CMT Blog: Archive

Many people who regularly attend the Grey Fox Bluegrass Festival in upstate New York plan their entire year around getting onsite early and pitching their tents - it’s easy to see why. Having just got back from two days there, The Greencards are still buzzing from a contact high. A good festival experience feels like riding a big wave of cosmic goodness, and when you combine fantastic singing from Tim O’Brien, bluegrass royalty like Del McCoury, outrageous energy from Sam Bush, as well as gorgeous scenery in the Adirondacks, then the result can literally turn your whole outlook on life around.

The Festival moved this year to a new location in Oak Hill, and it was ironic that the Adirondack trees all around us were the source for most of the Martin guitars (and other brands) that were played there this weekend. When Tim O’Brien started his set with a solo fiddle number before bursting into “Workin’ on a Building,” I knew there was magic in the air. Tim is excelling in his new solo program, and his talent always shines. My favorite moment came when he forgot the words during a set with the Infamous Stringdusters. He simply asked the crowd, “What are you going to do? Sue me?” You can always rely on Tim for some reality.

Abigail Washburn raised the level of class when she took the stage with her Sparrow Quartet. As well as talented musicians Casey Driessen and Ben Sollee, Abigail has recruited banjo guru Bela Fleck. The result is spellbinding, with all the musicians raising their game to match the others — any yet they all look so relaxed! I’ve yet to decide who won best solo of the festival award, but it is definitely between Casey and Bela.

Del McCoury brought his flash suits and tight family harmony singing to the stage, as the band played through a lightning storm that seemed to strike them down at any point. Without even a hint of stopping, they sang high and sweet, played fast and furious as the sky lit up all around them. With sounds like this, their immortality began to look very realistic in such dramatic surroundings.

All the images and sounds keep running through my head, and if I still smoked cigarettes, I daresay I’d have one burning on the edge of my desk as I write. I can’t recommend this festival life anymore than I already have. It’s a kind of magic!