March 14, 2007

LIVINGSTON, Ala.—The Sucarnochee Revue, a nationally syndicated radio program, takes the stage Friday, April 20 at 7 p.m. for a live taping in the University of West Alabama's Bibb Graves Auditorium. Sponsored by UWA, Sumter County Fine Arts Council and Weyerhaeuser Company, the show introduces radio listeners in Alabama, Mississippi, and importantly, other parts of the nation and world to the artistic community of performers from the Black Belt area.

This month’s featured act is the Sullivan Family of St. Stephens, Ala. Performing together for more than fifty years, Margie and Enoch Sullivan are pioneers of bluegrass gospel music. The group has played across the United States and Europe, appearing on the Grand Ole Opry and earning induction into Bill Monroe’s Bluegrass Hall of Fame in Bean Blossom, Ind., and the Old Time Country Music Hall of Fame in Anita, Iowa. They continue to keep a busy touring schedule, while teaching young bluegrass musicians in the bluegrass gospel tradition. Carl Jackson and Marty Stuart are former band members and only two of many who have been influenced by their music.

In addition to the award winning Sullivan Family, other performers will include noted Nashville singer/songwriter Kristen Cothron, banjo maestro Tom McClemore, bluesman Russell Gully, country blues singer Ms. Joyce Shearer, Track 45 and UWA Director of Athletics E. J. Brophy. The Sucarnochee Revue regulars will round out the evening. The regulars include Revue host Jacky Jack White, J. Burton Fuller, Britt Gully and Mississippi Chris Sharp, who each have new CDs released on the Vermont folk label, Silverwolf.

Now in its third year of production, The Sucarnochee Revue presents Black Belt music in its most authentic manner. The show not only preserves original music and the works by original artists, but also captures the evolution of that music and its current generation of performers.

“What surprises people about the show is the fantastic range of musical genres,” producer and host Jacky Jack White said. “We have blues, jazz, Dixieland, gospel, bluegrass, classical, country and more. Historically, there is an incredible amount of talent in the area.”

The hour-long radio program, taped live and then broadcast on stations in Alabama, Mississippi, Tennessee, Texas, Georgia, Illinois, Colorado, Alaska and New York and worldwide via the internet, showcases local musicians in a variety of genres. 

This edition of the Revue will be held in conjunction with the Sucarnochee Folklife Festival, set for the following day in downtown Livingston. White will serve as emcee for the music stage, while other Sucarnochee Revue regulars are also slated to perform at the April 21 festival, a free day-long event that celebrates Black Belt regional culture with musicians, storytellers, folk artists and more.

Admission to The Sucarnochee Revue is $5. Sumter County Fine Arts Council members and students attend free. For more information about the show, please call 205-652-6680 or visit www.sucarnocheerevue.com.