THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, July 13, 1996 TAG: 9607120072
SECTION: DAILY BREAK PAGE: E2 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY FRANK ROBERTS, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: 49 lines
IT IS bluegrass deja vu.
Many of the Hampton Roads musicians who followed Bill Monroe's lead 20 to 30 years ago are getting together again.
They will pick 'n' grin at the Pioneers of Bluegrass Reunion at 7 p.m. Saturday at Knox Automotive Center in Carrollton. It'll be free to the public.
Finding bluegrass is not as easy as it was when their bands performed 20 to 30 years ago, when clubs hosted them, festivals invited them, radio and television welcomed them.
There are few welcome mats for them these days. WCMS radio plays bluegrass from 7 to 8 a.m. Sundays, and a couple of car places host them: Wayne's Body Shop in Portsmouth has them picking and grinning every Saturday, and Knox features bluegrass the second Saturday of each month.
Johnny Knox issued his first invitation about 15 months ago.
``The music is enormously popular. We have between 300 and 500 at every performance,'' he said.
``Up to 500 are expected tonight to hear about 75 performers,'' said Garland Abbott III, a bluegrass pioneer who helped organize the Pioneers of Bluegrass Reunion.
The event will spotlight the musicians who popularized the genre in Hampton Roads in the 1960s, performers who played with such groups as the Cripple Creek Boys and Flatland Express.
Bobby Lester and Lester Potter, Harold Smith and Eddie Smith, Ronnie Barnes and Otto Sheila are among the musicians local bluegrass fans will remember.
``I played guitar with the Cripple Creek Boys,'' Knox said. ``Some of them will be here - Mickey Beaver, Bobby Lester, Harlan Baumgardner.''
Tonight's to-do has ``a family-oriented, festival-type atmosphere. It's held indoors. We have hot dogs and drinks - everything is 50 cents,'' Knox said. ``I'm just covering my expenses on food. I have these bluegrass gatherings because I love the music.'' ILLUSTRATION: IF YOU WANT TO GO
What: Pioneers of Bluegrass Reunion
When: 7 p.m. tonight
Where: Knox Automotive Center, U.S. 258, Carrollton
There is no charge for parking or admission.
Bluegrass concerts are presented the second Saturday of each
month at Knox.
There are concerts at 8 p.m. every Saturday at Wayne's Body Shop,
3134 Victory Boulevard, Portsmouth. by CNB