Fountain AfterDark
May 13, 2026
vol. 24, number 8
Old-time String Band Revue Saturday Night with Banjo Orchestra Finale • New Foolin’ Around Podcast: Lightnin’& Silas Albright Talk Uncle Dave Macon
[Fountain, NC] Three Triangle-based bands present a showcase of old-time Piedmont music Saturday night at Fountain General Store.
This evening’s entertainment was put together by Andrew Berger-Gross, who plays with two of the three bands performing. He and two other performers, Devon Flaherty and Sam Harris, first played East Carolina as guest performers with Lightnin’ Wells at his SRO March concert in Farmville at the Paramount Theatre. Lightnin’ will play his vintage plectrum as part of the big banjo finale.
Devon Flaherty & His Railroad Ramblers is fronted by
Flaherty, an outstanding old-time banjo picker. Andrew Walker joins in on fiddle and Berger-Gross is principally a guitarist in this award-winning trio from the Raleigh-Durham area. Flaherty won the 2024 Charlie Poole Festival Three-Finger Banjo Grand Champion Award, and each member has won prizes on their respective instruments and as a group.
In the Oak City Serenaders, Berger-Gross plays mandolin; Sam Harris, from Raleigh, is on banjo and mandolin; and Micah Bowen, from Coats, plays guitar and sings. They play a variety of string band music from the turn of the 20th century, specializing in popular dances from Italy and the Americas. Their repertoire ranges from ragtime to mazurka, from tango to tarantella.
The family band of Amy, Jon and Iris is Amy Davis, on banjo and guitar, Jon Newlin on fiddle, and their daughter, Iris, on vocals and fiddle. Amy and John met through their mutual love of old-time music, and together they performed for over 15 years with the North Carolina singing string band the Hushpuppies, including one fine performance at RAF in 2008. Their daughter, Iris Newlin, joins them on vocals and fiddle.
Our old-time string band revue on May 16 begins at 7:30. Click hereto purchase general admission ($13), reserved ($15), or student general admission seats ($5).
After Saturday, RAF’s next concert is May 30 when Travis Frye & Blue Mountain, an outstanding traditional bluegrass and Appalachian old-time band from Mt. Airy, stop by as part of their farewell tour that’s ending 18 years of picking, recording, & travel.
