Well the holiday season is upon us again! Wow, how time get's away from us. As is usually the case, we have slowed down for the winter. We have a few shows left this year, including tonight in Madison, TN at Pope's Place. Showtime is 8pm.
We hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving break. It's always nice to get together with friends and family and remind ourselves that we have so much to be thankful for. Thanksgiving should not be a 1 day affair. We should be thankful everyday for what we have been given. Sure there are some who are more fortunate than others, but someone is always worse off than you are. We should strive always remember and be thankful for the gifts that we have been given.
Well the end of the year for a band always means refelection on each person's role in the group. This year is no different. After much thought, consideration, and prayer, Lorne has decided to leave the band at year's end. Lorne brings a lot to this group. His most recognizable contribution from your perspective is that he holds down the bottom end with good solid bass playing. When I first made the transition to upright bass from the electric bass, I watched Lorne and learned from him and looked up to him. He has a unique style that is easily recognizable and is a huge part of our sound. His shoes will be tough to fill. But, Lorne's contribution to this band is much more than his musical talents. Lorne has provided much wisdom and guidance on the business side of the band and to some of us on a more personal level. Being an engineer by trade, Lorne is a very organized person. He always kept our business meetings organized and kept us all up to date on the financial status of the band. Buddy and Lorne share a particularly close friendship. When asked about Lorne's departure, Buddy said "I have played in a band with Lorne for 9 years and I have never been in a fulltime bluegrass band without him on the bass. I will miss Lorne because he is more than a band member, he is like a member of my family." We look forward to an ongoing friendship with Lorne, but his humor, guidance, and musicianship will be missed by each of us.
I mentioned earlier that Lorne's shoes would be hard to fill. I have been given the daunting task of attempting to fill them. I will take over the bass playing duties when Lorne leaves the band.
Well, that should just about catch you up on where we are. There are some big things in the works for next year. We will be doing the "Song of the Mountain" tv show in August. We're pretty excited about that. There is a lot of stuff going on behind the scenes and we are looking forward to a great year next year.
Until Next Time,
Wayne and all of TBSP
Tuesday, November 30, 2010
Friday, September 24, 2010
Gearing up for IBMA
Hey everybody,
We are looking forward to this weekend and the coming week. Saturday the 25th we will be in Rock Island, TN at the Rocky River Bluegrass festival. We are looking forward to that. Troy Engle will be back with us on the banjo for these 2 shows. We love playing with Troy and we appreciate him filling in with us on this date.
The week of September 27th, we will spend part of the week in Nashville, TN at the IBMA convention. This is always a good time to see old friends and meet new people. We have one showcase Monday night and two showcases on Tuesday night. On Tuesday evening we will be playing a supper time show at 6 PM. Check the IBMA site for specific times for the other showcases. Craig Morris will be on banjo for these shows and will remain with the band through the remaining dates of 2010.
"If I Ever Get Home" is recieving favorable reviews worldwide! Be sure to check out Ted Lehmann's excellent review on his blog. There is also one that has been translated from German and you can find that link on the front page of our website. We appreciate all the good publicity thus far.
Check out the "Shows" page on our website and be sure to come check us out when we are near you. We always enjoy meeting new friends.
Until next time,
Wayne & all TBSP
We are looking forward to this weekend and the coming week. Saturday the 25th we will be in Rock Island, TN at the Rocky River Bluegrass festival. We are looking forward to that. Troy Engle will be back with us on the banjo for these 2 shows. We love playing with Troy and we appreciate him filling in with us on this date.
The week of September 27th, we will spend part of the week in Nashville, TN at the IBMA convention. This is always a good time to see old friends and meet new people. We have one showcase Monday night and two showcases on Tuesday night. On Tuesday evening we will be playing a supper time show at 6 PM. Check the IBMA site for specific times for the other showcases. Craig Morris will be on banjo for these shows and will remain with the band through the remaining dates of 2010.
"If I Ever Get Home" is recieving favorable reviews worldwide! Be sure to check out Ted Lehmann's excellent review on his blog. There is also one that has been translated from German and you can find that link on the front page of our website. We appreciate all the good publicity thus far.
Check out the "Shows" page on our website and be sure to come check us out when we are near you. We always enjoy meeting new friends.
Until next time,
Wayne & all TBSP
Saturday, August 21, 2010
The perfect storm....
Sometimes things come together to create the perfect environment for a great time. Such was the case this past Sunday in Birmingham, AL at the historic Sloss Furnace. It was the annual fundraiser for the Foundry Mission & Recovery Center. It was, however, the first ever Blazin' Bluegrass festival at Sloss Furnace. Blazin' was an appropriate name for the day because it was HOT. Since this was going to be our first time to go to Sloss furnace, we decided to go early and make a day of it so we could get out and enjoy the place.
