View Photos from the 2018 Festival
Saturday, July 14th, 2018
12:00 PM – 8:00 PM
201 W. High St., Carlisle, PA 17013
First Set 12:00 p.m. - Dismembered Tennesseans 12:45 p.m. - FY5 1:30 p.m. - Lonesome Ace Stringband 2:15 p.m. - Circus No. 9 3:00 p.m. - The Gibson Brothers Second Set 3:45 p.m. - Dismembered Tennesseans 4:30 p.m. - FY5 5:15 p.m. - Lonesome Ace Stringband 6:00 p.m. - Circus No. 9 6:45 p.m. - The Gibson Brothers
Seating is open. Free admission. Bike racks available throughout campus. The lawn may be accessed starting at 8:00 AM on the day of the festival. Bring lawn chairs and blankets. A wide array of vendors will keep appetites happy with everything from french fries and bratwurst to Thai food and ice cream, plus non-alcoholic drinks and smoothies. Restrooms will be available. Dickinson College is a smoke-free campus. Festival is held rain or shine. Get ready for great music!
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Do you love Bluegrass on the Grass? Become a patron today! We need your support so we may continue to attract the best bluegrass bands in the country to Carlisle’s most-anticipated live music event of the year. It only takes two minutes to make your tax-deductible contribution via Dickinson’s secure giving website at www.dickinson.edu/gift. Simply choose Other on the drop-down menu next to Designation, then write in Bluegrass on the Grass Festival.
We ask devoted attendees who enjoy the music and share our goals of cultivating, sharing and sustaining American Musical genres to ensure that Bluegrass on the Grass will continue for many more years to come. Make your annual tax-deductible contribution today! Every gift counts.
Band Bios
The Dismembered Tennesseans
Fletcher Bright, founding member of The Dismembered Tennesseans, passed away early on Christmas morning of 2017. Fletcher, you were unmatched as a friend and fiddler. Thank you for all you did for bluegrass music and for our Bluegrass on the Grass Festival.
Members:
Ed “Doc” Cullis – Banjo
Laura Walker – Bass, Fiddle and Vocals
Bobby Martin – Guitar and Vocals
Don Cassell – Mandolin and Vocals
Brian Blaylock – Mandolin, Dobro, Guitar, Banjo and Vocals
It was back in 1945 that a group of McCallie students got together and began singing and playing a brand of Bluegrass music that has gone on now for more than 65 years. The name “Dismembered Tennesseans” seemed good enough a name for a bunch of teenagers who had no long range plans, and they sang their way through school.
But somehow the music never stopped, and the band stayed together for the next 65 years, singing and laughing their way across the country – from Florida to Washington to Ohio and Colorado and points between. They played for every local civic group in existence, every charity, and most of the conventions in town looking for cheap entertainment. They have also played at the Annual Chattanooga …Riverbend Festival and at Kennedy Center.
The 3 Sisters Festival Bluegrass on the River is held annually in Chattanooga, Tennessee and is a free concert presented by Chattanooga Presents which brings in big-name Bluegrass artists mixed with local talent.
The group has appeared on stage with many of the top bluegrass music stars and has performed in concert with the Chattanooga Symphony Orchestra and the Chattanooga Boys Choir, and more recently the Chattanooga Ballet. They have appeared on a segment of ABC-TV’s Peter Jennings Nightly News and were featured on the NBC Sunday Today Show. Their audiences have been composed of such celebrities as Chuck Yeager, Sam Nunn, Gerald Ford, Jack Kemp, and three Tennessee governors. Easily one of the most popular bands in hometown Chattanooga, they have made their mark singing bluegrass music for people who don’t particularly like country music.
