Riffs, Roams and Raves: A Weekly Column

Riffs, Roams and Raves uncovers the creative, noteworthy and accomplished in the Wimberley Valley and beyond with tips on who to hear, where to go and what to see from managing editor Teresa Kendrick.

After an exciting interview with Mark Lombardi for an “On The Air with KWVH” segment on his Mojo Monday Blues show, I received a long email from him with artists to explore. One of them was Kevin Burt, a guitarist, vocalist, composer and harmonica player who has been inducting fans into the genre for years. YouTube links will show you why this performer is tearing up the Blues world with his charisma and passion. Not only does he play and compose, but he sometimes acts on stage and in films.

I was especially interested in his harp playing. Another name for harmonica, the harp plays a big role in the Blues sound. Called a mouth organ, mouth harp or a French harp, it belongs to the family of accordions and reed organs and is classified as a wind instrument. When a musician inhales and exhales through its reeds it brings energy and soul that no other instrument can produce. Most musicians have harps in different keys, depending on the key of the song they’re playing. Sometimes the harp provides a vamp, a mournful or melodic solo, and other times it drives the entire song. I’m inclined to the muscular, Chicago- style harmonica sounds that energize that style of blues, but I love it wherever I hear it. For a tiny instrument it leaves a big footprint in blues, R & B, country, gospel, pop, jazz, bluegrass, afro and ska, folk, reggae, rock ‘n roll, latin and Celtic music. Harmonicas are everywhere.

Check out Kevin Burt’s harp on “Long Train Runnin’” by the Doobie Brothers. To see harmonica at its best up close, attend a Vin Mott performance at some of the venues around town. He’s a “full in” harp player, unmatched by players anywhere around these parts. If you’re inclined to the sound, you’ll fall hard for this mighty little instrument when you hear it wielded by the pros.

Roam: Llano Fiddle Fest

My roam this week took me to Llano for the 46th annual Fiddle Fest at the spacious John L. Kuykendall Event center just minutes from the town’s main square. My route on SH 71 to Llano took me along an outstanding section of the wildflower Winecup Trail and past a grand hot air balloon event at Horseshoe Bay.

Llano, you might recall from earlier roams, is a town of about 3,500 residents situated on either side of the Llano River. Every year the town holds the Llano Earth Art Fest in which the wildly popular rock stacking competition brings artists from all over the world. This year the Fest will be held in Dunbar, Scotland and will return to Llano in 2025.

About a hundred people were sitting on folding chairs facing the stage when I arrived at the event center. Competitors were warming up with accompanists in a side room for their ensemble numbers and others waited to one side of the stage, standing and holding their fiddles and tapping their bows on their knees. Three judges faced the stage, taking notes and conferring with each other from time to time. Fiddle Fest beginners played first from 9 to 9:30 a.m., followed by seasoned players in the Open Division. The top player of the day would take home a $2,000 cash prize.

Emcee Tony Guidroz kept everything on track with informative patter before introducing the ensemble contestants. One by one, Carl Hopkins, Marty Elmore, Wes Westmoreland and Dennis Ludiker took the stage with a team of accompanists. Each played three songs. The first was a fast tune like the bluegrass favorite,’ “Tom and Jerry,” or the ragtime reel, “Wild John.” That song was followed by a slower waltz. Each concluded with a showstopper like the “Beaumont Rag,” played by Carl Hopkins. The contestants boot tapped and stomped and bowed with such vigor that the stage, already a shaky number, visibly swayed, causing comment among the performers and creating enough “mal de mar” to cease the audience from munching on their boxes of Fiddle Faddle. Two ladies in fancy cowgirl hats turned a little green and looked away from the stage to recover. Wellturned out gentlemen in starched and pressed Levis, western shirts, Sunday boots and cowboy hats brushed to perfection kept their eyes glued to the rocking stage.

The next to the last contestant, Dennis Ludiker, the four-time Texas State Fiddle Champion and Asleep at the Wheel band member took the stage and eased past the others to win the top prize. It was a close contest and not one I would have wanted to judge. Last year Carl Hopkins was the Grand Champion followed by Ludiker at first runner up.

Western Swing Legend Jody Nix was the night’s concert headliner. Bandleader, singer and fiddler from Big Spring and the son of Hoyle Nix, Jody began his musical career at eight, playing the drums and later the fiddle in his father’s band. In his 61-year career he’s played for the likes of Bob Wills, Ray Price, Marty Robbins, George Strait, Moe Bandy, Willie Nelson, Asleep at the Wheel and other big names. When it comes to the fiddle and western music, Jody is the real deal.

On my journey home I stopped at Poodies Hilltop Roadhouse in Spicewood for a “Poodie Melt,” swamped with green chilis and dished up with equal parts charm and sass by the bartender.

Rave: In Restless Dreams If you’ve yet to watch the three hour, twopart documentary about Paul Simon, “In Restless Dreams,” go to mgmplus. com and sign up for a free, one week trial if you aren’t already a member of this streaming channel. Amazon Prime members can add MGM+ and Starz for $4.99 a month.

The opening of the documentary features many scenes of the Texas Hill Country, Wimberley, Paul’s Wimberley home studio, and the KWVH fishbowl studio where Simon spent two hours with hosts Todd Crusham and Benjamin Hotchkiss during the Unleashed: Toddy and the Pooch Show.

Well worth the three hour screen time, the documentary revealed a rather serious man who was focused on making music using the talents he possessed — using rhyme, sound and his own musicianship. It covered his early successes, his professional break up with Garfunkel, his fascination with the sounds produced by world music, and his solid ascent to becoming a legend. As musicians go, he is quieter and much more sober than most and not given to high drama and the hedonistic lifestyle that provides the pressure valve for many. Even if you’re a lukewarm fan, you’ll enjoy the unfolding of three quarters of a century of American music history.