Wow…What a month, both good and bad…On the bad side, we lost several famous musicians and entertainers, among them Ozzy Osbourne. Starting in 1969, Ozzy and Black Sabbath unwittingly pioneered what would become “heavy metal” music, and changed the face of rock forever. I first heard the song “Iron Man” being played on local AM radio in 1971, and in the stack of record albums my older brother brought home from Penn State (University Park) was the album containing “Iron Man,” Black Sabbath’s “Paranoid.” That album helped trigger my interest in the harder side of rock music, which I still gravitate toward today. (Another entertainer who passed last month was pro-wrestling icon Hulk Hogan (real name Terry Bollea); you might not know that he played fretless bass with several Florida-based rock bands before his career arc turned toward professional wrestling.)
On the good side, the past several weeks kept me very busy with several multi-band festival events. By my count, I witnessed 66 different bands and performers since my last deadline, most via these festival events. With space limitations here in the magazine, I can’t possibly go into detail about everybody I saw, so I’ll be writing general recaps of the larger festival events I covered. Watch for more expansive recaps and photo galleries of these bigger events soon on both my Facebook page and the PA Musician Facebook page.
The 21st annual Smoked Country Jam Bluegrass Festival in June again provided one of the centerpieces to my summer. The three-day event at Quiet Oaks Campground near Cross Fork featured performances from 21 acts on two stages, and raised funds for the Lupus Foundation of America. I arrived late on the first night, Thursday, but still got to see much of the performance from Lock Haven’s Private Stock Trio, who lifted the audiences spirits high with their mix of acoustic folk, country and rock favorites…On Friday I saw sets from longtime Lock Haven-based traditional bluegrassers the Lockport Drifters; Buffalo, New York’s The Brothers Blue, State College’s Tussey Mountain Moonshiners, New York City’s Damn Tall Buildings, Huntingdon County native (and Nashville-based artist) Doug Forshey and friends, southern New York’s Bug Tussle, the Danville folk pairing of Van Wagner and Matt Harrison, Carlisle area traditional bluegrass group Stone House Breakdown, The Grillbillie Project and North Carolina’s Unspoken Tradition (featuring former Blair Countian Sav Sankaran). Unspoken Tradition’s performance was special; the group is based in western North Carolina, which was ravaged last September by flooding from the remnants of Hurricane Helene. The group did numerous songs from their latest album, “Resilience,” a musical dedication to the resilience of the people in this area as they try to rebuild their communities and lives. Part of the proceeds from sales of the album are being donated to Hurricane Helene relief…Saturday started on a comical note; I went to get a shower at the campground’s shower area, and when I finished and left the shower, I noted that five or six folks were waiting in line to take their showers. Across the road from the shower area, Van Wagner was strumming his guitar under the workshop tent, gearing up for his “North of 80” workshop presentation with Matt Harrison. Observing the people in line, Van suddenly began singing “Waiting to take a shower,” with the folks in line soon chiming in with him. This earworm now in my head made me realize how Van has been able to create more than 30 albums in his career, as his inspirations for songs can spring from anywhere! Through the day I saw Van and Matt’s workshop, as well as performances from Chuck Darwin & the Knuckle Draggers, Harrisburg favorites Colebrook Road, Lehigh Valley’s Joe Hillman Band, Cincinnati-based group My Brother’s Keeper, Kentucky’s David Adkins & Mountain Soul, and the rousing finale hosted by Morgantown, West Virginia favorites the Hillbilly Biscuits. Keeping with tradition, the Biscuits invited all participating Smoked Country Jam musicians to join them on the stage for the festival’s closing bluegrass jam, finishing with festival organizers Ron and Theresa Kodish announcing the dates for next year’s festival, June 18-20, 2026. Count me in!
On my way home from Smoked Country Jam, I decided to take a side journey to Dubois to catch my first look at Clarion-based singer and songwriter Samantha Sears, as she played a matinee performance at Public House on Jared. Samantha played acoustic guitar and ukulele as she enthusiastically sang many of her original songs plus her own treatments of select covers. Some of her songs included “Through Waiting,” “I’ve Got A Thing for You” and “To You.” She also did fresh spins on Stephen Stills/Buffalo Springfield’s “For What It’s Worth,” Pearl Jam’s “Elderly Woman Behind the Counter in a Small Town,” Lenny Kravitz’s “Fly Away” (her ‘psychedelic ukulele’ version), and for her finale, Janis Joplin’s “Mercedes Benz.” Samantha’s presentation was pleasant and passionate; it was quite obvious that she loves to sing. Watch for Samantha as she plays on stages throughout western PA.
