Authentic bluegrass music, Northeast Tennessee - Est. 1984
Authentic bluegrass music, Northeast Tennessee - Est. 1984
7/3/26 Celebrating America's 250th at Jonesborough Days
There is something incredibly special about playing traditional acoustic music surrounded by history. That is exactly what we got to experience when we packed up the instruments on Friday, July 3rd to play the 56th Annual Jonesborough Days Festival over America’s 250th Independence Day weekend!
Walking down historic, brick-lined Main Street, you can practically hear the echoes of the past. As a bluegrass band, stepping into a town established in 1779 felt like coming home. In fact, Jonesborough is just about 15 minutes from the Austin’s home in Fall Branch. The streets were buzzing with craft vendors, the smell of festival food, and a massive crowd that came out to celebrate America’s 250th anniversary.
Our favorite part of the weekend was easily the crowd energy. Bluegrass fans in East Tennessee really know their music, and looking out from the stage to see people clappin', smilin', and tappin' their boots to our tunes made our day. A major highlight of our set was when Shane fired up Blue Railroad Train and the train came through on the railroad tracks behind the stage!
We had a hot and humid day that Friday, with temperatures in the upper 90’s. Despite the heat our fans were dancing away! We spotted a few people flatfooting in front of our stage and on the sidewalks. Many folks were dressed in patriotic red, white and blue. Everyone was having a great time!
When we weren't on stage, we were doing what bluegrass musicians do best: catching up with old friends and making new ones. Shane remarked:
“It was great to play a show in Jonesborough again, we hadn't been there in a long time!”
A huge thank you to the Town of Jonesborough, the festival committee, the tireless sound crew, and every single person who stopped by after the show to grab a CD or just to say hello. You all reminded us why we love playing bluegrass music.
We are keeping the wheels rolling! Check out our full schedule on the Events page to see when we are coming to a festival or venue near you.
4/3/18 Merlefest Announces Chris Austin Songwriting Contest Finalists
Excerpt from Bluegrass Today, April 3, 2018 By John Lawless
The finalists for the 2018 Chris Austin Songwriting Contest have been announced this morning. Sponsored and run by MerleFest, this competition has become the crown jewel for aspiring writers, both for the generous cash prizes awarded to the winners, and for the opportunity to perform your song before the huge audience that MerleFest affords. Plus, the exposure received has led to many a song finding its way onto a recording from artists in our genre after the contest.
Three finalists are chosen in each of four categories, with entries limited to writers for whom 50% of the annual income does not come from from songwriting or publishing royalties. This does not include income from musical performance, so the event finds a mix of entrants, amateur, professional, and semi-professional as well.
And the 2018 finalists are…
Bluegrass
Frank D. Ray (Hillsboro, Missouri) – False Hearted Love
James Woolsey (Petersburg, Indiana) – Lights of Home
Vickie Austin (Fall Branch, Tennessee) – Can’t Hold On To Much
Gospel/Inspirational
Andy Owens (Boone, North Carolina) – The Truth of Love
Beth Lee (Black Mountain, North Carolina) – Sacred Song
Bob Hight (Greensboro, North Carolina) – Heaven Will Be Mine
Country
Amanda Fields, Tom Buller (Nashville, Tennessee) – Whiskey Ain’t Got Nothing on You
Cliff Westfall (Highland Park, New Jersey) – More and More
Marie Bradshaw (Centerville, Utah), Daniel Young, Kiki Jane Sieger (North Salt Lake, Utah) – These Walls (May Never Come Down)
General
Bryan Smith (Dayton, Virginia) – Nothing Left
Zander Melidis (Clawson, Michigan) – Born Again
Cliff Ritchey (Markleville, Indiana) – Honey Baby
All of the finalists will perform their song before a panel of judges during the festival on Friday, April 27. This year’s judges include Rodney Crowell, Andrew Marlin (of Mandolin Orange), and Johnny Williams.
First prize winners in each category will receive a $600 cash award, two boxes of D’Addario strings, and a chance to perform on stage on Saturday afternoon. Everyone gets a prize, with second place earning $300 and one box of strings, and third $100 and a box of strings.
Congratulations and best of luck to all the 2018 finalists!
2/12/18 - Press Release Carter Family Memorial Music Center, Inc.
