The Evolution of Tradition
Highlights of the Musical Acts Traveling Old Roads of American Music
and Finding New Traditions for the Future
Article by Trey Miller
Photographs by Arielle D’Ornellas
Suwannee Spring Reunion is a folk, blues, and bluegrass festival that is anchored deeply in tradition. As the intellectual offspring of Suwannee Springfest, SSR has inherited deep roots and decades of history that lend towards the event feeling less like a concert and more like a true family reunion. It is astounding to watch musical history come to life and grow across the park both on stage and off. Amongst these musical and oral historians, a few groups stand out as community pillars keeping traditions alive… and there are a few pioneers looking to see just how far the roots of tradition can stretch.
Sloppy Joe
Any story about tradition at these Suwannee reunion concerts is likely to start or end with the modern legends of Sloppy Joe, Slopry Land, and the community of musicians and supporters who have built a home away from home for musicians at the park. Currently championed by Jeff, Stef Lee, Bobby Burns, and the other members of Sloppy Joe, this team of musicians is responsible not only for multiple sets on stage throughout the weekend but also for maintaining the picker’s paradise known as Slopry Land. This collection of campfires and DIY structures serves as a nexus point for festival guests and artists to meet, mingle, and share music. Some from this group of musicians travel more than half the country to help make space for the Suwannee Family to share jam etiquette, practice classic fiddle tunes, then get rowdy and slop it up until the sun comes home.
Grandpa’s Cough Medicine
When you think of monster players breaking new ground in a musical genre as old as the American dream, one of the names that comes to mind is Brett Bass. For years, Brett and Grandpa’s Cough Medicine have provided a much needed edge to the world of Americana music with their affectionately labeled “outlaw bluegrass.” Having developed over the years from a three-piece power trio into a dynamic full-range bluegrass band, GCM has given fans more character development than a George R. R. Martin book. While this new lineup is certainly a different experience than the pure-shredding, rule-breaking music that the group has put out in the past, the show has grown into a dynamic, headline-worthy experience that bridges the gap between traditionally gentle bluegrass composition and an almost rock-and-roll appreciation for high-speed controversial lyrics and raging jams.
Donna the Buffalo
If you don’t know the history of Suwannee Springfest, you might wonder where this Hammond B3-toting, drumset-playing, zydeco-driven jam band fits amongst all these bluegrass pickers and folk singers. The truth is, most folks say it would not truly be a Spring Suwannee festival without Donna the Buffalo. (Before you ask, there is no Donna.) Suwannee’s roots and traditions are rooted much deeper in family than any one genre or feel, and Donna the Buffalo exemplifies that idea like nearly no other. Their upbeat show has been a part of the Suwannee experience for decades.
Watching the crowd bonding and singing together as the amphitheater began to glow with that after-dark Suwannee magic paints a beautiful snapshot of the park’s community. It is arguable that including a band like Donna the Buffalo over the years on a predominately folk and bluegrass lineup has played a major role in inspiring the fusion songwriting styles that seem to be coming out of the modern folk, blues and bluegrass scenes. There are many special experiences to be had at SOSMP, but if you have not seen a Donna the Buffalo show in the Amphitheater, you are missing an important slice of what has made Suwannee such a strong family.
Billy Strings
After three brilliant sets by Billy Strings, I saw a mirror in the faces of all the musicians in the audience. Slack-jawed, bright-eyed, jealous, and inspired are just a few words to describe how Billy strings and his band of brilliant players left crowds at this year’s Suwannee Spring Reunion. As a band, Billy Strings quite effectively walks the line between psychedelic improvisation and traditional bluegrass music. To quote upright bass player Adrian Bradford Alexander of Free Range Strange, “It is good to see that the 1-4-5 is alive and well in jamgrass.” True to the form of Suwannee gatherings, you could find these players bouncing around the campfires late night playing along with classic fiddle tunes and accompanying festivalgoers on personal, powerful original songs.
Rev. Jeff Mosier and Billy Gilmore
The list of musicians who have learned from these banjo champions is an ocean of talent. From the most humble newcomers to members of arena maestro Phish, the world is full of players who have received a bit of instruction or inspiration from Spring Reunion’s Superjam co-hosts. Performing multiple sets throughout the weekend, it’s easy to see that these players are venerated amongst their peers. Although the merit and accomplishment of each artist can surely stand alone, it is worth mentioning that Saturday night closed with an on-stage superjam curated by these two musicians.
Because of the familiar nature of the rhythm, melodies, and progressions used in folk, bluegrass, and blues, it can be easy and natural to share tunes around a fire or even on a stage. Watching these two perform with musicians who had grown up sharing songs and learning together was a piece of priceless instant nostalgia. Although it is infinitely important to write and play original music, there is something incredibly special about the tradition of learning familiar songs to share with your friends and family.
Jon Stickley Trio
This band has taken the ideas of roots music instrumentation and classical composition to the absolute extremes. The Jon Stickley Trio includes Jon Stickley on guitar, Lyndsay Pruett on violin and Hunter Deacon on drums. Together they perform a style of music often termed “classically driven progressive jazz grass.” Frankly put, the trio creates a version of music that defies description. Performing largely original instrumental songs, the band creates a soundscape journey that uses familiar melodies as a vehicle to connect tension and resolution across a sea of dynamic rhythms. Watching the band feels like witnessing a twisting and turning dance of dragons, at times awe-inspiring and terrifying, at others sweet and gentle and warm. The audience will find themselves white-knuckled and breathless, then laughing with delight as the music twists and turns. Perhaps their heaviest work came in the form of a reimagined fiddle tune, breathing new life into an old traditional sound. These players can be found performing regularly at events held at SOSMP as well as across the country.
The Infamous Stringdusters
Coming in to round out our list of groundbreaking players are the Grammy Award-winning Infamous Stringdusters. Champions of the jamgrass scene, these instrumentalists defied boundaries in their live performance, blending newgrass jams alongside popular music covers such as Daft Punk’s “Get Lucky,” then deftly turning back to roots Americana with the assistance of Larry Keel. Adding a dobro to the traditional bluegrass lineup made The ISD a soaring whirlwind of limitless sonic potential. Their sets were a journey that showcased the range of possibility of acoustic music. Their sets were an upbeat dance party, and the only downside was that there wasn’t more room to move.
At Suwannee, music is a living, breathing thing. As it grows, so do the people who call Suwannee home. Through these players and the traditions that bind them, we are able to embark on a journey as a community that leads to the folk sounds of tomorrow.
[Ed. note: Trey Miller is a relentless proponent of music in Florida, promoter, curator of the Little Econ Love Fest, musician, and leader of Harmonica Man and the Sawgrass Band.]