"inside the greenbrier valley" - poor farm fest

8/14/2019 "Inside the Greenbrier Valley" - Poor Farm Fest

1/44 September 2013

A

s the sun begins to rise on a typical morning

in the Greenbrier Valley, its common to be

greeted by a symphony of birds and otherwildlife welcoming the new day.

But one weekend each September, on a farm in the communi-

ty of Williamsburg, something less common occurs. Man-made

sounds blend with natures concert as the morning wears on, and

telltale strains of guitars, keyboards, drums and other instru-

ments waft over the fields. This unnatural occurrence is known

as Poor Farm Fest but the sounds are actually just as integral to

our areas heritage as the cries of the creatures of the hills.

Festivalgoers will drink in the beauty of a thousand-acre

farm covered in green grass and surrounded by blue mountains.

Gazing out over the usually serene pasture where cows normallygraze, theyll see an impressive concert stage in the middle of

it all. The scene will become less pastoral, as families, friends,

couples and children of all ages begin filling the field, staking out

favorite spots and lining up chairs in anticipation.

West Virginia is known for its majestic mountains, breathtak-

ing scenery and music traditions. Poor Farm Fest blends all these

into one unforgettable experience. A West Virginians love of

music precipitated the festivals birth. I have a background as

a music DJ in radio in West Virginia, Kentucky and outside the

Boston area, says Carolyn Stephens, who conceived the idea for

Poor Farm Fest and brought it to fruition. When I moved [here]

in 2009, I started doing some local radio work and found thatthe music wasnt being created locally since so many stations re-

broadcast by satellite signal now. I missed picking the tunes and

turning on the audience, so I thought,Why not do a live show?

In June 2011, Stephens and her husband started talking about

creating a music festival. Things seemed to fall together quickly.

We picked the best spot on my familys farm, with the best

views, and carved out a beer garden and campground area from

the existing pasture, she says. The stage was built in about

eight weekends with a volunteer group of carpenters. And we just

decided, Why wait? If were doing the work, lets just get er

done. From concept to festival, it was under 90 days some say

45, but I was thinking a lot before the hammers started flying.

This will be the festivals third year, and some would sug-

gest that the third time for any event makes it an official tradi-

tion. Poor Farm Fest is the weekend of Sept. 6-7, and Stephens

says the 2013 event will be better than ever, with bigger tents,

bigger sound and more craft and food venders.

While Poor Farm Fest is becoming a Greenbrier County

tradition, its also becoming known as one of the East Coastsfastest-growing music festivals. That growth has been propa-

gated largely by word of mouth. People who have visited the

festival tell others about their experience and come back the

following year with more friends and family in tow.

One Greenbrier County native, Jamey Weber, has particu-

larly fond memories of the 2012 festival. I went last year for

the first time and loved it, Weber says. It doesnt hurt that my

boyfriend and I started dating because of that event. Another

county native, Gregg Wingo, puts it simply: Its a great time

for everybody and sort of a last celebration of summer.

Though the festival is growing by leaps and bounds, it retains

an intimate feel. Youre close to the stage, and you can see all

Melodies,Memories

and MoreAt Poor Farm Fest, coming Sept. 6-7, thehills will be alive with the sound of music.

by Sarah AldersonCommunity contributor

The Huntington-based band Qiet performs at last years Poor Farm Fest,in Williamsburg, W.Va.Photo by Jaime Wykle


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September 2013

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you want to see without a big projection screen. The sound from

the mountain of great speakers provided by Fallen Rock is com-

fortable to listen to while standing right in front, and clear and

powerful all the way out across the campground. Many people

just wander back and forth from their tents to the stage, and the

sound of the bands is nearly perfect over the entire property.

A bevy of bandsWhen some people think of music and West Virginia, they

think of banjos and fiddles, which are certainly an important part

of our states musical heritage. But perhaps in honor of the areas

generally rocky terrain, Poor Farm Fest offers a bountiful harvest

of rock, as well as blues and jam-band music.

Poor Farm started with a bit of everything, but we found that

bluegrass folks werent coming because of the rock bands, and

rock fans were dreading exposure to bluegrass, Stephens says.

So we split it up and created a second festival in June called

Badlands, which has most of the bluegrass and country bands.

Asked about this years Poor Farm lineup, the music lover

in Stephens comes out. She doesnt just list band names, she

gushes with excitement as she describes each of the 14 acts.

Royal Southern Brotherhood, from Louisiana [see story, page

12], and the Weight, from Lewisburg, are considered the head-

liners, but every band is off the charts, she says. Dirk Quinn,

from Philadelphia, is going to put jazz on the map. Tom Con-

stanten, of the Grateful Dead, will perform as part of Normal

Bean, from Oregon. Food Will Win the War is a performance

experience from New York City. And each night will end with

the looping electronica of SICMaN, of Virginia.

