Doc and Rosa Lee Watson MusicFest Is A “Homecoming” for the Grascals’ John Bryan

By Sherrie Norris

Since 2015, Watauga County’s own multitalented musician and vocalist
John Bryan has been touring the country with the award-winning
Nashville-based bluegrass band, The Grascals.

And now, he’s coming home again —and bringing his buddies with him,
if just for a day.

The Grascals are among the headliners for the upcoming Doc and Rosa
Lee Watson MusicFest in Sugar Grove on Saturday, July 15, joining
other top-notch entertainers, including Dan Tyminski, Scythian, The
Kruger Brothers, Bill and the Belles, Wayne Henderson, Charles Welch,
Jack Lawrence, Liam Purcell & Cane Mill Road, The Burnett Sisters
Band, Brooks Forsythe, Shay Martin Lovette Trio and the Swingbillies
of Boonetown.

“We (The Grascals) are certainly looking forward to being back at the
Doc & Rosa Lee Watson MusicFest in Sugar Grove,” said Danny
Roberts. “We haven’t played there in several years and it’s especially
exciting to return this year during Doc Watson’s 100th Birthday
celebration.” Agent Andrea Roberts added, “This will be like a
homecoming for John Bryan and we always enjoy playing in the
beautiful and music-rich High Country of North Carolina.”

Bryan on vocals and guitar is officially “on leave” from the Grascals
tour currently as he and his wife have just welcomed the birth of their
second son.

But, that is not stopping him from his hometown appearance; returning
to that stage is a huge honor for him and his fellow musicians. “I’m
really looking forward to being back for this festival,” he shared with
High Country Press. “I know it means a lot to every group that is invited
to play there, but to me, it’s extra special. I grew up in Doc Watson’s
shadow. He was my papaw Sid’s cousin, and I got to be around him
quite a bit as a youngster and even got to pick with him a few times.”
It is no surprise to anyone in the Watson family, or any others who have
known Bryan, that he has made it to the top.

Many witnessed through the years how the shy adolescent banjo player
progressed to an accomplished musician with a soulful, almost haunting,
high tenor voice that leaves audiences in awe across the country today.
With music in his blood, Bryan shared how his maternal great-
grandfather, Willard Watson, (Doc’s first cousin), was known for his
claw hammer banjo style of playing and old time flatfoot dancing, as
well as making handcrafted toys.

“My dad’s grandpa, Arilie Bryan, also sang and played the guitar,” he
said. “I was humming and making a racket before I could even talk and
was exposed to music and involved with it, somehow, ever since.”

Doyle Lawson’s music especially had a big influence on him.
But, it was with his mother, Jennifer Bryan, a talented pianist and
vocalist, that Bryan started singing and playing music in church.

“It just all came natural,” he added.

After attending his first-ever bluegrass concert in Lenoir featuring Del
McCoury, he was “hooked,” he said

At age10, Bryan found an old banjo in the attic of his family home that
his paternal papaw, Wayne Bryan, now deceased, had given his dad,
Anthony, years earlier. “That became my first instrument and I’ve still
got it,” he said.

When he was about 13, Bryan became acquainted with another young
local musician, Tom Isaacs.

“We hit it off and I learned a lot from him,” Bryan said. “He had been
playing a couple years longer than I had, but the more we could hang out
and play and sing together, the better it was.”

Before long, Bryan was playing guitar, and Isaacs switched primarily to
banjo. Along came mando magician, Robby Norris, and soon the band
Surefire was born.

Bryan and Isaacs later branched off and were received well on the
festival circuit, widening their circle of friends and influences. Back
home, other great musicians, including Tim Norris and J.M. Trivette,
have since kept Surefire blazing, with Isaacs now back in the mix.
When Bryan and Isaacs were invited to join Larry Efaw and the
Bluegrass Mountaineers, it was “a life-changing experience” for Bryan,
he described recently.

“During our time with Larry, I began meeting more people and playing
with the same musicians I had looked up to all of my life,” he said. “It
was a strange feeling when I realized, one day, that I wasn’t just that
little kid from Boone anymore, but that celebrated musicians were
asking me to share the stage with them.”

Things began to snowball for Bryan, he described. “It just kept getting
bigger and bigger.”

No joke

April 1, 2015 was a day he will never forget, Bryan recalled. “I got a call
from The Grascals’ manager, Andrea Roberts, who asked me to meet
them two weeks later in North Platte, Nebraska.”

By that time, he had aced the song list that he’d been asked to review.

