OUR 2009 SEASON ARTISTS:
click an artist to jump to the show info

  • June 05 - The Steep Canyon Rangers
  • June 12 - Chris Smither
  • June 19 - The David Bach Consort
  • June 26 - The Cast of Beatlemania
  • July  03 - The Mary Ann Redmond Band
  • July  10 - Guggenheim Grotto
  • July  17 - Mystic Warriors
  • July  24 - Moonalice
  • July  31 - The Hard Lessions b/w The Rhodes
  • August 07 - My Dear Disco
  • August 14 - Toubab Krewe
  • August 21 - Lohio b/w Rarebirds
  • August 28 - The Crawdaddies
  • September 4 - The Chris Higbee Project

As soon as the Steep Canyon Rangers line up around their throwback microphone setup, you know you’re in for a great show. Steep Canyon Rangers are a band in the tradition of Bill Monroe, Del McCoury, and Flatt and Scruggs, but they bring a contemporary flair all their own.

Guitarist and lead-vocalist Woody Platt, mandolinist Mike Gugino, banjoist Graham Sharp, fiddler Nicky Sanders, and bassist Charles R. Humphrey III, met at the University of North Carolina, and have played together for ten years at such hallowed venues as Merlefest, the Bean Blossom Bluegrass Festival, and the Ryman Auditorium. All the while, they have been honing their songwriting skills blending tradition with innovation. No Depression notes, “they get the big things and the little things of bluegrass just right.”

Following in the footsteps of the strong bluegrass and newgrass acts who have previously played for Greensburg at SummerSounds (Blue Highway, Claire Lynch and The Greencards, to name a few) the great natural sound of the Steep Canyon Rangers will be a perfect harbinger of this summer and all it promises.

Sponsored by Dale Property Services
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Chris Smither’s first visit to Greensburg was something of a revelation and an epiphany for a lot of people. As the raw-boned Smither tapped his feet on the floor, it seemed like he pounded his intro beat into the philosophies of life. In his storied past, Smither penned what is arguably one of the sexiest songs ever sung, known to most of us as Bonnie Raitt’s rendition of “Love Me Like a Man”. In previous visits here, he beguiled a park full of people with his stories, his voice, and his style. His return this year will mark his fourth show for SummerSounds.

Smither is only now being recognized as an American classic, and a worthy successor to his greatest influence, Mississippi John Hurt. As he acknowledges, this is partly his fault, with some twelve years lost to alcohol. But it is also partly the fault of the cookie-cutter popular music industry. Despite the fact the market for his music isn’t huge, he has persevered by touring hard, and showcasing his intricate guitar fingerpicking, and his gift for words.

If he doesn’t mention them, be sure to ask him about his songs “Cave Man,” “The Fruit and Vegetable Song,” “Origin of Species,” or any of his other songs you have grown to love. The depth of his music and his connection with the audience will stay with us all summer long.

Sponsored by Dollar Bank


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As a boy, David Bach traveled the world with his father, a career Air Force man. His wide taste in music was nurtured during his international travels, and when he began playing keyboards, he knew exactly what he wanted to do, playing in school bands throughout high school and college.

In the mid-1990s, Bach toured Europe regularly as keyboardist for RCA/BMG recording artist Fishbelly Black. He performed at some of the most acclaimed halls and festivals in England, Italy, France, Germany, and Switzerland.

He settled in the Baltimore/Washington D.C. area, and began focusing on his own compositions. He won the 2004 Maryland State Art Council Performance Award, and his band, the David Bach Consort, recently won the Jazz Discovery Showcase on Black Entertainment Television. He has also performed at Jazzmatazz with B.B. King, and was featured in Washington’s Taste of D.C. and played at the Rosslyn Jazz Festival. His new world jazz style can be heard on his latest CD, “A Deep Breath,” as well as his previous recordings, “5thousand Words” and “Window on the West.”

Bach has played with Enrique Iglesias in front of 30,000 fans. His band was voted “Best Instrumental Band” by Music Monthly Magazine 1999, 2000 and 2001. The David Bach Consort has been featured on national and international television on BET’s Jazz Central.

Sponsored by Redstone Highlands

Paul, George, Ringo—and Carlo?

Over five thousand fans filled St. Clair Park last August (our biggest crowd ever), excited to return to the era of the Fab Four. The Cast of Beatlemania, Lenny Colacina (Paul), Jim Filgate (George), John Delgado (Ringo), and Carlo Cantamessa (John), go from Mop Tops, to Lonely Hearts Club, to Two Virgins, in a fully-costumed show that pays tribute to, quite possibly, the greatest band of all time.

Three of the four met while appearing in the Broadway musical Beatlemania over 30 years ago, and they’ve mastered the looks and the sounds (right down to Paul’s left-handed Hofner bass and the Liverpool Merseybeat). Each and every song they play is spot on, and all are immediately recognized by concert-goers who show their appreciation by singing along in harmony.

