Eryn Eubanks and The Family Fold

There are 2 things you will probably never see teenage musician Eryn Eubanks without: an instrument and her hat. In fact, it's not quite certain what would happen if she removed it from her head. There has been some speculation that it's never actually been done before --- well, at least not since she was a wee lass of 7 and her dad bought the first hat from a local second-hand shop. When she left public school as a 6th grader for the wild world of homeschooling, she decided to wear it every day. It has gone through several incarnations as she's worn them out, but she always keeps the old ones, she said.

What you will see Eryn doing is playing with her band the Family Fold, which her parents are a part of. They play bluegrass, and can be found at the Metro Coffeehouse on Saturday afternoons.

ON DRIVING:
"I drive in a golf cart at a friend's place. I've driven once around Regency Mall parking lot but I didn't care anything about it."

ON HER DREAM CAR, WHICH IS NOW THE FAMILY CAR:
"It's a Nissan Altima 2005. Dad's going to teach me how to drive, but right now I'm in no rush to do it. I got mine in white, which is my favorite color. My grandmother has one and it's lasted her over 10 years."

ON HER DRIVING AMBITION:
"What's always driven me, even before I was ever a musician, or before I was even a preacher, was to know that God loved me. He loved me enough to send His Son and take away all my sins. When He saved my soul He called me to be an ambassador for Him. That's what drives me."

ON MUSIC AND HER PARENTS:
"Yeah, I think in a way, with my music I probably lean more toward my dad's taste. She (her mother) goes out a little further than me in some styles. And she doesn't love Elvis. Dad and I, we love Elvis."

ON HATS AND OTHER ERYN MEMORABILIA:
"I keep all of them (hats) even after they get worn out. There's this white chest of drawers upstairs, and I have the first hat in there. If, for some reason, I was to get known all over the world I'll have the perfect items for eBay."

ON BECOMING LICENSED TO PREACH:
"It was June 27 when I started and that really came about without any plans. I always remember when I first started playing music I didn't hardly say anything to the crowd. Then I went on (stage) and talked about Jesus. That led to preaching. (My church) could tell I was anointed by the Holy Spirit to preach, and said they'd like to set me forth into the ministry. So after that we just set a date and that was all I could talk about. I got this really neat certificate. It's now framed up and hanging in my art studio."

ON HAVING FRIENDS OF ALL AGES:
"It's really great because I can be of help to all people whether they're older than me or younger than me. I've learned a lot of great lessons. I don't make them feel old. They don't have to hear about health problems and medicine when I come around."

ON MINISTRY:
"Ministry isn't just getting up and preaching on Sundays. It's demonstrating God's love to others. That's all you need. He'll be the driving force for you. I've stood behind that 17 years and I hope to do that my whole life. If I had to say what God wants for me --- I know in general what He wants --- I know He wants me to keep this ministry going...If I follow the Lord, I know He'll put me in the right place."

- Sass Magazine, June 2005, Rhonda Jones

ryn Eubanks performs at Bible Deliverance Temple on Fenwick Street in Augusta. In addition to playing in the band, she preaches every second Sunday during the bluegrass service.
Michael Holahan/Staff
Teen's devotion to God to result in affirmation

Web posted Friday, January 21, 2005
By Virginia Norton | Staff Writer
As Eryn Eubanks, of the Family Fold, gained skills singing and playing, she also has grown more at ease pausing her hands on her instrument and sharing her faith at secular or sacred venues.

Eryn, who writes songs and plays 12 musical instruments, has become accustomed to talking about her faith.
Michael Holahan/Staff
It hasn't gone unnoticed. The pastors and members of her Harrisburg-area church, Bible Deliverance Temple, will affirm the 16-year-old's call to preach in a setting-forth service at 11 a.m. Sunday, at the church, 1857 Fenwick St.

Eryn will preach at the 6 p.m. service. The evening worship will be modeled after the church's early-morning bluegrass service, right down to the serving of breakfast foods.

As a minister for her congregation, she will help the other ministers do the work of Bible Deliverance under the senior pastor's guidance.

