Veterans and newbies alike will take the stage this weekend during the Pocono Bluegrass & Folk Society's 18th annual Winterfest, set to run Friday through Sunday at the Pocono Plaza Inn, Stroudsburg.
Following a free kick-off concert Friday evening at the ArtSpace Gallery in Stroudsburg, Winterfest host band The Lost Ramblers will perform Saturday and then close the festival on Sunday afternoon. The quartet, whose origins date back to a 1978 Shade Gap festival, has played Winterfest annually. On the flip side, the Tussey Mountain Moonshiners — one of a dozen-plus other bands slated to perform at the festival — will make its Winterfest debut. The quintet, hailing from State College, formed in 2007.
John Updike, treasurer of the PB&FS and co-founder of The Lost Ramblers, said Winterfest — which attracts around 200 people annually — came about as result of “a discussion with a friend/musician that there might be a market for a wintertime festival around here rather than a more common summertime event.” An alternative to campout music festivals held around the country, the three-day event will feature music at the inn's Tavern on Main and on the Main Stage in the ballroom. The PB&FS, which holds shindigs at Pocono Plaza Inn sporadically from fall through spring, has held Winterfest at its current location for four years, with previous events held at venues such as the Elks Club and Sherman Theater.
In addition to Updike on five-string banjo, The Lost Ramblers features Neil Morris, PB&FS president, on guitar, as well as Jim Schaffer on bass and David Husic on fiddle. Though specializing in bluegrass and old-timey music, the band also offers a mix of Celtic, jazz, polka and klezmer tunes, with three albums under its belt: a 1985 self-titled set, 1995's “Are We There Yet” and 2008's “Ramble On.”
Aside from the Ramblers and the Moonshiners , Winterfest's performance lineup includes: Big Valley Bluegrass, Last Whippoorwill, Mama Corn, The Grillbillie Project, the River Bones Band, the Texas Rose Band, Heavy Traffic, Hilltown, Louie Setzer and the Appalachian Mountain Boys, The Feinberg Brothers, the Mason Dixon Bandits, Launch PAD and Without a Paddle. Fireside Gospel with Homespun Bluegrass & Friends, featuring Peg Elia, held at the fireplace in the hotel lobby, will kick off Sunday's entertainment.
Throughout the weekend, Winterfest will also feature merchandise vendors like BP Strings and Montchanin Mountain Music, with festival goers able to relax and jam by the pool, atrium and Gazebo Bar at Pocono Plaza Inn.
In conjunction with musical performances, Saturday's schedule will include songwriting, bass, fiddle, banjo and guitar workshops, as well as an instrument-repair clinic. Other highlights include a raffle and 50/50 on Saturday, with a jam band contest on Saturday night. The winner of the latter will play a set at the Sunday stage show. Though not part of Winterfest's performance lineup at Pocono Plaza Inn, the Juggernaut String Band, featuring Uncle Pete Taney, will perform Friday evening at ShawneeCraft Brewing Company, Shawnee-on-Delaware, and present an all-ages children's program early Saturday afternoon at Eastern Monroe Public Library, Stroudsburg.
New ‘Moonshiners’
Set to play Winterfest for the first time, the Tussey Mountain Moonshiners — formed in State College — consists of: Stephen Buckalew, mandolin, fiddle and vocals; Gwen Stimely, banjo and vocals; Marc “Lumber City Slim” Prave, bass, guitar and vocals; Steve Crawford, guitar and vocals; and Jeremy Tosten, guitar, mandolin and vocals.
The band's origins stem from a weekly jam session around the kitchen table at a friend's house, from which “a few of us ‘kitchen pickers’ formed the group,” Stimely said. “While we've had personnel changes over the years, two of the three founding members, Steve Buckalew and I, have been with the group since the beginning.”
Winners of the 2010 DelFest Bluegrass Band Competition, the Tussey Mountain Moonshiners credit its influences — which include acts such as Sam Bush, Railroad Earth, Townes Van Zandt and The Band — for its diverse musical approach.
“To quote from a review of our debut album in Bluegrass Unlimited," Stimely said, "‘With admirably equal skill, authenticity, and enthusiasm, the Tussey Mountain Moonshiners ... move from bluegrass to old-time to folk/Americana.’ That diversity comes because our influences/favorite music acts are so varied.”
The Moonshiners' second and latest album, “Shine,” differs from the band's debut album, “I'm Going Home,” in two notable ways, according to Stimely. “One, all the tracks on ‘Shine’ are original compositions by different members of the band. And two, ‘Shine’ was recorded live with a single mic.”