We arrived at about 1 pm and got the bus parked. There were several thousand people there already. We got out and walked around and did a bit of ghost hunting (Sloss Furnace is haunted, for those who don't know). Well, our excitement was quickly subdued by the sweltering August summer heat. Some of us lasted an hour before we wound up back in the comfort of the bus. When it came time for us to go to the stage to get ready to play, it began to cloud up some. We joked about how we wish it would rain so that everyone would have to come under the roof and listen to us.
We finally took the stage and it had become totally overcast. There were close to 2,000 people under the cover of the roof. The venue where we were playing looked to be the old loading docks. It was a large metal structure that was open on the end and all along the right side of the stage as we looked out. There were also large doors to the outside just on each side of the stage. We kicked off the set and got through the first song without a hitch. As we got into the second song, the wind picked up, blowing in on us from the left side of the stage. By the time the third song ended, the promoter and a weather man from a local TV station interrupted us to announce that we were under a severe thunderstorm warning but the our location wasn't in any immediate danger of anything other than wind and rain. Um, isn't that what tornadoes are made of? We continued. By this time, the crowd had really started to gather in seeking shelter from the impending storm. And then it happened. The bottom fell out. It started raining, a driving rain. We didn't know what to do. It had started while we were mid-song. We still had microphones and people were still there, so we kept going. The roof began leaking on us and the wind was blowing the rain in on us through the aforementioned large door to the left of us. The energy in the crowd began to build. Now, that was interesting. Our instruments were getting wet, we were getting wet, the people were getting wet but nobody was stopping us. So we played on. Some people on the front row got up and started dancing and things really began to break loose. Before we knew it, there were people standing up all over dancing and singing and having a great time. All this while a severe thunderstorm was passing over us. There are not words to describe the energy that was in the place that day. It could only be described as....the perfect storm.
Check out a few of the pics we were able to get while all the excitement was going on at Sloss Furnace.
Until next time,
Wayne & all TBSP
We arrived at about 1 pm and got the bus parked. There were several thousand people there already. We got out and walked around and did a bit of ghost hunting (Sloss Furnace is haunted, for those who don't know). Well, our excitement was quickly subdued by the sweltering August summer heat. Some of us lasted an hour before we wound up back in the comfort of the bus. When it came time for us to go to the stage to get ready to play, it began to cloud up some. We joked about how we wish it would rain so that everyone would have to come under the roof and listen to us.
We finally took the stage and it had become totally overcast. There were close to 2,000 people under the cover of the roof. The venue where we were playing looked to be the old loading docks. It was a large metal structure that was open on the end and all along the right side of the stage as we looked out. There were also large doors to the outside just on each side of the stage. We kicked off the set and got through the first song without a hitch. As we got into the second song, the wind picked up, blowing in on us from the left side of the stage. By the time the third song ended, the promoter and a weather man from a local TV station interrupted us to announce that we were under a severe thunderstorm warning but the our location wasn't in any immediate danger of anything other than wind and rain. Um, isn't that what tornadoes are made of? We continued. By this time, the crowd had really started to gather in seeking shelter from the impending storm. And then it happened. The bottom fell out. It started raining, a driving rain. We didn't know what to do. It had started while we were mid-song. We still had microphones and people were still there, so we kept going. The roof began leaking on us and the wind was blowing the rain in on us through the aforementioned large door to the left of us. The energy in the crowd began to build. Now, that was interesting. Our instruments were getting wet, we were getting wet, the people were getting wet but nobody was stopping us. So we played on. Some people on the front row got up and started dancing and things really began to break loose. Before we knew it, there were people standing up all over dancing and singing and having a great time. All this while a severe thunderstorm was passing over us. There are not words to describe the energy that was in the place that day. It could only be described as....the perfect storm.
Check out a few of the pics we were able to get while all the excitement was going on at Sloss Furnace.
Wayne & all TBSP
Wednesday, August 11, 2010
Busy week....
Hello everybody. After some time off, we got cranked back up last Sunday in Winchester, TN at the Riva Lake Baptist Church. We had a great time! We don't get to play close to home very much and this was a treat for us to do. In fact, it was a double treat. Because not only were we close to home, but we were at a church. We don't get to play churches much these days and we really do enjoy doing that. We usually use the single microphone set up when we are in a church and it is so much fun for 4 guys to be working around one microphone. I'm sure it's quite entertaining to watch too because it always looks like, at any moment, one of us could get hit in the head by a banjo or guitar or something. It's a lot of fun! The cooking was awesome at Riva Lake and all the folks made us feel so welcome. Thanks Riva Lake!
