heck of a nice guy.  

A child prodigy musician who was national fiddling champion when he was only 15 years old, Bush is known primarily for his mandolin playing today. But he shreds the electric guitar and the fiddle alike in his fire-fueled performances. He's a four-time International Bluegrass Music Association Mandolin Player of the Year, and has won three Grammy awards.

Bush has played with everybody -- Bill Monroe, Doc and Merle Watson, Emmylou Harris, Lyle Lovett, Jerry Douglas, and Garth Brooks, to name a few famous ones.

Bush is one of this year's headliners at this year's Suwannee Springfest , which kicks off today at Spirit of the Suwannee Music Park  in Live Oak, Fl. Tickets are available, and other details about this amazing fest are here. 

The Sam Bush Band plays at 3:30 p.m. Saturday on the ampitheater stage. And it's a good bet that Sam will be part of the all-star McCoury Jam that assembles later Saturday night -- at midnight in the ampitheater.

Del McCoury

Del McCoury -- another bluegrass legend  who has played with just about everybody, including a host of bluegrass greats as well as contemporary bands like Phish, String Cheese Incident, Steve Earl, and even funkalicious Bootsy Collins (GrooveGrass Boyz) -- hosts that jam. 

The Del McCoury Band is hot, hot, hot --- they won this year's Grammy for Best Bluegrass Album ("Streets of Baltimore.") Besides hosting the late-night jam, The Del McCoury Band plays earlier Saturday, at  6 p.m. Saturday in the ampitheater.  

Suwannee Springfest Countdown: The New 76ers, Love Canon, The Honeycutters, The Stacks, and Holy Ghost Tent Revival

Suwannee Springfest, the Americana extravaganza in the North Florida woods,  kicks off at Spirit of the Suwannee Music Park starting this Thursday, March 20. You can get ticket prices, schedule, and news about the headliners at my previous post.

Today, here's a look at some of the bands you may not know yet but, in festgrrl's humble opinion, you should not miss.

The New 76ers play Friday at 4:45 on the porch stage and 5:15 Saturday in the Music Hall.  You can see my previous post on this most excellent Americana band out of Tallahassee, Florida, here. Outstanding vocal  harmonies, heartfelt lyrics, and beautiful musicianship. Check out this gorgeous tune:



Love Canon, plays 12:15 Thursday night in the ampitheater. These guys are a blast -- supremely talented string players uniquely cover '80s tunes. Check out this version of the Grateful Dead's "Touch of Grey:"




The Honeycutters, out of Asheville, N.C., play at 2:15 in the Meadow on Saturday. Expect catchy hooks, intricate guitar work, and beautiful singing.





The Stacks are a new-ish deo comprised of Tania Elizabeth, well known as the fiddler for the Canadian Americana band The Duhks, and her husband, guitarist-singer Andy Stacks. They play at 6:45 Thursday  in the Music Hall.



Holy Ghost Tent Revival play at 11:15 on the porch stage Friday night. The Holy Ghosters are a hard-working fun touring Americana band out of North Carolina with horns that will have you moving and smiling.

Suwannee Springfest Countdown: The Avett Brothers

They make you cry, they make you laugh, they make you dance, they make you think. A single show takes you on a journey through folk, pop, semi-classical, and even punk. The Avett Brothers are amazing.

festgrrl has had the good fortune of seeing a lot of Avett Brothers shows over the years. The first time they came to our neck of the woods was at a fledgling music festival called Down on The Farm (which later morphed into the successful Bear Creek Music & Arts Festival) in a wide-open field in Quincy, Florida. They were little-known band out of North Carolina  back then, and they left me stunned (and obsessed with their music.) Some favorite older recordings are Gleam,  Emotionalism and The Four Thieves sessions.

The Avett Brothers' talent has now risen to the top and rightly so -- the band  (Brothers Scott Avett (banjo) and Seth Avett (guitar), as well as Bob Crawford (double bass) and Joe Kwon (cello). Mike Marsh (drums) and Paul Delfigia (keyboard) is appearing on national TV, headlining huge shows, and touring all over the world. And we get to see them next week at Suwannee Springfest at Spirit of the Suwannee Music Park in Live Oak, Fl. (For more details on the Suwannee Springfest, click here.)

So aren't' we lucky that they will be playing the ampitheater on Saturday, March 22 at 8:45 p.m. This is a show not to be missed.

This Avett Brothers clip is kind of old -- 2008, but it shows their unique blend of gorgeous vocals, poignant lyrics, unusual phrasing, musical chops, and at the end, full-on stage raging. Yes!!!

Countdown: Suwannee Springfest!

This time next week, lovers of stringed instruments will be seizing life at its finest ---- gathering together in the North Florida woods for Suwannee Springfest, March 20-23 at Spirit of the Suwannee Music Park in Live Oak, Fl.

festgrrl can't recommend this shindig -- now in its 18th year--  enough. Some of the best newgrass acts in the nation will grace the moss-draped stages: incredible North Carolina singer-songwriters and kick-ass performers The Avett Brothers, as well as The Punch Brothers (a band of virtuoso players fronted by MacArthur Genius Grant award-wining mandolin player Chris Thile.) Also on tap is the man considered the father of newgrass, Sam Bush., who always puts on a great show, Donna the Buffalo, The Duhks,  The Del McCoury Band, Greensky Bluegrass, and more. (Click the link or scroll down for the full lineup.)  The daily schedule is here.

