At the head of this post you see the first of three episodes of Radio Free Charleston devoted to Tribute To The Troops II. On August 11, Wood Boys Music took over the Saint Albans City Park Amphitheater for an all-day all-ages benefit show for our troops. Over eleven hundred dollars was raised for The Wounded Warrior Project and The West Virginia National Guard Foundation, and our cameras were on hand for the first half of the concert.

In the next three weeks you will hear music from Breedlove, The Under Social, Remains Unnamed, Deck of Fools, Johnny Compton, Point of Jerus, our guests on this week’s show, “Real American Hero Shirt,” are HarraH, In The Company of Wolves, and Everpulse. The show kicks off with Cadence Weaver singing the National Anthem.

Cadence Weaver

We can’t stress what a great job Wood Boys Music did putting on this show and what a gracious host Dawn Marie Wood was while acting as emcee for the event. Present on the stage throughout the concert were the boots, helmet, and goggles representing those members of the armed forces who are currently serving overseas. Next week, we will present more music from the concert, along with a short film explaining the work of the Wounded Warrior Project. In two weeks, we’ll wrap up our three part Tribute to the Troops II coverage with even more music and a short film looking at the West Virginia National Guard Foundation.

We open the show this week with fourteen year old Cadence Weaver singing the National Anthem. Cadence was brought out by Dawn Marie, who heard her a couple of weeks earlier and she did a bang up job.

Lee Harrah, with Serenity

The rest opf HarraH, back at the stage

Our camera crew was stretched to the limits when HARRAH performed the song “Cadillac Rock Box,” since Lee Harrah made full use of his wireless microphone and performed the song from his Cadillac about a football field’s length up a steep grade from the stage. You can see Lee running up the steps at the St. Albans City Park Ampitheater in the beginning of the song. What you don’t see is yours truly trying to follow Lee back down the hill to the stage in time for the next song. We’re saving that one for a future episode.

In The Company of Wolves

In the headline spot this week, we have Hurricane’s In The Company of Wolves bringing down the ampitheater with a performance that features super special audio wizardry and remixing by West Virginia Public Radio’s Dave McClanahan, known to fans of the long ago Radio Free Charleston radio show as the mastermind behind The Mad Scientist Club. You’ll see another song by In The Company of Wolves, remixed by Dave, in a couple of weeks.

Everpulse

Wrapping up the show, we have a great metal tune by Everpulse, an impressive band about whom I know next to nothing. We plan to correct that and have the guys back on the show in the future.

One of the great things about the Wood Boys shows is that they pack so many bands into their events that you almost always hear something new. We were only able to attend half of the event and we still wound up recording ten different musical artists. Rather than do another hour long show, we decided to spread the wealth of music over three episodes to heighten awareness of the charities for whom this event was staged. If you would like to make a donation, you can go to the Wounded Warrior Project website or contact the West Virginia National Guard Foundation at WVNG Foundation 1703 Coonskin Dr Charleston WV 25311.

Be sure to return in one week for part two of our Tribute To The Troops II coverage!