Dr. H. Kelly McKnight, the son of the church's founder and now its senior pastor, said that although Eryn will have the legal right to officiate at a wedding, he would want to sign off on it because of her age.

"If I can glorify God with my word and point somebody toward him, I believe he is pleased," said Eryn.

She already has had the opportunity to address a congregation in another denomination.

"They would say that I 'spoke,'" she said. "A lot don't believe in women preaching. But I have never had anyone disrespect me over it."

Eryn, who plays 12 instruments, regularly preaches on the second Sunday of the month at the bluegrass service. She prepares her sermons during the week.

"I don't rack my brain over it. Some topic will come, something I have written about or something new," said Eryn, who is a home-schooled junior. She will turn 17 in April.

She outlines a sermon's main points and uses them as a guide.

"I like to do ad-lib. People like you to speak to them like a friend and not read things off to them," she said. "And I like to leave room for the spirit of God to say something new."

She sometimes elaborates on the sermons, then posts them as devotionals on her Web site, www.eryneubanks.com.

The bluegrass service at Bible Deliverance got its start after Eryn's parents suggested the idea to the pastor. They wanted something that would attract the same people who came to their performances and those who might otherwise not go to church.

From 50 to 70 people gather for coffee, baked goods and sausage at about 8 a.m. on Sundays. Behind the band is a mural of Jesus beseeching heaven in the Garden of Gethsemane.

Instead of pews, people sit at lunchroom tables. If they are still eating when Eryn and the other musicians begin to play, it doesn't matter; they play anyway. At about 9:30 a.m., Eryn or another minister will send them home with a word of encouragement.

When Eryn first started performing, she didn't speak much, but as she has gotten older she has grown less shy and more talkative, and her talk is about the Lord, she said.

She offered to preach if they needed a substitute for the bluegrass service. After hearing her, the pastor told her she should preach about once a month, which she does.

Other people also affirmed her. One church member told her that "you are called to preach. When you go out and perform or at the church, just give them the Word of God."

The same person had similar words of encouragement decades ago for the church's founder, H.K. McKnight, when he was still an evangelist, according to Eryn.

"She knew what she was talking about," said Eryn, who hopes to graduate this year, then go to a Bible college. "I want to continue to help our church and preach here."


Reach Virginia Norton at 823-3336 or virginia.norton@augustachronicle.com.

Eryn will be affirmed to preach Sunday at the church. This will give her the legal right to officiate at a wedding.

If you go

Who: Eryn Eubanks

Where: Bible Deliverance Temple, 1857 Fenwick St.

When: Setting-forth, 11 a.m.; sermon 6 p.m. Sunday

Phone: 736-1600



--From the Saturday, January 22, 2005 printed edition of the Augusta Chronicle






- Augsuta Chronicle Jan 21, 2005- Virginia Norton

Article By: Andy Stokes
(November 11-17, 2004)


The 12 Bands Of Christmas, Volume Two

****************

Eryn Eubanks & The Family Fold - "They Could Have Had His Room"

Amazingly, Eubanks' delicate voice is the sonic centerpiece of this Celtic-tinged bluegrass original. Every element of the track, including instrumentation, arrangement, and even production, converge to hearken the Chieftains' excellent "Plank Road" sessions.



- The Metro Spirit-Andy Stokes

Eryn Eubanks & The Family Fold
Excerpts From Augusta Magazine's "Best Of" Issue





October 2004

****************
FEMALE VOCALIST...
Readers checked out Eryn Eubanks & The Family Fold and they liked what they saw. And heard. Tu Tu Devine (in second), Shelly Watkins and Tara Scheyer (tied in third) vie for Augusta idol status and come up just short.

****************
BLUEGRASS BAND...
While readers were pickin' and grinnin' in this category, they picked Savannah River Grass, and now the grinnin' is everywhere. Eryn Eubanks & The Family Fold come onstage to accept the second-place trophy, followed by Solid Ground.

