5th November Report ( Geoffs Last Report ) 

This is my last journal entry for this wonderful trip, (sorry, no more photos attached!) Friday, the 2nd, last day in bluegrass America, was virtually spent crying, firstly with Letitia and then with Virginia; what an emotional day! We met for a farewell fish sandwich at Captain D.s (best in Nashville) and reminisced then off to the paranoid mayhem of Nashville Airport, arriving there, as I was told in no uncertain manner, much later than we should have in order to prepare for an international flight. Of course, I wouldn't have missed the extra hour we put in with one another for anything, not even the rude, aggressive security people who treat everyone as an actual threat, though, as Virginia pointed out in a subsequent email, you'd have to say that Milo and I were the obvious targets for terrorist suspects, really, wouldn't you?!

American Airlines themselves were at least somewhat more attentive and friendly than on my way through the first time, and then we got to Los Angeles and headed for Melbourne on QANTAS, best air-lines in the world, make no mistake about that. It was a very long trip especially with no sleep. We diverted to Sydney which added three hours on to the trip, but at least gave Milo a chance to be taken by one of the flight crew on to the tarmac and a patch of blessed grass! Eighteen hours without a toilet run; good effort, I'd say!

When we eventually arrived in Melbourne it turned out that the co-ordinating organisation in America had not thought to fax everything to Quarantine, consequently no vet was there to give us the all clear, so we had to wait in quarantine another three hours till one could be found. On top of that, quarantine refused to allow the two quart jars of apple butter through, (home-made, that was the trouble) so I won't be able to show you the taste delights representing our wonderful week-end in Roanoke with Virginia's sister's family. I was very sad about this, especially coming at the end of over thirty hours without sleep, but am reconciled to it now, glad, in fact, that quarantine restrictions remain so tight in Australia. Since arriving home, much sleep, much self-servicing of my own computer, (thank goodness to get back to it) but will continue to take time slowly over coming days, though I have to prepare, of course, for Friday night's first show back; looking forward to that hugely as you may imagine. Thank you for sharing this magic seven weeks, and especially to Floreena for putting it all up so beautifully on the now famous website. I'll actually have to collect all those entries and re-read them to prepare to send a few pieces off to America possibly for publication some time soon.

See you all soon.

Geoff.

Here are some photos from our wonderful pre-thanks-giving Thanks-giving family meal held tonight. It's heading towards nine o'clock on Thursday night. As you see, it was a magnificent spread, prepared principally by Letitia, Virginia's daughter, and Dorothy, Virginia's sister, after Dave had done a mighty job vacuum-cleaning the place and setting it up. The whole available family was there, including adult and teen-age grandchildren plus some friends of Letitia's. We partook of turkey (with cranberry sauce); ham; green beans; corn; rice and mushroom mixture; gravy; mashed potatoes; macaroni salad; yeast-based dinner rolls ... and for dessert:

pumpkin pie; apple pie (with or without icecream); brown sugar pound cake (at home, with butter, we'd call it nutloaf). There was, of course, enough food to serve the neighbourhood, but David and I have decided that tomorrow morning's breakfast is dead set guaranteed!!

  It was just a wonderful meal and I felt very overwhelmed that everyone would go to so much trouble in preparing a special Thanks-giving meal to celebrate my stay and wish me well and safe return to bluegrass America and my wonderful family, of which I am now very clearly a part, next year. How to do this? Absolutely no idea, but by one means or another, (probably another!) I have to come back at some stage.

  There is still, less than twenty-four hours before leaving time, some suspense in the air, though. Milo's blood test raised an infinitesimal query at a testing laboratory and so they had to send it around America to have it retested. At present it is with Cornell university in New York. If the test results are not back by the middle of tomorrow, or if they come back with still a query attached, we'll have to stay here for a few more days. However, I am  confident that everything will work out perfectly and we'll be on the flight out from Nashville tomorrow evening at half past six. Australian Bakery in Marrietta, Georgia, will be piping the Friday morning show through their speaker system, so a nice chance to promote the Bakery, (hope i've already written about it at length somewhere else?) and whilst down there I even recorded a promotional spot from Neville Steel, himself from Bendigo, who runs the Bakery, twill sound really good whenever i can slip it in, which certainly on the Friday show I will do so, once all this huge pile of recordings has been saved, edited, distilled and transferred into accessible files on my own computer. I hope it has been having a good quiet rest, because shortly after returning it will be galvanised into full and constant action from then on, ripping c.d.s into the My Music library to mention just one demand on its energy and Hard Drive!

  2nd November Report

  Hope this reaches you all in time and that you enjoy the Thanks-giving photos and that these, plus all the others gone before, and the many pieces of reflective writing I've sent your way has perhaps given you some slight flavour or atmosphere around one of the most memorable few weeks of my life.

