Talkin' Bluegrass Music

THE SAM BUSH BAND

and

THE TRAVELIN' McCOURYS

ROCK GPAC!!

Germantown, TN

April 18, 2019

Sam Bush on Mandolin 3.24.18

City Winery Nashville

Sam Bush on Fiddle 3.24.18

City Winery Nashville

Sam Bush on Strato-Mando 3.24.18

City Winery Nashville

WELL! DAD-BLAME IT! We've just seen one of the best concerts that the Germantown (TN) Performing Arts Center (GPAC) has ever offered! The concert rocked the entire house from the orchestra pit to the very last row in the balcony of the lovely hall!

Kicking off the amazing night were The Travelin' McCourys, who dazzled us from first note to last. Friend, they are no "opening act," by any means! The band is as follows: Rob McCoury (banjo), Ronnie McCoury (mandolin), Cody Kilby (guitar), Alan Bartram (bass), and Jason Carter (fiddle), and they are just outstanding! The sons of the legendary Del McCoury, Rob and Ronnie have put together top-quality music, and the McCoury legend continues. All artists participated in vocals on various songs. Oh my! They are just so good!

Here is the set for the Travelin' McCourys: We're Only Passing Through, Lonesome On'ry and Mean, The Shaker (Grammy winner by Alan Bartram and Becky Buller), Midnight Flyer, Battlefield, Let Her Go (adapted from contemporary artist Passenger), and Bye-Bye So Long.

Our pacemaker just began to quiet the ticker when here came the fabulous Sam Bush Band. There went the pacemaker! Sam Bush and his amazing crew don't do anything low-key or dragging! Go with me here: The Sam Bush Band (especially Sam Bush) goes at a frenetic pace, and their ardent fans just have to hang onto their baseball caps! The Sam Bush Band is as follows: Sam Bush (mandolin, fiddle), Scott Vestal (banjo), Stephen Mougin "Mojo"(guitar), Todd Parks (bass), and Chris Brown (drums). Once again, every band member chipped in on vocals throughout the show.

Here is the set for the Sam Bush Band: Play by Your Own Rules, Ridin' that Bluegrass Train, They're Gonna Miss Me When I'm Gone, Greenbriar (Sam and Scott wrote it), Do the Boogie (a John Hartford song), Revival (a Peter Rowan song and the title of the DVD "Revival" about Sam Bush), Roll On Buddy Roll On, Circles Around Me, You and You Alone (Stephen Mougin), Howlin' at the Moon, Stop the Violence (Sam is serious here!), and three standing ovations with three encores for The Sam Bush Band together with The Travelin' McCourys: The Georgia Mail, Vamp in the Middle, and Up on Cripple Creek (which dissolved into the instrumental version, Cripple Creek, which went about as fast as you could ever in your life imagine!) Whew! What an amazing concert by two really hot bluegrass bands!

Note: We borrowed from our photos of The Sam Bush Band at City Winery Nashville in 2018, while we handled it "as best we could" at GPAC in 2019. The Travelin' McCourys and The Sam Bush Band are 'Together Again' in the photos below. Click all images to get a better view.