Joshua's 'True Stories from the Van and Beyond.' (7/23/2009)

The winds of change are blowing hard here at the Drifter compound, and we have some big news to share with you! The last couple of weeks have really been huge with Grey Fox, Peter Rowan, new fiddle player, endorsement deals, and a lot more. Check out our calendar for our next appearances and read on.


Ranked #1 last week on Sirius/XM Bluegrass Junction.
Our song Birmingham was ranked #1 most played song on Sirius/XM Bluegrass Junction for last week. Thanks to Kyle Cantrell and all of the guys at XM/Sirius for giving us so much spin.


Grey Fox
We just got back from the Catskill Mountains in New York where we had an amazing time at our first Grey Fox Bluegrass Festival. This is the largest bluegrass festival in the Northeast and really one of the best festivals in the country. We played three main stage sets and loved every second of it. We also got to play a show in Boston with one of our heroes, Peter Rowan. He told us some great stories about opening for The Doors in the 60s and came up during our set to sing "Dust Bowl Children."



The Farewell Drifters now endorse D’Addario Strings!
We have all been using D’Addario and Planetwaves products for years and what a great surprise to be offered an endorsement from these guys. Not only does D’Addario have great products, they also support so many great festivals every year. We are proud to put be supported by this great company.

Goodbye to Trevor
Trevor performed his last show with us last week at the Grey Fox Bluegrass Festival. He has been with us since the beginning, and his banjo playing, singing, and musical perspective have helped bring us to where we are today. I think we all were a little emotional at our last Grey Fox set with Trevor, and rightfully so. It has really been a great pleasure of my life to spend so much time working with him. Over the past year or so, it has become clear to him that the life of a professional musician is not for him. We are so thankful for everything he gave us, and wish him and his family many blessings and much happiness in years to come.

So, with the pending departure of Trevor, we had some serious thinking and searching to do. We began to think that perhaps this was a chance to really try something new. Without any further ado, I would like to introduce you to the new Drifter – Christian Sedelmyer – on fiddle and harmony vocals. Originally from Erie, PA, Christian has been playing since he was 5 years old, studied the Suzuki method, played classically in orchestra throughout his youth, and played in various rock bands in high school and college. He is a ridiculously talented player and very able singer, and we are so excited to have him onboard. Christian’s diverse musical background is a perfect fit for us – since not one of us grew up a student at the Bill Monroe School of Hard Knocks. His playing adds a whole new dimension to our sound, and his dynamic stage energy is already inspiring new heights of performance. We took Christian to Grey Fox with us and he literally brought the crowd to their feet on several occasions.


Free Farewell Drifters Music
We are giving away two free downloads from our recent recording sessions. We are really excited about these songs and hope you like them. All you have to do is recommend us to a few friends and you get the music for free.

Ted Lehmann Review
Popular bluegrass blogger Ted Lehmann reviewed our first album Sweet Summer Breeze recently. Check it out here

Southeast
We will be down in Atlanta at Eddie’s Attic on August 9th and down in beautiful Savannah, Georgia on the 8th at Randy Wood Guitars. Come out and join us.

Thanks!
For coming to our shows and supporting our music. Don't have a copy of our album yet? It's available at our website and on Itunes. Also we would love if you would share with us! Take videos and pictures of us at our shows. Make a video of you covering one of our songs. Let us know about it on Facebook!