Saturday, February 17th, 2018, at 7:30 p.m., the Carter Family Fold in Hiltons, Virginia, will present a concert of traditional bluegrass music by Appalachian Trail. Adult admission to the concert is $10, $2 for children 6 to 11, and under age 6 free. Appalachian Trail is a union of seasoned and innovative singers, songwriters, and musicians from Northeast Tennessee. The band has been invited to play at festivals across the U.S., riverboat weddings in Nashville, and regularly at the Carter Family Fold. Appalachian Trail has played corporate parties, and the band has played the Song of the Mountains public television series three times. The group’s music is diversified; they chose innovative and original material to record. Ireland, Scotland, England, Russia, Sweden, Canada, Holland, and Switzerland are some of the countries that have hosted the talents of the individuals in this band, as well as coast-to-coast here at home. Taking their name from the famous Appalachian hiking Trail, the group was formed in 1984. Although the group’s members have changed through the years, the band is still burning new trails in the bluegrass arena over 30 years later. This band helped cultivate the careers of the likes of Adam Steffey, John Bowman, Becky Buller, and countless others. Currently based out of northeast Tennessee, the band performs as regularly as possible given that they have full time jobs in other professions. Band members Tommy and Vickie Austin and Ashley Davis recently joined Kristi Stanley’s band Running Blind. Kristi is the wife of Ralph II, son of the late Dr. Ralph Stanley, and they are the proud parents of Taylor and Ralph Stanley III. Members of Appalachian Trail are: Vickie Austin – vocals and bass; Tommy Austin – vocals and mandolin; Allen Hughes – vocals and guitar; Glen Rose – banjo; and Ashley Davis – vocals and fiddle. If you like traditional bluegrass music, don’t miss Appalachian Trail at the Carter Family Fold! For additional information on the group, check out their web site – http://www.appalachiantrailbluegrass.com/. Vickie has been playing on the Carter Fold stage since she was a little girl, and Appalachian Trail has performed many times over the years. The Fold is always proud to welcome them back. Carter Family Memorial Music Center, Inc., is a nonprofit, rural arts organization that was established in 1979 to preserve traditional, acoustic, mountain music. Saturday concerts have been held since 1974. The center is family-friendly, and an alcohol and drug free facility. For more information, go to http://www.carterfamilyfold.org. Partial funding for programs at the center is provided by the Virginia Commission for the Arts, National Endowment for the Arts, the Virginia Tourism Corporation. To access recorded information on the upcoming Saturday show at the Fold, call 276-386-6054. The Fold is on Facebook – page Carter Fold – and Twitter – @carterfoldinfo. To speak to a volunteer Fold staff member, call 276-594-0676. If we don’t answer you right away, we’ll get back to you in 24 hours.
1/30/2018 - The Carter Family Fold Presents Appalachian Trail
Saturday, February 17, 2018 at 7:30 PM EST. Family friendly atmosphere. Dancing encouraged! Tickets Available at the Door: Adults $10, Kids 6-11 $2, Under 6yrs free. Doors open at 6:00pm. Carter Family Fold, 3449 A P Carter Highway, Hiltons, VA. Online: www.carterfamilyfold.org www.appalachiantrailbluegrass.com. Get in Touch: appalachiantrailbluegrassband@gmail.com 423-276-9309
7/18/26 Keeping the Mountain Echoes Alive: Our Night at the Carter Family Fold
Playing the Carter Family Fold isn’t just another gig—it’s a pilgrimage. Tucked right at the foot of Clinch Mountain in Hiltons, Virginia, the Fold carries a quiet, sacred gravity that any roots musician feels the second they step onto the grounds.
There is an unspoken law in Hiltons, Virginia: when you cross the threshold of the Carter Family Fold, you leave your ego at the door and hand your heart over to the mountain. On July 18, 2026, our band had the profound honor of stepping into that lineage.
“What an honor it is to play at the Carter Family Fold. Rita Forrester and everyone here have meant so much to us through the years carrying on the traditions.” -Vickie Austin
For anyone who plays bluegrass, old-time, or country music, performing at the Fold isn't just a line on a resume; it’s a sacred rite of passage. Founded by A.P. and Sara Carter’s daughter, Janette, and carried on today with fierce devotion by her daughter, Rita Forrester, the Fold stands as a sanctuary for traditional music. The rules here are famously simple and uncompromising: keep it acoustic, keep it authentic, and keep it family-friendly. No electric amplifiers, no plugged-in tricks—just wood, wire, air, and voice.
Arriving at Poor Valley in the late afternoon, the weight of history hits you immediately. Walking past A.P. Carter’s original general store—now the museum—and looking up at the ridge of Clinch Mountain, you realize you're standing on the exact ground where the "First Family of Country Music" gathered the songs that shaped American music forever.