“They might’ve been a little surprised that I had learned all the songs on
the list, and then some,” he said. “I had taken their offer serious and
wanted to be prepared. For those two weeks before I met with them, all I
did was sing and play their music. I lived it and loved it.”

Despite feeling “scared to death,” Bryan said, he felt an “immediate
click,” with the band members during their first actual meeting, a
confirmation that intensified even more so during their first two concerts
together, in North Platte and Franklin, Indiana.

“They all made me feel comfortable from the beginning,” he said.
Within the first 30 minutes, I felt like I had been a part of their group for
a long time. It was a good feeling.”

And, the rest as the saying goes, is history – or at least history in the
making.

A Dream Come True

“From the beginning of my time with The Grascals, I understood the
importance of it all,” Bryan shared with High Country Press. “It’s not
just a job, it’s a dream come true. The Grascals is such a big name in the
bluegrass world. Not only are they fantastic people to be around, they
are, individually and collectively, at the top of their game as musicians.”
Bryan added, “It was very humbling to be asked to be a part of
something this big — and it still is.”

Founding member Danny Roberts said that, from the first time he and
his band members met John (“JB”), they liked him.

“We had asked him to come and fill in with us at a festival he was
already doing (with Larry Efaw),” said Roberts. “He not only knew the
stuff we had asked him to learn, but even more. That meant a lot to us —
for a young guy like that to care that much about our music. From the
first song we did together on stage, it was like, wow, this is great.”

Roberts added, “It’s hard to find young guys now who don’t want to
sound like somebody else, but yet, here was one who is more traditional
than we are.”

Bryan initially assumed the role of lead vocalist and guitar player, which
had been filled since the group’s formation by Jamie Johnson, who had
left the group at that time, but has since returned.

“With Jamie back, and our new fiddle player, Jamie Harper, we’ve got a
great new line up and we’re all super excited about,” Bryan said. “We’re
having a lot of fun traveling across the country together. I’ve missed the
overseas tours, so far, but I’ve been able to do shows in Canada, Alaska
and the Yukon Territory. It’s all pretty cool stuff.”

And possibly the “coolest” of all, Bryan admitted? “We’ve had 32
Grand Ole Opry appearances, since I’ve been with them, for more than
200 all together. There’s nothing that can quite compare.”

Each time he finds his way to the circle on that historic Nashville stage,
Bryan said, he’s overcome with emotion.

“It’s almost overwhelming and you have to really focus on what’s
happening at the moment or it can get the best of you. To be standing
where so many of your heroes have stood before you – and being part of
that same tradition — there’s no way to describe it. It’s the most gut-
wrenching fun you will ever have. I’ve been able to meet a lot of those
heroes there and rub elbow with the same people who were my idols
growing up.”

And, last weekend, he was scheduled to be there once again.
“But, just in case our baby boy arrives early, I want to be at home,” he
said.

And just hours after our interview, that baby boy, Jackson Oliver,
arrived, much to the delight of Bryan, his wife Ashlynn, their firstborn
Arlie Reed, (now 2 ½) and all their proud family members and friends.
Married since 2016, Bryan and his family have a home in Wilkes
County, where Ashlynn is a fourth grade teacher in the Wilkes County
School System.

“I never dreamed of getting to this place in time,” Bryan admitted.
“When I first got that phone call and realized it was not a joke, I knew
the opportunity would be great, no matter how long I would be blessed
to play with the group. It didn’t take long, though, for me to become part
of their family. I was so green at the time, but I soon realized that I had
found a second home with the Grascals, I thought I had travelled and
played a lot before that time, but never on that level. They have
welcomed me in and taught me so much. Everyone is treated equally and
we all look out for each other. I love them all and am grateful for Andrea
and Danny, especially. They’re definitely a power couple, a great couple
to have on your team. She (Andrea) has booked for the band almost for
the entirely of its existence and is always there when we need her.”

There are times things get aggravating, Bryan noted – flights, hotels,
etc., “Andrea takes care of it all for us. We wouldn’t be where we are
without her, and Danny, who does 99 percent of the driving for us.”

And Bryan added, there are no words to describe the camaraderie he
enjoys with all of the members, Terry Smith, Kristin Scott Benson,

Jamie Johnson and the newest addition, Jamie Harper. “They’re all just
great people and musicians.”

And, now, he’s coming home again and it feels good, Bryan admitted.

“It is truly an honor to be returning for this festival, to see Doc’s family
again and to bring my guitar back home and play it, just a short distance
from where it was made.”

And that guitar, made by the late luthier, Paul Graybeal from Zionville,
is the one he takes to almost every show.

