Bristol, VA/TN, (March 2, 2018) — The Birthplace of Country Music has the distinct pleasure of working with an array of talented musicians across many genres—and many of those artists have names you’ll never forget. This is especially true for the two groups slated to perform on the March edition of Radio Bristol’s Farm and Fun Time variety show on March 8: Bumper Jacksons and Roochie Toochie & The Ragtime Shepherd Kings—and if the names of these groups are any indication, audiences are in for two tons of fun! The show is now sold out, but everyone is invited to watch the show for free on Radio Bristol’s Facebook Live.
“This will be one of the most entertaining, out of the box Farm and Fun Time’s we’ve ever had, featuring two incredibly creative acts both playing for their first ever show in Bristol,” said the show’s producer and host, Kris Truelsen. “Also, if you’ve never seen a ‘porkestra,’ you are in for a treat!”
The bands
Bumper Jacksons are hot and sweet, painting America’s story from the streets of New Orleans to the hollers of Appalachia. Unafraid to scrap together new sounds from forgotten 78s, the Bumper Jacksons elegantly balance paying homage to tradition while fashioning their own unique and playful style. A brassy, seven-piece ensemble with horns and pedal steel, the group has been honored multiple times as the Mid-Atlantic’s Artist of the Year and Best Traditional Band at the Washington Area Music Awards. Bumper Jacksons bring audiences into the center of the party where everyone’s invited and the dance floor never sleeps!
The mission of Roochie Toochie & the Ragtime Shepherd Kings is to perform the weirdest songs from the early days of Tin Pan Alley on the format on which those songs were first recorded—wax cylinder. The band shares the love of antiquated pop tunes and gives a voice to a bygone era that reflects the attitudes of that time—no matter how silly they may seem. From the zaniest and most obscure songs from the early 20th century, Roochie Toochie & the Ragtime Shepherd Kings record them for new audiences to underscore both the absurdity and the importance of pop music in American history.
Facebook live
Radio Bristol Presents: Farm and Fun Time takes place on Thursday, March 8 at 7:00 p.m. EST at the Birthplace of Country Music Museum, doors open at 6:30 p.m. EST. Guests are asked to be seated by 6:50 p.m. Tickets to the show are sold out, but fans are encouraged to watch Farm and Fun Time live via Radio Bristol’s Facebook page.
Farm and Fun Time features a variety of segments including jingles written and performed by house band Bill and the Belles, a farm report, an heirloom recipe segment, and nationally touring artists. A revival of the former WCYB radio program that aired from downtown Bristol in the 1940s and 1950s, Radio Bristol’s Farm and Fun Time is original programming the entire family will enjoy.
Special guests Ralph Stanley II & The Clinch Mountain Boys and David Davis & The Warrior River Boys will appear on the show April 12. Click here to purchase tickets.
Sponsored by Eastman Credit Union, Radio Bristol’s Farm and Fun Time radio show is recorded before a live audience and is broadcast live as well as via webcast. Radio Bristol can be accessed 24 hours a day, 7 days a week on 100.1 FM in the Bristol area, online at ListenRadioBristol.org, and through the station’s free mobile app.