Banjo Island Archives - Bluegrass Today

This report from the 2013 Outer Banks Bluegrass festival comes from Carmen Evans, with photos from our own Woody Edwards.

Well, you couldn’t visit the Wright Brothers Memorial, fish out of Oregon Inlet Fishing Center, or park as expected at Fort Raleigh due to the government shutdown, but you could hear and see some of the best in bluegrass music at Roanoke Island Festival Park this past weekend.

Walking into the park, it was nice to see a variety of vendors, artists, and Manteo’s finest restaurants partaking in celebrating bluegrass Music. The aroma from all the food vendors made you want to eat all day, and the artists on site had beautiful hand-crafted items, and of course hand-made hoops. There was a whole lot of hooping going on!

Just as Raleigh had the red carpet rolled out for IBMA, Manteo had a warm and welcoming one for their bluegrass fans, and for visitors who traveled along the east coast for one more weekend at the beach before Fall. A particular highlight was the Boomgrass fireworks display on Friday night, with a $30,000 pyrotechnics display synched to bluegrass music.

Despite the beautiful weather, hurricanes seemed to be on everyone’s mind, as both Banjo Island and Lorraine Jordan and her Carolina Road Boys offered great versions of their songs about those windy beasts. Russell Moore and IIIrd Tyme Out played an outstanding set featuring many of their original songs as well as their cover of the John Hartford hit, Gentle on my Mind.

Sweet Brenda and Gary “Biscuit” Davis were a playful duo as MC’s for the show, entertaining the crowd between sets.

We caught the Isaac Brothers and could hardly believe how much they have grown up since 2007. These are outstanding young men and I see great things in there future.

Having the Banjo Island/Red Drum Pottery Bluegrass Jam Bus was the best new addition to this festival. It’s what bluegrass is all about: jamming and picking with really good friends. What a treat! There was a lot of pickin’ and grinnin’ going on till 1:00 a.m. Thursday night. And after her rollicking set, Rhonda Vincent stopped by the Jam Bus along with hundreds of other people, to share their talents.

After just two years the OBX bluegrass festival is showing signs of becoming one of the top destinations for festival goers. With the combination of terrific talent and a beautiful setting, this is one to put on the calendar for next year. Once again congratulations go out to Cory Hemilright and the Town of Manteo for being the perfect hosts and putting smiles on the faces of thousands.

Ah, the joys of summer… and summer vacation!

Those of us who live within an easy drive of the coast are wont to spend time at the beach when a break is in the offing. In just this way, I find myself enjoying the charms of North Carolina’s barrier islands this week, known locally as the Outer Banks – or OBX for folks who favor the shortened form.

It seems that no matter where you go, you find bluegrass music, and we discovered that it is alive and well here on the island shores. Small concerts and club dates are scheduled from time to time, and this October the first annual Outer Banks Bluegrass Festival is scheduled. The promoters are betting that beachgoers will come back in the off season when rates are low to enjoy a 3 day music festival in Manteo.

Yesterday evening, looking for a break amidst avoiding being baked by the sun and doing as little as possible otherwise, I took a break with Woody Edwards of Bluegrass Today’s ad department to visit Red Drum Pottery in the tiny village of Frisco.

The northernmost islands here are heavily populated, with a few thousand hardy year-round residents living during the vacation season with a hundredfold increase in short term visitors. But as you move further south along the Outer Banks, there are more and more pelicans to go with fewer and fewer people. Up north you have Kitty Hawk and Kill Devil Hills, beach towns with all the amenities a summer tourist might need. But as you approach Hatteras and Ocracoke islands to the south, the living is a bit more spartan, and the residents sparser.

Here in Frisco, Rhonda Bates and Wes Lassiter have their pottery studio. Rhonda designs and Wes fires, and together they offer their wares to summer travelers in the front of the studio. In the back room, they host a weekly bluegrass show and jam session, where Wes and Rhonda perform along with Stanley Lawrence as, and at, Banjo Island. After each Wednesday night show, everyone is invited to jam along in the cozy music space. Last night, a couple of pickers from New Jersey joined in the fun, explaining that they had brought their “vacation instruments” instead of the real things.

In the audience was a mix of new fans and bluegrass veterans. Some were locals, but most of them vacationers looking to tickle their bluegrass bone at the beach. A good time was had by all, especially Woody as Wes had arranged for a lovely young lady to feed him grapes upon our arrival.

If you are among the many folks who enjoy the Outer Banks, in or out of season, know that you can find a taste of Big Mon at the beach.

Tag: Banjo Island

OBX Bluegrass 2013

Bluegrass on the Outer Banks