"If I Ever Get Home" is still on the Cash Box music charts. This month it's number 17. We feel fortunate to still be on there with the greats of our business. We also did an interview with one of the largest magazines in Mexico! That was very interesting and exciting!
Friday we will be in Franklin, TN at the Williamson County fair. We're looking forward to seeing everyone out there. Sunday, we make our way down to Birmingham, AL to play at historic Sloss Furnace. This is a one day festival benefiting the Foundry Mission & Recovery Center. Please take a moment to check out their website, as this is a very worthwhile mission that these folks are involved in.
Be sure to check out our website and come and see us when we are near you. We really do love meeting people and want to see you at our next show!
Until next time,
Wayne & all TBSP
"If I Ever Get Home" is still on the Cash Box music charts. This month it's number 17. We feel fortunate to still be on there with the greats of our business. We also did an interview with one of the largest magazines in Mexico! That was very interesting and exciting!
Friday we will be in Franklin, TN at the Williamson County fair. We're looking forward to seeing everyone out there. Sunday, we make our way down to Birmingham, AL to play at historic Sloss Furnace. This is a one day festival benefiting the Foundry Mission & Recovery Center. Please take a moment to check out their website, as this is a very worthwhile mission that these folks are involved in.
Be sure to check out our website and come and see us when we are near you. We really do love meeting people and want to see you at our next show!
Until next time,
Wayne & all TBSP
Sunday, July 18, 2010
The first chart action for "If I Ever Get Home"
Hello everybody! I have some exciting news to share with you all. Our album has debuted at #14 on the Cashbox Magazine monthly Bluegrass chart! We are very excited and want to thank all of you who have purchased the album and requested "If I Ever Get Home" on the radio. Exciting things are starting to happen!
We would also like to announce that we have started working with Melissa Lawrence. She will be booking the band as well as handling the promotion of the album. If you have any questions about booking TBSP for your next event, please feel free to call or write Melissa. Her contact info is here on the website.
Yesterday, we played in Rogersville, AL at the 9th annual bluegrass festival there. We had a great time there and enjoyed meeting everyone. That was really a good festival in a good park. There was lots of good food, too. We would like to give the guys at JBM sound a big pat on the back. They done just a phenomenal job with the sound. When the sound is good, it makes our job a whole lot easier. Thanks guys!
While we're thanking people and announcing and all that good stuff, I might as well tell you about the people that help us sound good. We would like to thank Ernie Ball Strings. If you are having trouble with strings breaking, Ernie Ball is your answer. They make a good, long-lasting string that also sounds good. We highly recommend trying their banjo, guitar and mandolin strings. Also check out ErnieBall.com for accessories and apparel as well. We also want to thank Nechville Banjos. Weston plays and endorses Nechville. Its a great sounding, great looking banjo. They have several models to choose from, all built with the same Nechville quality. Finally, I want to tell you about Blue Chip Picks. These are they closest picks to actual tortoise picks that we've found. They are really durable and slide right off the string. These picks are a dream to play with.
Wow, there has been a lot of information thrown at you here. I promise, there is still more to come. There is lot's of stuff happening behind the scenes that we can't announce just yet, but keep checking back and just as soon as we have some things firmed up, we will let you know.
Back in a bit,
Wayne
We would also like to announce that we have started working with Melissa Lawrence. She will be booking the band as well as handling the promotion of the album. If you have any questions about booking TBSP for your next event, please feel free to call or write Melissa. Her contact info is here on the website.
Yesterday, we played in Rogersville, AL at the 9th annual bluegrass festival there. We had a great time there and enjoyed meeting everyone. That was really a good festival in a good park. There was lots of good food, too. We would like to give the guys at JBM sound a big pat on the back. They done just a phenomenal job with the sound. When the sound is good, it makes our job a whole lot easier. Thanks guys!
While we're thanking people and announcing and all that good stuff, I might as well tell you about the people that help us sound good. We would like to thank Ernie Ball Strings. If you are having trouble with strings breaking, Ernie Ball is your answer. They make a good, long-lasting string that also sounds good. We highly recommend trying their banjo, guitar and mandolin strings. Also check out ErnieBall.com for accessories and apparel as well. We also want to thank Nechville Banjos. Weston plays and endorses Nechville. Its a great sounding, great looking banjo. They have several models to choose from, all built with the same Nechville quality. Finally, I want to tell you about Blue Chip Picks. These are they closest picks to actual tortoise picks that we've found. They are really durable and slide right off the string. These picks are a dream to play with.
