Silver Sage hosts three-day festival
Several information booths were set up at the Open House. Visitors could look over plans, purchase a shirt or buy a beer. BULLETIN PHOTOS/Tracy Thayer
Patrons were given the opportunity to purchase a commemorative brick or plaque to be displayed at the new Silver Sage Resource Center.
The Silver Sage Hill Country Resource Center provided a great weekend of music and fun for Bandera County residents Dec. 1-3.
On Friday night, the gospel group “Levin” gave a concert at the Western Heritage Church in Pipe Creek. The free show was attended by 100 people who had a great evening of entertainment.
Art Crawford played the guitar, John Inmon played the electric guitar, Glen Schuetz played the bass, Bobby Kallus played the drums and Scott Burns played the keyboard. Lisa Crawford and Penni Cox sang vocals.
The music was designed to inspire the audience. The band started off with the Woody Guthrie standard “This Train is Bound for Glory.” The folk element ran strongly throughout the performance of the band.
The band followed it up with the song “Mercy Now.”
The song started slow and thoughtful but transitioned to a more rollicking upbeat style as it progressed toward the climax.
Art Crawford continued the evening with a rendition of “Shine A Light on Me.”
He invited the audience to join in clapping with the beat. Even though the audience consisted of older folks, they really responded to the spirit and zest of Crawford’s tuneful singing.
Penni Cox, the leader of the Western Heritage Church’s Band, rose to sing a solo. She did a superior job soulfully singing the classic, “We Shall All Be Reunited in That Land Beyond the Sky.” Lisa Beck Crawford sang the song “I Am Just a Pilgrim” to the delight of the audience. She really delivered the gospel quality that characterized the concert.
After some wonderful picking by John Inmon and solo’s by Schuetz and Burns, the concert wound up with a soulful version of “Amazing Grace.”
Art, Lisa, and Penni bid the group a warm goodbye and invited them to attend the Open House at the new Silver Sage property on FM 3240 on Saturday.
On Saturday, Crawford opened the site to property tours. The Ranch Hand Food Truck provided lunch to the guests. The grounds were dotted with fire pits and chairs for patrons to stop and listen to the live music provided.
Local musician and singer Lee Winwright ran the sound equipment all afternoon for a large group of local performers. Lee and Karen Haile sang a great program as well as Boone Holding with his tunes of wry wit and humor.
“Levin” made another appearance under the oaks to sing from 6-9 p.m. for the latecomers. The smell of wood smoke, and the sounds of Bandera’s finest musicians made the evening outstanding.
The weekend ended on Sunday with an afternoon and evening concert at the 11th Street Cowboy Bar. Art and Lisa Crawford played again as did the McKay Brothers, the Boyd Brothers, Clint Tomerlin, the South Austin Jug Band, the John Arthur Martinez Trio and Lee Winwright.
The sponsors for the three-day event were The Ranch Hand BBQ, Western Trail Antiques Mall, Tripp’s Tire, the Cowboy Capital Regulators, Backyard Bistro, Buddy’s Water Well Service, The Bandera Prophet, The Bandera General Store, The Buck 99.1, Texas Rebel Radio, Debbie Bryzinski, Walthall Sachse and Pipes, Inc., the Bandera Bulletin, Hevenor Lumber and Hardware, Texas Hill Country Banks, 11th Street Cowboy Bar, Bandera Wine and Spirits, Boyle’s True Value Hardware, Lowe’s, Backroads Reservations, Best Western, Bandera Brewery, Country Accents Antiques, Country Accents Buildings, KNAF 99 Country and JAM Broadcasting.