SamJam Archives - Bluegrass Today

Spirit in the Bluegrass celebrates 50 years in Kentucky

Authentic Unlimited at Spirit in the Bluegrass 2024 – photo courtesy of the festival

June 6-8 marked the fiftieth anniversary of the first Festival of the Bluegrass at the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington. The original festival began in 1974 at Walnut Hall Farms as a vision of Bob and Jean Cornett, and featured J. D. Crowe, Ralph Stanley, and Bill Monroe. Over the years, the festival moved to Masterson Station Park before ultimately returning to its home at the Kentucky Horse Park.

Festival of the Bluegrass ran for forty-six straight years with the Cornett family at the helm until it hit a three year hiatus at the beginning of the pandemic. Though the future of the Festival of the Bluegrass may have looked dark for a brief stent, it returned in 2023 with brand new owners and a brand new name. Sammy Karr, who attended that very first festival in 1974 when he was ten years old, teamed up with Rick Greene, the promoter of the Sam Jam Bluegrass Festival in Piketon, Ohio, to resurrect this timeless, well-loved event.

“This was a festival that could just not go away. It means so much to so many people, we believed there was a responsibility to continue a festival in this important place,” Karr said. “There have been a lot of traditional festivals that have struggled or gone under in recent years. It was important to us that this one not be added to the list.”

Since its return, Spirit in the Bluegrass has done quite the opposite. The newfound connection with Sam Jam has brought about new growth for both festivals with Sam Jam fans coming down for Spirit of the Bluegrass, and Kentucky audiences heading up to Ohio for the sister festival.

“We have a model from SamJam that has worked for us, both in terms of creating environments that are pleasing to fans and artists, but that also creates a financial architecture that can lead to longevity. The first thing was to stabilize this festival financially, and we’ve done that, Rick Greene said. This year’s lineup at Spirit of the Bluegrass is sure to have all fans in question a buzzin’, and excited to attend both festivals in the future.

The festival kicked off on Thursday with performances from Hancock and Shouse, Williamson Branch, Rounders Station, and Mashhrass. The highlight of Thursday’s lineup was a tribute to the legendary J. D. Crowe, who played at the first Festival of the Bluegrass with his band The New South, and was practically a Lexington local himself hailing from just down the road in Clay City. The Red Slipper Lounge Tribute band led by Matt Phelps nodded to J. D.’s Kentucky Mountain Boys whose home base was the Red Slipper Lounge at the Holiday in right there in Lexington.

“It’s been important to us from the beginning to pay homage to the history of the Festival of the Bluegrass, while also putting our stamp on it. That’s why a tribute to J. D. Crowe made sense, that’s why the Seldom Scene makes sense, and we hope people understand our respect for what’s been done here is boundless,” said Greene.

The Seldom Scene’s set paying tribute to their Live at the Cellar Door album took place Saturday, along with fiery performances from Appalachian Road Show, Drivin’ 23, the Amanda Cook Band, and a reunion of the original edition of Sideline featuring Steve Dilling, Kyle Windbeck, Skip Cherryholmes, Troy Boone, Bailey Coe, and Daniel Greeson that lit the crowd up with undeniable levels of energy and excitement.

Friday’s lineup featured Tidalwave Road, Authentic Unlimited, the Tim Shelton Syndicate with special guest Ronnie Bowman, Dailey & Vincent, and the Goodwin Brothers. The most heartfelt and genuine part of Friday’s schedule was undeniably the Terry Baucom tribute led by Authentic Unlimited. They performed songs from several bands Bauc was a member of, including Boone Creek, IIIrd Tyme Out, Lou Reid, Terry Baucom & Carolina, and focused especially on his work with Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver. Jamie Dailey even came up to do a couple songs with Authentic Unlimited during the set.

“This had the feel like the old Lexington shows,” Karr said. “The crowds were electric, the campground was filled with jam sessions, and the bands fed off all the positive energy that was here. From the time we started the festival, this is what we wanted.”