Stepping inside the 800-plus-seat auditorium, you notice the details: the tiered seats rising up the hillside, the walls lined with decades of black-and-white photos of past performers, and the cool evening breeze floating through the open sides of the building. There’s no complex light show or massive monitor rig—just a clean, warm acoustic setup waiting in the center of the stage.
Standing onstage for soundcheck, looking down at the worn concrete dance floor in front of us, the history feels almost tangible. This is the floor where Johnny Cash gave his very final performance in 2003. It’s the stage where Doc Watson, Ricky Skaggs, and Marty Stuart have picked, and where generations of local families have gathered week after week.
Playing without electric pickups or heavy sound modification forces a band to listen to each other in a different way. You rely entirely on your dynamic control, your tone, and the raw resonance of your instruments. The Fold’s natural acoustics carry every note right up into the crowd.
By 7:30 PM, the chairs were filled with folks of all ages—locals who haven't missed a Saturday night show in thirty years, alongside travelers who drove across state lines just to feel the spirit of the place.
The moment we kicked into our opening tune, the real magic of the Fold happened. Within seconds, dancers filled the floor down in front of the stage. The rhythmic, percussive shuffle of Appalachian flatfooting and clogging became the heartbeat of our set. At the Fold, the audience doesn't just sit and listen; they participate. Their feet become an extra rhythm instrument in your band! Whenever we transitioned into a Gospel number, a reverent hush fell over the room; the dancers would pause, returning to their seats to listen with quiet respect.
Between breakdowns, gospel numbers, and high-lonesome harmonies, we looked out at a sea of smiling faces, tapping feet, and nodding heads. There is an intimacy in that large wooden barn that you simply cannot replicate in a standard rock club or modern theater. By the time we struck our final chord and listened to the roar of applause echo off the rafters, we felt a deep mix of exhaustion and absolute gratitude.
Our recent performance at the Fold carried an especially poignant weight, marking a significant transition in the venue's history. After years of steadfast devotion, director Rita Forrester hosted her final show on the night we took the stage. While she plans to remain deeply woven into the fabric of the organization, she is choosing to step back from her directorial duties to focus her full attention on her family and personal health. Stepping into the leadership role is Ellen Stroud, a gracious and skilled individual who brings both professional expertise and a kind spirit to the organization.
Shane Austin reflected, “Had a good time, and super honored to get to do the last show directed by Rita Forrester. The hot dogs were great, too.”
Playing the Carter Family Fold reminds you why you picked up an instrument in the first place. It strips away the commercial noise of the modern music business and grounds you in community, tradition, and pure, acoustic storytelling. We walked off the stage that July night tired, humbled, and deeply proud to have played a small part in keeping the music of these mountains ringing through Poor Valley.
8/17/26 Shane Austin Receives Gulley Memorial Scholarship
Our very own Shane Austin has won a scholarship in memory of the great Steve Gulley!
Check out the article here: https://bluegrasstoday.com/shane-austin-receives-steve-gulley-memorial-scholarship/
8-30-26 A Morning Worship Service at Gray Church, UMC
It was the morning after the final day of the Appalachian Fair in Gray, Tennessee. A month prior, our guitarist, Shane, had been talking to his friend David Frost—the music director at Gray Church, UMC—about booking our group for a Sunday morning gospel service.
When we arrived, we learned just how perfect that timing really was. Pastors Aaron and Brooke had recently asked David if he knew of any music groups available to lead worship that Sunday. The church staff and volunteers were exhausted after working all week parking cars and handing out water bottles to fairgoers. Coincidentally, David and Shane had already laid the groundwork. It felt like a true "God thing" that we were available to take over the morning’s service and give the pastors a well-deserved chance to rest and recharge.
We were met at the door with warm smiles, fresh coffee, and cookies. Moving into the beautiful sanctuary, setting up and dialing in our sound was a breeze thanks to an exceptionally friendly sound crew.
Once settled, we sat in the pews to watch a video recap of the church's fair ministry. Hearing the staff and volunteers share their experiences was deeply inspiring—a testament to how much this congregation loves and serves its local community.
When Pastors Aaron and Brooke introduced us, we stepped up to share our music. Performing bluegrass Gospel in a church setting transforms every song into a shared testimony of faith. We loved every minute on stage, looking out at a gracious and receptive congregation. Afterwards, we spent time chatting with members of the church, leaving with full hearts and a deep gratitude for the fellowship we experienced.
The church posted a live stream of the service on their YouTube channel. Check it out here: https://www.youtube.com/live/uRdtJigM1s0?si=X9CdiT_VrL9XY70p