BUZZ Magazine September 2016

- Phil Traynor
The 2016 Gathering was my 12th consecutive year and
it was also my best. Wait! What is he talking about?
What is the Swannanoa Gathering?
The Swannanoa Gathering is a folk-arts music camp
that holds seven curriculums that run over a period of
five weeks during the summer at Warren Wilson College
in Swannanoa NC; just east of Asheville. It celebrated
its 25 th anniversary this year. The camps begin
with Traditional Song Week, then Celtic Week, then
Old-Time Week, then Guitar Week and Contemporary
Folk Week (these two programs run concurrently), and
it closes with Mando & Banjo Week and Fiddle Week
(also running concurrently).
I have attended the Guitar Week/Contemporary Folk
week duo every year since 2005. Every year that I go,
my world is filled with amazing music, incredible camaraderie,
and the most intensive learning I’ve ever experienced.
A camper can take up to four courses, each of
which runs 75 minutes a day for five days. In between
the classes and meals are seminars, demonstrations,
and exhibits. At Guitar Week, there are several high
end custom luthiers displaying their wares; this year
we enjoyed the exquisite guitars of John Slobod, Gerald
Sheppard, Michael Bashkin, and Dave McCubbin.
Dream Guitars of Weaverville brought a vast selection
of their renowned inventory as well. At night, both
faculties perform concerts, the students perform as
well, and the jamming goes on all night long. The slogan
of the Gathering is "The worst part about the Gathering
is that there are only 24 hours in the day and 3 of
them are wasted sleeping!"
My week this year was the most magical of the lot to
date; a significant thing because each year I leave
thinking “it can’t possible get any better than this!” but
then it does. I’d like to relate some of the experiences
I had. First, friend and fellow Gatherer Jim Moran messaged
me on Facebook for my phone number the day
before camp began. That facilitated a conversation and
a HUGE opportunity with Grammy® winning songwriter
and CMA/ACM Song of the Year honorees Jon
Vezner and Don Henry, who asked me to accompany
them on bass during their sets at the Contemporary
Folk Week faculty concert, even before camp began!
I was sent a pair of tracks to learn, and in the course of
rehearsing with these lovable lunatics; the call grew to
four songs, including the song that won the aforementioned
awards for them; “Where’ve You Been”? The
other three songs were newer tracks on upcoming
releases from the pair. During one of the rehearsals, a
young lady entered the room and started singing a
third harmony part. Against our collective judgement
, she was drafted into service for the show
too. Who would it be but Grammy® winning country
(and now folk) artist Kathy Mattea! (She and Vezner
are married, as it happens).
During one of our rehearsals, Jon asked his friend,
Grammy® Lifetime Achievement Award winner and
folk songwriting icon Tom Paxton to come and listen to
one of the new tunes we were working on. As the song
is magnificent, Tom was understandably moved.
When Jon and I sat down for sound check on Wednesday
the day of the show, Paxton was onstage, saw me,
and pointed me out and asked if I wanted to play bass
for him and his accompanist Robin Bullock for their set
too!
The night of the show, it got several notches better.
The entire faculty got together for a show-closing Tom
Paxton number, and I played for that too. An amazing
lineup of people singing to a warm, engaged, and extremely
appreciative crowd. The group included Robin
Bullock, Danny Ellis, Amy Speace, 14-time Boston Music
Award winner Ellis Paul, Swannanoa Gathering
founder Jim Magill, the mighty and ineffable Cliff Eberhardt,
Independent Music Award, Americana Music
Association Award, GLAMA award winner and Gram-
BAYBUZZ.ORG / SEPTEMBER 2016 / 9