Photos from SamJam Bluegrass Festival 2023

The Gracsals at SamJam 2023 – photo © David Kuehner

Many thanks to David Kuehner who has shared these photos he took at last weekend’s SamJam Bluegrass Festival in Piketon, OH. David is a retiree living in southern Ohio, an amateur photographer specializing in bluegrass and the natural world. Next year will mark his 50th adult year enjoying bluegrass festivals.

Drone footage of Sideline at SamJam 2021

To close out a week full of festival coverage, here is video shot by a drone hovering over the 2021 SamJam Bluegrass Festival in Piketon, OH.

It captures a power beginning to Sideline’s closing set on September 4, which began with Skip Cherryholmes elevated above the stage in a cherrypicker, spotlit from behind the audience, as he started jamming on a bluesy vibe. The stage was dark save some blue lights and was covered with fog. Gradually, Jason Moore cane on stage with his bass to play along with Skip, until the spot popped off and he was let back down to ground level in the dark.

If you have seen the way that Sideline plays their hit song, Thunder Dan, at live appearances, you know the rest.

Enjoy this dramatic footage of the song, shot by Studio Blue Productions.

Against all odds – SamJam 2020

2020 has been a devastating year for bluegrass festivals, entertainers, and promoters, just to mention a few in the industry. With COVID-19 taking its toll on our great music, deep in southern Ohio, on the edge of Appalachia, Pike County was spared the brunt of the effects. With the cooperation of Pike County Health Commissioner, Sammy Karr and Rick Greene were able to pull off SamJam 2020 with all restrictions in place.

Any live music event is a gamble for a promoter, especially during a nationwide pandemic, but SamJam saw an unexpected and record turnout. For those that were leery of venturing out, Ernie Evans and his crew at Evans Media Source offered live streaming to the entire world, and hundreds of people took advantage to watch this great festival happen online.

Wednesday offered early arrivers a chance to hear some music at local venues throughout Piketon and Waverly. The SamJam Hop offered music at the Lake White Club featuring 7 Mile Bluegrass, the Waverly American Legion had Heather Alley and Mountain Time, the Waverly Eagles featured Lacey Creek, and to end the night Richie’s Restaurant had entertainment from Nathan and Chesi Arnett.

Thursday was the kickoff to the festival and groups for the day were the Coal Cave Hollow Boys, Billy Droze and Kentucky Blue, Boone and Foster, The Junior Sisk Band, and The Po’ Ramblin’ Boys.

Friday’s entertainment was Shannon Slaughter and County Clare, Turning Ground, Seldom Scene, Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver, and Balsam Range. A highlight for everyone attending on Friday was to get a look at Doyle’s brand new band, and trust me they did not disappoint!

Saturday saw Caney Creek, The Tim Shelton Syndicate, Sideline, the return of The Steeldrivers to SamJam, and The Cleverleys.

Sunday was the closing day and entertainment was the Caleb Daugherty Band, the Grascals with Jamie Johnson, Rhonda Vincent & the Rage, an All Star Jam featuring Sideline, and the SamJam after party.

Brand new this year at the festival featured a large LED screen next to the stage. One of the festivals corporate sponsors, Budweiser, had a large beer tent and offered folks Budweiser products for $1. Due to COVID, the Kentucky Derby had been postponed until labor day weekend, and large TV screens had the Derby under the Budweiser tent for everyone to view. Sideline’s entrance on Saturday to their time slot was also a classic. They were brought in on an old flatbed pickup truck with a Pike County sheriff leading the way.

SamJam is a festival you will not want to miss next year. It is quickly becoming one of the largest, most well-respected festivals in the country. For more information you can like their Facebook page, or visit them online.

Photos courtesy of Paula Hinton.

Lots of great live bluegrass this weekend, in person and online

This is a big weekend for bluegrass fans, especially lovers of bluegrass festivals!

