| Andrew Weigel | Gettysburg Bluegrass Festival 2008 |
Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver took the stage at 8:00pm. Earlier that afternoon Doyle and the other three singers (Alan Johnson on fiddle and singing bass, Carl White on upright bass and jokes, and Darren Beachley on guitar) gave a very nice workshop on bluegrass vocals.
Two of the more memorable songs they played during their set were "Help is on the Way" and "There's More Behind the Picture than the Wall". The latter is the only one of their songs I've heard on the radio in northern New Jersey.
For one song Doyle Lawson brought out an arch-top guitar to fingerpick a 20s - 30s sounding song in the style of Mother Maybelle Carter. And thus was born "Mother Mothball".
Josh Swift played the dobro, and he was fantastic. He also did a number of things I haven't seen other dobro players do, such as bouncing his right hand up and down rather than simply sliding or hingeing it.
Doyle Lawson spoke about how Josh Swift came to become a member the band. They were playing together onstage, and Doyle announced the next song. He asked Josh if he knew it, and Josh said "No, but I will by the time it gets around to me." As Doyle said, "That was the right answer."
As they probably are at every festival they play, they were the best vocal group at Gettysburg (they're the 7-time winner of the IBMA's "Vocal Group of the Year Award"). Is it time for "The Legendary Doyle Lawson"?
If you want to hear the joke about the three-legged pig with a wooden peg leg, you'll just have to go a concert.
Last updated: June 10, 2008. Copyright 2005-2021, Andrew H. Weigel. (AHW)