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Photos from MusicFest ‘n Sugar Grove on Saturday

The one-and-only Arthur Grimes dances to a banjo tune played by Willie Watson. Photos by Jesse Wood
The one-and-only Arthur Grimes dances to a banjo tune played by Willie Watson. Photos by Jesse Wood

By Jesse Wood

July 14, 2014. The 2014 Doc and Rosa Lee Watson MusicFest ‘n Sugar Grove featured some outstanding music, particularly the solo performance by Willie Watson, a former member of the wildly-popular Old Crow Medicine Show, on Saturday night. He was incredible on the banjo and guitar.

An afternoon shower happened during the Sassagrass set on Saturday, but otherwise the weather was great for the two-day festival – and besides, that rainstorm just brought folks closer to the music and under the tent to see Mark Schimmick, Billy Constable and the other two pickers in Sassagrass.

Doyle Lawson and Quicksilver also played on Saturday. Quite the dresser, Lawson, a veteran mandolin player who got his start 51 years ago as a banjo player for Jimmy Martin’s band, was looking and playing as good as ever as.

And the Snyder Family Band – boy are they good. One veteran musician watching them play on Saturday afternoon joked, “Showoffs.” Guitarist Zeb, 18, and violinist Samantha, 14, played at a blistering pace – like they always do. They also received some help from their 8-year-old brother Owen, who is coming along quite nicely on the guitar.

Throughout the two-day festival, folks were dancing to the tunes, eating festival food from the vendors and picking music in the Pickin’ Parlor. See a few photos from the event below.

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A gentleman dances to the music at MusicFest in Sugar Grove on Saturday.
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A long line of folks await Willie Watson for CDs, autographs and photos after his mesmerizing performance.
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A nice selection of vendors were on the grounds of the Historic Cove Creek School for the music festival.
The one-and-only Arthur Grimes dances to a banjo tune played by Willie Watson. Photos by Jesse Wood
The one-and-only Arthur Grimes dances to a banjo tune played by Willie Watson. Photos by Jesse Wood
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Two kids dance to the music on Saturday when Willie Watson was playing guitar and banjo.
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The New River Boys attracted a big crowd at the Solar Stage on Saturday afternoon.
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Willie Watson performed on Saturday and saying he was “well received” would be an understatement.
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Mark Schimmick got most of the boys together for Sassagrass, a bluegrass quartet that was infamous in downtown Boone in the ’90s. Billy Constable, who plays guitar in this photo, is among the greatest musical talents around.
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A little shower storm presented itself early in the afternoon on Saturday, but the rest of the day featured great weather.