The Campbell Family Band.
Mark has a father's (and husband's) pride in the Campbell family band. Band members Molly Campbell (fretless banjo and mandolin) and Mauren Campbell (vocals,cello and guitar) fell asleep at night to the sound of their father's fiddle. Marty Gravett (Mark's wife) plays guitar and cell0.
The band is often accompanied by washtub bassist Jan Williamson, Clogger Tina Hicks, banjoist Barrow Wheary and guitarist George Frick.
The band plays for parties, weddings
fund raisers, square dances, contests, and performance/lectures.
Bands Present and Past
Costa Campbell & Lloyd.
Mark is privileged to play professionally with two of the best musicians in the region; Jimmy Costa of Talcott, West Virginia and Jim Lloyd of Rural Retreat, Virginia, The fun loving group has been touring and playing the eastern US since the late 1990's. Jimmy Costa is a leading proponent of Uncle Dave Macon songs and banjo styles as well as the music of the Hinton area of West Virginia. Jim Lloyd is one of the region's best finger style guitarists and is always good for a laugh. The band plays concerts, radio shows, conventions, and reunions.
The Down River Dance Band.
Mark and Marty spent many of their early years playing in this band that played for dances and concerts in Richmond Va. since the early 1980's. Many of the band members have moved to Charlottesville. The band has included George Frick, Phill Woddial, Vern Bucannon, Charmain Powell, Faye Jones, Sherry Heath-Wagoner, Mike Stout, Chris Ward and James and Anne Rucker. The Band won a ribbon in the band competiton at Galax.
Watch most of the Campbell Family Band play The Lee Highway Blues with Barrow Wheary.
Musical Roots of Virginia.
Mark and Mauren Campbell have teamed with Gregg Kimball and Sheryl Warner of the blues band South Side Home Wreckers to form a group that presents an historical view of Virginia's musical Roots. They are accompanied by a slide show of revealing images from the archives of the State Library of Virginia. They cover string band music, Carter Family, Gospel and shape note songing. They also delve into the rich repertoire of black blues music.
Nickle Bridge Boys 5th Place Galax 1978.
Costa, Campbell and Lloyd at the train depot in Rural Retreat.
The Tidewater Friends of Old-Time Music
Mark lived in the Norfolk, Virginia area for a year and joined up with a band of easy going musicians that included Steve Proescher, John Bealle, Bobbi Slagle, Chris Ward, Steve Millhouse, Rory Fitzpatrick, John Currie, and Sandy Hartnett. The band can be heard playing on the 1977 Fiddler's Grove album.
The Yellow Mountain and Ragged Mountain String Bands
While in Charlottesville in the early 1970s, Mark join with Armin Barnett in the Yellow Mountain String Band. Connie Barnett, Carl Baron, and Mark Gunther were also in the band. The Band finished in third place ahead of the Fuzzy Mt. String band in the second annual Smithsonian Folklife Festival Contest on The Mall!
The Ragged Mountain String band was a collection of new musicians around Charlottesville in the 1970s.
The Main Street String Band and The Nickel Bridge Boys
When Mark moved to Richmond in 1978, he struck up a band with Archa Vaughan,
Howard Hunnius, Ron Gentry, Mike Ford and Terry Jones . They can be heard playing Cuffy on the Galax 44th Annual Old Fiddlers Convention album. Mark joined Harold Hausenfluck, Howard Hunnius, Terry Burtyk and Jim Dovee to form the Nickel Bridge Boys who placed 5th at the 1980 Galax fiddler's Covention. They can be heard playing Climbing Up the Mountain on the 45th Annual Old Fiddlers Convention Album, (as the Nickle Ridge Boys!)
Watch the Campbell Family Band play Parkersburg Landing.
Photo by Larua Chessin
The Holy Hooters Church Singers
Mark's early music included playing banjo with friend Pete Vigour in a folk mass choir of St. John's Episcopal Church in Waynesboro, Virginia from the mid 1960s until 1971. The group performed arrangements from the southern books of shape note singing.
Mark is pictured playing the banjo and Pete is on the washtub base in the center. Photo Circa 1970.
Mark plays banjo with the Yellow Mountain String band on The National Mall.
Photo by Rob Craighurst.
Mark, Mauren,
(rear) Gregg and Sheryl. (front)
Down River Dance Band at Theatre 4 Richmond Va.
Photo by Larua Chessin
The Virginia House Band
Bassist Ron Gentry suggested that we hold a monthly jam with Harold Hausenfluck at his assissted living home. Out of that jam has come a band of friends which plays conventions and contests as well as good time gatherings in Central Virginia. Joining Ron and Mark are Doug Shackleford (banjo) and Gerorge Frick (guitar and vocals.) New to the band is mandolinist Molly Campbell. The band specializes in snappy dance numbers, ballads and marital "bliss" songs, a hit with wedding parties!
Harold will sometimes join the band on the Harmonica. Harold presently lives at the Virginia Home in Richmond, Virginia
Watch the Virginia House Band play I Get My Whisky From Rockingham
at Clifftop, West Virginia 2010