The Pennsylvania Roundhouse Rally’s two-day second event in late June again featured a mixture of local musical talent and touring performers playing on the railcar stage at Roundhouse Harley-Davidson near Duncansville. Friday’s music opened with young Cambria County rockers Open Ends, who played a variety of hard-driving rock spanning the 1960s through 90s. The group also played several originals, including their first single release, “Awakened.” When Motley Crue tribute Cruecified had to bow out of the event due to a death in one of the band member’s families, Atlanta-based Bon Jovi tribute Slippery When Wet stepped in and delivered a rousing party of Bon Jovi hits. Saturday’s entertainment kicked off with popular Altoona acoustic duo Lauren & Joe, followed by Clearfield County hard rockers Zero Tolerance. Headlining was Jasmine Cain…My first time witnessing this exciting performer, I was blown away by Jasmine’s musical firepower as she and her band mixed heavy-hitting original songs with various classic rock, classic and nu-metal favorites. Jasmine delivered all-out energy, a powerful voice and commanding stage presence, and had the Roundhouse audience in the palm of her hand from start to end. The next PA Roundhouse Rally event takes place on August 2.
I celebrated the Independence Day (4th of July) holiday in Punxsutawney, enjoying live music and fireworks during the annual “Festival in the Park” celebration. I got to see three of the four bands that performed this day, arriving in time to see the latter portion of Killin’ Time’s set. (Local Beef kicked things off earlier.) From western PA, this group entertained the large audience with their brand of “Goat Ropin’ Country.” Singer LeeRoy Walters, keyboardist John Keeley, guitarist Jesse Marshall, bassist T. Paul Vacanti and drummer Corey Beichner played a mix of country favorites from Garth Brooks, Hank Williams Jr., Tracy Byrd, Toby Keith, Radney Foster, Dwight Yoakam and more. Killin’ Time sounded strong, blending spirited stage energy with a fun and often humorous vibe. The musical flavor then shifted to rock as Cambria County’s Fuse lit the fuse on powerful classic rock favorites. Group mainstays Nick George on vocals and Rick Hartman on bass were joined by the youthful tandem of guitarist Brett Mulhollen and drummer Alex Shumaker. Fuse took charge of the audience from the get-go as they led off with Lenny Kravitz’s “Are You Gonna Go My Way,” and kept the momentum going strong with numbers from Bryan Adams, Billy Squier, Grand Funk Railroad, CCR, Billy Idol, Sammy Hagar, Bob Seger, Poison and many others. Brett and Alex showed their versatility, swapping instrumental roles on Van Halen’s “Ain’t Talkin’ Bout Love,” and both sharing harmony guitar leads while Nick climbed behind the drum kit on Molly Hatchet’s “Flirtin’ with Disaster.” Indiana-based favorites 7 Mile Run took the audience up to the night-ending fireworks display with their blend of original country songs and favorites plus a few rock’n’roll numbers. Lead singer and guitarist Brian Miller, guitarists Barry Little and Brian Heath, bassist Greg Orr, fiddler and singer John Powell and drummer Johnny Bodnar energized the crowd with favorites from Hank Williams, Eddie Rabbitt, REO Speedwagon, the Eagles, Alabama and more. The group also performed several patriotic country numbers while having audience volunteers hand out small American flags to the audience; culminating in the finale of a rendition of Lee Greenwood’s “God Bless the U.S.A., followed by Barry and Brian’s guitar duo rendition of the “Star Spangled Banner” as the fireworks began.
Another festival highlight was last month’s 12th annual Wam Bam Mountain Jam, which happened at a rural setting in the mountains west of Port Matilda. Always taking place on the first Saturday in July, this year’s event featured 13 different Centre region bands and performers; including Liv & the Juveniles, The Narrows, Cajons & Cajones (presenting a unique modern-day, hip-hop flavored variation on beat poetry), Luke Goes Electric (Luke Cimbala’s latest project; Luke provided a non-musical highlight when he proposed to his lady Cynthia on stage, and she said “Yes!”), Forrester Grey, JCKT Up, The Sorters, GoatSmoker, new Port Matilda-based power metal foursome Matilda, host band Donny Burns & the 3rd Degree, Sidewinder, the new-look Making State and powerful band newcomers PDA to finish the night. Wam Bam Mountain Jam gets bigger and better with each year; hats off to Donny Burns and everybody who made this year’s event another rousing success!
