Bill Monroe’ s Uncle Pen Days
~ by Mark Blackwell
You don’ t have to twist my arm or make me say“ Uncle.” I happily say“ Uncle” when it’ s September and time for the annual Bill Monroe’ s Uncle Pen Days rolls around. It’ s my favorite fall festival. I love being out at the Bill Monroe Memorial Music Park in September. The afternoons are warm and sunny but come evening time there is a little bit of autumn crispness that calls for a camp fire. The atmosphere is just plain conducive for the sweet sounds of good old mountain music down in the hills o’ Brown.
Wednesday, September 23, marks the first of four days of great Bluegrass performances, instrument workshops, camping, socializing, and just good old relaxation. This year boasts a lineup that spans the history of Bluegrass from the Clinch Mountain stylings of Dr. Ralph Stanley to today’ s up and coming groups. Bobby Osborne and the Rocky Top Express as well as Jesse McReynolds, the Grascals, James King, Doyle Lawson and Quicksilver, and a bunch more will all be playing during the four day festival— 35 bands in all.
This year’ s Bill Monroe Bluegrass Hall of Fame inductee has been announced and he is North Carolina banjoist Raymond Fairchild. Raymond
Raymond Fairchild, this year’ s Hall of Fame inductee. courtesy photo
has been playing music since he was a sprout. He started out on guitar and took up banjo at the age of 18. His early influences were Snuffy Jenkins, Don Reno, and Earl Scruggs, but Fairchild developed his own distinctive style. He has 20 albums under his belt and has performed numerous times at the Grand Ol’ Opry. Raymond and his wife own and operate the Maggie Valley Opry in the Smoky Mountains and he and his band the Maggie Valley Boys play there with some frequency. Your visit to the Hall of Fame museum is included with your ticket. And as you leave the museum, be sure to stop and check out Uncle Pen’ s cabin.
Bill Monroe built a re-creation of the cabin that belonged to his uncle on the grounds of the museum. And while I’ m speaking of Uncle Pen; there ain’ t hardly any old time hard bit Bluegrass fans who don’ t already
Sept. 23 – 26, 2015
know about Bill Monroe’ s favorite uncle on account of Bill’ s song about him. But I’ ll go ahead and fill in a little bit for the younger folks. Pendleton Vandiver was Bill’ s mother’ s brother and after the passing of Bill’ s mother and father and the scattering of Bill’ s siblings, Uncle Pen took him in. As Bill put it, they“ went to batchin’ it together.
Uncle Pen was an accomplished fiddle player and was in high demand for the dances and frolics around that area of Kentucky. He taught Bill a number of songs and Bill accompanied him on guitar and mandolin at the various get-togethers. Bill considered this some of the best times of his early life and he established this festival to honor and commemorate the man who could make his fiddle sing.
Aside from the music and the Hall of Fame, there are other reasons to get away to beautiful Bean Blossom, like the camping. The Bill Monroe Memorial Music Park is also a great campground with accommodations for every kind, sort and variety of camping that tickles your fancy and suits your budget. The campground features spaces for your big ol’
Continued on 63
58 Our Brown County • Sept./ Oct. 2015