After six months of no live music pretty much anywhere, there are two major festivals being held in person. Down in North Carolina, at the site of the original Carlton Haney festivals, the Camp Springs Bluegrass Festival is underway. And in southern Ohio, SamJam is going full tilt. Both shows feature top touring acts on stage again, and reports from on site indicate that people are so grateful to be outdoors with friends, listening to great bluegrass again.

We have correspondents at both festivals, and hope to have reports early next week.

The folks behind the Earl Scruggs Music Festival, which was to have been held for the first time this weekend, are instead hosting a live, drive-in concert on Saturday, September 5. It will be part of WNCW’s Summer Outback Opry held on the Isothermal Community College’s campus in Spindale, North Carolina. Featured performers include Chatham County Line, Jim Lauderdale, and Dom Flemons. Attendees will drive up to the show, and enjoy the music from the isolation of their vehicles with music amplified from the stage.

The actual debut Earl Scruggs Music Festival has been moved to September of 2021, and they have quite a lineup of superstar talent on offer. Full details can be found online.

Ernie Evans and his Evans Media Source are hosting a live stream from SamJam 2020, where you can see all the music for only $9.99. That gets you all the stage shows this weekend from Piketon, OH live in your living room. All the details can be found at Ernie’s site.

Also on Saturday, the Floyd Radio Show from Floyd, VA is holding a virtual festival to benefit the venerable Floyd Country Store. Music lovers in southwestern Virginia know the Country Store for its sponsorship and welcoming of bluegrass pickers for many years now. Regular live shows are held at the store, as well as music lessons and workshops, and it’s a real gem for the people in this tiny little town.

To open the show’s 10th season, which is available as a podcast, they will hold a bluegrass and old time extravaganza, with a top lineup of area artists.

Scheduled for tomorrow night are:

Sammy Shelor & Jesse Smathers (Lonesome River Band)
Gene Parker & Allen Mills (Lost & Found)
Caleb Klauder & Reeb Willms (Foghorn Stringband)
Jeremy Stephens and Corrina Rose Logston (High Fidelity)
Redd Volkeart (Merle Haggard)
Elizabeth LaPrelle
Alice Gerrard
Dori Freeman & Nick Falk
Bill & The Belles
Andrew Small & Ash Watkins
Twin Creeks Stringband
Mac Traynham & Friends

The show will be streamed on Facebook September 5 starting at 7:30 p.m. (EDT), and on the Country Store YouTube channel. There is no charge to watch the show live, but donations will be requested to support the store, which has a tough time weathering the shutdowns. A GoFundMe campaign has been launched with that end in mind.

We hope you all get to hear some live music this weekend, and look forward to seeing our regular summer bluegrass scene back in full next year.

Stanley Brothers featured on commemorative SamJam bourbon bottle

Since last year, SamJam Bluegrass festival organizers Sam Karr and Rick Greene have helped promote the festival in a uniquely Kentucky way. They have teamed up with a craft distillery in the commonwealth to produce a special edition bourbon bottle, featuring an iconic figure in bluegrass music.

The commemorative bottle for 2020 will feature the Stanley Brothers. Karr says that they have worked with the family to produce this honor.

“There are a lot of criteria that must be met for us to choose a particular act for the bourbon bottle. In this case, I had to work closely with Ralph Stanley II, Jeanie Stanley and the Stanley family, and we are proud to be able to profile the Stanley Brothers, who are of course one of the most influential acts in not just bluegrass music history, but all music history.”

Proceeds from the bottle help finance SamJam’s Youth Music Camp, which is executed in conjunction with the Glenville State University bluegrass program. These special edition bottles also allows SamJam to honor those who have made an indelible mark in bluegrass.

Greene knows that many people will collect these bottles, and likes how they can serve as a piece of the historical record.

