In order of performance
Lee Sexton
Whitetop Mountain Band
Roan Mountain Hilltoppers
Shape Note Singing led by Dr. Ron Pen
Debbie Tuggle
Matt Kinman
Karly Dawn and Little Sarie
Cowan Creek Pick and Bow All-Stars
Carla Gover
The Railsplitters
Don and Carmen Rogers
Carcassonne Square Dance Band
Rich and The Po’ Folk
Clack Mountain String Band
Lee Sexton - June 11 @ 6PM
Video of Lee Sexton playing “Shady Grove”
Lee Sexton has been something of a legend among those who love old time mountain music. A master of the drop-thumb banjo, Lee is known for his wildly spirited, yet clean and precise approach to swing and blue grass tunes. He hails from a family of talented musicians; the late Roscoe Holcomb of Leatherwood Creek was his cousin, Morgan Sexton his uncle. Ever since he picked up his first homemade wooden banjo at the age of 8, he was hooked. One of the few deeply traditional eastern Kentucky artists of his generation still actively touring and performing, Lee has been a mainstay of community square dances in Letcher County for three generations and a fixture at Seedtime since its beginning. His Whoa Mule albums (1988 and 2004) were released to great acclaim, and his reputation garnered him a brief appearance in the 1980 film Coal Miner’s Daughter. In 1999, Lee received the Kentucky Governor’s Award for Lifetime Achievement in the Arts. http://appalshop.org/frontporch/artists/lsexton.htm
Whitetop Mountain Band - June 11 @ 8PM
Video of Whitetop Mountain Band playing “Mule Skinner Blues”
The Whitetop Mountain Band is a family-based band from the highest mountains of Virginia, an area rich in the old time music tradition. Well known for their charisma on stage, the Band has gathered a popular following at square dances all over Virginia, North Carolina, Tennessee, and Kentucky. Their music strives to preserve traditional fiddling and banjo picking while integrating blues, gospel, country, honky tonk, and blue grass. The Whitetop Mountain Band has earned over a hundred ribbons and trophies since its inception and has toured across the western US, the British Isles, and Australia. Over the years they have been featured in numerous books and television programs, such as CMT, PBS, and Strings of Life. Today the Band consists of Thornton Spencer (fiddle), Emily Spencer (banjo, guitar, and singing), Martha Spencer (guitar, fiddle, banjo, and singing), Jackson Cunningham (mandolin, guitar, and singing), and Debbie Bramer (bass and dance). http://whitetopmountainband.tripod.com/
Roan Mountain Hilltoppers - June 11 @ 9PM
Video of Roan Mountain Hilltoppers playing “Laurel Bloomery”
Ask the Roan Mountain Hilltoppers how they learned to play old time tunes, and they’ll tell you the tradition goes back generations. Joe Birchfield was raised on Roan Mountain in the heart of the Blue Ridge Mountain, and he taught those Southern Appalachian ballads to his son, Bill. Bill carries on that tradition with his wife, Janice, as the Roan Mountain Hilltoppers. The “main man” of the Hilltoppers, Bill is partial to the fiddle, but he can play just about “everything upside down and backwards.” Janice, meanwhile, is the band’s MC and washtub bass player. Throughout their 30-year history, the Hilltoppers have won many ribbons and awards. They have performed at the American Folklife Festival at the Smithsonian, the Country Music Hall of Fame in Nashville, Tennessee, the 1982 World’s Fair in Knoxville, Tennessee, numerous theaters, and Fiddler’s conventions, festivals, and dances throughout the eastern US. The Hilltoppers are delighted to preserve and pass on the old time tunes through their Roan Mountain Hilltoppers vinyl record and “Down Home” recordings. http://www.myspace.com/roanmountainhilltoppers
Shape Note Singing led by Dr. Ron Pen - June 12 @ 10AM
Please join us this June 12, 2010 at the Historic Post Office in downtown Whitesburg as Appalshop’s annual Seedtime on the Cumberland festival welcomes Dr. Ron Pen of the University of Kentucky to lead a recreation of a nineteenth-century singing school as it would have been held in Kentucky when this state was the western frontier.
This singing will be open to everyone willing to participate and will include some background history and social context for the music. No musical experience necessary — you do not need to read music to participate and there is no cost to attend. Sacred Harp (1991) tunebooks will be provided.
Debbie Tuggle - June 12 @ 11AM
Video of Debbie Tuggle on The Player’s Spot
Musical environmentalist? Or environmental musician? Either way you put it, it’s clear that Debbie Tuggle is passionate about both music and the natural world. She combines those two loves into songwriting, and the results have three times won her the National Take Pride in America Award for environmental stewardship through music education. Lately, when she’s not writing, singing, and playing guitar, Debbie has been hard at work with writers, artists, scientists, and river keepers on “Shaped by Water,” a traveling exhibit designed to celebrate and raise awareness about the Kentucky River. Debbie’s work in Kentucky has been sponsored by cities, counties, boards of education, parent and teacher organizations, museums, Kentucky State Resort Parks, Kentucky Family Youth Resource Service Centers, and the Kentucky Arts Council.
