Welcome to the Circle City Sidewalk Stompers blog site! My name is Melanie. I am the wife of Mr. Stomper himself, Steve Sutherlin. I hope to keep you updated with the goings on of the clown band. For those of you not familiar with the band, you can find more information here. For those of you who are, I hope you enjoy being able to see where we are playing and learning a little more about what goes on when a bunch of clowns travel and work together.
Last weekend, we attended the Great American Brass Band Festival in the beautiful Danville, Kentucky. If you are a lover of brass band music, this is a must on your list of things to do! Fully funded by donations and a voluteer staff, this quaint town manages to put this festival on every year. It is totally free to the public. Watching this festival is like looking at a Normal Rockwell painting. A true slice of Americana. It’s one of our favorite jobs each year. There is nothing like southern hospitality.
This year, it was bittersweet as our drummer of 20 plus years, Judy, is leaving our group. She is moving to Florida and we will miss her dearly.
Yes, that is a gnome she is wearing. Don’t ask.
It was a wonderful weekend. Friday night, the band was supposed to give a mini concert outside of the O’Charlie’s restaurant. The rain however, had different plans and took center stage. But the band prevailed and ended up giving an up close and personal concert inside.
Saturday morning, we hung out together before the parade in the break room. There is always something funny going on.
We headed out for a great parade. The crowds at Danville are so welcoming. It’s a joy for the players to perform there. At 12:30 the band played at the Gazebo. It was Judy’s last time playing with the band.
Afterwards, our band buddies, Jane Boyd and Deedra Benthall (and friends) served us lunch. We really appreciate all the time and effort they put into taking care of us. I personally think one of the nicest things you can do for someone is to feed them. It’s such a wonderful act of kindness.
Here is Jane last year with Mr. Stomper himself…
And here is Deedra (in the ball cap) sitting with Dan.
Then came time for the afternoon show. The crowd was great and the band hammed it up as usual.
Here’s Dan giving Brenda a good kick!
She’s not happy! But Dan had a pretty good time.
Now he has coaxed Judy into dancing. See what happens when you become part of the crowd?
I don’t know if she knows what to think about this!
Finally, it’s time to relax!
We owe a big thank you to our band buddies, Jane Boyd, Deedra Benthall and Elaine Harris. You all do so much to make our stay more comfortable. And to the town of Danville, Kentucky, we love you ! Thank you!
Lookin good!