“These musicians are important figures in American music. We like the idea that when people see these bottles, it starts a conversation about the greatness of these people who shaped bluegrass music. This bourbon bottle project not only assists us in growing the festival, it allows us to pay homage to the forefathers. Some artists might not like the idea of being on a bourbon bottle, but we hope as this grows that people will see this for what it is, a totally respectful gesture aimed at celebrating their contributions.”

Karr and Greene said the Stanley Brothers had a profound impact on the music, and on them personally.

Stanley Brothers accolades are hard to categorize.

In 1946, Carter and Ralph Stanley along with Pee Wee Lambert, and Bobby Sumner, set out to radio station WNVA in Norton, Virginia to perform professionally for the first time. Norton was a small coal town and they had a 15-minute spot at 7:00 a.m.

The band’s first sponsor was the Piggly Wiggly chain of grocery stores. At the time, Carter and Ralph didn’t have a name for their band. Ralph is quoted as saying, “A lot of bands used to take their name from their sponsor, but this wasn’t the right sort of name to use, much as I liked pigs and all.”

Soon after, a new sponsor came on-board, The Clinch Valley Insurance Company. The Clinch Mountain Boys were born. The brothers performed for 20 years, recording dozens of albums, and performing all over the world. Their upbringing in the mountains of Southwest Virginia provided the foundation for the old time, mountain sound for which the brothers are known.

On December 1, 1966, Carter Stanley died at age 41 and for the next 50 years Ralph would carry on, keeping the music of The Stanley Brothers alive. There have been efforts for years to induct The Stanley Brothers into The Country Music Hall of Fame, which many believe is justified based on how their music helped shape bluegrass music, and influence contemporary country music.

Carter’s daughter, Jeanie Stanley, says that the Stanley descendants are proud to see the Brothers recognized in this way.

“The children of Carter Stanley are proud to see our father and uncle’s name (the Stanley Brothers) being used to support the SamJam Bluegrass Festival youth music camp. An integral part of festival, the camp provides learning opportunities for young musicians from ages 5 to 18. The camp is sponsored in part from the sale of a limited edition Kentucky bourbon that each year bears the imprint of a noted bluegrass personality. We are very proud that the 2020 offering is dedicated to the Stanley Brothers. From 1946 to 1966, the Stanley Brothers helped lay the foundations for what we know today as bluegrass music. The duo ended with our father’s untimely passing on December 1, 1966, but their music and legacy continue, more popular today than ever. We are pleased that the names of Carter and Ralph Stanley — through the youth camp — continue to be an inspiration to new generations of bluegrass musicians.”

SamJam introduced the commemorative bottle series in 2019, highlighting J.D. Crowe. The distillery, Bourbon 30, is a craft operation in Georgetown, KY, that is owned and operated by Jeff Mattingly.

Karr and Greene offer special thanks to Gary Reid and Chris Smith on this project.

Only 100 bottles are made available to the public. If interested in making a donation and acquiring one of the bottles, contact Karr at (812) 699-0962 or Greene at (740) 547-9059.

SamJam 2019 report

Sideline with Styx Hicks after their set at SamJam 2019 – photo by Mike Sullivan

The SamJam 2019 bluegrass festival was one for the record books! The energy at this festival is something rarely seen at bluegrass events these days.

Sammy Karr and Rick Greene’s story goes back to the days of the original location of The Festival of The Bluegrass, Masterson Park. Sammy’s dad and friends attended the festival back in the prime of the JD Crowe years. The young boys would wonder off at the festival, and hours would go by with the boys father’s trying to find them. Sam Karr, Sr. decided to tear a piece of cloth and tie it to their heads to better locate the boys. Thus began the birth of the Ragheads, and a bluegrass revolution was born.

This year’s festival started on Wednesday with a shuttle service going to four different locations in Piketon and Waverly, with bands performing at each stop. It was called the SamJam Hop and provided early camper arrivals with a taste of what was to come for the week.

