Music from the Crooked Road

by Rick Landers

Crooked Road Tour - Photo credit: Michael G. Stewart

The mountain music of Virginia was featured in the ensemble show, Music from the Crooked Road that recently toured the U.S. The show is sponsored by the National Council for the Traditional Arts (NCTA) and the Mid-Atlantic Arts Foundation and was a delight to see and hear with a barrage of top notch bluegrass talent that included guitarist Wayne Henderson; banjo master Sammy Shelor; The Whitetop Mountain Band, vocalist Elizabeth LaPrelle; the duet Kirk Sutphin (banjo) and Eddie Bond (fiddle) and a new generation Bluegrass band that kicked up dust called Amber Collins and No Speed Limit.

Guitar International caught the show in Maryland and in Virginia – yes, it was well worth catching twice!

“Winding for over 300 miles across the mountains, ridges and valleys of southwestern Virginia from the easter slopes to the Blue Ridge to the coalfields of the Cumberland Mountains, the Crooked Road (Hwy 58) passes through some of the most musical places on earth, “ states the NCTA.

Moving on and off stage, the audience was offered a cornucopia of music of the Appalachia region from old time mountain tunes to fast-track acoustic arrangements. The beautiful vocals of Elizabeth LaPrelle were achingly haunting and reached back over a hundred years or more, but offeed such an immediate human connection that the audience was held in a trance as she dug deep into the tradition of unaccompanied mountain music. LaPrelle was spellbinding.

The team of Kirk Sutphin and Eddie Bond not only offered up a good bit of country-laden humor, but the guys can click with licks with Sutphin working clawhammer-style banjo playing while Bond rips it up with his fiddle. Both joined in with other musicians throughout the evening to add their own bit of depth and style to the rich musical proceedings.

The Crooked Road Tour - Photo credit: Michael G. Stewart

The Whitetop Mountain Band is a genuine family affair. Mom and Pop (Thornton and Emily Spencer) have nurtured the Appalachian music tradtion both on their own instruments, with Thornton on fiddle and Emily on banjo, and by passing down the tradition to their guitar picking and flat-foot dancing daughter, Martha Spencer. Martha also plays banjo, fiddle and bass. Joining the group on mandolin is Martha’s fiancé, Jackson Cunningham. Debbie Bramer held her ground on stand up bass, adding even more acoustic depth to the group’s sound.

Sammy Shelor (left) and Kirk Sutphin (right) featured banjoists - Photo credit: Michael G. Stewart

Banjo pickers know Sammy Shelor who’s recognized as one of the best bluegrass banjo pickers of our time. Shelor hails from the State of Virginia’s Meadows of Dan where he leads the Lonesome River Band. He joined the Crooked Road show as a soloist and seemed as comfortable taking the lead as a featured player as he did sticking in the background while others took the helm. Sammy’s been voted “Banjo Player of the Year” four times by the International Bluegrass Music Association and it didn’t take much time for the audience to realize that they were in the presence of a master.

Any guitarist who knows a lick has heard of Wayne Henderson. Wayne’s from Rugby, Virginia – population 7. And he’s one of the finest bluegrass guitarists in the world, as well as an internationally known guitar builder. Wayne’s taken first place 13 times in the Galax Fiddler’s Convention guitar competition in Southern Virginia, the home of Virginia bluegrass. He showed his stuff, picking his heart out and telling some yarns of his own about Rugby and a bit about his classic T-Bird.

Roving in and out of the troupe was bassist Jacob Keller whose bass work held things together and helped keep the pace. Eller is from Chilhowie, Virginia and his regular gig is as the bassist for the Bluegrass group, Highway 111, that features the incredible mandolin player, Sierra Hull.

Duane Compton (mandolin) and Amber Collins - Photo credit: Michael G. Stewart

Pulling out the stops was Amber Collins and No Speed Limit a “Newgrass” band that kicks into high gear with some of the finest contemporary Bluegrass around. They’re all from Virginia and can steam roll through some of the toughest and fast-paced tunes you’ll ever hear. Guitarists in the audience were talking about Josh Pickett, No Speed Limit’s hot guitarist who launched into some six-string pyrotechnics. At 17, Pickett won the International Guitar Championship at Merlefest. We’ll hear more of him in the future, for sure. Amber took the lead for most of the vocals and she was on fire, but it would be mistake not to mention the rich vocals of bass player, Dustin Pyrtle, who kept the melodies grounded when Amber livened up the tunes with her riveting style.

Music from the Crooked Road was a show we were glad we caught while it rolled through Maryland and Virginia. The show was full of down-home friendly banter that was heartfelt and the music was magical. The history and the music of the Blue Ridge Mountains unfolded during conversations that the performers had with the audiences. Everyone was exceptionally thankful to have caught the Music from the Crooked Road, but were more than grateful to know that the music that the show is based on, not only survives, but thrives.

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