Sara Schwabe: Maid Rite Stringband
One of my favorite things about being a musician is having musician friends.
No matter the occasion, whenever there's a gathering of musical types, you can pretty much count on someone whipping out an instrument to add to the festivities. Soon, voices join in and there are more instruments added--some legit and some made from whatever materials are handy (i.e., spoons, tabletops, pans). In no time at all you've got a bonafide--although temporary--band born from the inspiration of the moment. And every so often, the magic of the moment sticks and the skeleton of a true musical group is formed.
One new local group to develop out of such improvisation is the Maid Rite Stringband, comprised of musical veterans Sarah Pirkle on fiddle and Matt Morelock on banjo/ukelele. They're joined on guitar by Leah Gardner, a relative newcomer.
The band takes it name from the brand of an old washboard. Pirkle admits that they put considerable time into deciding on their name. "I think we spent more time coming up with bad band names, than one that would really work", she said, "including the InnerTainters", before settling on the more marketable Maid Rite Stringband.
Leah, Sarah and MattPirkle met Gardner about 10 years ago when she taught her the fiddle. They became fast friends, but Gardner eventually moved away. The two stayed in touch through the years, while Morelock and Pirkle started jamming together at various parties and other events. They found that their mutual love for traditional Appalachian and Old Time music made them great partners.
Morelock suggested that they take their musical relationship to the next level by putting a trio together and playing local bars and clubs. Both he and Pirkle knew they needed just the right person to make the group a success. Luckily, Gardner had recently returned to Knoxville. She had become quite a good player while she was away and was more than happy to round out the trio--although she had never yet played in front of an audience.
Setting her nerves aside and trusting in the experience of Pirkle and Morelock, Gardner enjoyed the first public performance of the Maid Rite Stringband last April on WDVX's Blue Plate Special. Since that time, the group has been working on learning new music and even writing some originals.
This week, the Maid Rite Stringband will be entertaining the entertaining folks at the Corner Lounge. Get out and see them on Thursday, Sept 13th at 9:00pm.
Comments
I am lucky enough to call Sarah Prikle a dear friend--I was glad to see her new trio on the 520 site. The Maid Rite string band is great. I've seen them perform a couple of times, and the corner lounge is always a good place to jam. I will be there and I hope many others will too.
Posted by: Sarah | September 11, 2006 03:34 PM
Thanks for this informative article. They sound great. I hope I can make it to the show.
Posted by: Debra | September 12, 2006 11:36 AM
yeah for you guys! Go Lear!
Posted by: Canna Jones | September 13, 2006 04:05 PM