****************
CHRISTIAN/GOSPEL BAND...
In the vernacular of 2004, this category essentially boils down to, "What would Jesus listen to?" Readers suggest it might very well be Eryn Eubanks & The Family Fold in His iPod. Second place goes to Darlene & The Amicks. Solid Ground picks up another third-place award.

****************
PERFORMING ARTIST...
Here's another one for Eryn Eubanks. Her personal medal count continues to climb with about every other category. The guys take a back seat to Eryn: that's Russell Joel Brown and Patrick Blanchard, Jr. back there, dead-locked in second place.


- Augusta Magazine "Best Of" Issue

When Eryn Eubanks & The Family Fold entertain, their audience ranges from toddlers to teens, boomers to seniors, and everyone in-between. In that mixed group of music lovers, smiles abound, feet are tapping the floor, hands are keeping time on table tops, and applause is plentiful. It's an opportunity to sit back and enjoy a variety of just plain pleasing music. Even when all the chairs are taken, people are more than willing to stand to hear this quality entertainment group. And there is no admission charge!
Bluegrass, newgrass, gospel, celtic, and Apollon music have earned the group a reputation and an increasing number of fans over the past two years. They even accommodated my husband's request for a Johnny cash country ballad the first time we caught their performance at Borders Books and Music.
Eryn Eubanks is the lead vocalist and plays the mandolin, resonator mandolin, multiple guitars, mountain dulcimer, dobro, clawhammer banjo, arco upright bass, and fiddle.
Her mother, Ricie, harmonizes on vocals and adds her classical training on upright bass, flute, and tin whistle. Her father, Patrick, adds percussion with the cajon, mountain drum, Turkish dumbeck, bodhran, cymbals, bar chimes, washboard, spoons, and castanets.
Jim Jewell, a mere 76 years of age, and Mike Merrit add their guitar skills to round out the group. It takes a van load of equipment and instruments to set the stage for each performance and load it all up when it's over. There's a rhythm to that job as smooth as the performances. Other local musicians join them when schedules allow.
I have to warn you, this group can become an addictive habit once you are exposed to their skillful instrumental maneuverings and soothing vocalizations.
For a memorable experience, be sure to visit with and enjoy this group at one of the following locations and times.

SATURDAYS: Metro Coffeehouse, 1054 Broad Street, 2:30 - 5:30 P.M.

SUNDAYS: Bible Deliverance Temple, Eve & Fenwick Street, 8:30 - 9:30 A.M. Free breakfast served.

THIRD FRIDAYS: Borders Books & Music, 8 P.M. - 10 P.M. (every month).

FIRST FRIDAYS: (Every month, weather permitting) Antique Emporium, 11th & Broad.

SATURDAYS: Farmer's Market Downtown Augusta (beginning in May).

For additional information visit their website: www.eryneubanks.com. - The Senior News - 3/2004 - Marj Poffenbarger

Eryn Eubanks will turn 16 in April. A large number of teens today focus on beauty, fashion, and being part of a group. Eryn's multiple musical talents and professional manner are focused on what she considers her ministry. With a black tam on her long blonde hair, a sparkle in her eyes, and a shy smile, she introduces her music partners, announces the numbers, switches instruments, and leads the vocals as smoothly as she performs. In addition to a busy schedule performing, she is writing songs.
Eryn began playing musical instruments when she was nine. The upright bass was larger than she was, but only led to broadening her skills on many more instruments. She is home schooled and at the 10th grade level. When asked about interaction with her peers, she replied, "I keep busy with people of all ages!"
"We don't just play music. It's not just a performance. It's an opportunity to share the love of Jesus Christ. It's more than just sharing the Good News. It's to make God known. I want to keep my music as a ministry and touch as many lives as possible for God," she said.
Eryn was recently surprised to find someone had entered her name in a web contest of Augusta musicians. She was chosen Favorite Female Musician of Augusta.
The Eubanks Family Fold Ministry is looking for a building in downtown Augusta to broaden their outreach. For additional information you may contact them at their website www.eryneubanks.com.