Wow, there has been a lot of information thrown at you here. I promise, there is still more to come. There is lot's of stuff happening behind the scenes that we can't announce just yet, but keep checking back and just as soon as we have some things firmed up, we will let you know.
Back in a bit,
Wayne
Friday, July 2, 2010
Happy Fourth!!
Hello and Happy July 4th to everyone! I hope everyone has a good Independence Day. I also hope you take the time to reflect on what this country was founded on. These days it seems like our country's leaders have forgotten about what our founders had in mind when they established our independence. It seems as if more and more of our freedoms are taken away from us as time passes. We need to remember this when it comes time to vote. Those responible need to be held accountable for their actions. The way that you, as an American citizen, can do that is to go and vote. Also, don't forget to thank a veteran, this weekend. They helped keep us as free as we are today. These are people who don't know who you are, but they were willing to step up and say "I will defend this country's freedom, even if it costs me my life". So as you gather with your family this weekend, take a few minutes to reflect on the history of this great nation. Remember that as bad as things may seem to be today, this is still the greatest nation in the world and God has his hand on us!
Enjoy your holiday!
Wayne & all The Bluegrass Soul Pickers
Enjoy your holiday!
Wayne & all The Bluegrass Soul Pickers
Thursday, June 24, 2010
Belated update
Hey folks! I'm sorry for the belated update on our Arkansas trip. When we got to Waldron, much to our chagrin, we had no cell phone or internet service. You should have seen us walking around the campground for 2 days trying to catch a signal with our phones so that we could make a quick call home. I'm sure it was quiet comical at times. That explains the phone booth that they had right in the middle of the campground. I haven't seen one of those in a long time. Then we got back Friday morning at about 7 am and I spent the next 2 days trying to get rid of "bus lag", then there were the festivities surrounding Father's Day. It's been wild around home for us all.
Turkey Track was a very beautiful campground that was down in a hole between two ridges. We had a great time playing, but it sure was hot! We appreciate Troy Engle going along with us and helping us out on banjo and fiddle. He is very talented and an all around great guy to hang out with.
The stage at Turkey Track was really cool. It had a lots of wood work and ornamentation around it, but the thing that caught our attention, was a great big American flag as the back drop. I don't think enough people these days honor our flag and this country enough. Seeing the flag inspired us to do something we had never done before. For our encore number for the Thursday evening show, we did an a capella version of "God Bless America". It was awesome to see the crowd of around 1,ooo people rise to their feet in honor of their country and our flag. Some were waving thier hats, some were smiling, others had tears in their eyes. It was an awesome night!
Once again, the bus performed flawlessly, well almost. We were riding along Friday morning, somewhere in Mississippi at about 3 in the morning, when all of the sudden the door just opened up! We hadn't hit a bump or anything it just opened up! As you can imagine, it scared me to death. Lorne was asleep on the couch in the front lounge and everyone else was asleep in the bunks. I was able to wake Lorne to come up and close it and we made the remainder of the trip without incident. By the way, we think the reason for the thud that we heard on the trip out there was the result of us loosing our center hub cover off of the front wheel. It is no big deal because the piece only serves as a cover and is not really functional.
Be sure to check back often, as there are some exciting things happening in the TBSP camp that I hope to be able to tell you about real soon.
Later,
Wayne
Turkey Track was a very beautiful campground that was down in a hole between two ridges. We had a great time playing, but it sure was hot! We appreciate Troy Engle going along with us and helping us out on banjo and fiddle. He is very talented and an all around great guy to hang out with.
The stage at Turkey Track was really cool. It had a lots of wood work and ornamentation around it, but the thing that caught our attention, was a great big American flag as the back drop. I don't think enough people these days honor our flag and this country enough. Seeing the flag inspired us to do something we had never done before. For our encore number for the Thursday evening show, we did an a capella version of "God Bless America". It was awesome to see the crowd of around 1,ooo people rise to their feet in honor of their country and our flag. Some were waving thier hats, some were smiling, others had tears in their eyes. It was an awesome night!
Once again, the bus performed flawlessly, well almost. We were riding along Friday morning, somewhere in Mississippi at about 3 in the morning, when all of the sudden the door just opened up! We hadn't hit a bump or anything it just opened up! As you can imagine, it scared me to death. Lorne was asleep on the couch in the front lounge and everyone else was asleep in the bunks. I was able to wake Lorne to come up and close it and we made the remainder of the trip without incident. By the way, we think the reason for the thud that we heard on the trip out there was the result of us loosing our center hub cover off of the front wheel. It is no big deal because the piece only serves as a cover and is not really functional.
Be sure to check back often, as there are some exciting things happening in the TBSP camp that I hope to be able to tell you about real soon.
Later,
Wayne
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