Matt Kinman - June 12 @ 12PM
Video of Matt Kinman at Folk Alliance 2010
Karly Dawn and Little Sarie - June 12 @ 1PM
The Karly Dawn and Little Sarie Band is a rocking 4 piece string band featuring the lively vocal harmonies of Karly Dawn Higgins and Sarah Wood. A unique blend of Old Time, Honkytonk, Bluegrass, and Old Country, The Karly Dawn and Little Sarie Band entertains with a huge repertoire including hits from the Carter Family, Hazel and Alice, Loretta Lynn, Lily May Ledford, and many great traditional Kentucky Artists, as well as several original honkytonk numbers. http://www.myspace.com/karlydawnandsarahwood
Cowan Creek Pick and Bow All-Stars - June 12 @ 2PM
The Cowan Creek Pick and Bow All-Stars are a youth ensemble bringing together students from Appalshop’s Traditional Music Program and the Cowan Creek Community Center in Letcher County. The All-Stars embody the spirit of the newest generation of Appalachian musicians – students who have decided to take up the pick and bow. Their performance resume includes a concert for the Kentucky House of Representatives in 2008. http://www.cowancreekmusic.org/
Carla Gover - June 12 @ 3PM
Video of Carla Gover performing at Laurel Public Library
A singer, songwriter, and dancer, Carla Gover brings lively energy and a variety of musical styles to the stage. Her original songs range from misty, traditional sounding ballads accompanied by banjo to uptempo pop-influenced songs with a groove, and she is a first-place winner of Merlefest’s Chris Austin Songwriting Contest as well as the prestigious Kerrville New Folk Award. She often performs as a trio with acoustic bassist Daphne Fields and multi-instrumentalist Diane Timmons. Silas House writes, “There are lots of musicians out there claiming to be ‘authentic,’ but Carla Gover is more than that: she’s the real thang. Born and raised in Eastern Kentucky, she was exposed to all the ingredients that go into making a true Appalachian musician of the first order.” http://www.carlagover.com/bio.html
The Railsplitters - June 12 @ 5PM
After an impromptu performance at the Portland Old Time Gathering in 2009, the Railsplitters was born. Since then, they have played at various festivals and venues across the southeast. Most recently, the Railsplitters took third place at the Great Southern Old Time Fiddlers Convention in Chattanooga, Tennessee. This old time trio plays hard driving tunes with skillful technique on the fiddle, banjo, and guitar. Virginia-born Adrian Shepherd-Powell has played fiddle with many old time bands, and he won first place with the Cabin Creek Boys at the 2008 Old Fiddler’s Competition in Fairfax. Julie Shepherd-Powell hails from North Carolina. Previously a banjo teacher, she has won numerous banjo competitions and competes at flatfoot dancing conventions all over the southeast. The third member, Brett Ratliff, is a native of Van Lear, Kentucky and joins the Railsplitters on vocals, guitar, banjo and fiddle. Brett claimed second place at the 2010 Surry County Old Time Fiddlers Convention. Be prepared for foot stomping and hollering when you listen to the Railsplitters-you’ll find it hard to stay in your seat!
Don and Carmen Rogers - June 12 @ 6PM
Don and Carmen Rogers live on a small farm in rural Bath County. They both have a deep passion for preserving the rich music tradition of Central and East Kentucky. Carmen plays the guitar and banjo and is a prolific song writer. She has deep roots in the traditional music of Magoffin County where her grandmother grew up playing banjo. Don has played a wide variety of music including Bluegrass, Old-Time, String Jazz, and Rock and roll. He has been a member of several bands including The Green Genes, New Kentucky String Ticklers, Kentucky Wildhorse, and Jeri Katherine Howell and Better Together. He is an accomplished instrumentalist on guitar, mandolin, and fiddle. He also has written several songs and is particularly passionate about preserving the fiddle music of East Central Kentucky.
Carcassonne Square Dance Band - June 12 @ 7PM
The Carcassonne Square Dance is one of the oldest continuing square dances in the country, and Seedtime is proud to join with our friends at Carcassonne to bring the June dance down to the festival grounds. Whether or not you’ve ever been to a square dance before, you’ll be sure to find experienced dancers glad to show you the steps. Join us under the June stars Saturday for the Carcassonne Square Dance at Seedtime.
Rich & The Po’ Folk - June 12 @ 8:30PM
Rich and the Po’ Folks, Letcher County Kentucky’s premier (and only) old-time string band, offers a lively blend of fiddle tunes seasoned with ballads, coal mining songs, Carter Family pieces, and contemporary mountain songs. Fiddler and mandolinist Rich Kirby, originally from Kentucky, has lived in Scott County, Virginia for thirty years and has performed across the region and nationally with John McCutcheon, Tommy Bledsoe, Wry Straw, and other well-known musicians. He’s joined by banjoist and painter John Haywood, who brings a deep store of songs, tunings, and techniques learned from Kentucky banjo legend George Gibson. Guitarist Brett Ratliff and bassist Nate Polly are veterans of many bands, including the Clack Mountain String Band, Uncle Dave Dougherty and the Trough Sloppers, and Appalshop’s Roadside Theater. These veteran musicians have learned from some of the greatest names in old time music, including Art Stamper, Uncle Charlie Osborne, Thornton Spencer, ballad singer Addie Graham (Rich’s grandmother), Janette Carter, and many more. Past performances include the Carter Family Fold, the Ralph Stanley Museum, Rhythm and Roots Reunion, the Breaks Interstate Park Old Time Music Festival, Hillbilly Days, the Morehead Old Time Fiddlers Convention, and Home Craft Days. http://www.myspace.com/richandthepoorfolks
Clack Mountain String Band - June 12 @ 9:30PM
On the forefront of a blossoming old-time music scene in East Kentucky, the Clack Mountain String Band consists of four members: Paul Priest on upright bass, Brett Ratliff on banjo and vocals, Karly Higgins on guitar and vocals, & Jesse Wells on fiddle and vocals. Inspired by the people and place that surrounds them, CMSB is connected by a common vein that injects a high level of energy into each song. Melody lines are played out on the fiddle with accompaniment from the “knock down” banjo and pushed by the vigorous rhythms of the guitar and doghouse, known as “Rowan County Rhythm.” The tunes come from oral transmission, intense listening, hours upon hours of jamming with all of their old-time peers, and original compositions. http://www.myspace.com/clackmountainstringband