In terms of performing, “The Moonshiners love music and love to play,” Stimely said. “That enthusiasm and energy always come across to the audience. They bounce it right back to us, and everybody has a good time. I don't think we've ever had a performance when someone didn't come up afterwards and say, ‘You sure looked like you were having fun up there.’”
‘Brothers’ return
A relative newbie to Winterfest, The Feinberg Brothers started playing as a band in 2010. Hailing from Long Island, New York, the group — which played Winterfest last year for the first time as The Feinberg Brothers — features brothers/vocalists Rourke on fiddle and Patrick on mandolin, along with their father and longtime bluegrass musician, Ronnie Feinberg, on guitar and vocals. Banjoist Terry McGill and bassist Pete Elegant round out the lineup.
A longtime player of the bluegrass fiddle, Ronnie has performed as a member of The Fox Family, Miller's Crossing and McGill's band, Straight Drive. In addition to guest appearances on fiddle with Bill Monroe, Patsy Montana, The Lewis Family, Mac Wiseman and Rose Maddox, Ronnie has performed at the Grand Ole Opry, Carnegie Hall and The Wheeling Jamboree.
In forming The Feinberg Brothers, “I got a call for a low-profile gig, and I felt the boys were ready to do it,” Ronnie said. “They did a fantastic job, and we just kept doing jobs as they came in. Before you knew it, we were working quite a bit.”
The Feinberg Brothers — whose influences include Monroe, Jimmy Martin, Flatt & Scruggs, and Reno and Smiley, among others — recorded its self-titled 2015 debut album at Ampersand Studios with engineer Bob Harris.
“We choose some material we felt was a little on the obscure side, and Pete Elegant and I both wrote some material that is on that recording,” Ronnie said. “We were thrilled to death when Bluegrass Unlimited gave it a highlight review. We recently finished recording a new project with Bob, and we are hoping to have it out this spring.”
For The Feinberg Brothers' return to Winterfest, “the audience can expect to hear a bunch of tunes from our first recording,” Ronnie said, “as well as a bunch of tunes we just finished recording for the new project.”
‘Live and Learn’
Having played numerous Winterfests, Mama Corn — founded in 2006 in Altoona — features Bruce Forr on guitar and vocals, Bryan Homan on upright bass and vocals, Jeremy Nelson on banjo and vocals, and Johnny Stevens on dobro and vocals. The band's members formed the group after they noticed they showed up to the same open mic nights, playing the same kind of music.
“We knew one another before that, but didn't realize we all loved the same music,” Stevens said, adding that the band's wide-ranging influences include the Stanley Brothers, Bill Monroe, Pink Floyd, Black Sabbath and other classic rockers.
“We've all played in many types of bands prior, including gospel, heavy metal, blues and country,” Stevens said. "That helped us in our goals to become ‘your first bluegrass band,’ a stepping stone from the music you listen to, to the music you should listen to.”
Following its self-titled debut album in 2011, Mama Corn released its sophomore effort, “Hold That Crooked Line,” in 2014. The group issued its third and latest album, “Live and Learn,” in 2017.
“The ‘Live and Learn’ album is somewhat different from the others, in that we've become more comfortable and efficient in the studio,” Stevens explained. “We have a level of ability that only comes with that experience. The songwriting, which has always been our priority, is much more focused and goal-oriented. Our guests on the album, including Nashville songwriter Doug Forshey, and SPBGMA Fiddler of the Year winner, Greg Moore, helped make it perhaps the most ‘professional’ record we've done, and we're very proud of the results.”
On the verge of another Winterfest, Mama Corn anticipates another memorable outing.
“The Stroudsburg area has welcomed us warmly, and we feel very comfortable there,” Stevens said. “Winterfest is one of our favorite festivals of the year, and we play many. The audience gives back a lot of energy, and Winterfest has a lot to offer, with different styles that will please every age and demographic, from traditional mountain music to wide-open progressiveness.”
New friends
While music remains the focus of Winterfest — Updike hopes attendees take away “fun and fond memories, and inspiration to play music” — those involved also see it as a chance to bond with fellow bluegrass lovers.
“We hope attendees leave this year's Winterfest with a heart full of joy and a batch of new-made friends,” Feinberg said.
Stimely shared Feinberg's sentiment, exclaiming, “Bluegrass in the middle of the winter? Perfect. We hope everybody can take away enough positive music energy and fun to see them through the rest of the winter. And hopefully some new friends.”
Stevens hopes Winterfest attendees see “what an asset they have in this festival. It's become an extended family of fun people who find a way to beat cabin fever, friends who get together and have fun. We actually bring numerous fans from our part of the state to Stroudsburg, because they know it's a great deal of fun. Thanks to everyone involved for allowing us to be a part of it.”