Well, just when you thought the magic of this trip was over ... it wasn't, not by a long shot!!

  It's Wednesday evening now after a very long and busy and enjoyable day. This morning we journeyed up past Gallatin (pronounced Gallerton) Tennessee and there met the completely legendary Jesse Mc Reynolds, surviving brother of the famed Jim And Jesse duo whose bluegrass career started in the late 1940s and, from Jesse's point of view, is still extremely alive and well. I recorded a lovely talk with him and here are some photos attached; it's Jesse's house in the background. Speaking and interacting with a man of Jesse's truly legendary status was an awe-inspiring experience. He was very friendly, down to earth and gracious in sparing his time and doing such a very nice friendly interview. he is seventy-eight years old and has more creativity and original ideas flying around in his head than you could imagine. Looking forward very much to playing it on the show in a few weeks' time. mind you, I've now recorded so many interviews it will take literally months to play through eve n some of them; no rush, though. i'll be on Marc's show tonight (our time) so hope you can hear that, just a couple of hours away our time (and, I suppose, yours, too!) We may start packing up at least some of the stack of c.d.s I'm bringing back, perhaps some tonight and the balance tomorrow when it's quite possible we're doing ... nothing thought the day; difficult to believe, I know, but it's our second last day and we really ought to get down to mundane things like packing! The family is putting on an early thanks-giving dinner for me tomorrow night. Virginia had the idea from somewhere near the very beginning of this trip. Their actual thanks-giving Day is somewhere near the end of November, so this is a special one, one I about which I feel very emotional, overwhelmed and honoured, to say the least. Perhaps more of that when next I write, that is, if i don't write again in the meantime.

  This will be a long journal entry as it takes in our five-day trip around the Crooked Road Music heritage Trail through South-west virginia and other assorted events. It will include: lost in the rain-soaked Blue Ridge Mountains; stumbling on a treasure;
Visiting the Ralph Stanley Traditional Mountain Music Museum; How to make apple butter southern loving hospitality at its best.

  It was raining when we left Nashville on Wednesday morning the 24th and stayed that way for the next three days. Thus when we entered the Blue Ridge Mountains later on Wednesday afternoon it was pouring rain (haven't recorded it as yet!) and there we were in and surrounded by glorious rolling mountains. Everywhere we went we saw old barns in various stages of decay, old farm houses with beautiful chimneys; some cattle but not many; some farms ocupied but also not sure of how many, as we switch-backed and hair-pinned our way around the mountains. Yes, we were lost!!

  We didn't mind a bit, though, as being in the mountains was just a rich and wonderful adventure. As darkness began to fall we still wondered where we were and where we were going and then, like a miracle, we stumbled on the town of "Sneedville" . This name, this town, may not immediately ring a loud bell with everyone, but it is the birth-place of both Jimmy Martin and Doyle Lawson. We certainly hadn't intended to go there, but there we were! (photo attached.) I spoke to several people and asked them if they knew of the significance of their little town, and yes, they did, I'm happy to report. In fact the Deputy Sheriff we spoke to not only knew it was Jimmy's birth-place, but Doyle's as well; full marks to him. We spoke to him because Monkey saw a sticker she wanted to phoograph on the bloke's bumper bar which said: "Let None Live In Fear": she liked it, of course.

  Thus finding "Sneedville" was a treasure and an important event as part of this amazing trip experience.
after spending an appalling night in one of the worst motels in living memory, up in Pennington Gap, we wandered around on Thursday till we found the Ralph Stanley Museum. Now we were truly following the Crooked Road trail. the museum was superb: simple yet richly full of Stanleys' history with much to hear and see and delightful people running the place. Naturally we stayed there for ... a fairly long time!!
This was also good for David and Virginia as they received not only an invitation for Mixt Company to play on the first Saturday of the month as part of the regular Crooked Road show, but also an invitation to Ralph Stanley's birthday celebration February; pretty good double-header.
Later on Thursday we journeyed to both the Carter Family Fold and on to Bristol, (that is, Bristol Virginia-Tennessee) where Jimmy Rogers and the Carters made their fist recording in august 1927 and found ... both were closed!!
none theless we did stumble on a very good c.d. shop in Bristol where I luckily picked up both the Bill Monroe Bean blossom Festival 1973 and an old Blue Sky Boys album, so time well spent there. (slightly better motel on Thursday night but monumentally expensive). On Friday we drove up to Roanoke and there visited Gary Reid at Copper creek Records, that is, after I had had the most wonderful shave, in an old-time barber's shop, ever! Beautiful and much needed.