FY5
“The straight-forwardness with which Finnders & Youngberg deliver bluegrass on the album is complimented delicately with large sprinkles of honkey-tonk steel and glorious folk harmonies; all layered with a coating of thick, rich lyrical delivery and songwriting.” = Charlie Englar, Scene Magazine
“On Eat The Moon, all these elements combine in a partnership that recalls a time before roots music became watered down or overly polished. FY5’s synergy of styles carries the traditions of what came before with the frontier elements of the West, giving their music a sense of freedom and adventure that sounds fresh to our ears. If you’re searching for the ensemble that will bridge the gap between the Smokies and the Rockies, between East and West, old and new, this is for you.” – Hearth Music
Instagram @FY5band
Colorado’s FY5 proudly swim in the deep currents of American music, playing new songs, well-informed of country and bluegrass traditions, but not bound to them. Featuring thoughtful arrangements, strong singing and musicianship, the band strives to connect to listeners with stories of common struggles and big ideas. While their sound evokes timelessness, it is decidedly contemporary, well-traveled 21st century sensibility that informs their songwriting.
As they share the stories that drive the songs, FY5’s show leaves listeners certainly with tapping toes, but ranging thoughts as well. FY5 is excited for the release of their 4th full-length album in early 2018, The Way These Things Go, featuring their trademark story songs, clever arranging, and catchy hooks. The band was selected as official showcase artists for the 2017 International Bluegrass Music Association conference including a songwriter showcase with Mike Finders.
Lonesome Ace Stringband
Hailing from Toronto, a growing hotbed for Old-Time music, Lonesome Ace Stringband packs a punch with their fiery, gritty, and groovy sound. Comprised of three of the most accomplished Old-Time musicians on the planet, the Lonesome Ace Stringband does a masterful job melding their talents. From John Showman’s unmistakably creative fiddling to Chris Coole’s banjo wizardry and Max Heineman’s driving bass playing topped off with the group’s soulful singing, Lonesome Ace has sculpted a fresh sound with an age-old grit rarely heard in today’s acoustic music soundscape.”- Brad Kolodner (WAMU Washington, DC)
Instagram @lonesomeacestringband
The Lonesome Ace Stringband brings grit, skill and abandon to old-time, Appalachian folk songs and fiddle/banjo tunes. These are songs and tunes for life and all of it’s occasions: festivals, dances, wars, parties and funerals. The music comes from a tradition that has inspired and brought together generations of people. It’s themes – love, loss, hard work and hardship, faith, and everyday life – speak to everyone. The members are Chris Coole on banjo, John Showman on fiddle and Max Heineman on bass. Together they bring a deep respect for the roots of the music, a keen sense of innovation to the performance and material, and a passion for the sound that transcends both. This is old-time music for today’s old soul.
Their debut album, “Old Time”, was recorded in 2014, and was met with critical acclaim from the folk, old-time, and bluegrass community. In 2016, the band recorded their sophomore album “Gone For Evermore”. Heading into the studio, the group’s goal was to capture the feel, energy and narrative of their live playing. Since 2008, LAS has held a weekend residency at Toronto’s legendary Dakota Tavern. Often performing 10 sets of music in a weekend, the band has developed the kind of instinctual rapport, that only comes from seasoned musicians logging many hundreds of playing hours together.
Chris Coole is a cracker-jack banjo picker who has been on the old-time and roots music scene for going on 20 years. He has taught at banjo workshops and camps internationally. Coole has released several albums under his own name and with the Foggy Hogtown Boys as well as numerous collaborations with a variety of great roots musicians including Arnie Naiman, Erynn Marshall, Ivan Rosenberg and David Francey. His vision, musicality and great knowledge of the music are the driving forces of “Old Time”.
John Showman is known as one of Canada’s finest fiddle players, a strong and versatile musician best-known for his work with the Foggy Hogtown Boys, New Country Rehab and Creaking Tree String Quartet. His love of traditional fiddle music is palpable everywhere on “Old Time” and he brings the music to life with inspired playing.
Max Heineman’s powerful and unique voice carries the listener straight to the heart of the music, with a timeless quality entirely his own yet one that hearkens back to the classic folk and country singers that have shaped the style. His bass playing supports and compliments the music expertly, both driving the rhythm and gliding right along with the melody to give the trio it’s distinct sound. He is well-known for his playing and singing with the Foggy Hogtown Boys.
