Sandy River Ramblers, L-R: Brendan Hickey, Stan Keach, Julie Davenport, Bobby St. Pierre, Bud Godsoe (photo by Liz Keach)
BETHEL — On Sunday, August 7, the Sandy River Ramblers, one of Maine’s premier folk-bluegrass bands, will play a concert at The Gem Theater’s outdoor theater in Bethel.
The Ramblers are, stylistically, a traditional bluegrass band, but their specialty is original songs about Maine, mostly written by bandleader Stan Keach, who is a nationally-known bluegrass songwriter. Keach, the guitarist for the band, started the Ramblers in 1983, so the band has had a run of 39 years, the longest run ever for a Maine bluegrass band.
Bud Godsoe, the other active charter member of the Ramblers, a retired building contractor and shingle mill operator from Madrid, is one of Maine’s most respected banjoists. Brendan Hickey, a recent graduate of Berklee College of Music, now a music teacher in Farmington, and mandolinist Bobby St. Pierre, who plays his own hand-made mandolins, are exceptional instrumentalists. Upright bassist Julie Davenport is, according to Keach, “one of the best singers in Maine in any genre.”
The Ramblers’ two most recent CDs, Cry of the Loon and other original songs about Maine and Home in the Heart of Maine, feature 28 songs with Maine topics, including such titles as “Bear in the Barn,” “Slow Down (You’ll Hit a Moose),” and “Boots from L. L. Bean.” The Ramblers also play some bluegrass standards, a few country and rock covers, and stunning instrumentals.
The concert, at 48 Cross St. in Bethel, begins at 4 p.m. Tickets are “Pay As You Wish,” with all proceeds benefiting the performers and future BAAM programming. Proof of Covid tax is required for all over 12. Don’t forget to bring a folding chair! For more info, contact The Gem Theater at www.thegemtheater.com, or the Gem Theater on Facebook, or call (207) 824-8248.
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