The visit to Copper Creek Records is almost worth another separate journal entry. It was the most curious and most depressing place and set-up I've ever come across. There is no Copper Creek Records listed in the local phone-book; (can't afford the telephone perhaps?!) and the whole place is in a small but densely packed ware-house piled high, and seemingly at random, with c.d.s both in and out of boxes which looked as if they were either ready to be shipped or had come back unclaimed. You've never seen such a chaotic shambles in all your life. The whole place reeked of depression and of someone, Gary Reid, who had given up on the record label absolutely. In reality this may not be at all true, but our talk with him was difficult, as he proved very evasive, and not enough office space to sit, let alone have a coffee. Nonetheless, he did spare the time to talk with us, which was much appreciated. I think Copper Creek Records needs real active promotional help and it could well be beyond Gary's ability to continue to shoulder this load. I'll do a lot more thinking about this as Copper Creek Records is a hugely important and rich part of bluegrass history and really deserves massive support and attention; no way can one person, however dynamic, do it on his own. Much more on this as time goes on.
Then we spent the afternoon with an old friend of Virginia's, 85-year-old L. H. Tuck, and we sang and played twin mandolins all afternoon as the rain continued to pour down: just a lovely couple, the Tucks; married for sixty years and still very beautiful, with a wonderful memory for old tunes; could have stayed there for ages but on to Jackie Virginia's sister's place. Jackie and Tim and daughter Brooke, a just lovely twenty-year-old, are a beautiful family. On Saturday was the big day to make apple butter. Preparation for this goes back several days but the actual day began at four in the morning.

take sixty gallons of apple sauce, heat in massive copper kettle and stir for twelve  hours straight. Two hours before end of stirring, add seventy pounds of sugar and then, twenty minutes before end of stirring, add a little cinnamon and cloves. Then comes the assembly line of willing family and friends and neighbours to dip it, put it in quart jars, p;ut on sealing rings, put lids on, screw down tight and put into trays, all 164 quarts of it, that is, the sixty gallons boiled down to just over 41. at the end of this amazing day's event you cook hot biscuits and have them ready to sop up apple butter from the bottom and side of the kettle ... and eat, fresh made and still warm!! What a fabulous ritual.

  The apple butter is primarily made to be sold to raise money for the local Lions Club service programme, and of course to be given away to friends, etc. If left sealed apple butter may last several years; if opened and stored in the fridge, for, Tim says, up to a year, if of course it should last that long! Believe me, it's beautiful!!,  Tim also made it recently for a school class of sixteen-year-olds doing their culinary arts course.  he is a complete master of his art, and, on the side, also makes grandfather clocks!!

  We had a superb time at Jackie's. No-one complained that we had to continually stir for twelve hours (yes, I did a lot of it, too, and loved it). everyone, (family, neighbours, relatives) will be listening at the beginning of my first show back on November 9th, so a long greeting coming up!!

  back home after a 440-mile drive down various Interstates. travelling like this is much easier in America where roads are so superb, and here we are back home in Madison. As you can tell, a wonderful few days trip; good for all of us, and yet another part of the complex tapestry of this trip. Today perhaps quieter: could involve recording a talk with Dale Ann Bradley and a visit tonight to the Gibson Show-case; see you all later.

Geoff.

  *here is a postscript to the journal entry I sent before. I had neglected to mention another high point of our visit to Jackie's. During the afternoon, whilst the apple butter stirring was still going on, David, Virginia and I plus Sherry, a friend, who stood next to me with a voice like an inspired angel, and sang bluegrass gospel and old-time songs for an hour or so on Jackie's back porch leaning up against the railing by way of entertainment to help the stirring procedure along. it was a wonderful experience. When Sherry led us in singing "take My Hand Precious lord" she put so much deep feeling into it and was quite overcome by the end of the song. Out here gospel music and bluegrass gospel music in particular truly means what it sings about. What a truly wonderful day it was!

Sorry I omitted to describe it in the original entry

  24th October Report

I would like to let you all know that I've made some changes to show times as from when I get back. I had a long think about it during the break, or actually over he last few days, and I am keen to see if we can bring in or develop an audience from other places apart from late night in Eastern Bluegrass America. To do this I've had to let go the Wednesday morning show (U.S. time) which was our Wednesday night eleven o'clock till two show, even though this was very well attended, so hope this turns out in the long run to be the right decision. Instead I'll be doing three hours from late night on Monday (U.S. time) which is actually mid-afternoon on Tuesday in Australia (very civilised) and hope to draw in, for example, listeners from the centre and west U.S., early morning Europe and even perhaps bring in extra people from Australia and New Zealand where the times should be quite accessible.

  In the meantime we'll keep the Friday time exactly as it is. With changes in Daylight Saving in Australia and America this will become ten p.m. Friday night till one Saturday morning, but we can stand this no worries.

