Wytheville Community College is pleased to present the free monthly Bluegrass and Old-Time Jamboree on May 21.
This month the Jamboree will feature The Crooked Road Ramblers and Gap Civil on Saturday, May 21, 2022, from 7-9 p.m. The Jamboree will be held in the William F. Snyder Auditorium on the WCC campus in Wytheville, located at 1000 East Main Street. Attendees are encouraged to wear a face covering and practice social distancing.
The Crooked Road Ramblers are an old-time band from Southwest Virginia, steeped in the traditional music of the Blue Ridge. They have played at the Carter Family Fold, the Wayne Henderson Festival, Houstonfest, and many other venues across Virginia and North Carolina. They have won first place in the old-time band category at the Ashe County, Alleghany County, Laurel Bloomery, Fries, and Union Grove fiddler’s conventions in addition to a second place finish at the Galax Fiddler’s Convention. They were also named the Old Time Instrumental Group of the Year at the 2014 Blue Ridge Acoustic Uprising. The band was founded by fiddler Kilby Spencer, originally from Whitetop. The band includes John Perry on guitar, Donald Hill on guitar and vocals, Karen Carr on bass and vocals, Wayne Dye on mandolin and vocals, and Debbie Yates on banjo.
Hailing from Sparta, North Carolina, Gap Civil performs old-time music deeply rooted in the traditions of the region. The group is a regular performer at the Jubilee in Sparta, the Alleghany Jubilee, and other regional dances, concerts, and fiddlers conventions. Gap Civil will get you dancing to the tunes of Caroline Beverley on guitar, Chris Johnson on banjo, and Lucas Pasley on fiddle.
Doors to the Snyder Auditorium open at 6 p.m., with music beginning at 7 p.m., Seating is available on a first-come, first-served basis. The event is free and open to the public. Donations will be accepted to help defray the travel expenses of the bands.
The WCC Bluegrass and Old-Time Jamboree was first organized in 2006. The event is hosted by WCC English faculty member, Jason Settle, whom you may find playing the fiddle along with one of the bands. The WCC Jamboree is an affiliated venue of The Crooked Road.
