Past Bluegrass Related Events

On Saturday, March 12th at 7:30 p.m. the Blue Moon Coffeehouse in Rockland, MA features the bluegrass band, Wide Open Spaces. Wide Open Spaces plays "bluegrass without borders" with overtones of the Punch Brothers, Alison Krauss, Celtic jigs, Jimmy Buffet, Bill Monroe and the Beatles.   They combine the traditional sounds of fiddle, banjo, mandolin, guitar and bass with modern song-writing, jazzy rock-edged arrangements and tight three part harmonies.   A frequent favorite at bluegrass festivals, Wide Open Spaces is regularly featured at the Joe Val Bluegrass Festival, the Ossipee Valley Bluegrass Festival and Bluegrass on the Bogs.  Between sets by the band, there will be an open mic.  Tickets are $10 at the door; children 12 and under are free.  The address is Channing Unitarian Universalist Church, 45 Webster St. Rockland, MA, right beside the post office.  For more information, visit www.thebluemooncoffeehouse.com.  You can listen to the band on their website: www.wideospaces.com.

On April 8th at 7:30 p.m., don't miss The Blue Moon Coffeehouse's special Friday evening show featuring Mile Twelve! Mile Twelve is a fresh, hard driving young band beautifully walking the line between original and traditional bluegrass. Based in Boston, Massachusetts and fast gaining recognition for their outstanding performances throughout bluegrass and folk circles, Evan Murphy, Bronwyn Keith-Hynes, Nate Sabat and BB Bowness create captivating songs and daring instrumental pieces from diverse influences. They have performed extensively at bluegrass festivals including Grey Fox Bluegrass Festival, Ossipee Valley Music Festival, Joe Val Bluegrass Festival and Baygrass Bluegrass Festival. A track from their debut EP was featured on Sirius XM Bluegrass Junction's "Hand Picked with Del McCoury," another track was featured on Spotify's "Fresh Bluegrass" 2015 playlist. They were selected as formal showcase artists at the 2015 North East Folk Alliance. Mile Twelve looks forward to hitting the road again in 2016 and continuing to connect with audiences around the world. Here's what Tony Trischka and David Anger had to say about Mile Twelve: "Mile Twelve's instrumental skills reflect natural abilities enhanced by serious study of bluegrass tradition and a fearless desire to create fresh pathways. From the opening number of their new EP, it’s plain that their vocal skills are equal to their picking prowess. Their trio blend is as tight as it gets. Their duo and solo singing is equally praiseworthy. The arrangements often surprise with subtle twists and turns... delicious false endings, dropped beats, arco bass and fiddle duets, and on and on. Mile Twelve is carrying the tradition forward with creativity and integrity." - Tony Trischka "Mile Twelve has Bluegrass’ best interests at heart. Really good songs that mean something, picking that makes you … Read More »

On Friday, June 10th at 7:30 p.m. the Blue Moon Coffeehouse in Rockland closes out their season with the award-winning bluegrass quartet, Three Tall Pines. The group’s timeless songs persuade listeners that bygone eras were just a short while ago. According to W. J. Hallock, writing for No Depression: The Journal of Roots Music, "Their talent is that they can write so simply, yet expansively, that each individual listener’s memories and experiences are jostled loose, enhanced by the music and enjoyed all over again. Songwriters who can make the listener a participant in their compositions are truly gifted." Other critics have recognized the band's ability to give voice to the past. They were named 2011 Bluegrass Band of the Year by the Motif Arts Magazine and were the winners of the Ossipee Valley Bluegrass Festival band competition. Short While Ago, the band’s debut album, won top prizes from Ourstage.com (#1 in bluegrass, July 2008), the Ossipee Valley Songwriting Contest (third place, August 2008), and garnered a finalist ranking in the national Newsong Contest run by NPR’s Mountain Stage. The band has recorded two other albums:  All That’s Leftand Taproot.  They have played festivals and venues all over the US and Europe. After their Blue Moon show, they are off to New York, then Amsterdam, then Denmark.  Tickets are $10 at the door; children 12 and under are free.  The address is 45 Webster Street, Rockland.  For more information visit www.thebluemooncoffeehouse.com.  To listen to the band, visit www.threetallpines.com

