That’s how I was listed on the schedule for the National Maple Syrup Festival. 10:00 at the Medora School auditorium: TBA. 12:00 at Burton’s Maplewood Farm: TBA. I booked to play this festival a little late, and the schedule was already printed. So my time slots were TBA. A friend suggested it stood for “thumb being active.”
I’m not going to book it late next year, though. The National Maple Syrup Festival is a blast! Medora is a delightful southern Indiana (Jackson County) town, and the Festival is held out at the Burton Maplewood Farm. I really hope to go back next year. The crowds are welcoming and enthusiastic, and it is a very well organized festival. Not every festival promoter thinks to have a room where musicians can warm up, but the school auditorium did.
I played my set at the Medora School auditorium immediately after Christian Country Cowboy Church from LaGrange, Ky., led the Sunday morning worship with music and message. It was a delight to meet Zeb Son, the pastor of the church and lead singer for the group, and his wife, Joy. Cowboy Church holds services on Friday nights, and on the fourth Friday of the month they host a Christian Country Concert. I enjoyed their music immensely and hope to make it down for a worship service or concert.
You wouldn’t typically associate maple syrup with southern Indiana, but let me tell you, this was delicious, if a bit pricey. I did not bring a bottle home with me, but I did take the time to enjoy a delicious cup of hot tea, sweetened with, you guessed it, maple syrup.
The Festival was the cap to a great weekend of gigs and visits. I returned to two of my favorite central Kentucky venues, hitting Common Grounds in Lexington on Friday night. Common Grounds is on High Street near the University of Kentucky campus. It’s a great room. The crowd was small (spring break had just started), but the people there were attentive and appreciative.
Friends from Georgia, now living in Lexington came out, and Sean McCormick sat in on percussion. That was like putting extra sausage in the gravy. Sean is welcome to join me anytime! I also got to reconnect with a Lexington musician who was starting out at the same time as me. We had both played Blue Bones (now a Pizza Hut) on Limestone Street in Lexington back in the late 70s.
Saturday night found me back at The Hub in Danville, another great venue for acoustic musicians. Met a delightful family who was visiting at Centre College, and enjoyed visiting with an old friend who came over from Stanford with his family and folks from his church. He recorded video for most of the set, so perhaps I’ll be able to post a couple of clips.
Did I mention that the staff in both of these locations are a pleasure to work with?
That wraps up a most memorable weekend. Music, family, friends, a festival and time spent back home in the Bluegrass State. I’ll be TBA for that anytime!