  Hence, summing it up, show times will be:

  Monday nights eleven p.m. till two a.m. Tuesday morning (eastern U.S. time) or three p.m. to six p.m. Tuesday afternoon in Eastern Australia; Friday morning six till nine a.m. (Eastern U.S.) which translates to ten p.m. Friday night till one a.m. on Saturday morning with, of course, actually in both instances, the distinct possibility of extending times. I hope this is all crystal clear and my reason for letting you know about it now, actually before it appears on the W.W.B. schedule, is so that you can please acquaint as many people as you possibly can of the changes. For us in Australia I think the changes are much better and more manageable in terms of accessible times, so perhaps let's hope that others around Australia can hear about it as well. For listeners in America whom we know, they may miss the Wednesday morning but may be able to tune in on Friday morning and late night on Monday straight after Jim Ellis's show. Anyway, if you can, please let as many people as you can about the changes so that we can at very least all stay together. First show back will be Friday November 9th. If I've succeeded in making everything doubly confused, etc., please let me know. Thank you. Hope you received and enjoyed the photos from the north Carolina adventure. quiet day coming up here today, perhaps, and good, steady rain drifting down still. Dave suggested I record the sound of it just to remind people at home what it actually sounds like!

Geoff.

  23rd October Report 

It’s the middle of Monday afternoon here and raining in Nashville, first time since we arrived. People here think I have imported the drought!
Well, boy, what an amazing week-end this has been!!!

Marc wanted to show me the smoky mountains of Tennessee and North Carolina so beloved in bluegrass song, so up we went. The air up there was beautiful: crisp, crystal clear, not a cloud in the sky, quite mild, no smoky mountain haze or cloud to be seen. we drove up a winding gravel track to visit a little one-roomed school-house, the little greenbrier school, built in 1882 and in use till 1937 or thereabouts, averaging twenty children or more in the class-room, a beautiful simple yet solid timber structure kept up really well, as was the family cemetery nearby. we read many of the grave markers showing how many children under the age of three years died there in the first couple of decades of the twentieth century; a great tragedy for the families. Up there it was actually quiet, a very rare event in America and, for that matter, comparatively rare event in Australia unless you get away from towns. In the vicinity were white-tailed deer and black bear, which i very much wanted to hear, but, sorry, no black bear in sight! shame about that! we then drove up to the peak of the smoky, over 5,000 feet; very busy with throngs of Sunday driver tourists coming up (just like us) to take aloof and breathe good air. Wonderfully cool and breezy up there. Marc will be sending down some no doubt spectacular photos of the whole trip probably within 24 hours, so look forward to those. We took a good few photos with Eleanor in mind; she'll be able to recognise them no worries.

I shook hands twice with doc and we talked for perhaps two minutes or less, certainly no time to record anything, then he was whisked away in the cart to meet his family and head home. a far too brief encounter, you may say, but i have the memory, and marc has the photos to officially prove that at last, after loving the man and his stellar guitar music for forty-five years, finally meet and talked to the legendary doc Watson!!!

I felt quite overwhelmed after all of this and still, in recounting the experience 24 hours later, can rekindle the "high" feeling surrounding the whole entirely unforgettable experience. we talked for a long time afterwards to David holt, a very nice bloke, who promised to send us some doc albums we haven't as yet had in the collection.

Back to Knoxville where we met up with Dave as Marc was then intending to drive straight from there to New Jersey, which, I found out today, he actually did. By comparison, a quieter day today, a good thing, too, but off in a  few minutes to interview Dale Ann Bradley. More of that and anything else which happens sooner or later.

this is by way of being a quick note before heading off later this afternoon for Black Mountain, north Carolina, with Marc manning. We will probably stop in Knoxville tongiht then about a two-and-a-half-hour drive from there to black Mountain. Over there they've got a multicultural festival, and in fact the only thing coming anywhere near bluegrass or grass-roots music is Doc Watson, his grandson Richard and David Holt, on from half past three till five o'clock tomorrow afternoon. Thus I'll actually be able to hear Doc play, and most likely he will play his famous 'Black Mountain Rag" to suit the occasion. There may be a faint possibility that we can meet him briefly afterwards though this is uncertain. Doc is surrounded by diligent/overdiligent minders whom I call the portable elctric fence, but we'll see if we can get past them for a moment. Should be a lovely trip. Last night we went to hear Wiliams & clark Expedition down at the Station Inn: excellent, tight group and be autiful sound. They were all very friendly and obliging and co-operative at half-time so we got promotional spots from all five of them plus all their c.d.s to date; excellent night. I meant to tell you that the night before we had a Tornado Alert throughout Tennessee and Kentucky. Every few minuytes on television they crossed back to the weather bloke who tracked the progress of the severe thunderstorms and possible tornadoes, but no damage anywhere as far as I've heard. It made you realise, though, that we are really in the middle of genuine tornado country here, hence the alert was taken very seriously here. 