The following weekend brought this year’s edition of the Route 22 Rock & Blues Festival, which took place at the Lincoln Caverns Campground near Huntingdon. Nineteen bands and performers populated the stage over the festival’s two days, representing a variety of musical flavors. Friday night’s music leaned toward the harder side, with performances from the Bomb Cyclones, The BSXpress, Mashbrotatoe, Maul, Walkney, Abstentious (celebrating their fifth time at this event, where they played their very first performance in 2020) and progressive doom metal purveyors Black Sun. Saturday’s music started in a folksy vibe with Brother Jack, followed by Jesse & the Ghost, Kevo Can’t Dance, Memory Collector (Sascha Frost’s electronica project), Francis Musaraca, Clearfield soul and blues performers Innocent Sin, The PennSoulvanians, Making State, electric blues fivesome JuJu Bone, Toy the Band, Search Party (formerly Hot Fudge Mondaes) and young jam-geared performers Scavenger. Adding to the excitement and vibe was fire-twirling provided by Higher Frequency Illusions. The Route 22 Rock & Blues Festival again delivered the good time; kudos to Todd McKeone and his team for another great event!
After leaving the Lincoln Caverns Campground, I headed directly to the Community Foundation Oilhouse at People’s Natural Gas Park in Johnstown to attend the “Rachelfest” benefit, with proceeds helping out longtime Johnstown musician and self-employed healing arts practitioner Rachel Allen as she faces a hip replacement procedure this month; the funds will support her as she recovers from the procedure. This was a pleasant, fun and heartwarming event. Rachel sang, anchored and hosted the music onstage; joined by her son Johnny Bayush on guitar and vocals, and Norman Ed on hand percussion and vocals. Joining in with this group along the way were Rachel’s grandkids (Johnny’s kids), who provided “roars” during a rendition of “The Lion Sleeps Tonight”; Rachel’s past musical partner Bo Moore, reuniting to do a few songs from their “Rachel and Bo” acoustic duo days such as the Rolling Stones’ “Dead Flowers,” Van Morrison’s “Moondance” and the Grateful Dead’s “Ripple”; and Matt Otis, who led the musicians on a spirited take on Rusted Root’s “Send Me On My Way” plus songs from John Denver and Ben E. King. Although some of these musicians hadn’t played together before, it all sounded good as the mood was casual and everyone had fun making the music together. Jeff Perigo did a very good job running sound. In addition to the music, this event also featured a silent art auction, featuring numerous donated paintings, pottery, garments and other handmade creations from the community. It was heartening to see the community share love and support with Rachel this day, and she was overcome with tears of joy a few times. She has done a lot of nice things for the Johnstown community through her music and healing arts work, and it was great to see the community returning the love during this event. As the benefit concluded, the benefit’s emcee, Kourtney Square, announced a preliminary total of $2,000 raised through donations at the gate (before silent auction totals are added in) to help out Rachel. Kudos to the organizers and volunteers, the musicians and the Johnstown community for this joyful and heartwarming event!
The Bottle Works Ethnic Arts Center in Johnstown’s Cambria City neighborhood presented last month’s two-day 3rd Avenue Folk & Arts Fest. I caught several performances during the first day of this festival. The Evergreens commenced the music before I arrived, but I did get to see much of The Rusty Shackles’ performance. Lead singer and guitarist Ed Locher IV, guitarist and singer Adam Milkovich, bassist Chris Verbano and drummer Luke Harrison played an edgy blend of punk-fueled alternative, folk and classic rock favorites and originals. The portion of their set that I witnessed included numbers from Social Distortion, Talking Heads, Ramones, Green Day, and a feisty blending of the Rolling Stones’ “Sympathy for the Devil” and Velvet Underground’s “Sweet Jane.” Greensburg-based family band trio The Essential Machine followed with their distinctive alternative rock sound. Lead singer and guitarist RJ Dietrich, his wife Karen Dietrich on drums and son Robert Dietrich on keys and vocals presented original songs with escalating and soaring arrangements, including several numbers from their new album “Compressor//Sustainer,” which will be released on August 15. Releasing their brand new 6-song EP “Don’t You Follow Me Home” this day, Johnstown’s Screech Owl delivered their rootsy brand of original music to close out the day. Singer and lead guitarist Justin Giuffre, singer and drummer Micah Mood, keyboardist Mike Giuffre, bassist Ryan Stacy and rhythm guitarist Chris Verbano mixed numbers from the new EP and their first EP “You’re Not Welcome,” plus did select songs from Bruce Springsteen, Bob Dylan and Elvis Costello. Screech Owl’s overall style mixes elements of alt-country, punk, rockabilly, garage rock and more into a vibrant, cohesive sound. Adding to the excitement of their set as the sun started setting was the arrival of the Flow N’At fire twirlers.
