Larry Long

Hop abard Larry Long & Fiddlin’ Pete’s musical train on January 4th in the intimacy of Big Top Chautauqua’s ‘Backstage’ venue in Bayfield, Wisconsin.

Showtime: 7 pm | For Tickets: 715.373.5552 and/or Web | Where: Backstage | 84810 State Hwy 13 | Bayfield, WI 54814

The story of Fiddlin Pete & Larry is something out of a John Steinbeck novel. In their early twenties they hitchhiked and hopped freight-trains throughout the West passing the hat from bar to bar, performing most anywhere that people gather. In exchange for the hospitality and generosity shown by those who helped them out along the way, Larry would write a song in their honor. The lyrics were left pinned onto their refrigerator door with a magnet before Fiddlin’ Pete and Larry headed back on the road.

In the course of their travels they joined up with bassist Larry Dalton, who they met in the High Sierra Mountain Range town of Truckee, California. Now fifty years later, Larry and Fiddlin’ Pete have come back together with bassist Larry Dalton to celebrate five decades of friendship and the release of their new recording, “As In Those Early Days”.

Larry Long, guitar, vocals | Robert Robinson, vocals | Tonia Hughes Kendrick, vocals | Fiddlin’ Pete Watercott, violin, guitar, vocals | Billy Steele, piano | Larry Dalton, bass | Daryl Boudreaux, percussion | Joe Savage, dobro, banjo, pedal steel

American Roots Revue is a revolving showcase of world-class musicians, playing a diverse repertoire. Each performance features American roots standards, plus original songs by guest artists and the core group.

Robert Robinson  is reason to believe that the greatest music crosses every border from audiences in the Pontiac Silverdome to troops in South Korea. Minnesota’s Insight News calls Robert “a beloved institution.” His live performance is “a soaring presence” which always leaves his audiences spellbound.

Larry Long tells the stories in song of hard working people that highlights the courage, deep personal experiences, and heroism found in their lives within a tradition for which Woody Guthrie is famous and Larry Long continues. Long is an award-winning songwriter on Smithsonian Folkways Recordings. When Pete Seeger was told that Larry is often referred to as the Pete Seeger of Minnesota, Pete replied “I would be honored to be called the Larry Long of New York”.

Tonia Hughes Kendrick is notably one of Minnesota’s most gifted artists. Her voice has mesmerized audiences across the nation including the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts in New York and with the Minnesota Orchestra close to home.  Tonia is a recipient of the prestigious and coveted Musician’s Fellowship from the McKnight Foundation.

Billy Steele is a member of the Grammy Award winning ‘Sounds of Blackness’ and the legendary Steeles who have toured the world performing and recording with Prince, Mavis Staples, Five Blind Boys of Alabama and many more. His voice can be heard on soundtracks with Rod Stewart and James Earl Jones. He has an honesty and humility that touches the hearts of all who hear him sing and perform.

Pete Watercott is one of the most amazing fiddle players in the world. After meeting up with Larry Long in St. Cloud, Minnesota in 1971, they began hitchhiking and hopping freight-trains throughoutthe western United States performing most anywhere that people gather.  Pete now calls the High Sierra Nevada Mountain Range home, where he is a mainstay at the Mill Pond Music Festival and the NationalCowboy Poetry Gathering in Elko,  Nevada.

Larry Long and Fiddlin’ Pete Watercott have come back together with bassist Larry Dalton for this 2024 Reunion Tour to celebrate five-decades of friendship.