The Roadmaster Stage rides again
Black Mountain backyard music venue picks up where it left off with Songs from the Road Band
Fred McCormick
The Valley Echo
April 27, 2021
David Boughner welcomes people to his backyard, April 17, for the first time since March of 2020. The popular home concert venue, The Roadmaster Stage, hosted the Songs from the Road Band to open its spring season. Photo by Fred McCormick
During its 13-month hiatus amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the sound of silence coming from the Roadmaster Stage often seemed much louder than any of the shows the popular home concert venue has hosted since it debuted in 2015. The darkness of the quiet platform was the source of a discomforting symbolism for David Boughner.
“I really started losing the vision for it,” said Boughner, who built the small wooden stage six years ago after hosting traveling Portland-based duo Fox & Bones for around 45 friends. “Normally, I go through one winter and start getting the yard together for shows in the spring, and it’s a big job. After the pandemic, having two full winters off, I really started to lose steam.”
But in March, as he collected limbs for a fire in his backyard, nestled in a quiet residential neighborhood on Laurel Circle Drive in Black Mountain, he looked at the stage and come to a sudden realization: “this has to happen again.”
Boughner told a version of that story from the Roadmaster Stage, April 17, as he welcomed a masked and socially distant audience and the Songs from the Road Band to his yard for the highly anticipated return of the small concert series. Seconds later, the sounds of live music and friendly greetings were filling the air of the intimate venue for the first time since March of 2020.
“The Songs from the Road Band ended the last season and everybody had wonderful time, so I thought it would be awesome to have them back to reopen,” Boughner said. “It ended up being a beautiful evening, and it was great to see everyone back, having a good time.”
The Asheville-based bluegrass band, founded in 2004 by bassist Charles R. Humphrey III, one-time member of the Grammy Award-winning Steep Canyon Rangers, and renowned vocalist and guitarist Sam Wharton, released its sixth studio album in 2019. The lineup is rounded out by Mark Schimick on the mandolin, two-time National Fiddle Champion James Schlender and the banjo of Gabe Epstein.
Sam Wharton (left), Charles R. Humphrey III (middle) and Mark Schimick and the Songs from the Road Band open the spring season, April 17, for the Roadmaster Stage in Black Mountain. Photo by Fred McCormick
The series will continue with the genre-bending progressive bluegrass of the Jon Stickley Trio, fronted by the Asheville native from which it takes its name. The band, which also includes the diverse fiddle stylings of Lyndsay Pruett and percussionist Hunter Deacon, will perform around 8 p.m., Saturday, May 1. The third installment of 2021 is scheduled for Saturday, May 29, when the Roadmaster Stage Presents David Childers & the Serpents.
As Boughner continues filling out his upcoming summer lineup, he’s found that the interruption brought about by the pandemic didn’t stop the word of his backyard from spreading around the music scene.
“I felt a kind of obligation to bring it back,” Boughner said. “I’ve had so many people reaching out to me—musicians and people who regularly attend—asking me when I think I can get this going again. In a short period of time, it’s really blossomed into something that’s important to the community.”
A backyard oasis for music lovers
The bond between audiences and performers is a mutual love for the music, according to Boughner, who began working as a roadie for a band in his native Ohio before he was old enough to drive. He served in the same role for Jackson Browne one summer, and by the time he moved to Black Mountain around 35 years ago, his travels had taken him to see shows in nearly every state.
“When I first landed in town, this place was completely different,” he said.
The local music scene at the time largely centered around McDibbs, a music hall on Cherry Street that operated in two locations from 1978 - 1992, and the Town Pump Tavern, which opened in its current location in 1982. In 1994, the Grey Eagle Tavern and Music Hall, which moved to Asheville four years later, debuted in the former garage of McMurray Chevrolet on State Street.
All of the venues were known for hosting popular touring musicians and talented local acts, according to Boughner, who would often host road-weary artists at his home when they came to town.
“I used to have parties with a small fire and a bunch of music around,” he said. “Eventually, I met a lot of the local people in town and felt a real connection to this community. I quickly noticed just how much the people here love and appreciate music.”
The Roadmaster Stage, founded by David Boughner in 2015, is a home concert venue tucked away in a residential neighborhood in Black Mountain. Photo by Fred McCormick
Boughner not only shared that sentiment, but also felt a deep appreciation for the touring musicians who feed that appetite.
“It’s interesting to see the direction this town has gone over the years,” he said. “There used to be so many great music venues to see these artists when they were coming through town, and sadly we’ve lost a lot of those over the years. I wanted the Roadmaster Stage to bring that aspect of Black Mountain’s culture back into the forefront.”
The concept of house shows wasn’t new to Boughner, he had attended many of them over the years.
“They’ve become a bit of a growing phenomenon recently, but they’re kind of new to people here,” he said. “The intimacy of a house show gives the audience this direct connection with the musicians, and it can be a perfect setting for both. There are a lot of artists who prefer to play in these smaller settings.”
The relationships he built with musicians over the years gave Boughner a keen insight into the sacrifices they make for their craft.
“I’ve been in green rooms with musicians when a person from the club walks in with a check,” he said. “Once that money is split between the club and musicians, you realize that the work they do for the money they make could only be due to their love of the music.”
