Bluegrass in Darrington

Published 7:21 pm Wednesday, July 14, 2010

The 34th annual traditional American music party known as the Darrington Bluegrass Festival kicks off this weekend.

The festival features more than a dozen bands playing over three days, so music lovers get their fill of finger-pickin’ guitar, folk and bluegrass.

Here are the featured bands, and a little bit about them, according to their website biographies:

Rhonda Vincent &The Rage: Singer and songwriter, fiddle and mandolin player, Rhonda Vincent is a seven-time Bluegrass Female Vocalist of the Year winner. She has a new CD coming out in September that features guest appearances by Richard Marx and Dolly Parton.

The U.S. Navy Band Country Current: The “Country Current” part of this military ensemble provides a country-bluegrass sound and is the Navy’s premier country music ensemble. The seven-member group is under the direction of banjo player Keith M. Arneson.

Chris Jones &Night Driver: On his latest CD “Too Far Down The Road,” Jones combines classic country influences with honky-tonk, bluegrass, blues and folk.

There are more than 10 other bands to hear throughout the weekend.

The 34th annual Darrington Bluegrass Festival runs from 6 to 11 tonight, 9 a.m. to 11 p.m. Saturday and 8 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. Sunday at the Darrington Bluegrass Music Park on Highway 530, 3 miles west of Darrington.

Walk-in tickets are $15 for today’s performances, $20 for Saturday and $15 for Sunday. Children 12 and under are free with adult. For ticket information, call 360-436-1006.

Herald staff