19th October Report 

  It's Thursday evening in Madison, Tennessee. Weather predictions are for wind, rain and possible tornadoes, so we'll see what, if anything, comes of all that. I'm guessing nothing, ... could be wrong, though?!

  We've just had an extremely unusual evening meal for we three plus Virginia's daughter, her husband and daughter, consisting of:

Cornish pasty, vegetable pasty, steak-and-cheese and steak-and-kidney pies, vanilla, apple and cherry ripe slices,Lamingtons and Pavlova!!

You've guessed it; we've been down to the Aussie Bakery is Marrietta, Georgia. We drove down there yesterday, dropped in there just before closing time and stocked up for tea with Virginia's youngest sister Rhonda, and her partner; we just had a lovely time there, then went down to the Bakery this morning, stayed there for two and a half hours talking my socks off, as you may imagine. Nevile, co-owner of the Bakery, comes from Bendigo, so we had a huge amount to talk about and catch up on. I also spoke per phone to an Australian girl, now married to a bluegrass musician here who works in the Bakery, too, who, it turns out, came from Boort in Victoria, where my wife comes from, knew our kids, etc.;astonishing that here we are ten thousand miles from home and chatting to so many people who lived in or know Bendigo and district really well.

David took some photos which may well come with this letter or, if not, very soon after. at the end of this wonderful time we stocked up gigantically for the return home, hence tonight's amazing and completely Australian evening meal, which, glad to say, everyone enjoyed immensely.

  Rhonda, Virginia's sister's, house where we stayed last night is just superb. It is perched on top of a mountain surrounded by forest and you never hear anyone else around or near the place at all. It is under the flight path from Atlanta Airport, something of a draw-back, but that apart it's a glorious place to live in. Tonight we unwind and sleep and a quiet day tomorrow before heading down to the Station Inn tomorrow night to hear Williams & Clark expedition, a band I've never heard on record but have heard a great deal about, so no doubt they'll be excellent. On the Tuesday night just gone, by the way, we were down at the Station Inn to hear some brilliant music played by an assorted bunch of top musicians including Jim Van Cleeve, Daryl Webb and Josh Williams, and managed to have all of them record promotional pieces for the show, not to mention joining in the singing of Hank Williams' "House of Gold" with a current Grand ole Opry lead singer, Dierks Bentley, who just happened to have dropped in. On Saturday afternoon Marc and I are off to Knoxville and then on Sunday morning off to Black Mountain, North Carolina, to hear Doc play and, let's hope, possibly even meet the great man. I'll write again soon.

take care.

I have to write to you tonight, Sunday night, to tell you of an amazing day's events.

Virginia had heard about an Annual Sacred Harp Shape note Convention, being held this week-end n Lawrenceburg, 100 miles or so south of here. It was held at the Second Creek Primitive Baptist Church Of Christ, in Second Creek Road!

Well, we went down there this morning, leaving at seven and getting there at half past nine or so. Sacred Harp is the name of the book of Shape Note hymns, a big, heavy, thick book. Shape note singing dates from the eighteenth century, is completely unaccompanied, takes place in interweaving four-part harmony using only the four notes which differ by their shape, thus not at all bar by bar, or stave by stave, etc., or seven notes as with ordinary music. The hymns themselves also are anywhere from one to two hundred or more years ago. The net result  is this truly amazing singing. It sounds ancient, because it really is, and these people carry on a tradition which began in America in the eighteenth century. There were thirty or so people there but the huge volume of sound they put out made them sound like forty or more. I managed to record one hymn at the end of an old memory card; a shame as it would have been wonderful to have recorded several, but this one example will have to do as I'll definitely broadcast iton the bluegrass show whenever we can get it saved and on to c.d., etc.

It was an example as sung about by jimmy martin and Doyle Lawson of "all day singing and dinner on the ground." I always thought this meant you sat on the ground and had our dinner there, but in fact it turns out that it means "on the ground" or "grounds" as in on the church premises, so we all adjourned downstairs to a truly spectacular lunch put on by all those who attended 

It was all in all just a wonderful and very different day and all part of the rich fabric of experiences I'm going through and loving here. Last night, by the way, David and I went down to the Station Inn and heard Special Consensus. What a truly brilliant and exciting band they are!

I always knew per their recordings that they were a tight harmony bunch of excellent musicians, but to hear them "live" is, of course, an entirely different experience.

This morning David and I went to the local Waffle-house for breakfast. They are everywhere and have an undeserved reputation for greasy meals. I love it. you can get, amongst no doubt stacks of other things, a hash brown meal covered with ham, diced tomato, onions, chilli beans and goodness knows what else, plus they have tomato juice wich you can't get everywhere else, plus coffee of course. Yes, a good meal if you like that sort of thing!

