Press Release:

FORGET THE DEADHEADS, HERE COME THE FREDHEADS

The annual Fred Eaglesmith Weekend in Bellows Falls, VT on June 7, 8 and 9 is growing fast - advance ticket sales have nearly doubled since last year. "At this time in '01 we had sold 95 tickets for Friday, 103 for Saturday and 105 for Sunday," says Charlie Hunter of Flying Under Radar, organizers of the event. "This year, we're at 178, 184 and 175 respectively." Hunter credits the spreading of the word among Eaglesmith's loyal fans, known as Fredheads, for the growth.

"We have people coming to Bellows Falls from all over the US and Canada for this weekend," says Hunter. "For instance, there are people flying out from California, and a whole contingent coming up from Texas. We also have strong support from folks in the area."

This is all the more remarkable given that Fred Eaglesmith, Jon Dee Graham and the other acts appearing during the weekend and on Saturday's "Roots on the River" festival are hardly household names. "These are world class singer/songwriters and roots music performers," says Hunter. "The fact that they're not particularly famous says more about mass media marketing in the US than it does about the music."

"Roots on the River" (underwritten by Long Trail Brewing, Molson Brewing and Farrell Distributors) is a celebration of the singer/songwriter influence in contemporary folk/Americana music, and will start at noon on Saturday, June 8, and continue until 8:00 pm that evening at the Chemco Parking Lot off Rte. 5 at the southern end of Bellows Falls. Free parking is provided at the nearby Compass School parking lot along with frequent complimentary shuttle service from downtown Bellows Falls. Besides Fred Eaglesmith and his band The Smokin' Losers, other performers include Mary McBride Band, Jon Dee Graham, Robbie Fulks, David Olney, Willie P Bennett, Washboard Hank and Josh Ritter.

"If you like the music of people like Bruce Springsteen, John Prine, Greg Brown or John Mellencamp, then you'll love this event," says Bruce Becker of the Great Falls Chamber of Commerce. "I think we've assembled a great line up, and as this is an annual event, it's only a matter of time until the word spreads."

The devotion of Eaglesmith's fans to his music - and to each other - is legendary. "There are other Fred Weekends," says Eaglesmith, "But Charlie is growing Bellows Falls into the biggest one." "We're the only one that helps people find a place to stay," laughs Hunter. "There's one that they hold in a State Park in Ontario, and that requires three days of camping out. We bank on people preferring to have access to a bed and a shower." Area motels and b&bs are already sold out for the event.

"Although somewhat obsessive, the Fredheads are incredibly kind to one another," Hunter continues. "They're really a great group of people. There's one Fredhead who has a degenerative bone disease, and one of the internet Fred chat-groups got together and bought her a laptop computer, so she could stay connected." The Fredheads have also put together a cd (of themselves singing Eaglesmith songs, naturally), which has raised several thousand dollars for charity in Ontario. "Fred's Canadian, and the money went to a mental health organization. That about sums up the Fredheads right there," says Hunter.

Tickets for the all-day "Roots on the River" festival Saturday June 8, are $25. Fred Eaglesmith shows Friday June 7 (at RickÕs Bar and Grille) and Sunday June 9 (at the Rockingham Meeting House) are $19.50 advance. Individual show tickets, and weekend passes for $60, are available at Morning Star Cafe (Springfield), Village Square Books (Bellows Falls), Toadstool Books (Keene, NH), Heartstone Books (Putney), Meridian Music (Brattleboro) and Northampton Box Office. To charge by phone, call 1-800-THE-TICK. For more information, contact Flying Under Radar at 802-463-3669 or visit www.flyingunderradar.com

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