The Blue Moon Coffeehouse in Rockland opens its new season of shows on Saturday, Sept. 17th at 7:30 p.m. with the Lula Wiles! All the members of Lula Wiles have spent their lives grounded in songs. Born in Maine to musical families, they began playing music together as kids at Maine Fiddle Camp, and eventually each made their way to Boston to study at Berklee College of Music. Isa Burke and Ellie Buckland began performing as a duo in 2013, and Lula Wiles was born when Mali Obomsawin joined the band a year later. Based in Boston's thriving roots music community, The Lula Wiles have performed at premier festivals and clubs throughout the East Coast, including Club Passim, FreshGrass, the Sinclair, Grey Fox Bluegrass Festival, Ossipee Valley Bluegrass Festival, and the Green River Music Festival. They were selected as Official Showcase Artists for the 2016 Folk Alliance International Conference. Roots authority No Depressions predicts the Lula Wiles "will be a huge force on the Americana scene for years to come." All proficient vocalists, multi-instrumentalists, and songwriters, the three women of Lula Wiles are each uniquely powerful in their own right; but combined, they are a force to be reckoned with. Check out their music on their website: www.lulawiles.com. Tickets are $10 at the door; children 12 and under are free. The Blue Moon is located at Channing Church, 45 Webster Street, Rockland, MA. For more information, visit www.thebluemooncoffeehouse.com.

On Saturday, October 15th at 7:30 p.m. the Blue Moon Coffeehouse in Rockland, MA features the bluegrass band, Four Bridges.  A show by Four Bridges is as much fun as you are allowed to have in church. They bring tons of energy and personality to their music, and their set list includes some creative departures from bluegrass standards. They play music all over the northeast and as far away as Norway. They are rated #1 bluegrass band for the Boston, MA/Manchester, NH area on Reverbnation. Here's a link to a video: https://youtu.be/iuuUffp5YJs of the band playing their original tune, Whiskey and Gold, and a link to a video about one of their tours of Norway set to their own music: https://youtu.be/XnhiN6jVfmU. Between sets by Four Bridges, there will also be an open mic. Tickets are $10 at the door. Children 12 and under are free. The address is Channing Unitarian Universalist Church, 45 Webster St., Rockland, MA, located just beside the post office. You can listen to the band on Facebook.   For more information about this and upcoming shows, visit www.thebluemooncoffeehouse.com.

On Saturday, November 12th at 7:30 pm, Cold Chocolate takes the stage at the Blue Moon Coffeehouse in Rockland, MA. Cold Chocolate has had some big doin's lately, including opening for David Grisman last April in Medford, MA at The Chevalier Theater and releasing their new CD "The Way Back" at The Lizard Lounge. They are a fresh and exciting Americana band with a unique sound that fuses bluegrass and folk with a dash of funk. With original tunes and technical prowess, this trio from Boston is mesmerizing audiences with guitar, upright bass, percussion, and three-part harmony. Since their formation in 2011, Cold Chocolate has been quickly gaining recognition for their high-energy performances. The band has shared bills with such bluegrass giants as Leftover Salmon and David Grisman, and has performed at numerous prominent East Coast festivals, including the Grey Fox Bluegrass Festival, FloydFest, FreshGrass Festival, and the Ossipee Valley Music Festival.   Tickets are $10 at the door. Children 12 and under are free. The address is 45 Webster Street, Rockland, MA. For more info, visit www.thebluemooncoffeehouse.com. To listen to the band, check out their website at www.coldchocolatemusic.com.

Get ready for Rick and the Rick tones at The Blue Moon Coffeehouse in Rockland, MA on January 14th! This brand new band has some members I bet you already know and love. At the center of the music is banjo master Ricky Mier, co-founder of the band Twisted Pine, Cat and the Moon and a former member of Hot Day at the Zoo. He is accompanied by other incredibly talented musicians: bassist Charles Berthoud, JD Williams,  Meg Griffith and Thor Davidson. Their music is rooted in bluegrass, but has elements of Celtic, funk music, jazz, rock, classical, blues, and gospel. Ricky Mier is winner of the gold medal at the 2014 Freshgrass Banjo Contest and, with his band Twisted Pine, has won band contests at Freshgrass, Thomas Point Beach and tied for first place at Rocky Grass. Mier has performed on the main stages of other major festivals such as Grey Fox, Celtic Connections (Scotland), The Green River Festival, and Joe Val. He has performed with Bela Fleck and Victor Wooten and has shared the stage with acoustic heavy weights such as The Punch Brothers, Peter Rowan, Alison Brown, Hot Rize, The Gibson Brothers, New Riders of the Purple Sage, Yonder Mountain String Band, The Sam Bush Band, Del McCoury Band, Frank Solivan and Dirty Kitchen, and more. Charles Berthoud is a world-class bass player who has won awards such as 1st place at the New Hampshire Bass Solo Competition. JD Williams, multi-instrumentalist with the acoustic Americana band, Amy Gallatin & Stillwaters, has completed over a dozen international tours, been honored with the Sam Eisenson Award for Country Music. Here's a video of the band to check out: https://youtu.be/8xEkK686Xa. Hope you can make it! It's going … Read More »

