Sep 28 2016
This article was published on Sep 28 2016 and was archived on Sep 29 2017. The information below may be outdated or inaccurate.
The music of Cox and Company and the Bogtrotters will be featured during New River Community College's Fiddle, Banjo and Dance Club Jamboree on Saturday, Oct. 8. The music will begin at 6 p.m. in Edwards Hall, room 117, at NRCC in Dublin.
Musician Joey Cox grew up in Pulaski County listening to bluegrass music with his family and has played it for as long as he can remember. He started playing at age 10 with his grandfather's band, the "Black Mountain Ramblers." Inspired by banjo legends like Scott Vestal, Sammy Shelor and Jodi King, Cox began attending festivals throughout Virginia and the Carolinas. After placing at many local competitions, he joined the Hillsville-based group "Fast Forward." He has also played in the bands Blue Ridge and Lou Reid & Carolina and with the legendary Doyle Lawson and his band Quicksilver.
The New Ballards Branch Bogtrotters band takes its name from the original Galax-based Bogtrotters, who won the first-ever Galax Old Time Fiddler's Convention in 1935. The modern-day old time group includes Leon Frost, mandolin; Jesse Morris, bass; Eddie Bond, fiddle; Dennis Hall, guitar and Josh Ellis, banjo. The band has played at festivals across the U.S. and also participated in the Friends of American Oldtime Music and Dance Festival in Gainsborough, England.
Corporate sponsors of the jamborees include Anderson Audiology, Dublin; Duncan Ford Lincoln Mazda, Blacksburg; Estes Auto & Truck Parts Inc., Pilot; First Community Bank, Pulaski; Gregory Seeding and Landscaping Company, Pulaski; Hitching Post Records, Hiwassee; King's Tire Service, Pulaski; Pepsi Cola Bottling Co., Dublin; Pulaski Patriot newspaper, Pulaski; Shoney's Restaurant, Dublin; Southern Furniture Warehouse, Radford; Sunshine Tours, Dublin; Trader's Emporium and Jewelry Services, Dublin; UAW Veterans Local 2069 and Wade's Supermarket.
The doors open at 5 p.m. for the show. There is no charge for admission; however, donations will be accepted to help pay travel expenses for the musicians. The jamborees are held the second Saturday of each month through April at NRCC, a Crooked Road affiliated venue.
More information about the NRCC Fiddle, Banjo, and Dance Club is available from Roger Adkins at 674-3600, ext. 4307, and online at http://www.nr.edu/fiddle .
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