Mary Jo and Charlie Show with Ron and Tommy (Band)

Biography:

Ten years ago, Mary Jo and Charlie moved from Ohio to Patrick Springs, VA looking forward to retirement. Charlie is a tool maker and persistent inventor. Mary Jo retired from The Dayton Community Foundation as a charitable fund manager. They came to Patrick County along with their life-long friends Pete and Cindy Howe with traditional music and gardening high on their list!

For over twenty years, on weekend, some 3 and 4 day weekends, Mary Jo and Charlie were the rhythm core of The Dry Branch Fire Squad bluegrass band. Dry Branch traveled and played on the national bluegrass circuit in 44 of our United States and recorded 12 projects for niche record label, Rounder Records. In 1982 and in 1988 Dry Branch traveled and played internationally for the USIA to India, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bangladesh and Morocco. They played The National Folk Festival in five states along with every type of venue imaginable.

In Patrick Springs, Preston Martin introduced Mary Jo and Charlie to Ron Pendleton and Tommy Morse. These super-musicians are as accomplished as any players on that national circuit and we feel fortunate that these genius musicians, along with other notable players like Sammy Shelor and Lou Reid, have chosen to remain here near their homes. Both Ron and Tommy, master musicians themselves, were raised in Patrick County, VA and learned traditional music from first generation Virginia masters. Ron and Tommy have traveled to France to play and in the 1990’s traveled and played extensively on the East Coast of the US.

It is notable that both Mary Jo and Ron have recorded music in The Library of Congress. These recordings are considered representative forms of traditional American music. Ron was only 14 years old in the 1970’s when he played guitar for his father, Delmar Pendleton, and a neighbor, Calvin Pendleton, in home recordings that were included on the Rounder Records album “Old Originals, Vol 1”. Mary Jo added vocals on the second Dry Branch Fire Squad recording in 1977 “Spiritual Songs from Dry Branch” also on the Rounder Records label and included as representative traditional American music in the Library of Congress.

Mary Jo and Charlie continued to record with Dry Branch on 12 subsequent LP’s and CDs through 2003. They have continued to self-produce five recorded projects in retirement!

In Patrick County, Mary Jo Leet on guitar and Charlie Leet on bass have teamed up with these super-musicians, Ron Pendleton on mandolin and Tommy Morse on banjo, to produce a program of highly-charged instrumentals as well as soul-stirring duets and trios that run the gamut from traditional bluegrass to gospel and old country hits.

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