Edgar Meyer at Otter Creek Park. Photo by Jean Metcalfe
What do horses and otters have in common? Not a lot. Except that weekend in May and the second weekend in June, two Kentucky parks named for those animals played host to some of the world's most talented bluegrass musicians.
Rarely Herd kicked off the music at Louisville's Otter Creek Park (located in Brandenburg) on May 28, while Seldom Scene headlined at Lexington's Kentucky Horse Park on June 11. The Osborne Brothers entertained at the Otter Creek festival, the McReynolds brothers (Jim & Jesse) at the Horse Park during the last event. Laurie Lewis wowed the Brandenburg crowd and Alison Krauss delighted the fans in Lexington (See Laurie Lewis picture on page 8.
Super-talented musicians Jerry Douglas, Edgar Meyer (pictured) and Russ Barenberg closed out the evening at Otter Creek on May 28 with a wonderful selection of instrumentals. On June 11 The McLain Family Band returned after a fve-year absence for a family reunion at the Horse Park.
But that's only part of the story. Both weekends were jam-packed with talented bluegrass groups whose names would take up more space than is available here, proving that bluegrass is much more than just plants that grow in Kentucky soil.