Balsam Range is; Buddy Melton (fiddle, lead and tenor vocals), Darren Nicholson (mandolin, octave mandolin, lead vocals, baritone and low tenor vocals), Dr. Marc Pruett (banjo), Tim Surrett (bass, dobro, baritone and lead vocals), and Caleb Smith (guitar, lead & baritone vocals). The five original members are all acoustic musicians and singers from western North Carolina. They thoughtfully and respectfully adopted the name of a majestic range of mountains that surround part of their home county of Haywood, NC where the Great Smoky Mountains meet the Blue Ridge, the Great Balsam Range.
The members of Balsam Range are extremely proud of their home of Haywood County, NC and invite you all to come visit their beautiful part of the country!
The group’s ascent to the top of the Bluegrass world has left a well-marked trail of success since the band’s inception in 2007. One of the genre’s most award-winning artists in recent years, they have garnered ten International Bluegrass Music Association Awards on the heels of six critically acclaimed albums. Balsam Range has left audiences spellbound while headlining major festivals from coast to coast, selling out venues across the nation, and appearing multiple times at the Grand Ole Opry.
On their newest release, “Mountain Voodoo”, the quintet cleverly captures traditional yet contemporary sounds. There are fiery instrumental parts alternating with deep heavy ballads, overlaid by the vocal harmonies the group has become known for. Debuting at number four, “Mountain Voodoo” remained on the Billboard chart for nineteen weeks. Three singles from the album have reached the number one spot on the Bluegrass Today Charts including “Blue Collar Dreams” which spent 3 consecutive months at the number one spot.
The Cleverlys are a one-of-a-kind comedy/music blend coming from the remote part of the Ozark Mountains, near Cane Spur, Arkansas.
Digger Cleverly, along with his nephews Ricky Lloyd, Sock, DVD and Cub, make up The Cleverlys. They have traveled the globe, if the globe only consisted of the United States, performing at music venues and some of the nation’s largest festivals like Stagecoach, Telluride, CMA Music Fest and even the Grand Ole Opry.
The New York Times wrote, "If Earl Scruggs, Dolly Parton, and Spinal Tap spawned a litter of puppies, it would be the Cleverlys.”
Don’t be fooled by this faux-family band – they are all accomplished musicians putting their unique bluegrass spin on cover songs from any genre. The Cleverlys’ set list includes genius arrangements of tunes like Psy’s “Gangnam Style,” a medley of Blackstreet’s “No Diggity,” and Flo Rida’s “Low” that recently went viral on Facebook, with over 11 million views from a local TV appearance.
Rolling Stone Magazine says Digger’s “out-of-date eyeglasses are as thick as his hillbilly accent, but whose comic sensibilities are a hilariously off-kilter hybrid of Homer & Jethro and The Office.”