Six years ago, when dozens of people showed up to watch Fox & Bones play on the deck in his backyard, he was struck by the attentiveness of that first audience.
“You could hear a pin drop,” he said. “Everyone enjoyed it, and when I saw how much the musicians made I felt like this was something I had to do.”
David Boughner makes a sign to be mounted above the stage for each act hosted by the Roadmaster Stage. Following each show, the wooden planks are mounted on a nearby fence to commemorate the performance. Photo by Fred McCormick
By the time roots-rock and Americana band The Youngers came to town a week later, they were playing on a brand new stage, built by Boughner himself, situated in front of a sturdy tree house in a yard lined with outdoor lighting and vintage decorative touches. The venue was designed to foster a comfortable and relaxing environment for the audience and the musicians dedicated to entertaining them.
“I was listening to a lot of Gene Clark back then, who was truly ahead of his time, by the way,” he said. “He has a song called ‘Roadmaster’ on his album by the same name. It’s about a traveling musician carrying a heavy load, and that’s really what this is all about: musicians who travel and sacrifice.”
‘Once the music starts, it’s all worth it’
The preparation required to regularly host live music and scores of guests in his yard nine months out of the year is unceasing, according to Boughner who usually books shows every other week. But in 2019, as the popularity of the venue increased, the Roadmaster Stage was booked every Saturday through the summer.
While the music is the feature of the series, the ambience Boughner has carefully crafted in his yard is also a key part of the experience for concertgoers.
“Everything I have up around here is from my own collection, and just about everything has a story rooted in my travels,” he said. “It’s probably only a quarter of everything I’ve collected over the years, but I like to think it’s part of what makes people feel so at home when they come here.”
The Songs from the Road Band played the final show on the Roadmaster Stage before the COVID-19 pandemic forced the backyard concert venue to go dark for 13 months. The band returned to Black Mountain, April 17, to perform in its return. Photo by Fred McCormick
The space is accessorized with vintage signs, autographed memorabilia and even musical instruments, while chairs and stools are positioned facing the stage.
“I can’t even tell you how many times the weather has complicated things,” he said. “There have been so many times I’ve had to bring everything in to keep it dry the night before a show, and then put it all back the day of. It’s exhausting, but once the music starts, it’s all worth it.”
Upcoming shows are announced on the Roadmaster Stage Presents Facebook page, and Boughner does not charge admission. An old oil bucket is passed around during the performance and attendees, some of whom have come to every show, can contribute whatever they choose.
“I didn’t want to have a sandwich board out front telling people the name of the band and price to enter,” he said. “I wanted it to be simple and inviting, so we only ask people to bring their own drinks. Before COVID-19, a lot of people would bring potluck dishes from home. It really has the feel of a friendly community gathering.”
First-time visitors are often captivated by the setting, according to Boughner, who then often has to address an inevitable question: “what do the neighbors think?”
“My neighbors only get upset if we’re not having music. A lot of them put chairs in their yards and have their own parties, and a lot of people who live a couple of streets away tell me they like to sit on their porches and listen,” he said. “But, we do this in a respectful way. We keep the music at a level where we’re not playing it for the whole town, and of course the neighbors can hear it, but we end before 11 p.m.”
Boughner only hosts shows on Saturdays, and he believes the success of the Roadmaster Stage helps promote the surrounding community.
“When the night is over, I encourage people to go have dinner or drinks at local businesses,” he said. “I’ve always loved being a part of this community, and I want this thing to have a positive impact on as many people here as possible.”
The road ahead
The audience that attended the April 17 show was noticeably smaller than the nearly 200 people who showed up to watch two-time Grammy Award-winning singer-songwriter Jim Lauderdale in September of 2019. It was the largest crowd ever at the Roadmaster Stage, according to Boughner.
“I wanted to make Jim have the same experience the local musicians have when they play,” he said. “He hung out after he performed, and he put his arm around me and told me: ‘I play shows and I have experiences, but this is one experience I won’t soon forget.’ This man has played in front of thousands of people, and here he is talking about the experience of playing in my backyard.”
Two-time National Fiddle Champion James Schlender returned to Black Mountain, April 17, when the Songs from the Road Band performed on the Roadmaster Stage. Photo by Fred McCormick
While touring acts are a consistent presence on the Roadmaster Stage, local musicians are also regularly featured, and their names are among those on the handmade wooden signs displayed on a fence near the stage after they perform.
“I want to provide a platform for as many of the musicians who want to play here as possible,” Boughner said. “Musicians talk to each other, and the more they come and have a good time here, the more people I have reaching out about coming to play.”
Boughner is currently exploring the possibility of converting an old barn on the east side of Black Mountain to an indoor venue with a larger capacity that could lead to the expansion of the series.
“It would have the same look, feel and ambience of the Roadmaster Stage,” he said. “The growth of this whole thing has been unbelievable, and a larger indoor venue could lead to all kinds of opportunities in the future, like more shows and possibly an event space that people in the community could rent for events.”
That vision, he added, is in direct response to the way in which the community has embraced his home venue.
“When I started this, it was supposed to be a really small gathering of friends every few weeks,” Boughner said. “But, it became so popular. To me, that shows just how much people in this community wanted a place like this.”