- The Senior News - 3/2004 - Marj Poffenbarger

"I seen the wreck on the highway, but I didn't see nobody pray..."
(Wreck On The Highway)

It's a plaintive ballad of sin and despair, of an ill-lived life and death without redemption and it's being sung with a wrenching purity by a mournful voice who has lived too much in the world, whose weary heart is anguished because others have not yet seen the Truth.
The ageless voice is not coming from a worldly-wise troubadour, but from fresh-faced, 15-year-old musical phenom Eryn Eubanks. On a recent Saturday afternoon, Eubanks delighted the crowd at Metro A Coffeehouse on Broad Street with a three-hour performance of bluegrass standards. Afterwards, sitting at a street-side table, she brushes back her long, light brown hair, which flows from beneath her ubiquitous beret, and discusses her affection for music - bluegrass music in particular.
"Hanging out with my grandmother and her friends, they're like 70 years old, and I heard them play the old music," she explains. "So I liked it and started playing it myself. It's just what I feel is most a part of me...something that just moves me inside and makes me want to play it."
And she plays from the depths of her soul, although, having been formally trained she could just as easily play it from sheet music...of course, it wouldn't be the same.
"I started guitar at the age of 11," she says, "mandolin at 12, singing at 13, and then the other instruments kind of got thrown in there."
The "other instruments" include just about anything to which you can tie a string: mountain dulcimer, resonator guitar, Dobro, fiddle, clawhammer banjo, up-right bass, bass guitar, and bouzouki. In fact, during her performance at the Metro Coffeehouse, she frequently switched instruments with the other members of her trio, who also happen to be her parents: Patrick Eubanks, percussion, and Ricie Eubanks, string bass. (And just how cool must it be to have a mother who plays string bass?) Together they perform as Eryn Eubanks & The Family Fold. Like so many other musical families, much of their music centers on their church. They play every Sunday at the 8:30 A.M. service at Bible Deliverance Temple and she sees the very act of performing as her personal spiritual calling.
"I consider my music a ministry for Him," she explains. "The Lord has given me that gift and I want to use it for Him."
And it's that conviction, that sense of knowing the Truth, you hear in Eubanks' voice as she sings the final lines.

"It'll be too late if tomorrow, if you fall in a wreck by the way, and you don't hear nobody pray."

It's the Truth sung by a voice much wiser than its years.

- The Augusta Magazine Jan 2004 - Rich Everitt

f Eryn Eubanks has a date book, the pages must be pretty full. The 14-year-old is lucky enough to have four different weekly gigs and a slew of other performances constantly lined up.
"It's something that you don't get to experience in public school," says Eubanks, who is home-schooled and says she loves it.
Public school also wouldn't give her the chance to play the variety of instruments that she does. In addition to playing the mandolin - her instrument of choice - Eubanks also lists electric bass, upright bass, acoustic and electric guitar and mountain dulcimer in her repertoire. "I just started playing fiddle," she says. And add the Dobro to Eubanks' catalogue as well. "It's like an acoustic version of a steel guitar," Eubanks explains.
What is it about stringed instruments that draws Eubanks to them? "They're so versatile," she says. "You can make them cry, or you can make them be really happy."
Just like her instruments, Eubanks herself is versatile, performing across genres, from gospel to bluegrass - even Irish music. Sunday mornings are reserved for the 8:30 A.M. service at Bible Deliverance Temple, where Eubanks and her group, Eubanks Family Fold, perform. On Sunday afternoons, you can find Eubanks at the Riverwalk, along with other area musicians, for the 2 P.M. Augusta Acoustic Music Jam. Tuesday night is Irish music night at the Metro Coffeehouse, where Eubanks jams with the Irish session band. And she's back at the Metro Saturday afternoons, for a 2 P.M. acoustic music and bluegrass session.
Eubanks Family Fold is comprised of Eryn, her father Patrick Eubanks, who takes care of percussion, and her mother Ricie Eubanks, who provides bass, flute, and harmony vocals.
"I'm very good friends with my parents," Eubanks says. "They're a big help and an inspiration. We're good friends. I'm close to my grandparents and my great-grandpa."
And, growing up in such a talented family, she says, "Music has always been around."
At 9 years old, Eubanks started out by playing bass guitar, before progressing to upright bass with the Richmond County Orchestra and The Greater Augusta Youth Orchestra. On a trip through Nashville when Eubanks was 12, her dad bought her a Gibson mandolin. "I've been playing it ever since," she says. And while, with a range of instruments to choose from, it's hard to narrow down her focus, Eubanks says, "You do kind of have to choose one. I chose mandolin."
Did we mention Eubanks sings and write songs, as well? "I've been writing poetry since I was 7," she says. "But I'd never really played them. I've been writing instrumental tunes."
The personal aspect of singing a self-written tune may be nerve-wracking, but the payoff is worth it, Eubanks says. "Singing, I think that's the way you can connect most to a person."
For Eubanks, music is about connection, especially on the spiritual level. After college, she plans on continuing to play and to use her music as a ministry - but she's already using her talents for good. Last Saturday, Eubanks Family Fold was part of the Strings Of Hope Benefit Concert. Strings Of Hope is a local organization that provides musical entertainment to those in nursing homes and hospitals, as well as shut-ins. "It makes you realize how blessed you are," Eubanks says. "It's a good feeling that you helped make their day bright."
But for now, Eubanks' plate is full. Along with her weekly performances, she's scheduled to perform Dec. 14 with Darlene & The Amicks at Mom's Country Kitchen on Gordon Highway, Dec. 19 with Tara Scheyer, and Jan. 18-19 at the Fourth Annual Mistletoe State Park Dulcimer Festival. Eubanks has also done some recording projects, with Eubanks Family Fold and The Amicks, as well as recording a recent live performance with Tara Scheyer.
"It can kind of make you nervous," Eubanks says, "but it was fun. You capture the spirit of performing for a live audience. It's a wonderful piece of performance history."