Circus No. 9
Circus No. 9 represents everything that’s good about the new generation of acoustic music. – Bryan Sutton, eleven-time IBMA Guitar Player of the Year
Instagram @circusnine
Mandolin / Thomas Cassell
Guitar / Jed Clark
Banjo / Matthew Davis
Bass / Vince Ilagan
Based out of East Tennessee, Circus No.9 is a new progressive acoustic group that embraces the influence of Bluegrass, Jazz, Rock, and more. The group has appeared on stage alongside artists including David Grisman, Bryan Sutton, Larry Keel, and more. With awarded musicians Matthew Davis (2016 National Banjo Champion, 2017 Rockygrass Banjo Champion), Thomas Cassell (2016 Rockygrass Mandolin Champion), bassist Vince Ilagan, and guitarist Jed Clark, Circus No.9 is taking the new acoustic scene by force.
The Gibson Brothers
Eric and Leigh Gibson might have, pound-for-pound, the most impeccably fine-sounding traditional bluegrass band on the contemporary scene. …the reason these guys can’t lose is that, quite simply, they sound so great. Eric and Leigh sing bluegrass’ tightest harmony blend, and, instrumentally the group plays with unmatched alacrity and taste. -Steve Leftridge of PopMatters
The brothers and the band are what’s called in baseball “five-tool” players. They have it all: lead vocals, brother-duet harmony, instrumental virtuosity, ensemble sensibilities, and great original material. – Chris Stuart, Bluegrass Today
Though it may seem a contradiction, the Gibsons’ powers of emotional suasion are grounded in their restraint. They never over-sing or over-sell a song. Instead, they have the self-assurance to merely let the quiet beauty of their harmonies reveal the magic of their lyrics and melodies. Without fail, the results are deeply moving. The brothers’ gifts as communicators and movers and shakers of souls are particularly vivid on a trio of original tunes on their new album. – Bluegrass Unlimited
Instagram @brothersgibson
Twitter @ericgibsonbros
The Gibson Brothers were voted 2013 Entertainers of the Year at the IBMA World of Bluegrass 24th Annual Awards Show in Raleigh, N.C. for the second year in a row. We also won the Vocal Group of the Year, Song of the Year (“They Called It Music”) and Eric was named the Songwriter of the Year.
The Gibson Brothers were named the 2012 Entertainer of the Year Award at the 23rd Annual IBMA Awards at Nashville’s Ryman Auditorium, the first time a brother duet has won this award. The same night we won the “Gospel Recorded Performance of the Year” award for “Singing As We Rise.”
Help My Brother, our tenth album, won the prestigious 2011 IBMA Album of the Year Award.We were named the 2011 IBMA Vocal Group of the Year, the first time a brother duet has won this award. Help My Brother held the #1 position on the Bluegrass Unlimited Album chart for 8 months. It definitely had staying power, with songs charting on the BU Top 30 more than a year after its release.
These awards followed on the success of Ring the Bell. The title cut of that album won the 2010 IBMA Song and Gospel Recorded Performance of the Year. Our 11th release, They Called It Music, was #1 on the Bluegrass Unlimited Album Chart for six months in 2013. The title cut spent three months as #1 on the BU Song Chart.
In July 2014 we signed with Rounder Records, a label we always equated with quality. Our first release on the label, Brotherhood, is an homage to the brother duos that have inspired us since childhood. We chose fifteen songs from country, bluegrass and early rock ‘n’ roll brother acts including some who will be familiar to most listeners, such as Phil & Don Everly, Charlie & Ira Louvin, Jim & Jesse McReynolds and Carter& Ralph Stanley. Brotherhood also features covers of songs recorded by some lesser-known acts, including the Blue Sky Boys, the Church Brothers and the York Brothers.
Leigh reflects, “These are the acts that pointed us in our direction musically. After we got going, we went our own way for a while.” He adds, “But the process of making this record brought us back to the music we were listening to when we were just getting started. When we sing those songs, I feel like I did when I was 15 years old, sitting in our living room in the farmhouse and learning to play. This music is part of our soul.”
We also look forward to contributing to the music we love for years to come. Music’s brought us a lot of interesting experiences and many friends. We truly appreciate every one of them. We’ve been very fortunate to be honored by our peers several times. And each time our thoughts are back home with the people who helped us get there.