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The Hudson Family Band really enjoys performing a mixed variety of good quality music. The're not your "run-of-the-mill" Bluegrass band or Country band: they actually play and sing songs from both styles while incorporating their own style into each performance. They play and sing a mixture of Country, Bluegrass, Gospel, Classic Rock, even a little Pop. They especially enjoy playing Western Swing and other up-tempo songs. They always enjoy performing and competing at Bluegrass Festivals and other community events. They'll even travel greater distances in order to touch a wider audience with their unique style and sound. They are not on a record label as of yet, but they hope there will be one to come along sometime soon that will both record and promote them, along with their varying genres of music. They do not have very much original material right now as they have been concentrating more on their growing "studio" sound quality while performing. But if there is anyone reading this that feels that they have a song that would be suitable for The Hudson Family Band, then please send a message to contact@hudsonfamilyband.com to let them know. Also, if you have a need for great quality entertainment, The Hudson Family Band is the one to call.

The Hudson Family Band (a dad, mom, their eight children and grandma) is essentially two 5-piece bands compiled into one group. When performing a full-show, they have two sets and a mid-time. The first set incorporates the keyboard, electric guitar, rhythm guitar, electric bass and drums, and includes the following styles: Country, Western Swing, Pop, Light Jazz and Soft Rock. Mid-time includes Folk and Traditional Gospel songs performed by Grandma and the girls. The second set incorporates the banjo, mandolin, fiddle, acoustic guitar, electric bass or bass fiddle, and includes the following styles: Traditional Bluegrass, Contemporary Bluegrass & Old-Time.

You may hear them start a show with Bob Wills’ “Roly Poly” and end it with Bill Monroe’s “Get up John”. They might go from Johnny Lee’s “Looking for Love” to the Everly Brothers’ “Devoted to You”. They could do the Osborne Brothers’ “Rocky Top Tennessee” and the Carpenters’ “Sweet, Sweet Smile” during the same performance. You’ll hear Seth sing George Strait’s “The Chair” and then Patrick and Caleb will take off on Glenn Miller’s “In the Mood”. Many times they will perform a patriotic medley prior to playing and singing several Gospel songs. It’s just a unique variety of good quality music that is appealing to many people of very diverse backgrounds and interests in music- and it’s all coming from one group: the Hudson Family Band.

Band History
The Hudson Family Band started playing publicly on January 1, 1997 at Meadow Haven Rehab & Specialty Care Center in Rock Hill, South Carolina. At that time, they were only a 3-piece band: Bill played the electric bass, Patrick played a 5-octave keyboard, and Seth played a snare-drum & hi-hat. Their program consisted mostly of instrumental songs that Floyd Cramer, the great country pianist, had made popular. Then they would switch around a little, and Bill would play the banjo, Patrick would play the rhythm guitar, and Seth would play the electric bass. This part of the show consisted mostly of bluegrass tunes made popular by Earl Scruggs, the greatest banjoist of all time. For the last part of the show, Caleb and Jared would play harmonicas, while Martha and Emily sang a few folk songs- It would always bring a smile to the face of those residents to see and hear the children playing and singing. They continued playing there once-a-month for about two years.

The first bluegrass / acoustic show the Hudson Family Band did was in March 1998 at ‘Live at Leatherwood’s Old Time Opry’ in Shelby, North Carolina. It was an unscheduled performance – they were just dropping by to listen and possibly jam some. But, in appreciation to Steve Leatherwood and Vern Berry, they made it to the stage. That first “unrehearsed” bluegrass performance opened the door for the Hudson Family Band into a music scene they had only been vaguely familiar with. Since that night, they have performed in quite a few strictly bluegrass concerts, festivals and competitions. The Hudson Family Band has placed in the following competitions: Ellenboro Fiddler’s & Bluegrass Convention- Fourth Band 2001, First Band 2002 and First Band 2004; Fiddler’s Grove Ole Time Fiddlers and Bluegrass Festival- Second Band 2003.

On April 25, 1998, the Hudson Family Band started performing at the Cracker Barrel Old Country Store 160 in Rock Hill, South Carolina. By that time Patrick had moved up to a full-size electronic piano, and Seth was playing a 6-piece drum-set. For the bluegrass portion of the show, Seth had learned to play the banjo, Caleb was coming right along on the mandolin, and Jared was developing his own technique on the wash-tub bass. The band has performed there every year since then on Saturday evenings entertaining guests from across the country, as well as a number of regular listeners. They set up their equipment along the front porch of the restaurant and entertain the folks sitting in rocking chairs and lawn chairs. In addition to the Rock Hill location, the Hudson Family Band has also performed at the following Cracker Barrel Old Country Stores: Gaffney, South Carolina store 356 in 1998; Lebanon, Tennessee store 2 in 2000; Nashville, Tennessee store 13 in 2003; Concord, North Carolina store 249 in 2005. The Hudson Family Band continued playing regularly at the Cracker Barrel Old Country Store 160 in Rock Hill, South Carolina on Saturday evenings April through October for ten years (1998 - 2007). They're now performing for other venues and functions. Please stay informed to the postings of their upcoming shows.