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been playing the guitar since he was 13 – better than 53 years now. “I’d rather pick music than anything. I’ve tried to quit a few times in my life, but I always start again.” Carlisle and three friends formed a band, the Drifting River, a little more than a year ago. They’ve cut two CDs and perform as often as they can – and not just on stage either. “I have my guitar sitting by my easy chair, and when the commercials come on I hit the mute button and pick up my guitar,” Carlisle said between songs at Cypress House. True bluegrass lovers will tell you there’s a distinct difference between their music and country. Venues and bands that adhere to the roots of bluegrass allow only acoustic instruments, Caulder said. A typical bluegrass band will include guitars, a banjo or two, a mandolin, an upright bass and a fiddle, in the style of the father of bluegrass, Bill Monroe. Monroe and his band, The Blue Grass Boys, started jamming together in Kentucky, the Bluegrass State, back in 1939, at the end of the Great Depression. Through the years and with the influence of other musical styles, bluegrass has evolved, but true bluegrass musicians remain true to their heritage. And they’re like one big, jolly family. One of the largest groups gathers at Clyde Maness’ Pottery and Music Barn off N.C. 24-27 outside Carthage. On a typical Tuesday night, 200 to 300 fans show up to listen and dance to the sounds of dozens of musicians. Bluegrass players take the stage or gather as impromptu duets or quartets in a corner here or there. “Some come from Virginia or South Carolina,” Maness said, “but about 90 percent come from around 100 miles or less.” Betty Moore was there from her home in Carolina Lakes, off N.C. 87 between Fayetteville and Sanford. Her niece, Patsy Flynn, and her 11-year-old grandson, Colby Patterson, accompanied her. Betty, wearing glitter on her face to match her outfit, eagerly watched the stage, where a band of five known as Fine Blue Line was cranking out some vibrant tunes. She was waiting for her favorite singer, Lewis Beasley, to take the microphone. “He has a beautiful voice,” she said of the heavyset man holding a doghouse bass that was bigger than him. “Wait till you hear Lewis. He’ll sing a blues song to a bluegrass tune.” Betty, impatient to hear her man sing, sent her niece up to request a song. “You get me in more trouble,” Patsy replied. But away she went. “You just wait till you hear him sing,” Betty said again. The next song began. “That’s not it,” she said. Then it was, and Lewis held his lips close to the microphone and sang sweetly, “I’d love to wake up in your arms tomorrow, but I’m so afraid of losing you again.” It was about enough to make Betty swoon. Across the room, a few dancers were shuffling their feet in a corner of the room. Out in front, away from the main stage, small groups of musicians stood about, playing or singing. Eleven-year-old Autumn Boger, in a pink T-shirt and sneakers, was leaning against a chair and belting out an old gospel tune, “Will the Circle Be Unbroken,” to the accompaniment of a couple of guitars. Autumn has loved bluegrass all her life and is already proficient on the guitar, mandolin, fiddle, ukulele, bass fiddle and tub bass, which is just what it sounds like, an overturned tin washtub with a wooden post and a string sticking up from it. Her daddy, Richard Boger, enjoys her music as much as she does and is a musician himself. He said he always wanted a woman who could sing with him – and he found her in Autumn. For those who enjoy bluegrass, it’s something akin to true love that might best be described in the love songs of old. It’s a heart-warming affair that makes them smile and brings a fire to their bellies and makes life a bit more fun, a great bit sweeter. And don’t you know, there’s passion there, too. “It’s good to have a passion,” Caulder said, “that’s enjoyable, that feeds your spirit and motivates you, that keeps you positive and gives you something to look forward to.”CV 50|April/May • 2009

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