Farm and Fun Time was back again on November 8 with another foot-stomping installment. This month’s show featured old-time and bluegrass music at its finest! Thanks to our sponsor Eastman Credit Union, Radio Bristol was able to bring Farm and Fun Time not only to those in the audience or tuned in to WBCM-LP, but to viewers far and wide via Facebook Live. Be sure to like WBCM – Radio Bristol on Facebook to tune in every month!
Host band Bill and the Belles kicked the show off with their astounding harmonies, including a new tune called “I’ll Never Get Along with You.” Our “Heirloom Recipe” presenter this month was Bristol chef and businessman Joe Deel. The Burger Bar, where Hank Williams allegedly ate his last meal, is a landmark in Historic Downtown Bristol, and Joe has been the owner since 2012. Joe keeps his recipes in touch with Bristol’s history, including his recipe for chili from Bunting’s Pharmacy. While Bunting’s is long gone, the legacy of this community gathering place lives on at the Burger Bar. In honor of Bunting’s legendary chili, Bill and the Belles crooned that “Chili Dog Crave.”
Our first featured musical guests were Franklin County, Virginia’s Five Mile Mountain Road. Fronted by Fiddlin’ Billy Hurt, Five Mile Mountain Road plays driving dance music, ranging from rip-roaring old-time breakdowns to beautifully crooned swing pieces and everything in between. Though Billy’s fiddle led the charge on most pieces, multi-instrumentalist extraordinaire Brennen Ernst set aside his guitar and dazzled the audience with his piano prowess too. After playing James Scott’s “Frog Legs Rag,” Ernst provided driving piano accompaniment on a pair of Charlie Poole tunes. If you enjoy the full spectrum of country music, you’ll love Five Mile Mountain Road.
For this month’s “ASD Farm Report,” we visited Cave Ridge Farm in Blountville, Tennessee. With Thanksgiving just around the corner, we couldn’t think of a more appropriate time to visit some heritage turkeys! If you’re looking for an alternative to the frozen bird from the super market, look no further! Here’s a video from our visit:
The name Farm and Fun Time is synonymous with bluegrass music, and our last musical guests were none other than one of the genre’s all-time most celebrated bands, Blue Highway. Though they are a nationally acclaimed band, these guys are no strangers to Bristol, having played many times here through the years and having roots in East Tennessee, Southwest Virginia, and Western North Carolina. The band played many of their original cutting-edge tunes that have brought them acclaim, but they also performed Dr. Ralph Stanley’s “Clinch Mountain Backstep” and the standard “Darlin’ Nellie Across the Sea” in tribute to the music’s roots here in Bristol. It was truly a privilege to have such bluegrass luminaries on the Farm and Fun Time stage.
Thanks to everyone who came out and made this a wonderful evening of fun and music! While our Christmas Show featuring Carolina Blue, Sally and George, and the Church Sisters is now sold out, you can catch it on Facebook Live! Tickets for January’s Farm and Fun Time are going fast, so get your tickets today, and join us for a celebration of Appalachian balladry!