Hoofin' It

The past few days I have really been hoofin' it...literally. I attended the big bluegrass gospel shindig at Hoofer's Gospel Barn in LaGrange, Georgia.

Let me start by saying that if you've never been to Hoofers, make plans to go. What a wonderful venue! It's a very relaxed atmosphere for any type of a concert. Feel free to bring your camper and spend a few days. In addition to bluegrass gospel they also host many of your favorite southern gospel artists. Oh, and the buffet is great! The staff was wonderful to work with. Hoofers owner, Rick Torrance, couldn't have made me feel more at home. No wonder he's successful in all of his many ventures.

I traveled to Hoofers by jumping on the bus with the hot new bluegrass band, Dailey & Vincent. Dailey and Vincent are being fronted by former Quicksilver member, Jamie Dailey and former Ricky Skaggs band mate, Darrin Vincent. Thanks for the ride, guys. By the way, great job Thursday evening.


Dailey & Vincent - Their first official Hoofers concert.

The Primitive Quartet was also on the Thursday evening ticket. If you know me, you know how I feel about the Primitives. The only thing I don't like about them is that I'm not an official member of the group.

Late Thursday evening the weather took a turn for the worse, so the guys decided to stay at Hoofers. That's when the real fun began. I was staying in the Hoofer's cabin, which is connected to the venue. They moved in with me for the night. They are preparing to record a new album so they rehearsed in the cabin until well after 1 a.m. (They've got a bunch of great tunes coming our way, by the way).


The Primitive Quartet, rehearsing songs for their upcoming album.

At the rehearsal, Randy Fox had to stop singing one particular song. He just had to praise the Lord a while. After they finished the song, his father-in-law, Reagan Riddle told Randy, "If it touches you, it will touch others."

Friday evening featured Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver along with Paul Williams & the Victory Trio. Man, I was in hog heaven! Doyle has recently had a considerable change in band personnel, and once again as he always does, has landed on his feet, running hard. He sang his new gospel radio single and honestly, it's a gem.


Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver, always a crowd pleaser.

Paul Williams, in my humble, but accurate opinion, is the best bluegrass tenor of all-time. He and his group only get better with age. They are also recording a new CD, so be listening for a new single entitled, "What A Journey It's Been."

When it was time to come home, Doyle was kind enough to allow me to jump on the bus and head back to Tennessee. His new dobro player, Josh Swift, was headed to Nashville, so I finished the last leg of the journey with him. If you're a fan of the dobro, you have got to hear this kid!

So, in 55 hours I've taken two bus trips, a car ride, held three meetings, worked two concert events at the Singing News booth and jammed with the Primitives. I also wrote an album review, a story on the upcoming Legacy Five Celebration weekend and a Front Porch Fellowship column. Don't forget to check out all this and more in an upcoming issue of Singing News Magazine.

Now that's what I call, hoofin' it!

Posted by Les Butler at 1:49 PM - Send Comments - Email This Post