Here it comes again. Clifftop. The Appalachian String Band Festival , Aug. 1-5, at Camp Washington-Carver in Fayette County, W.Va. Ever since becoming enraptured by old-time music I've wanted to make the pilgrimage to this festival, but once again it'll have to wait until another year. Living in Northeast Ohio, I'm lucky in that there are local jams and a few annual events where I can go play and hear the music, but there's nothing on the scale of Clifftop. It has become almost mythological in mind. The white whale of fiddles, banjos, guitars, basses and a variety of other instruments and the fellow fogies who make them sing. While I've never been to the festival, videos posted on YouTube from various years are legion. If I'm trying ot learn a new tune and want to watch a video, there's almost always an example from Clifftop. When I was trying to learn "Half Past Four," I watched this video over and over and over again. Athens, Ohio-based b
How to learn to stop worrying and love the twang. A journey into old-time music.