Bring your picnic baskets, your blankets, and your memories, and join SummerSounds as we sing and sway our way into Beatlemania with the one and only Cast of Beatlemania.

Sponsored by Allegheny Power

Mary Ann Redmond loves dogs, Greensburg, and, well, Greensburg’s dogs.

One of the nice things (among a lot of nice things) about SummerSounds is that we love dogs too. In the true spirit of the concert series, Redmond makes it a point to admire all the dogs she meets at St. Clair Park.

Between dog admirings, Redmond sings, and, so powerfully does she sing, that she can bring a chill to your spine. Her repertoire runs the gamut from the Stones and Sting to and Holland-Dozier-Holland. She has sung with, and proven herself equal to, the vocal geniuses of friends Mary Chapin Carpenter and the late Eva Cassidy. Redmond is fast becoming a Fourth of July fixture at SummerSounds. Celebrate with the soulful pyrotechnics of one of the best singers in the industry. And don’t forget your four-legged friend.

“I got hit by a car on my way to see Guggenheim Grotto and I still went to the show!” – Anonymous (and unscathed) Guggenheim Grotto fan after the Guggenheim Grotto show at the Thunderbird Café, February 2009.

They don’t need much of a stage to impress you, not that Mick Lynch and Kevin May need much room. As artists go, they look the part of the hungry artists. But Guggenheim Grotto can fill a whole club, and then some, with guitar, keyboard, and voices … glorious voices.

The arrangements are often simple and melodic and the lyrics are just as often complicated. This Dublin-born duo offers fresh and au courant views made all the more enticing by their approachable and humble personalities. Their new CD “Happy the Man” is as infectious and familiar as their previous album “Waltzing Alone,” which they showcased in their last SummerSounds show in St. Clair Park.

They are inviting because they are immediately comfortable with their audience, whether it’s made up of those familiar enough to nod and tap and hum in recognition, or those who experience their music for the first time.

This summer’s show will be full of those awaiting, and well-prepared to enjoy, the return of two of Greensburg’s favorite Irish sons, Guggenheim Grotto.

An Enchanted Evening In The Andes

Mystic Warriors meld the music of the Andes mountains with modern popular music to produce a singular, accessible music form. Based out of the Washington, D.C. area, brothers Andrea and Marco Mallea anchor a talented ensemble that has performed at the Kennedy Center, the Smithsonian, and the White House, celebrating the haunting sounds of their homeland in a fusion of jazz, Hispanic and other music. They have performed with a wide range of well-known artists like Tom Rush, Tito Puente and Bo Diddley.

Spread the blanket, close your eyes, and let the Mystic Warriors take you on a magic carpet ride.

In adding this year’s date to their website, Moonalice called last year’s show here one of their best of 2008. We concur. In fact, Moonalice was one of our best shows ever. We love those guys … and Ann too!

From the legendary bassist Jack Cassady soloing on “Somebody to Love” to G.E. Smith shredding guitar, to the good-time attitude of founder Roger McNamee, this is a band of great skill and sensibilities. Oh, did I mention Barry Sless,, Pete Sears and Jimmy Sanchez … towering talents all! Their just released first studio album was produced by T-Bone Burnett, of Oh Brother, Where Art Thou and Raising Sand fame. Expect the show to feature contributions from band members as well as cover concert favorites.

Last year, these guys had posters made just for Greensburg, a continuation of the Moonalice myth that played off our proximity to Hempfield Township, and a lengthy autograph session after the show. Who knows what else is in store for us upon their return? Come out to welcome one of the best bands this town has heard.

The Hard Lessons are a rock ‘n’ roll love story. Augie and Ko Ko Visocchi met at Michigan State University, started a band in 2003, and got married last August. Throughout, they’ve toured and toured and toured—the Midwest, SXSW, Amsterdam, Paris, and Berlin—as they’ve fronted Detroit’s most up-and-coming band since the White Stripes.

Koko contributes strong, soulful vocals and classic organ and keyboard, while Augie adds a heavy rock guitar. Their combination makes a much more powerful sound than is expected from such a basic guitar, keys, drum lineup. Their newest release, “Arms Forest,” released in May 2009, is truly a manifestation of all the effort and inspiration that comes from being in a band and loving life.

Denver Westword wrote “The Hard Lessons cram pure pop into steel-eyed soul and crumple blues riffs and vintage organ into a ball of sheer, snarling energy.” Come out and see for yourself.

The Rhodes are like a time warp to the mid-1960s, like the Cryan Shames, the Buckingham’s and the Silver Beetles, suspended in time in all their garage-rock glory.