Eleanor was asking last night in the chat room about biscuits and gravy, so I don't know if she ever partook of the Waffle-house when in north Carolina; could be?!

A quiet day at home today and I'll have a chance to listen to the whole Awards Show; should be very good. We're tracking down interviews with bluegrass legends: Kenny Baker, curly Seckler, jesse mcReynolds, all of whom are living relatively close to here so wish me luck.

 
8th October Report 

Greetings from Madison on an early balmy Sunday evening, winding down from the biggest week you can posibly imagine.
Hope all is going extra well back at home and in Central victoria in general. Have they called the election date yet? Should be home in time to vote, I imagine.
The last event on the convention programme was this morning's bluegras gospel show. It was, of course, abslutely wonderful!!
Ray Deaton, who was for many years that wonderful bass singer with IIIrd Tyme Out is now with the anita Fisher (his fiancee)'s band and they were excellent. Then came Pine Mountain Railroad and (my favourite) James King, and the programme concluded with the wonderful Whites, perhaps the premier bluegrass family group, really; they were fabulous and really ended the convention on a high which made you want to cling on to it for as long as possible, which, in actual fact, we did.

we were in the foyer for a long time chatting with paul Williams then out on the footpath where we ran into Hamish davidson and a couple of his Missouri friends who gave me their demmo c.d.; probably very good.
Finally got back home this afternoon and we'll unwind a bit tonight, perhaps even catch up on sleep; who knows?
No photos, I don't think, with this letter but certainly more to come. hope, Mike, you may be able to have a pile printed off for Mary and family to see and keep; they would love that, I know. Let's know how you go with all of that.
Beryl, I received a lovely long note from Lone this morning our time; what a classic! we'll sort Harrietville out well and truly, believe me!

This week we'll go down one day to Tom T. and Miss dixie Hall's place to chat with them and probably (certainly) record an interview but a fairly quiet week apart from that, as far as we know thus far.
please say hullo to everyone else who reads this letter and hope you can catch Marc Manning's show on thursday just after midday your Australian time, as we'll be chatting per phone a fair about events, experiences and highlights, presumably.
take care; I'll write again soon.

Geoff

  6Th October Report

Well, today, saturday October 6th, was convention Day 6 and we missed it completely!

This was by design, however, as we went up into the mountains of eastern Kentucky to a huge family reunion, Virginia's family. because David and I went to convention activities last night till late, we were up at half past four, gone by five, went all the way up there, Mixt Company played some lovely tunes, we had lunch, then drove all the way back again, equivalent to driving from Melbourne to Sydney!

A monumental feat on david's part, I think.

Tomorrow is the last day, or rather half a day, being the final programme in the Convention, the three-hour bluegrass gospel show, wich will be superb.

Not sure when I wrote to you last, but the previous two days were, as expected, flat out and wonderful.

Tons of people to meet, promotional spots and interviews to record, never stopped talking (so what's unusual about that you may ask/)!

Last night we went to hear Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver and the Isaacs. As always, the Isaacs sang from heaven, just inspirational, and received a three-minute standing ovation. I just cannot believe how well they sing together, acappella especially. My memories of the last two days are somewhat blurry as I am, we are all, very fatigued after a huge week and an extremely long day today, so comparatively early night coming up.

4th October: Geoff's report 

  Day one

I have been unable to write this “journal” for a couple of days now, partly through computer trouble but mainly because after sixteen hours a day at the Convention, arriving home at one or later, I’m too tired to begin typing then. Consequently it is already running away with me in terms of accurately writing about everything that has been happening.

  Both days have been packed with people to meet and record promotional pieces and interviews. I have been quite overwhelmed with so many people coming up to say hullo. We’ll have a big stack of promotional drops nad interviews to put together when we get home. Looking back, for me, the outstanding highlight or memory of Convention day 1 was hearing Michael Cleveland play at the Monday night show-case. I have truly never ever heard fiddle playing like it!!

I caught up with him afterwards and suggested that he is a reincarnation of Scotty stoneman, and he knew what high praise this really was!

The sheer breath-taking brilliance of his playing honestly has to be heard to be believed, and he has also now gathered around him a brilliant band: Jesse brock on the mandolin, for example, is astonishing.

Hopefully I’ll be recording an interview with Mike later today up in his room and away from the Convention background noise level. I also hope today to record an i.d. with Tom T. and Miss Dixie Hall if we can catch them as promised after lunch, though no doubt they will be permanently surrounded with people keen to talk to them. No worries; we’ll just wait in line!