Expect lots of campground picking. This is a great fest to bring kids to. Advanced weekend tickets are $170 advanced ($190 at the gate) and include primitive camping alongside your car. There are lots of amenities in the park, including a pretty river beach, a pool, camp store, cabins, golf cart rentals, and a restaurant. Also hotels close by.

festgrrl is particularly excited about the Punch Brothers. They play Friday night at 9:45 in the beautiful outdoor oak-studded ampitheater. Here's a little taste of  Punch Brothers tastiness as part of our Springfest countdown:  

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Here's the full Suwannee Springfest lineup:

The Avett Brothers

Del McCoury Band

Punch Brothers

Sam Bush

Southern Soul Assembly

Jason Isbell

Donna the Buffalo

Steep Canyon Rangers

Jim Lauderdale

Greensky Bluegrass

Willie Sugarcapps

The Duhks

Aoife O'Donovan

Floodwood

Rev Jeff Mosier

Ralph Roddenberry

Rumpke Mountain Boys

David Gans

Honeycutters

Town Mountain

Royal Tinfoil

Holy Ghost Tent Revival

Grant Peeples

Sloppy Joe

Uproot Hootenany

Big Cosmo

Habanero Honeys

New 76's

Jackson Vegas

Quartermoon

James Justin

Roscoe Bandana

SOSOS

Whiskey Gentry

Bibb City Ramblers

2 Foot Level

Henhouse

Come Back Alice

Gypsy Wind

The Stacks

Canary in the Coalmine

Whetherman

Grandpas Cough Medicine

Nook n Cranny

Beartoe

Tammerlin

ARTISTS AT LARGE

Steve Pruett

Lyndsay Pruett

Jon Stickley

Bobby Miller

Screw the IDES, Let's Do The FESTS of March

The Avett Brothers Play Suwannee Springfest This Month

Camping in the spring, listening to talented folks play great music, hanging with your festy friends -- that's the good stuff, good people.

festgrrl's inbox is brimming with info on a plethora of fests happening in the Southeast in March, April, and May.

Let's take it in stages. Today, here's a preview of fests happening in March:

Trombone Shorty Will Play Gasparilla

Gasparilla Music Festival March 8-9; happens in downtown Tampa - not a camping fest. The Flaming Lips, Trombone Shorty, Jason Isbell, The Soul Rebels, Anders Osborne and more. Two-day ticket is $60 advance. Single-day tickets are $40.

Zach Deputy

Zach Deputy's Suwannee Disc Jam March 7-9; An intimate camping music fest that's a disc golf tournament in the day time. Held at  Spirit of the Suwannee Music Park in Live Oak, Fl. Weekend ticket is $40, $45 if you want to play disc golf. Features a show by Zach Deputy every night, as well as other bands, including Tampa's talented jammers, Cope.

The Duhks

Suwannee Springfest March 20-23 - Hands down, the premier Newgrass/Americana festival in the Southeast. Held at the gorgeous Spirit of the Suwannee Music Park in Live Oak, Fl. The Avett Brothers, as well as The Punch Brothers (a band of virtuoso players fronted by MacArthur Genius Grant award-wining mandolin player Chris Thile.) Also on tap is the man considered the father of newgrass, Sam Bush., who always puts on a great show, Donna the Buffalo, The Duhks,  The Del McCoury Band, Greensky Bluegrass, and more.This is a family-friendly camping festival. Advanced weekend ticket is $170, which includes primitive camping. RV spots are extra.

The Corbitt Brothers

Swamptown Getdown March 28-29 - This is a roots-music camping fest at the Okeefenokee Fairgrounds  in Waycross, Georgia Here is the lineup, as they listed it -- I know they mushed the band names together, I can't figure how to pull 'em apart! SixLSixLazy LightningLaurie RiderPine Box DwellersS.P.O.R.E.The WoodgrainsChillakaya 1Dixie WreckThe Silver PalmsDroppersSoul Gravydangfly!Georgia Soul CouncilThe Corbitt BrothersLowdiveand more! It's $40 for a weekend ticket that includes primitive camping. RV spots are extra.

Zach Deputy Disc Jam Coming Right Up

Zach Deputy

Zach Deputy, the one-man-band-funky-looper-dance-party-maker, holds his second annual Zach Deputy's Suwannee  Disc Jam  at Spirit of the Suwannee Music Park  March 7-9. Zach is an infectious performer with funk in his soul - trust me, you will have a great time grooving with this crowd. He calls his music "island infused drum n bass, gospel ninja soul" ---you can head to his site and cue up the player to have a listen. Lately he's been releasing some pretty ballads, and he toured with Karl Denson's Tiny Universe singing Ray Charles covers.

Tickets include primitive camping and they are only $40 for the weekend, $45 if you want to play disc golf.

festgrrl is not a disc golf player, but she went to this camping event last year and had an absolute blast. The disc golf games happen during the day, and music happens at night. Last year's event was an intimate gathering of cool folk at beautiful Spirit of the Suwannee.

Here's the music schedule:

Friday, March 7

11:00-1:00
Zach Deputy
9:00-10:15
Displace
7:00-8:15
Holey Miss Moley

Saturday, March 8

11:00-1:00
Zach Deputy
9:00-10:15
Big Something
7:00-8:15
Cope
5:00-6:15
Sumilan
3:00-4:15
Les Racquet

Sunday, March 9

TBD
Zach Deputy

Bootsy Explains It All Y'all

festgrrl has had occasion recently to see funk pioneer Bootsy Collins (of Parliament Funkadelic, James Brown, and Bootsy's Rubber Band Band fame)  throw down his Vegas-style funk show, at Bear Creek Music and Art Festival last fall, and on Jam Cruise at the beginning of the year.

So I was happy to find this unearthed brief interview where the slap-bass master discusses funk craft and how to hit it on The One. It's about 20 minutes and totally worth it. Enjoy!