This week's episode covers Part 1 of my recap of the 3rd annual CaveFest at The Caverns in Grundy County, TN. You'll see the full venue tour of this unique and outstanding music festival venue which is the vision of founder, Todd Mayo.
You'll also see some of Sunday's live performances including clips of Jim Lauderdale's "unplugged" performance, dueling banjo virtuosos Bele Fleck and Abigail Washburn as well as a special solo performance by Bele himself of George Gershwin's infamous "Rhapsody in Blue". This festival was a winner, and part two will follow next Friday (October 25th, 2024) so if you haven't already, make sure to subscribe while you're here.
What's inside Episode 12 of Music Festivals Podcast
The 2024 edition of CaveFest took place from Thursday October 10th, 2024 - Sunday, October October 13th, 2024.
Nestled in the mountains of Grundy County, TN near the small town of Pelham, The Caverns is a truly enchanting festival venue that gives home to not one, but two natural and large caves..
The breathtaking views and the resonating echo of music from beneath the surface were just snippets of the awe-inspiring experience at CaveFest 2024! The event - in it's 3rd year of production - provided an unforgettable weekend of community, music and interesting twists that combined made for an all around unique experience.
Imagine yourself surrounded by nature, music echoing off the cave walls, while partaking in everything from cave tours to craft vendors, food trucks, and even cave yoga. That's the typical vibe you find at CaveFest. As an attendee since the inaugural year, this has become one of my favorite bluegrass and Americana music festivals to attend.
This year's lineup was absolutely stacked. While I only had the opportunity to attend on Sunday, the full lineup included well-known acts such as Railroad Earth, Jim Lauderdale & The Game Changers, Lindsay Lou, The Larry Keel Experience, and Yonder Mountain String Band setting the stage alight on Friday and Saturday.
Sunday's highlights included a super intriguing set delivered by banjo virtuosos Bela Fleck & Abigail Washburn, leading up to a killer set by the Travelin' McCourys, one of the IBMA's most highly awarded groups. Their set was immediately followed by The Grateful Ball, led by the McCourys with special guests that included Lindsay Lou, Jim Lauderdale, fiddle player John Mailander and so many others.
The Caverns in Grundy County, Tennessee, is a famed live music venue set in a vast cave system, both above and underground. Known for its superb natural acoustics featured in the PBS series The Caverns Sessions, this venue offers a unique "bucket list" experience with concerts held in the Big Mouth Cave, recognizable for its large archway entrance.
It accommodates up to 1,200 spectators with options for seated or standing-room events, complete with modern sound, lighting, and amenities including accessible facilities. The Caverns also offers guided tours of its extensive caves, adventure tours for the daring, and has been a gathering spot for up to 25,000 years.
Photo Credit: Festival Venue Map from the The Caverns
Above ground, the venue boasts a world-class stage and sound system with natural, multi-level amphitheater seating that can easily can bring together thousands of music lovers comfortably and with stunning views.
Photo Credit: @NeighborN8Fests
During Sunday afternoon and just as Jim Lauderdale's set was beginning, Grundy County experienced a system-wide power outage that completely knocked out the juice to the entire festival venue. Given the circumstances, Jim Lauderdale grabbed his band, acoustic instruments and proceeded off the stage and down into the crowed for what became known as "CaveFest Unplugged", complete with Jim's own (and hilarious)n brand of comedy. What could have been a disaster was turned into a magical experience for all the Cave Dwellers in attendance.
Photo Credit: @NeighborN8Fests
Once the power kicked back on ab out an hour later, the game was on and back on stage. Jim finished his set plugged in, complete with a special dedication to Todd Mayo, founder and visionary behind this incredibly venue.
Following Bele Fleck and Abigail Washburn, and Bele's solo performance of his arrangement for Banjo of George Gershwin's classic "Rhapsody in Blue" (watch the above episode for a peak at that tune...), the Travelin' McCourys took the amphitheater stage to pick a set. These guys absolutely do the McCoury name justice.
Photo Credit: @NeighborN8Fests
There's more to come in Part 2 of my recap of this year's CaveFest next Friday so make sure to tune into that episode. I do want to send special thanks to Todd Mayo, Jeff Meltesen and Emma Morcroft of The Caverns for granting me media credentials for this music festival. Music Festivals Podcast is only in season one and like Todd when he started the Caverns, I really have no experience in the music business. I so appreciated the vote of confidence from their staff and team and for allowing me to have the access I needed to really do my thing. 🙂
Photo Credit: @NeighborN8Fests
Wrapping things up for this week, I do want to make sure to mention that Todd is also now a published author. During my drive down and back to Tennessee, I was able to get through the audio book version of his auto-biography, appropriately titled The Caveman Chronicles.
Todd is an excellent story-teller himself and I found the book both entertaining and inspiring. If you want to learn more about how the vision of The Caverns came to be a reality and what make's the founder tick, add it to your reading list.
Photo Credit: @TheCavernsTN
Don’t forget to subscribe to to the YouTube channel to get on-site footage of more music festivals and festival venues. I'm heading to CaveFest in Grundy County TN next, and I hope to be your neighbor there!
NeighborN8
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