Their sound is poppy, jangly, and upbeat. They’re as fresh as bottled milk used to be. Their propensity for all-black throwback costumes might flirt too closely with the days of the Cavern Club, but you’ll sure admire their youthful chutzpah.

Sponsored by COMCAST

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Bring energy. Bring lots of energy.

My Dear Disco is a phenomenon from Ann Arbor, Michigan, playing what they’ve dubbed Dance Think Music (or what can be described as a mixture of techno, pop, rave, funk, and house). Delivered by seven powerful musicians who are inspired by acts that range from the Talking Heads to Kanye West, you’ll feel compelled to keep up with them when they share their energy with us this summer.

Before they had even released their first full-length album, Anthony Kiedis, of the legendary Red Hot Chili Peppers (who, incidentally, headlined for the inaugural Rolling Rock Town Fair), chose My Dear Disco to join rock icons like Bob Dylan, The Raconteurs, and Gnarls Barkley for last summer’s American Eagle New American Music Union. The Current observed that watching them play is “like sitting next to an electrical storm,” and The Real Detroit praises their “edgy punk- punched new wave acrobatic jams with soulful grooves.”

Videos reveal an infectious show style that’s fronted by vocals and dance moves that are up, down and out to the audience. Be sure to catch My Dear Disco before we can no longer afford them.

Toubab Krewe
World rock
Scheduled to Perform August 14th
Hear the music: Official Website / MySpace

Soku. Kamelengoni. Djembes. Kora. Guitar. Bass. Drum kit.

Mix them, match them, jam them and you have Toubab Krewe, the exploratory polyrhythmic group from Asheville, North Carolina. This quintet has adopted and adapted the music of West Africa and Southern rock into their own highly distinctive sound. Seven Days of Burlington, Vermont claims that their music “is the intersection where Ali Farka Toure meets Led Zeppelin.” Believe it or not, Dick Dale fans will find a treat in this show as well.

This world beat music in a jam band package is certain to be something completely different for Summersounds.

OK. Steelers v. Eagles. Penguins v. Flyers. Maybe even Pirates v. Phillies.

Pittsburgh and Philadelphia don’t mix, but when Lohio (Pittsburgh) and Rarebirds (Philadelphia) join up at the park this August, expect Keystone harmony, not rivalry.

Lohio, with a great, glittering acoustic guitar sound, is a member of that folk/pop genre populated by the Shins, the Weepies and She and Him. They’re among the best of our much lauded Western Pennsylvania bands.

When Greensburger Carolynne McNeel left for Philly, her mom became a merch girl and her dad became a roady, so now music runs in the family. Fronting Rarebirds, she writes, plays and sings catchy, crazy tunes. Welcome home!

Sponsored by McDowell Associates Insurance

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There’ll be dancin’ in the park tonight!

Founded in 1995 on the premise of “why not, it might just work,” The Crawdaddies stir Cajun, Zydeco, Reggae, Blues, Ska, and Roots Rock into an international stew of groove-laden sound that is unquestionably its own.

Wrote Shinbone Magazine “The Crawdaddies are just plain fun. Full of energy, funk and soul. A truly unique band... Lesser musicians could never pull this off, but these guys are so talented that they manage to not only make it work, but make it fantastic... a blast to see live.” And Whisperin & Hollerin in the UK wrote “...these lads are authentic roots rockers even when they have tongue firmly placed in cheek.”

Seasoned road warriors, the band has toured the USA for 14 years, earning a strong grass roots following and is a regular fixture on the national college, festival and theater circuits. In 2006 AOL Citiguide chose The Crawdaddies as “editor’s pick” for best entertainment from Baltimore, MD.

Chris Higbee grew up a farm boy with a musical curiosity and a diligent mother and father. That curiosity quickly became a passion that drives his dreams. The diligent father, "Frosty" Higbee, saw to it that practicing his fiddle kept high priority along the way. Due to that dedication, Higbee founded the PovertyNeck Hillbillies and delivered uniquely wild and energetic concerts across the country.

The Chris Higbee Project combines the talent and passion of several diverse musicians with countless influences, providing a one of a kind show to entertain everyone! The Chris Higbee Project blends some of Higbee's lifelong friends with some brilliant newcomers. Childhood friend and initial lead singer of PNH Les Philburn sings some lead vocals and harmonies. Mark Vinsick plays lead guitar and back up harmonies. Jay McKnight plays bass and lead guitar and sings back up vocals. Troy Williams plays guitar. Larry Shotter from Uniontown, has been playing drums for 12 years and has played in bands all over the area. A native to wild and wonderful West Virginia, Nate Strasser will be playing keys.

Although CHP is a young band, they are seasoned musicians who provide musical diversity that appeals to all ages and audiences. Their range of music encompasses everything from blue grass and old country to the more modern edgy sounds of today.

Sponsored by Seton Hill University