Whiskey Rebellion at the Mockingbird

Last Saturday night, Jan. 9, my friend Ellen and I traveled to Staunton to check out the new live music venue, The Mockingbird. Whiskey Rebellion was playing there.  Since I've known the members of the group for several years but never actually have seen their formal show, it was the perfect time and place to see them. The Mockingbird is set up in two sections. When we first entered,

we saw the bar stretching to the back of the room on the right with many tables for talkers/diners. After paying our cover charge, we were directed to a separate large room with high ceilings, a nice-sized stage, and nice lighting/colors. Since the band was already playing, we eased into the room and grabbed a table. In minutes a waiter had taken our drink orders and shortly after that we were sipping a nice glass of Riesling while listening to the energetic music coming from the stage. Mary Simpson always seems to steal the show. It seems there are never very many fiddle players around, so hearing such a great one is always a treat. Also, she sang very nice harmonies to Ryan's leads, most of them originals. Ryan's guitar playing has really gotten polished. I knew him when he was just beginning, and he is a great and dynamic picker now. He writes many of the songs, so its nice to hear something new. I used to think of Jared Pool as a guitarist, but he plays mandolin with this band and is their most recent addition. However, he's played with them over a year now, and his mandolin playing fits in perfectly with the energy on stage. Mary's encore performance of Guns and Roses "Sweet Child o' mine" was great, all the way to the high energy super fast and furious playing accompanied by the "na ee aa eeeaaa" part...you know what I mean! The venue was great. The band was great. We had a great time. Go listen to some live music!