Thursday brought acts The Kody Norris show, Lacy Creek, Billy Droze and Kentucky Blue, The Junior Sisk Band, and Russell Moore & Third Time Out with special guest Lou Reid. It was one of the best Thursday shows at a bluegrass festival I have ever seen. Junior Sisk brought his newly configured band to SamJam for the first time, and they did not disappoint. Russell and Lou’s version of Till the Rivers All Run Dry was off the charts!

Friday saw acts Nathan and Chesi Arnette, Ricky Wasson and a JD Crowe tribute, Seldom Scene, Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver, and The Appalachian Road Show. It was also the day for the Pinecastle band competition which was held in the multi purpose building. Pinecastle teamed up with SamJam this year to offer a band studio time. I had the pleasure of judging the competition and it was not an easy one. 6 bands entered and they were all terrific. Three finalists remained going into the evening. Echo Valley, Coal Cave Hollow Boys, and The Sour Mash String Band. The Coal Cave Hollow Boys took the competition and were offered a spot to play at the main stage on Sunday.

Saturday brought in the Caleb Daughtery Band, The Band of Kelleys, Turning Ground, Ricky Skaggs & Kentucky Thunder, and Sideline. The evening portion of the day was one that will long remain in my memory. Ricky was in rare form and came to pick. Sammy got on stage and made Ricky an official Raghead. Sideline followed. This was the last show that Troy Boone, long time mandolin player for Sideline, was slated to play before turning the reins over to Claybank’s Zack Arnold. The intro was made, fog machines went off, and Troy Boone walked to the stage with a police escort, lights and all, the band Burst into Thunder Dan.

Sunday started with a prayer service from Christy Mullins, Coal Cave Hollow Boys, Hammertowne, Wildfire, Lonesome River Band, The Cleverlys, and to close, a show from The Barnlizards. Some rain moved in, and the afternoon show was moved into the multi-purpose building.

It was a great week of bluegrass. Plenty for everyone to do, and jamming all over the fairgrounds. I want to personally thank Sammy and Rick for working with my wife and I at The Mansfield Jamfest. Both of our festivals are back-to-back weekends and we offered discount tickets for folks that were going to both festivals. It was quite amazing to see how working together can benefit us all.

Next year’s dates are slated for September 2-6. You don’t want to miss this one. Keep an eye out at www.samjambluegrass.com.

SamJam honors Crowe with commemorative bourbon

The Ohio bluegrass community has seen unprecedented growth in the last few years. The number of festivals that have been started, and the growth of the music are skyrocketing, because of people with a passion for the music and the willingness to take risks for the sound we all love so well.

In 2015, Sammy Karr and Rick Greene began talks on what would soon become the SamJam Bluegrass Festival in Piketon, Ohio. In those formative days, a question arose among the co-organizers regarding who each thought was their favorite bluegrass band of all time. In unison, both announced, “J.D. Crowe and the New South.”

After three successful years that includes a 2018 IBMA Momentum Award for Best New Festival, SamJam is about to embark on an event in 2019 that the co-organizers never thought possible. J.D. Crowe and the New South will perform on Friday, August 30.

What’s more you ask? Crowe will stick around for Saturday and make an appearance with Ricky Skaggs and Kentucky Thunder. The two will reunite on stage, playing some of the tunes that changed the face of bluegrass music during the ’70s and, based on Crowe’s limited schedule, is something that may never be seen again.

Once arrangements were finalized, Karr started tossing ideas around on how to honor this special occasion. After some thought and discussion with Ricky Wasson, Crowe agreed to be on SamJam’s first commemorative Bourbon 30 bottle. Bourbon 30 is a craft distillery in Georgetown, KY, that is a festival sponsor, owned by Jeff Mattingly.

“A bourbon bottle made sense to me because Rick and I are Kentucky natives, as are J.D., Ricky Wasson, and Jeff,” Karr said. “J.D.’s appearance and his reunion with Skaggs are special not just to us, but to bluegrass fans around the world. I knew we had to do something special to recognize it.”

