Free Music Concert with The Country Boys and The Slate Mountain Ramblers (CANCELLED)
Venue: New River Community College (Dublin), Dublin
Organizations: New River Community College Concert Series, The Country Boys, The Slate Mountain Ramblers
Date: Saturday, January 11, 2025
Time: 6:00 - 8:30 PM
Event Types: Music
Cost: Free
Description:
UPDATE: Due to inclement weather New River Community College Concert has been cancelled.

New River Community College's Concert Series continues their Free Music Concert Series with The Country Boys and The Slate Mountain Ramblers on Saturday, January 11, 2026 inside 117 Edwards Hall located on the New River Community College campus in Dublin, VA.

The Slate Mountain Ramblers have been a mainstay of the dance and festival culture in central and western North Carolina and southwest Virginia for 25 years and are still going strong. Headed up by fiddler, Richard Bowman from Ararat, Virginia, the Ramblers started as group of friends and morphed into a family band over the years.

The Country Boys have been playing traditional bluegrass and bluegrass gospel music throughout North Carolina and Virginia for over 40 years. The present band is made up of Johnny Joyce, Tim Bowman, J. A. Midkiff, Kevin Easter, Doug Joyce and Donald Clifton.

Joyce joined the band in 1973 as the tenor singer and guitarist. Midkiff followed in 1984 as the fiddle player. In 1987, Bowman began as the banjo player and Easter became the mandolin player in 2003. Clifton, the youngest member, came on board in 2012. The band cites the Country Gentleman and the Osborne Brothers as some of their musical influences.

Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=af0PA0M_-xQ

Admission is free though donations will be accepted to help with travel expenses for the musicians.

All are welcome.

New River Community College is located in a region rich in music that has been passed down through generations. Traditional music is as much source of pride for many area residents as it is a family legacy. Talented musicians - both instrumentally and vocally, crafters of musical instruments and those with a deep appreciation of the music gather monthly at the college for its jamborees.

Held since 1991 on the second Saturday of each month between October and April, the free music events have become a gathering of like-minded people who are interested in enjoying, preserving and perpetuating the great old-time and bluegrass music of their ancestors.

Twice a year, the club hosts paid concerts that bring bluegrass and country greats like Rhonda Vincent, Doyle Lawson, Dailey and Vincent, Gene Watson and Marty Stuart to the college. Many of these performers have made multiple appearances and drawn record-breaking crowds.

Ralph Stanley, Olen Gardner, Big Country Bluegrass, John Viers, Whitetop Mountain, The Adam Larkey Band and many others have also performed here and entertained thousands of local music fans.

Note: The club was originally named the New River Community College Fiddle, Banjo & Dance Club, but was changed to better reflect what the club brings to the community and include concerts outside the bluegrass and old time genres.

Links:

• https://www.nr.edu/concerts
• https://www.facebook.com/NRCCConcerts/

Doors open at 5:00 PM and the music starts at 6:00 PM.

The Concert Series events are held the second Saturday of each month, October through April at New River Community College, a Crooked Road affiliated venue.

New River Community College's Dublin, VA campus is located at 5251 College Drive in Dublin, VA.

For more information, visit: https://www.nr.edu/news/more.php?id=1761 or https://www.nr.edu/concerts/ or https://www.facebook.com/NRCCConcerts or https://www.facebook.com/nrccfb or call 540-674-3625.