The Floorboards are coming from the Morgantown area, and

they rock. A central West Virginia band called Maritime Station

will do familiar covers. Virginia bands Peoples Blues of Rich-

mond and Threesound have been doing festivals all over the East

Coast this summer, so they will hit Greenbrier County. Asheville,N.C., is sending us Freeway Revival this year. Local favorites

this year, besides the Weight, are Rootz Rock. And the Fallen

Rock Band, from Mullens, is returning.

The musicians who take part in Poor Farm Fest are a big rea-

son for its growth. They not only provide top notch entertain-

ment, they tend to come back each year and bring their friends

and families. And they network, spreading the word to other

bands and encouraging them to participate.

Poor Farm is just an amazing location, says Paul Johnson,

of Johnsons Crossroad. The sound is always top-notch. Its a

great little festival that will continue to grow. John Lively, of

the Half Bad Bluegrass Band, describes both the view from thecrowd and the view from the stage as breathtaking, adding that

the festival has a beautiful hippie feel.

Joseph Hatfield, of the West Virginia-based band Mountain

Station, is a fan of the Poor Farm crowds. We were the first band

to play and the youngest, so no one had high expectations. But we

ended the show with people singing and dancing, he says.

Dan Lively, who performed at last years festival with

ExZeuduS, will be back this year with two other bands as bass

guitarist for the Weight and lead guitarist and vocalist for Rootz

Rock. He says hes looking forward to participating, citing the

enthusiasm of attendees, the large stage, the great sound system

and lights, and great people.

Music is the festivals focus, but its not the only element.Stephens is all about creating an enjoyable overall experience

and adds other creative folks to the mix. Cloudy but Clear is a

blacklight artist from Roanoke named Brian Bailey who paints

on canvas as well as hats and shirts, she says. Our tie-dye

favorite is Spiral Light Productions, and they make a tie-dye

tunnel with blacklights to entertain kids. We also have face

painting for the kids, but some adults are enjoying that, too.

Preserving the pastSomething else that sets Poor Farm Fest apart from similar

events is its connection to a historical property. One of the

goals is to contribute to historic sites in the area in order to

preserve and promote Greenbrier Countys past.

Im pleased theyre raising funds for the restoration of his-

torical sites, and they educate the Greenbrier folks that we did

have a poor farm county owned and run during the depression,

says local resident Mike Williams.

In fact, cultivating the land in order to help its neighbors is in

the farms DNA. The Greenbrier County Poor Farm was origi-

nally established in the 1800s and used for more than a century

to house and support those who were unable to make ends meet.

Today, the land is still being used to help people in need.

Our June festival is a fundraising device for restoring McCoy


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Fort in Williamsburg, Stephens says. Its a young festival, only

two years old, and it needs to grow in order to provide [those]

funds. Meanwhile, festival staff helped to dismantle the fort in

preparation for the two-to-three-year archeology program.

Stephens notes that she couldnt make Poor Farm Fest a

reality without volunteers. Most of them started at the firstfestival, she says. They do more talking about it through the

year than I do, and put up posters, sell advance tickets and clean

up afterward.

But before that cleanup, revelers will make the most of each

moment, often into the wee hours of the morning. As the sun sets

on Saturday, and the moon comes up, diehard fans will continue

to cheer on the bands. If its a clear night, the light show on stage

will be accompanied by a mass of stars overhead, and the noctur-

nal sounds of West Virginias wildlife will fill the breaks between

songs. As morning arrives, music will give way to the sounds of

the hills, leaving only the memory of an amazing event.

Poor Farm Fests 2013 schedule:Friday, Sept. 6: 5 p.m. The Freeway Revival

6:30 p.m. Dirk Quinn Band

8:30 p.m. Peoples Blues of Richmond

10 p.m. The Weight

11:30 p.m. Fallen Rock Band

12:45 a.m. SICMaN

Saturday, Sept. 7: 12 p.m. Spongecake & the Fluff Ramblers

2 p.m. Threesound

3:15 p.m. Food Will Win the War

4:25 p.m. Rootz Rock

5:30 p.m. Maritime Station

6:30 p.m. Normal Bean

9 p.m. Royal Southern Brotherhood

11:15 p.m. The Floorboards

12:45 a.m. SICMaN

For more information, visit poorfarmfest.com.

Clockwise from top left: The Dirk Quinn Band, from Philadelphia.

Mike Waldeck Jr., of Qiet, performing at last years Poor Farm Fest.

Maritime Station, from central West Virginia.

Food Will Win the War, from New York City.

The Floorboards, from northern West Virginia.

Festival founder Carolyn Stephens.

The Wild Rumpus, from Fayetteville, performing at last years

Poor Farm Fest.Courtesy photos, except Qiet and The Wild Rumpus by Jaime Wykle

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"inside the greenbrier valley" - poor farm fest

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