The proceeds will go back into the festival, including the festival’s youth camp, an important requirement from Crowe. The labels are colorful, and have the SamJam logo with an artist’s rendering of J.D. holding one of the most famous banjos in the business, the “Banger.”

The bottle is labeled “The New South Edition,” and the labels were made by a company that does work for several distilleries in Kentucky and beyond. Several designs were submitted before the final label was chosen.

“The label represents everything all parties have agreed upon. This is truly the only bluegrass themed bottle we have ever seen,” said Karr, who credits Wasson’s efforts with Crowe as an important factor in making it happen. “Other bluegrass legends bottles are in discussion, and would be produced under the same process.”

Only 100 bottles were made available to the public and only about 50 remain. Once they are gone, there will be no more. If you are lucky enough to get one, it could possibly be one of the most collectable Crowe items ever made available to the public. One can only imagine the value in 50 years. These rare bottles come with a Letter of Authenticity, and are available with a donation to the festival. For more information, contact Sammy Karr at (812) 699-0962 or Rick Greene at (740) 547-9059.

“If there was ever a Mount Rushmore of bluegrass music, J.D. Crowe would be on it as far as we are concerned,” Greene said. “Our fathers introduced us to the music of J.D. Crowe and the New South when we were kids, and J.D.’s music runs right through the heart of our festival. We’re honored and humbled to have the ability to bring his music to our fans, and to recognize him for a lifetime of contributions to bluegrass music.”

For more information on the SamJam Bluegrass Festival visit www.samjambluegrass.com or follow the festival on Facebook.

Pinecastle Records National Bluegrass Band Competition

Pinecastle Records and the SamJam Bluegrass Festival have announced that they will be partnering next year for the first ever Pinecastle Records National Bluegrass Band Competition.

This competition will be held during the 2019 SamJam in Ohio, with the winning band leaving with three free days in the Pinecastle studio, and a spot on the 2019 festival.

Only unsigned bands, unaffiliated with any label, will be eligible to compete, and must be prepared to perform three songs on stage. One must be a band original, another a cover song, and the third a band’s choice. Only 25 entrants will be accepted, and each will be judged on delivery, stage presence, instrumentation and marketability.

The competition will be held on Friday, August 30 and Saturday, August 31, 2019 on the SamJam main stage. A $250 entry fee includes festival access for band members those two days.

The winning band will also receive accommodations for their three days at the Pinecastle studio in South Carolina, so if they arrive well-rehearsed, they can walk away with a completed album or EP at no cost to them. Pinecastle will also provide an engineer and production staff to help with the recording.

Both Pinecastle and SamJam encourage all bluegrass bands looking to make a move in 2019 to consider this opportunity to not only appear at a major festival, but also potentially get themselves recorded for free.

For more specifics or to enter your group, contact Sam Karr at (812) 699-0962 or Rick Greene at (740) 547-9059.

Top 10 moments from SamJam 2017

This past weekend marked the second annual SamJam Music Festival, held at the Pike County Fairgrounds in Piketon, OH. The festival is growing at an amazing rate, with Sammy Karr and Rick Greene at the wheel. These guys strive to make each festival unique, and want it to be one of the best in the country. For only a two year old festival, it’s turning into a venue you won’t want to miss.

After all the fun and excitement for the weekend died down, I got ahold of Sammy and asked him to list some special moments that were highlights from the 2017 SamJam.

So here they are….

10. Thursday’s crowd – with Sparks, Ralph II, and Joe Mullins pushing the traditional grass on Thursday night, the crowd was bigger than 2016’s Saturday crowd. The amount of folks coming in the gate only got bigger as the weekend went on. Camping was sold out months in advance.

