Bluegrass Live!!!

A short time ago, I was invited to attend a local theater, The Maumee, where live Bluegrass music was being featured on its stage. Many bands that are prominent on the tri-state banner have been featured there. The acoustics of the building are perfect for any performance. The lighting gives a special effect on the artists that larger theaters can't produce.

The Maumee theater had undergone an extensive restoration to its grandeur of the earlier years of its life. The outer walls on the exterior have been replaced, but the interior walls, for the most part, were saved. The fascia of the building still has its unique marquis and old time design that appeals to many locals coming through its doors.

The Glass City Opry is a production of Pro-grass Productions, now in it's second successful year. They have been the parent group that has sponsored a huge amount of Bluegrass groups to come and be a part of its onstage fun and music. They have reserved the second Monday of every month as Bluegrass day in Maumee, Ohio.

Jeff Birdwell and I met at a recent uptown gathering, celebrating the history of Maumee, Ohio ... my adopted home town. They had a booth set up in the square in front of our new police headquarters. His group, called Deep Water Bluegrass, entertained guests numbering close to 100,000 during the entire day of festivities. They sang and picked and shook hands for nearly nine hours.

They sang traditional Bluegrass music like you may have heard come from the lips of the masters like ... Bill Monroe, Lester Flatt & Earl Scruggs, The Osborne Brothers, The Stanley Brothers, Ricky Skaggs , Jim & Jesse and many more.

The instruments they use come from the origin of Bluegrass deep in the heart of Kentucky, Virginia and West Virginia. Banjos, dobros, guitars, fiddles (you might refer to them as violins), mandolins and bass fiddles. There might even be a mixture of harmonicas to add harmony to the group.

Traditionally, the songs are about America and its beginning or Gospel. You might even hear songs recorded by other artists changed to a beautiful rendition of Bluegrass excellence.

I had the opportunity to sit in during their sound set up on the stage, and both groups went thru a few lines of what they would be performing that night. Blue Storm was the first to set up and get my attention.

The six-member group got my full attention as soon as they started. The group, by the way, has a website at www.bluestormonline.com, where you can order their latest CD and other items from them. You can also see where they will be appearing live on stage.

Percival and Blue Storm, a very successful Bluegrass group that has captured the hearts of fans wherever they appear. L-R are Steve, Percival, Terry and Tim. The back row is Steve, Richard and Keith.

Steve plays the fiddle and does harmony singing for the group. Keith plays the mandolin and is from a long line of musicians. Another member named Steve plays bass fiddle and provides the high notes for a lot of songs the group sings. Finally, Terry plays the dobro and has been around bluegrass for a lot of years.

I especially enjoyed the Gospel number they did during their set called "Power Position." If you like music, I would urge you to get their CD as I did and let them transform your every worry and care into peace and tranquility.

The other group, Flat Land Grass, is a quartet group consisting of two Hensley brothers and two good friends, Steve Daniels and Tim Ellis, who are dedicated to bluegrass music. A guitar, a bass guitar, a tuned mandolin and banjo make up the instruments that this group thrills audiences with in a tri-state area. We were even given a highlight of the daughter of the family doing a couple of solo songs, much to the amazement of the laid back crowd of aficionados.

They also shared many country - bluegrass numbers in their two sets on stage and featured Gospel numbers like "Just A Little Talk With Jesus" and "Fly Away." They also did songs from Tom T. Hall's Greatest Hits. Usually, groups are set with what numbers they rehearsed for any particular show, but the group took requests from the audience and absolutely made them feel at home with "their kind of music."

All in all, I enjoyed a time of my life being able to forget my every trouble and care. I stepped into a different world, and, for nearly two and a half hours, I was transported into a time where there is no end or beginning. There was no pain or suffering. There was just peace and harmony by these two great groups of wonderful professionals whom I was very happy to meet.

Thank you, Glass City Opry, for making my evening one to remember. I will be returning the next time you are at the Maumee Indoor Theater.

Please visit their website at www.glasscityopry.com and let them know that I sent you.

Percival A. Friend, Retired
The Epitome of Wrestling Managers

2003 BWC Hall of Fame Inductee
2004 CAC Hall of Fame Inductee
2006 LWA Hall of Fame Inductee
2007 TCCW Hall of Fame Honoree