Come on down to the river for BLUEGRASS AT ITS BEST – with MISSY RAINES – GRAMMY nominated vocalist and bassist who has won 14 IBMA awards over the years – bringing her band, ALLEGHENY to the beautiful ALLEGHENY in FOXBURG – Saturday, May 17, 7:30 PM in Lincoln Hall – the day after their NEW ALBUM release, LOVE & TROUBLE.
On Love & Trouble, Raines expands Missy Raine’s exploration of traditionally-rooted bluegrass through a set of original songs, fresh covers and reworkings of traditional ballads, shining a spotlight on the members of her touring band ALLEGHENY with Eli Gilbert on banjo, Ben Garnett on guitar, Ellie Hakanson on fiddle and Tristan Scroggins on mandolin.
In this rockin’ bluegrass single from Missy’s new album Love and Trouble to be released on May 16, 2025 – the day before their concert in Lincoln Hall, Foxburg – Anywhere The Wind Blows pays tribute to early California grassers the Good Ol’ Persons. Missy on bass and singing here with her band Allegheny and with Kathy Kallick on the song she wrote and her 20th century Good Ol’ Persons’ bandmate Laurie Lewis.
“I first heard recordings of the Good Ol’ Persons in the early ’80s, but it was rare to get to see them on the east coast. That all changed when I started playing with Eddie and Martha Adcock in 1985, giving me a chance to travel to the west coast a few times a year. As a woman, it was incredibly empowering to see and hear Laurie and Kathy on stage. And the songwriting! They were/are such great writers.”
Another single from LOVE & Trouble is “Eula Dorsey” , is available now on all streaming platforms. Missy wrote this ballad with her dear friend, Tony Rackley, about a young woman from the Isle of Skye who migrates to West Virginia in hopes of a better life.
A trailblazer in bluegrass music. GRAMMY® nominated and 10 time International Bluegrass Music Association Bass Player of the Year, Missy Raines, has received this honor more than any other bass player in the history of the organization. She is a bass players’ bass player, a singer, songwriter, teacher, sideman, and bandleader.
In addition to the Bass Player awards, she’s received multiple awards from the IBMA for Recorded Event of the Year and Song of the Year. In 2019, Missy was featured in The Country Music Hall of Fame as part of their American Currents exhibit. In January of 2020, Missy debuted on the Grand Ole Opry with her band, Allegheny. Missy Raines’ 2018 release Royal Traveller was also nominated for a GRAMMY AWARD for “Best Bluegrass Album” in 2020.
On her 2024 album release Highlander, the bassist/ vocalist/songwriter returns to her bluegrass roots with a musical homage to the peaks and valleys of her native West Virginia – including Fast Moving Train.
Missy said, “Lately, I’ve realized so much of the music I’ve created comes from personal experience,” Raines notes. “Songs about growing up in a small town, songs about making hard choices when you’re coming-of-age — do I stay in this remote area and try to make a living, or do I leave my family behind and face what’s out there on my own?”
Missy Raines & Allegheny have made a significant mark on bluegrass with their distinctive blend of traditional roots and innovative musicality. Fronted by Missy Raines, one of the most celebrated bassists in bluegrass, the band is known for its tight arrangements, heartfelt harmonies, and deep ties to mid-Atlantic bluegrass traditions. Raines’ powerful bass playing and soulful singing, along with the band’s intricate instrumental work, gives their music a fresh yet timeless feel.
This concert will sell out – so be sure to buy online or reserve in advance.
Tickets $25, ARCA Members $20 Students $5. Call to reserve – 724-659-3153 – to pay by cash or check at the door. WALK-INS Welcome. Buy online here.
That path has taken Raines on a long and adventurous musical journey which has been informed by the Southern Appalachian and Mid-Atlantic bluegrass of her youth. As a child and young teen, Raines soaked up the sounds of The Country Gentlemen, The Seldom Scene, The Johnson Mountain Boys, and the other neo-progressive groups that propelled bluegrass music forward in the 70s.
In the early years of her career, Missy spent hours learning from and playing with many first-generation bluegrass legends and traveled extensively throughout the mid- Atlantic region.
Missy says: “I can almost just go back [in my mind] and rely on those intrinsic things I learned as a 15-year-old in a field at a bluegrass festival — tapping into how I felt back then, and how I still feel today about this music.”
With modern-day bluegrass currently experiencing another high- water mark as names like Billy Strings, Molly Tuttle and Sierra Hull proudly carry the torch of tradition and evolution, Raines finds solidarity in the ongoing growth and progress of the “high, lonesome sound” — this fine line between respect and rebellion that Raines has seamlessly balanced since the beginning.
“I watched that first generation of [bluegrass] people doing all that — creating traditional music, then breaking away from it to do their own thing,” Raines says. “And all of it is still surviving and flourishing. To me, there’s nothing more bluegrass than the act of absolute innovation — and that’s what we’re doing, because that’s what Monroe did from the start.”
Appalachian Photographs & Poetry – RED BRICK GALLERY
For the complete Appalachian immersive experience – before the concert plan to arrive early and enjoy the exhibit of fellow WEST VIRGINIAN – Greg Clary, Photographer and Poet – “The Vandalia in Me” at the Red Brick Gallery – open from 11 AM to 7 PM on Saturday at 17 Main Street, Foxburg, PA – with weekend hours April 11 to May 25.
LIKE MISSY RAINES, Clary also grew up in a small West Virginia town – and his photographs and poems takes us wandering on gravel back-roads through the hollers of down-home Appalachia where he lived on his family’s homestead in southern West Virginia and then for 40 years in the northwestern Pennsylvania Wilds. It’s the PERFECT preparation for a night of blazing down-home bluegrass from Missy Raines and Allegheny!
Clary’s poems and photographs are rooted in his personal experiences and observations of the Appalachia he loves and the people and events he has encountered along the way. He writes, “These images and words share the common theme of seeking beauty among the ordinary and infusing them with respect and significance.”
Plan to ENJOY the DAY – or an OVERNIGHT – in FOXBURG!
Before the concert of Missy Raines & Allegheny enjoy Foxburg – take a brisk walk in the gorgeous spring afternoon along the Allegheny River trail or rent bicycles or have a scenic pontoon tour on the Allegheny River with Foxburg Tours!
Have lunch or dinner at the Allegheny Grille with seating overlooking the Allegheny River.
Or for more casual fare, at Foxburg Pizza with salads, sandwiches and pizza.
Save time to enjoy a wine tasting or drinks and snacks on the patio of the elegantly remodeled Foxburg Wine Cellars
OR – Have a get-away-weekend and stay over Saturday night in Foxburg in the rustically elegant and remodeled Foxburg Inn – where every room has a view of the river!
or if the Foxburg Inn is sold out for a wedding, stay up the river at Emlenton’s historic bed and breakfast, The Barnard House.