I made my annual sojourn to Knoebel’s Amusement Resort near Elysburg last month, and got to see the day’s latter two sets from the Jess Zimmerman Band. Demonstrating a clear, soaring and powerful voice, Jess and her band – guitarist and singer Joe Barszowski, bassist Dan Walters and drummer Joe Mattis – entertained the audiences during both sets with a blend of original songs plus country and rock favorites. The group did several songs off their latest album “Be the Light” including “Hundred Dollar Guitar,” “I Am,” the harder-edged “Bring Me What’s Mine” and more. They also mixed in favorites from Tom Cochrane, Fleetwood Mac, Shania Twain, Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, Carrie Underwood, Jason Aldean, and even a rendition of Motley Crue’s “Home Sweet Home.”
I caught my first look at rising Cambria County country performers Boomtown last month as they entertained a full house at Johnstown’s Woodside Bar & Grill. Boomtown introduced a brand new member before the packed-house crowd, singer and acoustic guitarist Megan “Ziggy” Zolnosky, who joins lead singer and guitarist Ken Gray, lead guitarist Chris Spaid, bassist Morgan Mikesic and drummer Jake Horvath. Boomtown kept the dance floor filled as they played a variety of modern country favorites from Dierks Bentley, Jason Aldean, Big & Rich, Luke Bryan, Luke Combs and others. Boomtown played all of it with abundant enthusiasm and energy, giving the Woodside crowd no reason to want to sit down. Boomtown plays a busy schedule throughout the region.
The area music scene was saddened by the passing of several members in recent weeks…Three of those were area sound engineers; longtime sound producer Phil Reigh passed away on July 7 after an extended illness; he was 77. Phil worked for a number of years as an electronics engineer at Penn State and also owned Reigh Communication and Phil Reigh Sound. Phil ran sound for numerous large-scale events, including for main stage performers at the Clearfield County Fair. He also played bass guitar…Chris Knapik passed away on July 11 at age 48. Chris had run sound and production for many area bands and events over the years, including the annual Patched Together and Day Of Rock benefits. Chris also played guitar…And longtime sound engineer and musician Greg Stager passed away on July 18 at age 71. He built a lifelong career as an audio producer and sound engineer; and owned and operated Knight Sound, working with countless professional and amateur musicians throughout western, central Pennsylvania and the East Coast. He was also the house sound engineer at Crowbar in State College during that venue’s years of operation…The music scene was also saddened with the passing of Jennifer Schrift on July 16 at age 44. Jennifer earned her Bachelor of Science in Music Education from Indiana University of Pennsylvania in 2003 and her Master of Arts in Saxophone Performance in 2009. While at IUP, she was an active member of Sigma Alpha Iota, the international music fraternity for women. She performed in the Wind Ensemble, Jazz Ensemble, and A Few Good Reeds saxophone quartet. She performed with several area groups; including Spoonchatter, Flood City Brass, Mike Bodolosky’s Big Band, and the Keystone Winds with fellow IUP alumni. She was also a dedicated music educator at North Star High School, where she taught instrumental music and chorus.
Other groups I saw in recent weeks included The Cresson Brothers Band at the Lilly Community Carnival, presented by the Keystone Regional Fire Rescue Department…Also national recording group (hed)PE, SamarA and Abstentious as they rocked on a Monday night at McGarvey’s…And Nail Bite and Strange Culture, as they played as part of a four-band bill with SamarA and A Starlite Gray at McGarvey’s; Nail Bite will perform at the Mass N Tha Grass Music & Arts Festival at the Sinking Valley Fairground near Altoona on August 9.
News and notes… The “Scream For Dez” benefit will take place on August 2 at McGarvey’s in Altoona, with proceeds helping out Dez Getz, who is battling stage 4 melanoma; the event will feature performances from the bands Abstentious, Empty Mag, False Sense and A Starlite Gray…Michael Glabicki of Rusted Root and Dirk Miller will headline the sixth annual Homegrown Music & Community Festival, which takes place on September 6 at People’s Natural Gas Park in Johnstown, with proceeds benefiting several area charities via the Community Foundation. The event will also feature performances from Even The Odds, Habatat and the Derek Woods Band…Citing the logistics of living two-hours away from his bandmates, drummer Ray Gieda is parting ways with the Jeremy Edge Project; the departure was a mutual decision between him and the band, and the split is amicable.
Please send correspondence and recordings to: Jim Price, 1104 S. Catherine St., Altoona, PA 16602. You can also e-mail me at jptheprofessor@gmail.com. And if you’re into social networking, look me up on Facebook. And continue to SUPPORT LOCAL MUSIC!
