“Well, it’s Groundhog Day! Again!” (Phil Connors)
Okay, so we’re a few weeks away yet from the official Groundhog Day, but hear me out… Just twelve months ago, Team GDW hit the road on the second Saturday of the new year to head down to Harrisonburg, VA. Here in 2026 – Ditto! Just twelve months ago, our destination was Pale Fire Brewing Company for an evening of live music. Here in 2026 – Ditto again! And should we add that the band performing that night was indie-folk duo The Honey Dewdrops? Here in 2026 – Ditto once more! Same weekend, same city, same venue, same band – yet twelve months apart. You can’t make this stuff up – well, it’s Groundhog Day! Again!
All similarities aside, for this wife/husband duo of Laura Wortman (guitar/banjo/vocals) and Kagey Parrish (guitar(s)/vocals), the city of Baltimore, MD is no longer their place of residence – following a recent social media announcement about relocating back to their home state at the end of last year. “We’re grateful to be starting a new chapter in Staunton,” they shared in that post. “Virginia has been calling us home for a few years now and we’re delighted to be near the Blue Ridge and Allegheny mountains and our families once again.” Kicking off their 2026 performance schedule at Pale Fire Brewing Company, they would add in a subsequent post, “We can’t wait to return to the tap room as valley locals.” And with this slight deviation from last year, no more Groundhog Day references are warranted. Phil Connors has (finally) left the building.
Performing two sets over the course of a Saturday night to a packed house, the duo would not only take us on a guided tour of their musical catalogue, but opted to open by digging deep into their archives to deliver an electrified version of “Nobody in this World,” a track tucked away on their 2010 “These Old Roots” album – one followed in quick succession by the lively and up-tempo “She Wanted Me,” from their most recent “Here In The Mountains” release.
“How are you all doing tonight,” Laura asked, following the tune. “Oh man, I’m just taking it in. We’re officially Virginia residents these days. We moved into the Staunton community back in December. I know we’ve come here every January I think since a little bit before the pandemic and we’ve often said that Harrisonburg and the valley feels like a second home to us, so it’s really nice to be back here this year and we only had to drive half an hour instead of three.”
Following the title track from their latest album, both Kagey and Laura would take turns talking about mountain life while switching and tuning their instruments – Kagey taking the acoustic guitar from Laura, who in turn reached for her banjo. The duo would share “Silver Lining,” with Kagey addressing the room while Laura retuned her instrument for the next song. “We’re gonna do a banjo tune for you. It’s a very Honey Dewdrops kind of banjo tune. Very slow, very meditative,” Kagey offered. “I love telling good banjo jokes, but it doesn’t apply to Laura’s playing, it’s not fair.” “Well?” asked an audience member. “Tell them anyway? You really want to hear my favorite banjo joke?” Kagey responded. “What’s the difference between a banjo player and a mutual fund? A mutual fund eventually matures and makes money.”
Reminiscing on how wonderful it felt to share a cover of “Long December” as a prelude to the welcoming of spring in this room last year, Laura was eager to repeat the exercise, this time delivering the popular Counting Crows tune as their first cover of the evening. Returning for their second set following a brief intermission, a few more covers were woven into the show, including Kagey’s electrified version of Hank’s “Ramblin’ Man,” and a surprising (and charming) interpretation of Lennon & McCartney’s “In This Life.”
Adding in what I would consider my two favorite tracks by this duo – “Loneliest Songs” and “Holy Hymn” during their second set, The Honey Dewdrops would close with “Friendship,” a popular Chris Stapleton cover. Taking their bows, the duo would almost leave the stage before Laura announced that they could do one more song. And while deciding on the direction they wanted to take, clearly the message from that closing number provided some inspiration – prompting them to invite their good friend (and occasional Baltimore-based bandmate) Caleb Stine to join them for this encore. With Caleb accepting Laura’s acoustic guitar, and Laura returning to her banjo, the trio would send the audience home with a slow and steady performance of “Cigarette Machine,” followed immediately by a lively interpretation of “The Streets of Baltimore.”
Just as they did twelve months ago, The Honey Dewdrops provided a wonderful evening of entertainment. Laura and Kagey would thank everyone for coming out this Saturday night and hinted of their desire to kick off the music calendar at Pale Fire Brewing Company for 2027. Hey, we don’t need to share that news with Phil Connors – let him go chase Groundhogs on his own dime.
Set List:
- Nobody In This World
- She Wanted Me
- More Than You Should Say
- Here In the Mountains
- Silver Lining
- Remington
- Moon Pies
- Same Old
- Long December (Counting Crows cover)
- In My Life (The Beatles cover)
- Loneliest Songs
- Ramblin’ Man (Hank Williams cover)
- Garden
- ***Unknown Title***
- Welcome To the Club
- You Know It Ain’t Friendly
- Holy Hymn
- Friendship (Chris Stapleton cover)
Encore:
- Cigarette Machine (ft. Caleb Stine) (Fred Eaglesmith cover)
- The Streets of Baltimore (ft. Caleb Stine) (Bobby Bare cover)
The British guy that crossed the ocean and crash landed in central Pennsylvania (to quote Greg Keelor, “And I wonder what am I doing here?”). As the youngest of four siblings, exposure to music from a very early age nurtured my passion and appreciation for many musical genres. Continuing to discover some amazingly diverse and talented musicians based in Canada, I gravitate to live music experiences and remain devoted to spreading the word about such a vibrant music scene.