On Saturday, January 28th, The Blue Moon Coffeehouse in Rockland features The Page Turners. Winners of the 2016 Freshgrass Best Duo Award, Carolyn Kendrick and Jake Howard have a strong foothold in the acoustic music scene. They became musical friends as students of Berklee College of Music and started playing together through the Berklee American Roots Program. The Page Turners are known for their solid harmonies and soaring fiddle runs. They like to blend their love of bluegrass, whiskey-fueled old time, country music, swing, and fearless song writing into one all-purpose seasoning of good ole’ fashioned Roots music. They are have played at The Grey Fox Bluegrass Festival, the Berklee American Roots Roadshow and will be featured on the 2017 FressGrass stage. Tickets are $10 at the door; children 12 and under are free. The show starts at 7:30 pm. Between sets by the band, there will be an open mike.  The address is 45 Webster Street, Rockland, MA

On Saturday, January 13th, The Blue Moon Coffeehouse in Rockland, MA hosts a CD release party for Sparrow Blue. Sparrow Blue is Katy Boc and Todd Nickerson. They met in 2014 and began writing songs together after discovering a mutual love for American roots music. At the time they were each playing in different bands, but it wasn't long until they began performing together as a duo. Since then, Sparrow Blue has performed at venues such as the Spire Center for the Performing Arts, Club Passim, TOAD Cambridge, Atwoods Tavern, and Rockwood Music Hall. In November of 2015 they released their debut album,Mabel,which Red Line Roots called "a sweet rootsy sound that is clean and crisp as it displays hints of Americana goodness" and South Shore Living called "lilting, dark, and spellbindingly catchy." Although Katy plays the guitar on this song, she's actually known for her killer fiddling! The address is 45 Webster St. Rockland. Tickets are $10 at the door. The show starts at 7:30 p.m., and there's an open mic in between sets by the band so bring along your instruments. The band's website is https://www.thesparrowblue.com/video. You can also check out these Youtube links: https://youtu.be/OnocSGQ_OzY and https://youtu.be/aqyvCWQxgok.

On Saturday, February 10th, The Jethros take the stage at the Blue Moon Coffeehouse in Rockland, MA. The New Bedford-based folk/rock/blues/bluegrass five-piece — with equal parts New Orleans’ gumbo jazz, Tex-Mex flavor and Mexican mariachi — can go from back-porch blues dirge to Mardi Gras street party to rockabilly to bluegrass hoedown. Their catalog is 100 percent original material, and rock solid. Here's how they describe themselves: "The Jethros were born of a common friendship with their friends and mentors, Mary and Jethro Jethro. The current family tree goes like this: Homer Jethro sings and plays guitar, banjo, and mouth organ; Rufus Jethro sings and plays trumpet, trombone, and guitar, Boney Jethro whistles and plays fiddle, bones, and a variety of hand and foot percussion; and Gaston Jethro plays bass as though it were 7 different instruments. Other family members include Chester Jethro, Dug Jethro, Lionel Jethro, and Rocket Science Aztec Brain Surgery Jethro." As you can probably tell, the Jethros are a blast to watch. Accomplished musicians, they bring a unique sound and tons of personality to every performance. Tickets are $10 at the door. The address is 45 Webster Street, Rockland, MA.  The show starts at 7:30 p.m., and there's an open mic in between sets by the band so bring along your instruments.You can check out the band here: https://youtu.be/UV-NopVYJCY. You can also listen to them on Spotify.