The band is now comprised of Kenny Meyer, Butch Ryan, Rick Moon and Al Queen. Butch tells me they are really settling in to a great band with a real comfort amongst them all. That's great to hear. It's what it takes to really have a successful group; everybody working together. They've all long been favorites of mine. Best of luck, guys, for the 2012 season.

Here's a picture I found on the web of long-time favorites, Cedar Ridge. Pictured from left to right are Carl Kithcart (one of my all-time favorite banjoists); (Carl has now been replaced by Al Queen for the 2012 season. Al plays banjo, fiddle, guitar and sings vocals); Rick Moon (rhythmically strong and original style mandolinist and song writer); Butch Ryan ( song writer and excellent bassist and lead singer); and Kenny Meyer (the band's unique-style guitarist and also a lead singer along with the others). The band does a great job with bluegrass, old country and harmonies. Cedar Ridge fans sure enjoyed all the sets with Carl Kithcart and will now look forward to the 2012 season with enthusiasm since Al Queen joined the band late last fall. Al is an excellent banjo picker. They're all seasoned musicians and I'm sure they're looking forward to a great summer, too.
These guys are four of the nicest guys you'll ever find. Stop back stage and say "Hello". I do not have any current pictures of Cedar Ridge with Al Queen in the band, but perhaps I'll get an emailed picture as an update one of these days when the "boys" get a chance. When I do, I'll post it right here. I'd also like to mention Tom Thorpe who has played many times with Cedar Ridge helping them when they needed a fill-in musician. Tom is very, very talented and plays mandolin, banjo and guitar and sings very well, too. It's always a treat to hear the band with Tom involved.

Although I am no longer playing actively in the Band, I sure enjoyed the band members and their spouses for the many years we traveled the roads hitting festival after festival. If I remember correctly, the year 2009 is the 19th year of the Band. I played banjo with them several years and at one time even played mandolin for a short period. Occasionally, I would play the fiddle along with Don Perkins when he was with the band. I can not say enough about how grateful I am to have been a part of Cedar Ridge and their families. I wish them all very well. If the reader of this post ever gets a chance to hear the group, by all means do so. The core group is comprised of Ken Meyer, guitar; Bill "Butch" Ryan, standup bass; and Rick Moon, mandolin.

The tune that plays automatically when this page loads in is named "The Only Way To Say Goodbye". Here, it's performed by Cedar Ridge when the band consisted of Ken Meyer on guitar, Butch Ryan on bass, Rick Moon on mandolin, Donnie Perkins on fiddle and yours truly on banjo. On this recording, Kenny played rhythm guitar while I played second rhythm guitar and picked the lead break and sang the song. It was recorded at Ed Young Studios in Round Lake, NY. Ed does a superb job of recording. Needless to say, Cedar Ridge did a great job on the whole album (CD) they recorded at Ed's.

Here is the Cedar Ridge band dressed for comfort against the sweltering heat in the summer of 2009 in Pennsylvania. This picture was taken by the PENNY Bluegrass Association.