What is Pasture Pickin'?
For the sake of those who have stumbled onto this web site and have no idea what Pasture Pickin' is, it is a bi-annual gathering of musical friends in a pasture in Libby, Montana where, for two wonderful weeks, once each spring and again in the fall, hundreds people gather together to share their legacies of music and song. People from all over North America and Canada have been coming to this event for over a decade; motorhomes and trailers fill the entire meadow, at times. Even last summer, when the air throughout most of Montana was filled with huge billowing clouds of smoke from forest fires, still the people came, and sang and played night after night.
One thing Pasture Pickin' is not, is a music festival, because it is by invitation only, and freely given with no thought to making a profit or charging admission fees. What Pasture Pickin' is about is friendship, bound by a love of music of all kinds, and a deep and abiding respect for one another as human beings. When friends are sick, we pray. When it pours down rain or snow, we gather around the barrel stove in the barn and play all night long. When it turns unmercifully hot, we gather beneath the trees or simply wait until later in the day, then play all night long. Most of all, Pasture Pickin' is about friends, both old and new and the music itself.
If you've never been to Pasture Pickin' and would like to participate, ask your friends for an invitation, as it is by invitation only. If you don't know anyone who has ever attended, send an e-mail message to us at music@pasturepickin.com describing all the reasons why you want to attend.
Come as you are, stay as long as you like, but always be prepared to make new friends. For that is the heart of Pasture Pickin'.
Richard, Mary & Mark warm up for an active evening of music...
