Tim Parsons / Tahoe Onstage
Sierra-at-Tahoe will host a unique lineup of live music this weekend, when Tim Bluhm and the Preacher’s Pickers take the stage at the resort’s Sierra Pub.
Haven’t heard of the Preacher’s Pickers yet? Don’t be surprised; the idea was just recently conceived by Sierra general manager and guitarist John Rice, and Simon Kurth of the bands Huckle and Mescalito.
“We got together and rehearsed one night and sketched out a few songs that we both knew and had a heck of a lot of fun doing it,” Rice said. “We came up with this concept of, let’s do some fun music this year where (Kurth) can bring some friends of his from the music industry up and we’ll be sort of the house band.
“Tim is our first guest artist if you will, so we’ll be Tim Bluhm and the Preacher’s Pickers.”
California musician Tim Bluhm has had a successful solo career [pullquote]We came up with this concept of, let’s do some fun music this year where (Kurth) can bring some friends of his from the music industry up and we’ll be sort of the house band.”[/pullquote]as well as performing as lead guitarist and primary songwriter for Bay Area rock band the Mother Hips. He has also worked with Jackie Greene, Mickey Hart and Bill Kreutzmann of the Grateful Dead and many others.
A multi-instrumentalist, Bluhm plays keyboard and drums as well as guitar. He is also a record producer, teaming up with Greene and engineer Dave Simon-Baker to open Mission Bells Studio on Mission Street in San Francisco in 2006.
While Bluhm is known primarily as a rocker, and Kurth’s bands have tended toward the jam band sound, this project is geared toward a string band style.
“It’s a whole different genre of music rather than jam band music,” Rice said. “It’s a little more traditional, American roots, bluegrass, pickin’ style music. It’s a lot of fun, it’s right up my alley as well. Between the two of us, we’re just really having a fun time.”
He and Kurth hope to keep this guest appearance show going as something of a monthly treat at Sierra, Rice said, noting Kurth’s extensive connections in the music industry.
“Whoever’s in town, if there’s people that he knows,” Rice said. “It’ll be kind of a surprise I guess, just whoever is around, wants to come up skiing for a day and have a good time is kind of the vision of this thing.”
While Kurth and Rice have put in rehearsal time together, this will be the first time that Bluhm has actually joined the two live. Rice is looking forward to the occasion, to be sure.
“Just from what I’ve heard through Mother Hips and some of the stuff he’s done,” he said of his familiarity with Bluhm’s background. “I definitely did some YouTube research on him, listened to a few songs and I like his style. Simon says he’s a great picker and a great guy, so I figure those are all the criteria I need to know that it’s gonna be a fun night.”
– Josh Sweigert
- Tim Bluhm and the Preacher’s Pickers
When: 2 p.m. – 5:30 p.m., Saturday, Feb. 17
Where: Sierra Pub, Sierra-at-Tahoe Resort
Cover: free show
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Simon Kurth played at the lake last summer. He’ll be in the mountains Saturday.
Tim Parsons / Tahoe Onstage
