Yesterday my husband and I attended an event at Georgia Mountain Fairgrounds in Hiawassee, Georgia.
It was a fund raising event for a bluegrass player, Patton Wages who has been having health problems. My husband is involved in the bluegrass community where we live in Woodstock, Georgia and it's a great group of people. Apparently that is true in the more northern part of Georgia as well. The event was well planned and well attended by people who really seem to love this man. It was organized by the music store where Patton works, Acoustic Cellar Guitars. Below is a copy from Acoustic Cellar's web site regarding Patton:
Patton was raised in Stockbridge, GA and began playing banjo at age 9. He was first influenced by Earl Scruggs, J.D. Crowe, and Terry Baucom, Scott Vestal as well as other local musicians such as Don Norman, Eddie Hoyle and several others, but credits his dad Don (Who also plays banjo and guitar and played a lot locally when Patton was younger) with getting him started. Patton then worked with the Georgia-based groups Lost Horizon and Whitepath out of the Canton/Ballground area playing festivals around the southeast and making numerous appearances on national television. Patton then spent four years in Nashville sharing the stage with Marty Raybon and Full Circle. He’s currently traveling with Award Winning Band Volume Five who’s had several nominations for both IBMA and Dove Awards. The band was awarded IBMA’s Song of the Year as well as Emerging Artists of The Year for 2017. Patton also spent several years in the early 2000s at Gibson Guitar Corp. OAI Division. He’s spent the last 20 years or so teaching and doing set-ups on instruments in amongst his 30 years of playing both banjo and guitar. He now lives in Mountain Rest, SC. and has a son, Brayden, who is learning guitar as well! If you’re interested in learning Banjo or Guitar, need a professional set-up or just need some fresh strings on your instrument...come by and see him, he’ll help you out!
North Georgia is beautiful and Hiawassee is no exception with gorgeous mountain scenery and lakes. It is worth a trip there for sure. Hiawassee is the county seat of Towns County, Georgia. It's name is derived from the Cherokee - or perhaps Creek - word Ayuhwasi - meaning meadow.
Photos from the event
