Press Release

Wayside Bluegrass Festival receives Crooked Road

Affiliated Partner Status

 The Wayside Bluegrass Festival of Patrick County, Virginia will be presented with a banner acknowledging this venue’s recent inclusion as a Crooked Road Affiliated Partner. As an Affiliated Partner, the Wayside Bluegrass Festival will receive recognition in Crooked Road publicity and promotional materials. Crooked Road Board members Keith Holland and Sammy Shelor will present the banner to the Wayside Bluegrass Festival on Wednesday, July 8^th at 5:00 p.m.  at Wayside Park in conjunction with performances by Ten Brooks and Jason Harris & Friends.

  “Wayside Bluegrass Festival has a tradition of hosting high quality traditional music performances which exemplify the culture and music of the region” notes Jonathan Romeo, Interim Executive Director of The Crooked Road. “We are proud to recognize this venue as a Crooked Road Affiliated Partner. The Crooked Road ’s venues are an important part of the assets of our region”.

 The first festival was held at Wayside Park in 1974, owner Homer Hazelwood and his partners, Cecil Hall  along with Jim Eanes and Arthur Crush hosted the event which included many bluegrass favorites.  The Country Gentlemen Fesitval was always a favorite.  Today, Wayside Bluegrass, LLC is in their 10^th year presenting the best in bluegrass entertainment with a four days festival beginning on Wednesday July 8 till Saturday July 11, with bluegrass  favorites, The Bluegrass Brothers, James King Band, Daughters of Bluegrass and others that can been seen on our web site, www.waysidepark.com. 

The Crooked Road Board recently announced the inclusion of 10 additional Partners on the Trail. The Partners are all music presenters and include annual festivals and weekly jams. A complete listing of the 31 Partners and 8 Major Venues of The Crooked Road can be found at www.thecrookedroad.org. 

The Crooked Road is a ten county regional organization. Its mission is to support tourism and economic development in Southwest Virginia by celebrating and preserving this Appalachian region's unique musical and cultural heritage. The Trail itself covers 253 miles from Rocky Mount in Franklin County to Breaks Interstate Park in Dickenson County .