The broadcast media seminars were excellent and I got to know a good few people there. Last night we went away from the convention to have front row (balcony level 2) seats at the Ryman Auditorium for the bill Monroe Tribute Show. It was overpowering to just be there in such a historic place and listening to wonderful people such as Jesse McReynolds, doyle Lawson & Quicksilver, Rhonda Vincent, Michael Cleveland again, and … the Isaacs!

Each group was only on for fifteen minutes or so in a two-hour show broadcast on radio as well. The Isaacs’ rendering of “angel Band”, (last verse and repeat chorus acappella) was breath-takingly superb!!

  Then back to the Convention for a few more hours of listening to and talking with people and home.

It has become very clear that my sending out regular play lists to everyone each week, though it takes a lot of time, is unquestionably worth it as these contacts remain strong and have even thus far led to meeting enjoyably and recording many interviews otherwise quite difficult to achieve.

  Today: brunch in the ballroom with musical accompaniment from Don Rigsby, etc., then more things to record. This evening what’s called the “D.J. Taping session” where you sit at a table and tons of artists come past and record a promotional piece, then a show-case including Claire Lynch, then off around the corner to the Ernest Tubb Record Shop to hear Pine Mountain railroad and the Cherryholmes, then perhaps back to the convention to hear New River Line … all depends on the fatigue level!!

Milo has become a night time dog. When we get home at smething after one a.m. and let him go for a run he dashes around and wants to enter into a big play, whereas in the morning, five hours or so later, he’s quite content to do … very little!

His work around the Convention has, of course, been superb.

I’ve also caught up with a few worldwidebluegrass.com people and more to come later this week.

  All terrific; more later.

Mixt Company played beautifully, both shows. dave had me on stage in the second show to talk about and then sing "waltzing matilda": someting different, you could say!

  We got back to Kermit and opal's up at Beehive Holler late that night as we had to take a fair bit of extra time unravelling a bizaree situation involving Martin, our banjo player and his mate Spud. Apparently ont he way up, drinking considerably during the trip, they were pulled over by a state trooper for some reason or other. Martin's mate, not fully relaising this, opened the back door and chucked out some beer bottles on the grass, right next to the sign which read that you could be prosecuted for littering especially alcohol containers (a dry county this one) and so Spud was summarily arrested and carted off to the Manchester Gaol so later that night arrangements had to be made to go and get him out, hence late night.

Uncle kermit and Auntie Opal's place is just wonderful: quiet, friendly, hospitable, with family living nearby, so next morning, after buttermilk biscuits, sausage and gravy, we sat outside and the band played: cool mountain air, lovely company, and, on top of all that, Milo spent an hour running around and playing happily ... with a wolf!!

  correct. Cherokee is a fullblood British Columbian wolf. He is just superb; much bigger than Milo, so my long-cherished dream of being able to pat a wolf came true no trouble at all, as you'll see from photos following soon.

It took ages to say goodbye to all the family. I felt very sad yet very happy during all of this as I began to wonder if I would ever come back up here again; a perfect moment, really, which I'll treasure forever.

  We arrived back home in the middle of the afternoon then headed down to a show put on by Bell buckle records in the town of Bell Buckle itself. We got there in time to hear valerie's performance: what a gem!!

During the night I also was able to record lovely interviews with Valerie, Becky Buller and jeanette Williams, so just a terrific night. Arriving home at midnight or so, david had driven something like 865 miles in two days: an astonishing feat of concentration and endurance, I think.
Today the Convention starts, so full-on for the next week. I'll write again any chance I can take.

  What a wonderful week-end it really was topped off, of course, by the cats and the mighty Borough winning premierships!!
How good does it really get?1
I'll write again soon. take care.

Geoff morris

WALL-TO-WALL BLUEGRASS.

  Geoffs report: 

We've been away for two days. We (Dave and I) left early on Wednesday morning and drove straight to Owensboro in Kentucky to the Bluegrass Museum, stayed there all day then back for most of Thursday morning.

What a place!

Last year when I was expected to be at the Museum they had the self guided tour turned into braille which I read this time; just excellent. Not sure if we would be that thoughtful in Australia for someone coming from overseas.

Apart from going through the Bluegrass Hall of Honour I spent much of the time listening to absolutely wonderful oral history interview films of first generation bluegrass musicians, (Earl Scruggs, vern Williams, Jimmy Martin and Curly Seckler) each interview lasting an hour or so. Just magnificent material as each old bloke recounted stories from the early days; loved it and could in fact have stayed there for a few more days just continuing to go through their magnificent collection.

  Then we drove back down the road thirty miles or so and up on to Jerusalem ridge, Bill Monroe and family's home place, and spent a few hours at the big festival there. Met lots of people, picked up a couple of c.d.s, sat on hay bales listening to beautiful music echoing around the valley and the ridge. This is a four-day festival which I'd love to come back to and stay at for the whole time ... not sure when, though.

anyway it was just fabulous to be there even for this short time; a big crowd, humid, sunny conditions after a thunderstorm early in the morning, and the ridge crammed full of the smell of tall pines; what a wonderful place.

