Don Oehser & the Vibrators

In addition to fronting his own groups such as his blues band Don Oehser and the Vibrators, Don Oehser has played and/or recorded with acts like Catfish Hodge, bluesman J.B. Hutto, D.C. rockabilly legend Billy Hancock, Nashville singer-songwriter Amy Silver, roots-rocker Evan Johns, and others. He is also a member of the talented trio, Singin' the Bones, with his wife Laura First and Susan Spangler. “Don is a musician’s musician,” said Mansley. “He can sit-in with anyone.”

The Outpatients

Shake, rattle and roll with the newgrass and rhythm-and-blues of The OutPatients. Band members Steve Cifala, Jamie Daly, and Rob Receveur make “The Outpatients” a very popular band on the DC-club scene. They are known for their three-part harmonies and blazing instrumentals, music that has been dubbed “toe-tapping acoustic mayhem,” according to Mansley.

South Mountain String Band & The Rock Candy Cloggers

Foot-stomping fun takes the stage with high-energy old-time fiddle and banjo tunes and spirited singing. South Mountain is led by fiddler Rob Caruthers with Paul Mackrel on banjo (clawhammer style), and Mary Daily on guitar and dulcimer. South Mountain String Band was the first-place winner for Best Old-Time Band at the 2001 Deer Creek Fiddler’s Convention in Westminster, Maryland.

Singin’ the Bones

“Singin’ the Bones” is Don Oehser, Laura First, and Susan Spangler. Laura First performs songs from Appalachia and Medieval Europe, and is a recording artist with The National Symphony and others in the D.C. area. Susan Spangler delights audiences with her sultry tones in both the classical and jazz.  “Singin’ the Bones came together with a motivation to embrace all styles of music,” said Mansley. “They go from from  Appalachian folk to jazz standards, Delta blues to Scottish ballads, and from jug-band tunes to Italian Renaissance. They are indescribably amazing.” 

Treehouse

Treehouse is a five-member band that plays mostly original music, an interesting blend of rock, folk & pop, “with world fusion and jazz overtones,” Mansley said. “Treehouse performances are marked by their strong vocals, tribal rhythms and intense instrumentals. Their song lyrics inspire deep introspection.”

Ed & Eldred

Ed and Eldred are Ed Barney and Eldred Hill, two gifted members of the popular band Patent Pending. Ed Barney, who grew up in Martinsburg listening to old recordings of jazz and rhythm & blues, specializes on guitar and mandolin and sings harmony vocals. He picked up the guitar by the age of ten and has been playing ever since. Eldred Hill’s first exposure to the guitar also came at around age ten. His love of bluegrass and folk brought him together with WAMU radio host Gary Henderson, as well as such DC-area musicians as John Duffey, Jimmy Gudreau, and Doyle Lawson. Learning the mandolin, Eldred has also written a number of bluegrass songs. Two of these, Barabbas and He Is Risen, are included in the gospel collection, A Child of God. Hill excels in mandolin playing and singing lead vocals.

David Reid LaFleur

This solo, high-energy roots acoustic musician is a gifted dobro, guitar, dulcimer and mandolin player. His original songs range from intimate and beautiful one moment to absurdly funny the next. A former nuclear engineer turned full-time musician, LaFleur learned his “chops” performing among such acts as Danny Gatton, Nils Lofgren, and the Johnson Mountain Boys. He has opened for Emmy Lou Harris, Tom Rush, and the Seldom Scene.