Back to Basics

 The Martin Brothers & Aspen Run at Goofy's in Spring Grove, Pa.

11 May 2014:  Spring Grove, Pennsylvania.

     I am in no way, shape, or form,  in, or connected to, the music business. But lots of people send me videos, Youtube selections, and even CD's from time to time in the hope that I'll take a look or a listen. I've been in a funk lately. I felt like I was drifting away from my first choice for listening and entertainment pleasure - hardcore bluegrass. Odd, but I think the slight depression started a few months ago when somebody forwarded a video to me of some young people beating on some wooden crates. They called themselves a bluegrass band, but when you went on their website the description of their "style" said it all: "A bit of bluegrass. A bit of blues. A little Rock!" Uh Oh. Americana, folks! Here it comes. In other words, we'll play anything to get a real gig. We'll even beat on wooden crates, because we saw other bands do that and it sounded so cool at the last 'open mic.' I've seen any number of faceless young groups now who are beating on wooden crates. Another un-original gimmick is gaining with the copy-cats:  go onstage barefoot, and then call yourselves the "Barefoot Something-or-others" or "The Shoeless Consortium" or the "Barefoot Barn Pickers." This is so the audience can exclaim in great surprise and excitement "Oh! I get it! They're NOT WEARING SHOES!"

     Yeah. They're just gimmicks. Gimmicks don't get you very far where I'm headed. I missed the annual opening of Goofy's Eatery and Spirits by a week. Warm spring and summer Sundays once again in the open air pavilion behind the main restaurant. I missed the first week but that's OK. The Martin Brothers & Aspen Run are playing and you never know what's going to happen when they show up at Goofy's. The weather is perfect. The late-day lighting is perfect for photography. The overflow audience is perfect. Lots of old friends and Harley's. Real stupid not to wear footgear around here with all that hot metal, heavy horse shoes flying through the air, and all that heavy stomping on Whitey Runkle's new dance floor. The new dance floor had just been installed this winter. Your gimmicks won't get you very far, either. You are either a musician and an entertainer or you are not. The audience will let you know by the amount of applause and whether you have the authenticity to fill up the dance floor. This is true on both Saturday and Sunday at Goofy's. Saturday nights are reserved for real country music. Sunday afternoons are special with a 4:00 start for the traditional bluegrass. On this particular Sunday, it was warm and sunny and packed with patrons who enjoyed the volleyball, horse shoes, dancing, and of course sitting around and talking about motorcycles. The only reason I ever showed up at Goofy's was because some time ago Herb Martin told me "they had real music at Goofy's." I took a chance. I got hooked. If somebody in the bluegrass community tells me they have real music somewhere, well, that's good enough for me. If some punk kid shows up on stage barefooted or is beating a wooden crate and tells me I should check out the music at some joint, I more than likely will dismiss anything coming out of his mouth as being worthless. He's into copying somebody else. He probably thinks all music at an 'open mic' is Americana. But I go to Goofy's because I know Whitey Runkle would never allow that to happen on his stage. Whitey knows his audience is too savvy to allow it.

     A few years ago I sought out Whitey's Road House (that's basically what it is,) because I had run into one of the most basic, traditional, bluegrass bands I had experienced up to that point. The Martin Brothers & Aspen Run were regulars at Whitey's place and still are. They still generally open and close Goofy's Eatery and Spirits bluegrass season. They draw a big crowd that likes to have fun. Whitey can rely on a good day of beer and food sales and make no mistake about it, a popular band can guarantee you a day of good sales. Whitey understands the equation, and most bluegrass fans who hang out there are grateful that Whitey keeps providing the kind of entertainment that's expected - hardcore country, classic rock and roll, and traditional bluegrass. Herb Martin, father to all the Martin boys, and acting general manager to the band suggested I experience the band one Sunday afternoon and that started my connection to the place. To say the place is a bit off the beaten-track is an understatement. You have to traverse some 25 or 30 miles of rolling and hilly Pennsylvania countryside to get there. Then you discover a real road house surrounded by motorcycles, picnic benches, and an out-door pavilion where the entertainment happens. You can leave your urban snobbery on one of the picnic tables near the volley-ball court. You soon discover that life has sort of been frozen in time here. The people are actually nice to you and the only requirement is to answer "Yes" if anyone asks you whether you like bluegrass. The place started jumping once The Martin Brothers and Aspen Run got into their trade-mark Jimmy Martin covers. They're not the best bluegrass band I've ever heard but I admire what this band can do with an audience and they have a solid following in Maryland and in this area of Pennsylvania.

     That was a few years ago. This winter (yeah, I know, it was a long one!) I sort of went off the deep end and tried to shake up my bluegrass routine. I even went out and enjoyed some classic country. Connie thought I should be seeing a psychiatrist. When I feel like I need a shake-up, I always go back to listen to the Martin Brothers. Why? because they're basic. They epitomize for me what bluegrass is all about. But the winter months were long and even the Martin Brothers were sounding off - just not quite there. Sloppy entrances and endings. Forgotten lyrics and chord structures. More mistakes than normal. I could always look forward to seeing them again at Goofy's when the weather got better.

     I knew I was in for a treat. I knew everything would work out because it felt like old home week and the weather was marvelous. Old and new friends said hello as I ambled into Goofy's. Amazing what can happen with a depressed attitude when you get a shot of the basics of bluegrass into your system. The place was packed on a beautiful weekend. Whitey was in his glory greeting old friends and regular customers. Lots of families and kids and people having fun on the dance floor. The music was perfection. Every song delivered with the kind of energy you can expect in a Martin Brothers performance. There's a dynamic that happens to this place when the Martin Brothers perform here, and it's a reciprocal agreement between band and audience. I like to call it basic entertainment. When everything seems to be working as it should. No need for gimmicks or flash or grand-standing. Raw, traditional bluegrass. Basic.

  Whitey Runkle (right) greets customers at Goofy's Eatery and Spirits