CMT Blog: Archive

This weekend we got on the bus and got to perform at a very popular festival. I grew up listening to The Lewis Family but had never performed at their festival, and it’s been going on for more than 20 years! The festival is held in Lincolnton, Ga., on the South Carolina/Georgia border. As I drove in past a road called The Lewis Family Road, I knew we were close. We drove up to the festival grounds and saw Little Roy, Jesse McReynolds, Jimmy Buchanan and countless other musicians we knew. It was home away from home!

On my way to the stage I saw The Chuck Wagon Gang’s bus, and it hit me that I had never seen this legendary group perform. What a treat! We also saw a new group called Gold Heart. What a wonderful performance they had — something old, something new, all of it great. Jamie and I did our show, and we got to encore with beads of sweat streaming down our faces. We gave it all we had! During the second show, Little Roy Lewis, who’s known for dressing up and interrupting bands, came out and put a wig on Jamie and me, then danced with Jeff Parker and Joe Dean while Adam Haynes played an old fiddle tune. I laughed till I cried, and the audience went crazy over Roy. That was my personal highlight from The Lewis Family Festival.

We’re also really excited that our friend, Jimmy Fortune, was honored by the Tennessee State Senate with Senate Joint Resolution 1005, which recognizes him as a citizen of Tennessee who has made incredible, lasting contributions to the world of music. We couldn’t agree more. Congratulations, Jimmy! – Darrin Vincent