“It’s my main guitar and is just the best there is. It just thrills me to bring
it back home again.”

Bryan played the Doc and Rosa Lee Watson festival with Surefire years
ago, too, and now to come back with the Grascals for his second time, is
such a blessing, he said.

“I’ve grown so much since the last time. It’s exciting to come back to
see my family and friends. After so many days on the road, to get to be
back in familiar territory and look over a crowd of people you know and
love is such a special thing. I’m really looking forward to it.”

More About The Grascals

The Grascals have earned three Grammy nominations and two
Entertainer of the Year awards from the International Bluegrass Music
Association. With other awards and accolades to their credit, they have
been featured guests on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, Fox &
Friends, The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson, and CBS’ The Talk.
They have made more than 200 appearances on the Grand Ole Opry and
have also performed twice for President George W. Bush and at
President Barack Obama’s inaugural ball at the Smithsonian.

The Grascals have also had the opportunity to record and share the stage with
several country music legends, including Dolly Parton, Charlie Daniels,
Vince Gill, Hank Williams, Jr., George Jones, Kenny Rogers, Brooks &
Dunn, Patty Loveless, The Oak Ridge Boys, Steve Wariner, Tom T. Hall,
The Jordanaires, and more.

In addition to performing across the United States and Canada, the Grascals
have taken bluegrass music to Japan, Greece, France, Germany, Switzerland,
Norway and Belgium. 

With many hits through the years, The Grascals’ new single, “I Go,” will
be released on July 28 by Mountain Home Music Company.

Preparing to celebrate their 20th Anniversary in 2024, The Grascals are
represented by The Andrea Roberts Agency in Nashville.

To keep track of the group, visit www. grascals.com and follow them on
Facebook, Instagram, BandsInTown, Spotify, Pandora.

Don’t Miss The Doc and Rosa Lee Watson MusicFest

Event planners are hard at work to make this year’s festival one to
remember and are anticipating the school grounds once again covered
with the large event tent, food, merchandise and craft booths.
A highlight of this particular event, in addition to the obvious, is the Doc
& Merle Watson Folk Art Museum, located onsite inside the renovated
Cove Creek High School.

Filled with memorabilia of the Watsons and their legacy and so much
more, the museum attracts visitors on a regular basis, but never more so
than during the day-long annual event paying tribute to its namesakes
and their family.

If there is anyone among us who doesn’t know about Arthel Lane “Doc”
Watson, the eight-time Grammy award winning musician from nearby
Deep Gap, they can learn all about the late, great musician by visiting
the museum during the festival.

The festival got its start originally as The Doc Watson Appreciation
Day, held in 1998 on the grounds of the Historic Cove Creek School,
where today’s festival is still held. It was to honor Doc and his many
contributions to our community, organizers said, and also to raise money
to help preserve the Western Watauga history through restoring the
historic school, now on the National Register of Historic Places.

Eventually renamed the Doc and Rosa Lee Watson MusicFest, the event
featured Doc for many years, and has welcomed other multiple award-winning performers, including Sam Bush, Rhonda Vincent and the Rage, Doyle Lawson and Quicksilver, Del McCoury and others.

The festival has also been the starting point for many local and regional
Grammy Award winning artists including, Old Crow Medicine Show,
the Steep Canyon Rangers, and the Carolina Chocolate Drops.  Liam
Purcell, returning for his second consecutive year, is fast becoming a
crowd favorite.

Although Doc passed away on May 29, 2012 at age 89, the Cove Creek
Preservation and Development Board continues to promote the legacy he
left behind, as well as his impact on the High Country community and
far beyond. 

It’s a big day when hundreds of music fans from near and far will be
converging upon the rural Sugar Gove/Cove Creek community for the
annual festival that came back to life last year after a hiatus due to COVID-19.
Gates open at 9:30 Saturday morning with a full day of entertainment
starting soon thereafter.

Three tiers of tickets include: VIP ($55) includes reserved seating under
the tent, access to VIP restroom facilities and some festival merchandise.
Reserved ($40) includes reserved seating under the tent. General ($30)
requires you to bring your own chair/blanket with no tent coverage.
Children 12 years and younger are admitted free to the general
admission seating area when accompanied by a ticketed adult. Tickets
are required for all seats in the VIP & Reserved seating area. By hosting
this annual event, The Cove Creek Preservation and Development Board
continues to promote the legacy of Doc Watson and his impact on our
community and the music world.

Historic Cove Creek School is located at 207 Dale Adams Rd. in Sugar
Grove.

For tickets and more information, visit docwatsonmusicfest.org