KASU Bluegrass Monday to Feature Donna Ulisse, Poor Mountain Boys
JONESBORO — Donna Ulisse and the Poor Mountain Boys will perform a concert of bluegrass music on Monday, Feb. 22, at 7 p.m. at the Collins Theatre, 120 West Emerson Street, in downtown Paragould. The concert is part of the Bluegrass Monday concert series presented by KASU 91.9 FM, the public broadcasting service of Arkansas State University.
Ulisse is an acclaimed singer-songwriter, having been nominated on multiple occasions for “Songwriter of the Year” awards given by the International Bluegrass Music Association and the Society for the Preservation of Bluegrass Music in America.
She was born into a musical family in Virginia and grew up surrounded by the traditional music that was prevalent in her home state. In the 1980s, Ulisse was an in-demand vocalist in Nashville for demo recordings and singing background vocals. In 1991, she released a critically acclaimed country music CD for Atlantic Records.
Later in the 1990s, Ulisse focused her attention on songwriting, and her songs were well received in the bluegrass music community. Response to her songs led to recording her first CD of bluegrass music in 2007. She has since recorded seven additional bluegrass music CDs, primarily featuring her own songs.
Numerous bluegrass artists including Del McCoury, Claire Lynch, the Bankesters, Nu-Blu, and Darrin and Brooke Aldridge have recorded Ulisse’s songs.
Ulisse is married to Rick Stanley, a cousin to bluegrass legends Dr. Ralph Stanley and Carter Stanley. Rick Stanley leads Ulisse’s band, the Poor Mountain Boys. Ulisse and her band perform at bluegrass festivals and venues throughout the country, and they have appeared multiple times on TV and radio programs.
More details about Ulisse and her music, including videos of past performances, are available at www.donnaulisse.com.
Seating at the concert is first-come, first-served. KASU will literally “pass the hat” to collect money to pay the group. The suggested donation is $5 per person. Doors to the theatre will open at 6 p.m.
In addition to the concert, Terry’s Café, 201 South Pruett Street in Paragould, opens on Bluegrass Monday nights to welcome bluegrass music fans. The café serves a catfish buffet meal beginning at 4:30 p.m. on the evenings of Bluegrass Monday concerts. Concessions are also available at the Collins Theatre.
Bluegrass Monday concerts are held on the fourth Monday night of each month. These concerts are presented with support from Bibb Chiropractic, the Posey Peddler, Holiday Inn Express and Suites of Paragould, the Northeast Arkansas Bluegrass Association and KASU.
KASU, 91.9 FM, is the 100,000-watt public broadcasting service of Arkansas State University in Jonesboro. For more information, contact KASU Program Director Marty Scarbrough at mscarbro@astate.edu or (870) 972-2367. Bluegrass Monday is also on Facebook (search “Bluegrass Monday”).
