Joe Mullins & The Radio Ramblers at the 2019 High Mountain Hay Fever Festival in Colorado
This report is a contribution from Kevin Slick, President of the Colorado Bluegrass Music Society and member of Annie Savage & Savage Hearts.
High Mountain Hay Fever is one of Colorado’s favorite festivals for many reasons. Hosts, Dry Branch Fire Squad always provide the soul of mountain music, as well as Ron Thomason’s hilarious hillbilly stories. There’s an amazing backdrop to the stage, the Sangre de Christo mountain range which is worth the price alone. Add to all of this a weekend of heartfelt music that flows seamlessly from an old time duo like Paper Wings, to the hard driving southern sounds of The Kody Norris Show.
The slogan for the festival is “Small Scale, Big Time,” and that’s right on target. This past weekend fans enjoyed artists such as Joe Mullins and the Radio Ramblers, Hall of Famers Eddie and Martha Adcock with Tom Gray, Nothing Fancy, and Jim Gaudet and the Railroad Boys. The Hard Road Trio with Bill Evans, FY5, Six Dollar String Band and The Savage Hearts with Kevin Slick represented the southwestern scene.
Paper Wings along with Danny Schmidt and Carrie Elkin delivered stunning songwriting throughout the weekend.
