Annual Midwinter Bluegrass concert Dec. 28

The Bluegrass Regulators, Faddis & Adkins, The Dirty Birds and Runaway Train will perform at the ninth annual Midwinter Bluegrass Celebration starting at 6 p.m. Dec. 28 at the Shelton School District Performing Arts Center at Shelton High School.

Kristmas Town Kiwanis sponsors the concert. Admission is $20, with kids younger than 15 admitted for free. Donations will be accepted for refreshments. Tickets are available at BluegrassFromTheForest.com and at the door.

The event raises money for the Kristmas Town Kiwanis' annual Bluegrass from the Forest festival, which will be staged July 11-13 at the South Mason Youth Soccer Park on Johns Prairie Road in Shelton.

A couple hundred people typically attend the winter show, said organizer Greg Linder, who also performs as a member of Runaway Train. The low ticket price, and free admission for youngsters, is an opportunity for listeners to introduce themselves to bluegrass, he said.

"The auditorium has amazing acoustics," he said.

The Bluegrass Regulators were formed in 2009 by Luke and Jake Dewhirst, Martin Stevens and Josh Atkins. Molly Dewhirst joined in 2010. Luke Dewhirst will be playing banjo with three of the four bands at the concert.

The band has recorded two CDs and toured through the Pacific Northwest. The group has performed at Bluegrass from the Forest.

Jim Faddis and Dal Adkins blend two voices and two guitars on country classics and songs penned by Faddis. The duo just completed a tour of western Canada.

The Dirty Birds is the duo of Kaiti (Dewhirst) Monroe and Jake Monroe. Jake sings and plays banjo and is a fixture on stages in Leavenworth and Nashville. Kaiti moved to Nashville four years ago, where she is a songwriter, vocalist and instrumentalist for many artists.

Runaway Train has been the host band since the inception of the festival. Linder sings and plays guitar, Kent Powell sings and plays bass, and John White sings and plays mandolin. Luke Dewhirst, a former member of the band, joins them on banjo. He is home on vacation from Puerto Rico, where he serves with the U.S. Coast Guard.

Most of the tunes are traditional, but "we push the limits of traditional bluegrass," Linder said. He pointed out the band's repertoire includes The Beatles' "I've Just Seen a Face."

In 1980, Linder was playing the guitar for his enjoyment when his wife Dusty talked him into attending a bluegrass festival in Tumwater.

"She kind of dragged me there," he recalled. "And I was hooked." Linder especially loved the impromptu jam sessions. Thus began decades of jamming.

"You can be of any political situation in beliefs and you're friends at a bluegrass festival ... you're amongst friends and you feel at home," he said, adding, "There's good music on stage and off."

IF YOU GO

WHO: Kristmas Town Kiwanis

WHAT: Midwinter Bluegrass Celebration

WHEN: 6 p.m. Dec. 28

WHERE: Shelton High School

ADMISSION: $20, kids younger than 15 free

TICKETS: BluegrassFromTheForest.com and at the door