Muncie Three Trail Music Series announces 2023 Lineup

MUNCIE, Ind. — The Muncie Three Trails Music Series has officially announced its lineup for 2023. This will be the tenth season in which the series presents critically acclaimed national recording artists in four free concerts at Canan Commons in downtown Muncie.

All shows begin at 7 p.m. and are for all ages. Complete information on the series and all artists, including samples of their music, can be found at www.munciethreetrails.com.

Blues greats Tommy Castro & the Painkillers will open the series on Saturday, July 29.

With 16 albums under his belt — including 2022’s "A Bluesman Comes To Town," which garnered “Album of the Year” at the Blues Music Awards — Castro and his band put forth everything from horn-fueled soul and R&B to piping hot blues to fiery rock ‘n’ roll. He has performed all over the world, earning fans with his legendary, sweat-drenched, exhilarating live shows.

Accolades for the band’s live shows are well-established, with Castro being a three-time winner (including 2022) of the coveted B.B. King Entertainer Of The Year Award (considered by many to be the very highest award a blues performer can receive). As Blues Revue states, “Tommy Castro can do no wrong.” Muncie’s own Lovesick Moan will open the show. This concert is sponsored by the Community Foundation of Muncie and Delaware County.

Bluegrass five-piece the Po’ Ramblin’ Boys will grace the Canan Commons stage on Saturday, Aug. 12.  Material for the group’s Rounder Records debut, "Toil, Tears & Trouble," is a combination of original songs and old numbers that honor the group’s mentors and bluegrass heroes.

Two of the album's gems, “Next Train South” and “Hickory, Walnut & Pine,” were nominated for the International Bluegrass Music Association’s Song of the Year, and the entire album garnered the band’s first Grammy nomination for Best Bluegrass Album. Opening the show will be Muncie’s Bashville Boys.

Making their fifth appearance at the Muncie Three Trails Music Series will be Grammy-winning bluegrass great Michael Cleveland and his band Flamekeeper. Their performance will be on Friday, Aug. 25. Widely considered the best bluegrass fiddler of his generation, Cleveland has been recognized 12 times as the International Bluegrass Music Association’s “Fiddler of the Year.”

In 2018 he was inducted into the National Fiddler’s Hall of Fame, and in 2022 he received the high honor of being named a National Endowment for the Arts Heritage Fellow. Indianapolis-based Punkin Holler Boys will open. This concert is sponsored by Ball State University.

The critically acclaimed soul-jazz Delvon Lamarr Organ Trio will close out the 2023 season on Saturday, Sept. 9.  The Billboard-chart-topping group’s music is best described as “feel good music,” conjuring the smoky 1960s jazz and soul stylings of Jimmy Smith, Booker T. & The M.G.’s, The Meters, Dr. Lonnie Smith, and Charles Earland.

Within the trio’s distinct jazz stew there are also dashes of Motown, Stax Records, blues, and cosmic Jimi Hendrix-style guitar. The Ball State Jazz Ensemble will open the show. This concert is sponsored by DeFur Voran.

The Muncie Three Trails Music Series is a non-profit partnership between Muncie Downtown Development Partnership, Muncie Arts and Culture Council, and Rick Zeigler, series founder and organizer. The mission of the series is to bring critically acclaimed, national recording artists to perform at Canan Commons.

This article originally appeared on Muncie Star Press: Muncie Three Trail Music Series announces 2023 Lineup