  We came back home in the evening for a lovely meal, (be assured Virginia is a wonderful cook), this one consisting of macaroni, cheese, pinto beans and chopped onion, then off to the station Inn to hear the Nashville Bluegrass Band, who, as you know, I always refer to on the show as "the cream on the cake", and indeed they truly were!

  What a wonderful band!

Flawless performance, playing the like of which you can't even imagine unless o7u hear their records and if you do hear their records, they sound exactly the same live on stage.

Would Stuart duncan be the sweetest, most beautiful fiddle player you've ever heard in your life!

  So, as you can see, just a sensational couple of days. Today is a comparatively light one coming up-. Off into town to pick up the braille conventon programme then back for a chat on worldwidebluegrass.com with Gracie, then probably late tonight may be able to tune into the geelong premiership!

We're off very early tomorrow morning for this one day festival. I forgot, (or at least I think I did) to tell you that on Tuesday afternoon we went down to visit all the gang at Bell buckle records in, would you believe, Bell Buckle, Tennessee, and there spent an hour and a half or more talking with the beautiful Valerie Smith. There we found out that on Sunday afternoon there is a spectacular six-hour show lined up to open their new banquet hall down there, starting at four o'clock and going till then or so, featuring bands of the quality of frances Mooney and Fontana Sunset, Lost highway, Valerie herself and band, jeanette Williams Band ... just to mention a few. It will be a wonderful show. Then back by midnight or so then on Monday morning the I.B.M.A. Convention kicks off and full tilt for the following week!!

Here is a photo of Geoff standing next to Jimmy martin's gravestone complete with the wording which Jimmy himself ordered to be written actually some years before his death.

  The Beginning of Geoffs Bluegrass Dream

 Welcome to fat Shirley's Trailer park opera!

What a terrific night's entertainment it really was!

Two hundred people in the Walker civic centre, Rock Spring, georgia, and just a highly enjoyable and true "musical" in the sense that there was far more music than dialogue throughout the show.

Tom Brown is just a brilliant, flarey song-writer and performer, and I also met his co-writer david crawford, too, plus a good few of the cast, and, on top of that, Virginia and I both won door prizes at half time.

There is a song in the show about "staying at the weekly rate, eating at the Waffle-house Doggone Lonesome Blues" so of course we had to "eat at the waffle-house" after the show. a terrific place. You just wouldn't believe what can be done with a hash brown!

  Rock Spring is probably two and a half hours drive from here, but lovely smooth travelling and we gained an hour into central Standard Time on the return journey.

a quiet day today thought we had a long talk with long-time correspondent Amay Murray who also gave us several c.d.s to kick off the collection, including the brand new one from Larry cordle: sensational!

  BIG BENDIGO BLUEGRASS BASH
Yes, it was a success!!
Five a.m. on a Saturday morning is a much too early time to start netcasting around the world, playing and talking about bluegrass music ... but that's
exactly what Geoff Morris did on September 1st.
The idea was to broadcast on worldwidebluegrass.com for as long as possible, partly to raise some much-needed funds for his forthcoming visit to bluegrass
America, and partly just to see if an event like this could be done ... and, he reports, it could!!
"I was on air for thirteen and a half hours," Geoff said, "and received a constant stream of support emails throughout the whole time from listeners around
the world, including a keen listener from Afghanistan."
at about the nine hour mark Geoff's energies began to flag, but received a tremendous lift as Chris Jacobs, lead singer of Bluestone Junction, and brother
Sam, an excellent guitarist in his own right, dropped in to sing, play and talk for an hour. "Listeners loved it," Geoff reports.
"Over the last hour and a half," Geoff adds, "it was a sheer effort of will-power and commitment to remain focussed but we got there."
Having succeeded with an event of this magnitude, Geoff now believes he could tackle another one ... perhaps next year!
Geoff has two more shows to go before heading off to America. His show this Friday, September 14th, 8 p.m. to midnight Eastern Australian time, is an extended
show of favourites and listeners' requests.
Tune in to
WALL-TO-WALL BLUEGRASS
www.worldwidebluegrass.com

  Geoff Morris has no doubts about the most important attribute of

Internet radio. "It is the reach", says Geoff, "you have no idea

what a kick I get when I check my e-mail after a show and find

messages from people all over the world who have heard and enjoyed

the program".  

Blind since birth, Geoff presents his three-hour show on Wednesdays

and Fridays of each week on the worldwidebluegrass.com Internet radio

network.  Geoff is a passionate man and, after his family, his two

big loves are bluegrass music and his home town of Bendigo in Central Victoria