CLEVELAND, Tenn. (May 17, 2009)—If you want the complete entertainment package, you don’t want to miss The VW Boys at the Friday, May 22, Evening Shade concert in downtown Cleveland.

“We’re offering lots of musical styles these season,” Kyle Elrod, Evening Shade co-chair, explained, “so you’re sure to enjoy something. The VW Boys are a complete variety show that audiences of all ages will enjoy.”

The VW Boys’ show is a unique blend of talent consisting of music, magic and comedy.

They perform a wide range of shows from Dollywood in Pigeon Forge to openings for comedic greats such as Jerry Clower and Don Knotts.

The VW Boys blend several different aspects of entertainment in their show. As banjo picker and singer Tim White says, “We entertain folks for an hour or so and help them forget their problems for a little while.”

A good portion of The VW Boys show is audience participation, and they have a way of going beyond the edge of the stage to really get an audience involved in the show.

Larry McPeak says, “We are as good as our audience, but we seem to always have great audiences!”

The VW Boys came together several years ago when musician Tim White and magician Dave Vaught worked together on a few shows. Vaught would do a magic show, and White’s band would follow Vaught’s show with a bluegrass concert. This worked so well they decided to combine the two shows.

After a few practice sessions, Vaught and White agreed they needed a bass player and a third part harmony vocal to make the show complete. They approached bluegrass veteran and songwriter Larry McPeak about the job, and he agreed immediately. McPeak’s contributions of great lead and tenor vocals give The VW Boys show a tremendous lift. He also has written many songs for the group, from the silly “Big Fat Earl” to serious heartwarming gospel tunes such as “Saved By the Blood.”

The show is good clean humor and music because The VW Boys pride themselves on keeping a professional show in front of every audience. As Vaught says, “The VW Boys have over 75 years of combined experience in showmanship between the three of us.”

The group is comprised of three exceptionally talented individuals. Tim White leads the band with his sparkling banjo work and vocals. Originally from Roanoke, Va., White has called Blountville, Tenn., home since 1974. A bluegrass musician for over 20 years, he picked banjo for Troublesome Hollow for many years and promoted Jim and Jesse’s Bluegrass Festival for five years in the early 1990s and co-founded the Birthplace of Country Music Alliance based in Bristol, Tenn.-Va., a non-profit organization promoting the Appalachian musical heritage.

A native of Wytheville, Va., Larry McPeak began playing music at an early age and has played bluegrass and bluegrass gospel professionally for over 30 years with his brothers. He is also a well-known songwriter. His songs have been recorded by some of the biggest names in bluegrass and country music, including the Seldom Scene, Country Gentleman and The Lonesome River Band. In 1996 the IBMA nominated the Pathway to Heaven album for its Gospel Recording of the Year. McPeak wrote eight of the 12 songs on that album.

As a recording artist, McPeak has recorded for RCA, Country, Rebel and Copper Creek. While playing the bluegrass circuit, he played such festivals as Bean Blossum, Jekyl Island, Myrtle Beach, Dahlonegha and Doyle Lawson’s festival in Denton, N.C. During this time, McPeak also toured England, Germany, Belgium and the Netherlands. When he is not playing a show somewhere, he enjoys playing traditional Appalachian string music.

Dave Vaught, who resides in Bristol, Tenn., has been a professional entertainer for 17 years. He has performed music and magic on cruise ships, in night clubs, convention centers, schools and colleges, and at fairs and festivals. Dave has made five television appearances, including HBO and Showtime. While Vaught is well known for his skills as a magician, he is also a fine guitar player with five albums to his credit. His musical career includes stints with Ronnie Millsap, Gary Morris, Sylvia, Jerry Reed and Charlie Pride.

Vaught contributes a lot to The VW Boys with his skills as lead guitar player, harmony singer, drummer, comedian and magician. In his spare time, he performs with The Magic of Dave Vaught and Company.

Together The VW Boys have performed at The Smithsonian Folklife Festival, Washington DC; Dollywood, Pigeon Forge; Kennedy Center, Washington DC; Groundhog Festival, Punxatawney, Penn.; Doc Watson Days, Sugar Grove, N.C.; Lonesome River Band Festival, Spirit of the Sewanee, Fla.; Mayberry Days, Mount Airy, N.C.; Paramount Center for the Arts,  Bristol, Tenn.-Va.; Capital Theatre - Greeneville, Tenn.; International Bluegrass Music Association, Louisville, Ky.; Thomasville Cultural Arts Center, Thomasville, Ga., Carter Family Fold, Hiltons, Va.; PBS “Song of the Mountains” show from the Lincoln Theatre in Marion, Va; and Ford Theatre at the Country Music Hall of Fame in Nashville.

Mix 104.1-WCLE will broadcast live from Johnston Park Friday night from 6 to 7 p.m.

Evening Shade is a program of the Allied Arts Council of the Cleveland/Bradley Chamber of Commerce. This annual concert series is funded in part by local sponsors and under an agreement with the Tennessee Arts Commission. Local sponsors for The VW Boys’ concert are Ed Jacobs & Associates Inc./Northwestern Mutual, Ed Jacobs.

Each of the five Friday-night concerts begins at 6:30 p.m. In the event of inclement weather, the concerts will move to Arnold Elementary School.

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