MerleFest Announces 2008 Lineup



Levon Helm, Ralph Stanley, Bela Fleck among headliners


By Jeff Eason

In 1988 a small concert was held on the back of a flatbed truck on the campus of Wilkes Community College


to honor the life and music of Watauga County native Merle Watson who had died in a tractor accident two years before. In two decades that concert has grown into the annual four-day music event known as MerleFest. It annually attracts tens of thousands of music lovers to Wilkesboro to enjoy music on over a dozen stages.

MerleFest organizers announced this week a tentative list of performers who will take the stage at the 21st annual festival scheduled for April 24-27, 2008. Tickets for the festival go on sale November 13th.

MerleFest 2008 will feature headline performances by Doc and Richard Watson, Levon Helm & the Midnight Ramble on the Road with Special Guests, Abigail Washburn & the Sparrow Quartet featuring Bela Fleck, the Avett Brothers, Casey Driessen and Ben Sollee, Sam Bush, Tim O’Brien, the Waifs, the Waybacks, Old Crow Medicine Show, Ricky Skaggs and Bruce Hornsby with Kentucky Thunder, Ralph Stanley and the Clinch Mountain Boys, Marty Stuart and the Fabulous Superlatives, the John Cowan Band, David Holt, the Infamous Stringdusters, Jorma Kaukonen, Laurie Lewis & the Right Hands, the Lovell Sisters, Nashville Bluegrass Band, Tift Merritt, the Dan Tyminski Band, Donna the Buffalo, Tony Rice, Peter Rowan, Rhonda Vincent & the Rage, the Wilders, and many others.

“When Merle and I started out we called our music ‘traditional-plus,’ meaning the traditional music of the Appalachian region plus whatever other _style_s we were in the mood to play,” said Doc Watson. “Since the beginning, the people of the college and I have agreed that the music of MerleFest is traditional-plus and this year’s line-up shows what that is all about.”

Watson toured with his son Merle from the mid-60s when the country rediscovered its folk music roots, to the mid-80s. These days, Doc is often joined on stage by Merle’s son Richard. For MerleFest 2008, Watson will perform with a variety of artists.

“I always look forward to reuniting with the boys from Frosty Morn, Merle’s band, because our performances are always special,” said Watson. “This year, I am excited to play some of the Docabilly album tunes. I know that some of the musicians who helped me on it will be there.”

Another planned collaboration for MerleFest 2008 will be a super grouping of some of the top female acts at the festival.

“Some of the leading bluegrass women are putting together the Merle’s Girls set we did a few years back and that is something I always enjoy,” said Watson.

Making his MerleFest debut this coming spring is Levon Helm, best-known as the drummer and vocalist of the band simply known as The Band. Helm’s daughter, is a vocalist and mandola p_layer_ for another MerleFest 2008 band, Ollabelle.

Other acts taking the stage at MerleFest 2008 include Susanna and Timmy Abell, Roy Book Binder, the Banknotes, Laura Boosinger, the Captain’s Crew, the Circuit Riders, T. Michael Coleman, Robert Dotson, Mike Dowling, Mitch Greenhill, George Hamilton IV, Future Traditions, Hot Buttered Rum, the Clint Howard Band, the Key City Boys, Jim Lauderdale, Joe Smothers, Polecat Creek, Jeff Little, Bill Mathis, the Local Boys, Happy Traum, Charles Welch, the Wilkes Acoustic Folk Society, Tony Williamson and many others.
“In addition to music from over a dozen stages, MerleFest offers heritage crafts from regional artisans, a safe and family-friendly atmosphere, children’s activities, plenty of pickin’ opportunities and more.”

For more information, or to sign up as a festival volunteer, visit www.merlefest.org or call 1-800-343-7857.