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Across the Blue Ridge #76- The New Ballard’s Branch Bogtrotters

by Paul Brown

The New Ballard’s Branch Bogtrotters, a powerful and charming old time mountain string band with a rich history, are our featured performers on this episode of Across the Blue Ridge. L-R Josh Ellis, Eddie Bond, Dennis Hall, Bonnie Bond, Caroline Beverly. Paul Brown

This week we hear a fabulous Muddy Creek Music Hall stage performance from The New Ballard's Branch Bogtrotters, one of the finest mountain string bands performing today. Hailing from southwest Virginia, this band is a dyed-in-the-wool old time group with a stylish sound and a driving beat you will love. Its name harks back to the original Bogtrotters, a highly popular band of the 1930s and 1940s centered around the famously musical Ward family of Ballard Branch. The current band's founder, Dennis Hall, can lay good claim to the name: He was raised practically steps from the home of one of the original Bogtrotter fiddlers, and he's played since childhood. Hear the music and the history, plus a hilarious story from fiddler Eddie Bond about how he came to reconcile traditional religion with playing “the Devil's Box” – the fiddle.

Playlist

  1. Sugar Hill
    The Buck Mountain Band
    The Original Bogtrotters
     
  2. Polly Put The Kettle On
    The New Ballard's Branch Bogtrotters
    Same Branch, Different Trotters
     
  3. Pole Cat Blues
    The New Ballard's Branch Bogtrotters
    ATBR recording
     
  4. Red Rocking Chair
    The New Ballard's Branch Bogtrotters
    ATBR recording
     
  5. Lee Highway Blues
    The New Ballard's Branch Bogtrotters
    ATBR recording
     
  6. Hop Light Ladies
    The Bogtrotters
    The Original Bogtrotters
     
  7. Break 1 - Cluck Old Hen
    The Bogtrotters
    The Original Bogtrotters
     
  8. Susan Anna Gal
    The New Ballard's Branch Bogtrotters
    ATBR recording
     
  9. Staggerlee
    The New Ballard's Branch Bogtrotters
    ATBR recording
     
  10. Interview
    The New Ballard's Branch Bogtrotters
    ATBR recording
     
  11. John Brown's Dream
    The New Ballard's Branch Bogtrotters
    ATBR recording
     
  12. Break 2 - Piney Woods Girl of North Carolina
    The Bogtrotters
    The Original Bogtrotters
     
  13. The Sweetest Gift
    The New Ballard's Branch Bogtrotters
    ATBR recording
     
  14. Durang's Hornpipe
    The New Ballard's Branch Bogtrotters
    ATBR recording
     
  15. Reuben's Train
    The New Ballard's Branch Bogtrotters
    ATBR recording
     
  16. Jimmy Sutton
    The New Ballard's Branch Bogtrotters
    ATBR recording

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