Music in the Renfro Valley

Southern Living, Sep 2003 by Lingo, Karen

Stop in for live music, shopping, dining, and a stroll through Kentucky's music memories.

Follow the music trail through the Bluegrass State, and you'll land in Renfro Valley, the heart of the state's traditional country music and home to a legend.

Years before I-75 rolled through, this tiny community located about 50 miles south of Lexington had become a mecca for music lovers. Its popularity began in 1939 with a Saturday night barn dance and radio show produced by valley native John Lair.

Today the Renfro Valley Entertainment Center broadcasts not only one of the oldest radio shows in the country, but it also features a weekly schedule of live performances. The complex includes a number of shops that sell everything from fresh-ground cornmeal to hams, homemade fudge, T-shirts, and CDs. The Lodge Restaurant, across the street from the performance area, serves some of the best country cooking around.

Just down the road is the Kentucky Music Hall of Fame and Museum. It honors the state's famous sons and daughters in music, including the late John Lair, Rosemary Clooney, and Bill Monroe, as well as favorites such as Loretta Lynn, The Judds, and Dwight Yoakam. You can watch a documentary about traditional music, listen to radio broadcasts from the 1930s, and learn the meanings of such terms as "pitch," "style," and "composition." It's the perfect prelude to an evening of entertainment.

Renfro Valley Entertainment Center offers a variety of performances. Among the most popular are those in the Headliner Concert Series, featuring some famous names in music. Stars for this season include Loretta Lynn on September 19 and 20 and George Jones September 26 to 28.

A weekly schedule of shows features popular area entertainers such as Pam Perry, who has just released a new solo album; banjo-picking teen Justin Jenkins; Pete Stamper, a Renfro Valley regular for more than 50 years; and humorist Bun Wilson.

To catch a regular show, go on Wednesday for the Front Porch Pickin' or on Thursday for Classic Country. You can take in two shows on Friday: the Barn Dance and the Jamboree. Saturday brings a full afternoon and evening of entertainment with three minishows as well as the Mountain Gospel Jubilee, Barn Dance, and Jamboree. The Renfro Valley Catherin' at 8:30 a.m. on Sunday represents the country's third oldest continuing radio broadcast. Beginning in November, performances are scaled back to Friday through Sunday. KAREN LINGO