9. Seldom Scene bringing the house down with Nadine on Sunday evening. Them boys tore it up!

8. Sunday Morning – this year marked the first Sunday morning service. A beautiful crowd of folks got together and sang songs, told uplifting stories, and held prayer. The service was hosted by Christy Mullins and will continue each year.

7. Make shift Music Hall – the rains set in hard early Friday morning and never let go until very early Sunday morning. With two days of rain in the middle of an outdoor event, that usually means devastation. Not for SamJam. The Pike County Fairgrounds opened up the Multi Purpose Building (usually used for band hospitality) as an option to host the show during the rain. With bleachers pulled out, people bringing their chairs indoors and a second sound system onsite, SamJam continued with no worries at all. Every night, the building was packed to capacity, and then some. The Multi Purpose Building saved the festival.

6. Yuengling Toast to a fallen hero – Yuengling Brewery is a proud sponsor of SamJam and set up a beer garden all weekend hosting happy hours with $1 beer. Proceeds from beer sales went to Pike County Library to help further education for the county’s youth. Yuengling also happened to be Justin Helton’s favorite beer. You may say “who?” but people of Pike County know the name well. Justin offered the greatest sacrifice by laying down his life for his country. A fallen hero of ours was honored Sunday as the crowd stood with their Yuengling’s high and toasted a True American Hero. Just another sentiment of how lucky we are to enjoy the music we love and the festivals all around the country. Thank Justin tonight in your prayers.

5. The Cleverlys closing Friday – We didn’t know what to expect. The festival took a chance, and hit a home run. A better closing act couldn’t have been chosen. It was fun to watch people’s faces as the band approached the stage, filled with slight confusion. Everyone was soon laughing their tails off at Digger telling about his late wife, who happened to be a toothless midget wrestler. These boys put on one heck of a show.

4. The Evans Brothers Tribute to their Dad – With the passing of bluegrass legend, Dave Evans, this summer, Sammy and Rick brought in Dave’s boys, Tracy and Todd, for a special tribute to their Daddy. Barry Crabtree joined the brothers proudly playing Ole Bess, Dave’s prized Gibson banjo. Singing songs in the style of their dad, no one could have done a better tribute. Sunday afternoon was filled with tears, especially as they closed with Pretty Green Hills.

3. The ragging of Larry Sparks – Yes, its true, Larry Sparks is now a Raghead! He closed out the show Thursday with a white strip around his head. After hearing the story of the Ragheads, which Sammy Karr’s dad started, Sparks agreed to it and the crowd loved it even more. Sammy told me after the show, ” I never thought I’d ever get to rag that man. He’s my hero.”

2. Guitar explosions – By now, I’m sure you’ve heard the good bad and ugly over the planned stunt brought to the crowd in Saturday by Skip Cherryholmes. Skip smashed a guitar to splinters after an 8 minute rendition of Lee Highway Blues. It was planned by Sammy for Skip to do the guitar switch off and smash the extremely cheap guitar for the crowd to see. Some may disagree with that decision, but the crowd did no such thing. Sideline put on a great show, but topping it off with Skip blowing up a guitar was a sight to behold. Videos of the destruction can be seen online.

1. The Original Quicksilver Reunion – By far, one of the best shows ever put together. The reuniting of Lou Reid, Jimmy Haley, Terry Baucom, and Doyle Lawson was nothin’ short of amazing. Almost forty years after the first recordings, these guys didn’t sound one bit different. An hour and forty five minute set with every song ending in a standing ovation. The Multi Purpose Music Hall was shaking with applause. This reunion was extremely exciting, and you could tell that all the band was having a great time too. If you weren’t there, you missed one heck of a reunion.

So as you can see, SamJam is full of surprises and unique experiences, making this one of the up and coming festivals that folks around the country should put down on their calendar. Sammy Karr and Rick Greene, along with all their sponsors and volunteers would like to thank everyone that attended SamJam 2017, making it the best festival they’ve had yet. Mark it down for Labor Day Weekend 2018!