- Metropoitan Spirit 12/02 - Lisa Jordan

Bluegrass family to play for charity before game
By Virginia Norton| Staff Writer
Thursday, August 03, 2006

Augusta GreenJackets fans can catch an hour of bluegrass harmony from Eryn Eubanks and the Family Fold before Friday's game with the Hagerstown Suns at Lake Olmstead Stadium.



File/Staff
Eryn Eubanks (left) and her mother, Ricie Eubanks, performed in Wyoming, Mrs. Eubanks' home state, last week.
Click photo for options

Ms. Eubanks performed last weekend at the Beartrap Summer Music Festival in Casper, Wyo. Marty Stuart and Mountain Heart were the headliners for the two-day event, which drew about 5,000.

"That's our kind of music," said Miss Eubanks, 18.

Ricie Eubanks, who plays upright bass and sings with her daughter in the Fold, is from Jackson Hole, Wyo. So the trip was part road tour, part getting-in-touch-with-your-roots.

The last time Miss Eubanks visited relatives there was about six years ago, but they tell her they can hear her on the radio, she said.

Her father, Patrick Eubanks, plays percussions on the group's CDs.

"He is getting kind of famous around here (Augusta) playing on the wooden box," she said.

Reach Virginia Norton at (706) 823-3336 or virginia.norton@augustachronicle.com.


IN THE PINK

WHAT: Eryn Eubanks and the Family Fold; Breast Cancer Awareness Night; Augusta GreenJackets vs. Hagerstown Suns; first 500 fans will get 2006 GreenJackets team cards

WHEN: 6 p.m. Friday; game at 7 p.m.

WHERE: Lake Olmstead Stadium, 78 Milledge Road

COST: $6-7 general admission; $5 for seniors/military/children age 4-12 and $1 for ages 3 and younger

SILENT AUCTION: Fans can bid for autographed pink jerseys worn by GreenJackets.

ONLINE: www.eryneubanks.com

LISTEN UP: Eryn Eubanks and the Family Fold's If That Don't Make You Wanna Go, from the CD Hope. [MP3 format]


- Augsuta Chronicle

Eryn Eubanks & The Family Fold
Metro Spirit: Have Mandolin, Will Travel (7/27/06)



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article by: Andy Stokes


Keeping the Faith...Eryn Eubanks takes her mandolin cross-country, continues the mission at home...

