Big Richard Concert @ Cervantes ~ Completely Fantastic With Della Mae 08Feb26

Dual Album Release Party... was a  at Cervantes in Five Points Denver last night. I was there especially to see the Colorado all-female bluegrass supergroup, Big Richard, again. I've listened since the beginning and to say their star is rising is understatement. I appreciated the skills and tunes of the 15 year New England area all-female bluegrass group, Della Mae, too. Great night @ Cervantes... I arrived early for doors and was 4th in line for the sold out 1050 house. I chose to sit and therefore headed to the balcony for the center stool above the sound guy. Cervantes sound was "ok" up there but female vocals & highs were not as good as on the floor (where I've been before). I wanted a seat though and there are only ~80 of them. At least as a septuagenarian the long process of GA including: queueing (1 hr), doors (1 hr), opener (1 hr), and show (1.5 hr) makes standing (in the right spot, which you can't leave if solo) taxing. Anyway... all female string bands are having a moment and I am a fan of these madly skilled musicians and their strong musicianship (of course include Molly Tuttle's new band in this reference. Big Richard's 'Pet' and Della Mae's 'Magic Accident' both recently dropped and many songs from these were featured at the show but both bands delivered wicked covers and older releases as well.

Della Mae... opened but didn't make the Cervantes marquee; kindof odd, but it is Colorado. They were excellent with super high energy bluegrass and are all very strong musicians. Left to right on the album cover above are Celia Woodsmith, lead vocals & rhythm,  Avril Smith, lead guitar & backup vocals, Kimber Ludiker, fiddle & vocals, and Vickie Vaughn , bass & vocals... they all write some stuff and have a Grammy nom from 2015. The bassist crushes the beat and has 3 consecutive IMBA wins as 'bassist of the year.' Celia's vocals are excellent; to hear them best from the balcony at Cervantes I was cupping my ears to draw in more of the those frequencies (a theme for the night actually). Avril wailed spectacularly from a seat all night stage left as a recent accident in the snow & ice back east left her unable to stand for the show. Her song “Out Run ‘Em,” was a highlight and featured champion fiddler Kimber Ludiker shredding lines and singing. I have to say I really liked the lead instruments all night. Della Mae did some great covers and even sang 'Burrito' penned by another fav Maya de Vitry. Clearly stellar band and notable that their producer is the brilliant Americana artist Allison Brown. I recorded Helen singing "Home of the Free;" rare find.

Big Richard... is fantastic. If you follow them or me, you've seen outstanding work from the outset in ~'21. They are an all-woman Colorado bluegrass string-band supergroup blazing the streamwaves, festivals, and concert venues. Tonight's offer @ Cervantes, as headliners in a fine local venue, was a return to CO along the tour and played as tight as I've seen them play. Really a treat. Everytime the 3 and even 4 part harmonies grabbed the ring when coupled to their mad instrument skills. Sorry for the fuzzy images... I only have an iPhone 12 and my camera is over-zoomed as I was far away... maybe I need to upgrade, or sneak my tiny rig into the venues.

Big Richard are (left to right as I watch them on stage): Eve Panning - Fiddle and Harmonies, Bonnie Sims - Mandolin & Lead Vocals, Hazel Royer - Bass & Vocals,  Joy Adams - Cello & Vocals. They all write and they all play like demons and sing like, well, not angels exactly. Joy is a Phd of music with a tenor almost baritone voice that she breaks and rewinds regularly for a wild sound, and with keen carried cello as her main axe, she's unusual all around. But she's a multi-instrumentalist and played banjo and octave mandolin this night, and she often writes and leads as on "Pet," the title track on the recent drop. She has Grammys. Eve organized the lineup initially for a one off festival (and wow, she chose wisely) and plays a mean violin and occasionally joins in the 3 and 4 part harmonies. She slams all the time and when featured in a lot of fiddle tunes which are often traditional or Appalachian or Irish like "Circus Jerk." Hazel is a recent hire replacing the initial bassist; great bandmate as her writing and lead vocals are beginning to really shine through as on "Alaska" and others. Core to lead singing and keeping the beat on mandolin as percussion, when not wailing the lead, Bonnie has a look too. BR did a breakthrough song "The Missing Stair" penned with friends and sung by Bonnie, awesome... she has TV show hits. Big Richard often do some costuming for shows, clowns (like the album cover), the founding fathers (@ Millennium in DC), and more but tonight they were mellow except everyone was wearing their own "Fuck Ice" garb. Their songs and covers, like Thorne's "Run, Red Fox Run" or "Millionaire" are political with policy and social comments sometimes... they do it well and are heard.  Protest songs are appreciated. I recorded the opening song and Joy's Pet at the show.

Big Richard is excellent and I had a great night at the Cervantes with them. I did leave a skosh early as I was late to pickup Kala from MLC's and head back to the Springs, so I did not see the mini-set featuring all 8 women.