It’s looked like rain every afternoon for days now, and the combination of the muggy air and threatening skies are keeping Broad Street pretty desolate on Saturday. It’s a stretch to imagine much going on inside the buildings, despite the cluster of cars surrounding the Metro Coffeehouse.

But it’s about 4 p.m. and the heat is bearing down with an intensity that discourages anything outdoors, so you look inside, where most of Augusta is, silently extolling air-conditioning as the greatest accomplishment of mankind.

Opening the nine-foot door of the Metro, a firestorm of life and sound leaps out. A young, female mandolin player sits near the door, leading her four band mates and about 40 enthused listeners through what they’d all describe as stringed bliss.

Eryn Eubanks is the one centered with the mandolin. She’s flanked by a duo of veteran flatpickers (Jim Jewell and Mike Merritt) on one side, and her mother, Ricie, on upright bass, plus father Patrick on various old-world percussive pieces on the other.

The quintet is sailing through gospel number after folk standard, intertwining Eryn’s own originals into the set. Given that she’s only 18, it’s surprising that her songs are almost indistinguishable in nature from the century-old standards the band has just played. It’s a clear indication that she gets it.

In turn, the eager crowd seems to be getting her playing. Every measure is met with a hoop or holler, and often several. Revealing grins all around, some listeners even wear pale yellow shirts with Eryn’s likeness plastered across the front. One of these outright fans is Don Duarte — “Standup Don,” they call him — leaning against the bar, only averting his attention from the music to shake an occasional hand. Like many of those here, he stumbled onto Eryn Eubanks and the Family Fold by apparent coincidence.

“As I walked in, I thought, ‘I’ll get a coffee and leave,’” says Duarte. “But I stuck around and bought a couple of CDs and they stayed in my player for three weeks. She’s an amazing musician.”

In the five-plus years the Eubanks have been playing regular Saturday gigs (from 2:30-5 p.m.) at the Metro, this has been the method of earning attention. Just play, and catch ‘em as they come in. Make fans of passersby when they least expect it. It seems to be working.

What started when Eryn was 12 and was supposed to be an open jam session has quickly morphed into an area standby where everyone in the building gets swept into an overwhelming sense of communal joy.

“The way people act like they’re touched and uplifted by it, that means a lot to us,” Eryn says. “But when we go out and perform, we don’t just want to go out and play music and say we sounded great. The way that I minister to people when I can’t say much, I can sing a gospel song.

“And to think, not only were they entertained, but they were able to take something away that day that can help them for the rest of their life.”

An ordained minister who leads her own Sunday service, Eryn has strong ties braided in her Christian faith and musical development. So when she was recently invited to join the bill at the Beartrap Summer Music Festival in Casper, Wyo. — a long-running nationally-recognized folk arts and music festival 1,800 miles away — she saw it as not just a chance to make a musical step forward, but a spiritual one as well.

“To be honest, it was kind of scary at first,” Eryn admits. Seeing her name on the festival’s website for the first time, alongside headliner Marty Stuart and performer Mountain Heart, must have been intimidating.

“I started out going, ‘Lord, please help us to do a good job when we go out there.’ But the more I thought about it, I thought: ‘This is something I want to do for the rest of my life, and it’s like a new level.’”

Clear Channel Radio in Casper organizes Beartrap each year. Previous headliners have included heavyweights like Earl Scruggs and Ricky Skaggs. When Eryn’s grandparents (who live in the Casper area and are heavily involved with local arts alliance Artcore) got a copy of Eryn’s CD to Clear Channel, it was an automatic decision.

“We have always made an attempt to pack our lineup with exciting, young talent,” says Bob Price, market manager for Clear Channel Radio in Casper. “Our talent coordinators watch videos and listen to numerous CDs all year long, and when Eryn’s fell in our hands, it was a no-brainer — and no one looks prettier in a beret than Eryn.”

In addition, Artcore enlisted several other facets of Eryn’s creative gift while she’s out West. She’ll be displaying some of her paintings and taking part in a poetry rea - Metro Spirit