Mossy Creek, from Chico, California, was formed in July, 2003. The band’s three and four part harmonies and arrangements are the cornerstone of its appeal.
Mossy Creek is centered on the vocal talents of Erin Haley, whose performances in local theater and her educational background at New York City’s American Music and Dramatic Academy brought her to the attention of local musicians.
Kim Gimbal, Dean Mott and Pat Haley have played in area bands for many years and are versatile musicians and vocalists. They collaborate on the band’s song selections and arrangements.
Kim plays mandolin and bass, and adds delightful baritone vocals to the group’s harmonies.
Dean plays guitar and dobro. His melodic tenor voice adds dimension to the band’s diaposonics.
Pat, who plays banjo, guitar and dobro, is the agent provocateur for the group. He is also credited with being the modest father of Erin and enjoys showcasing her talents.
Christine Hogan was one of the top junior fiddle players in the country. She loves to play fast fiddle tunes, but can make her instrument sing with the ballads as well.
Matt Christensen adds depth to the Mossy Creek sound with his stand-up bass.
The recent addition to the band of world-class harmonica player, Bob Littell, is a perfect fit. Now the band is complete!
Pat Haley always had an interest in bluegrass music, and on a trip to Virginia in 2003 he bought a banjo. Soon after, he and his fellow band-mate, Dean Mott, asked Pat's daughter, Erin, to sit-in on a gig with their rock and roll band. Pat hadn't heard Erin sing since high school, but after the gig, both he and Dean were inspired to create a bluegrass band with Erin as the lead singer.
Erin's grandmother, Sylvia "Honey" Blanc, was enthusiastic about the band forming and even presented Pat with a resonator guitar to contribute to the group's sound. Pat, Dean and Erin began seeking other musicians. When Erin asked bass player, Kim Gimbal, to join their weekly bluegrass jam sessions, Kim excitedly agreed, but not to play bass. He had recently purchased a mandolin and was anxious to play with friends.
Pat and Dean sent Erin out on the town to find a bass player. When she brought Lancer Hardy to the next jam, they wouldn't let him go home until he agreed to join the band. But when Lancer moved halfway across the country in March of 2006, Matt Christensen became the new bass player for Mossy Creek. The next search was for a fiddle player. After putting the word out and talking to a friend of a friend of a friend, Pat discovered Christine Hogan. She was the perfect fiddle player for Mossy Creek. The addition of world-class harmonica player, Bob Littell, in October 2006 made the group complete.
Honey was born and raised in Jefferson City, Tennessee, originally named Mossy Creek. It was only fitting to name the newly formed group Mossy Creek.
View Mossy Creek's EPK
Hello My Friends! Thanks for the friendship. Great tunes y'all have. Love bluegrass music. Hope to see y'all in person someday. Take care and have a great week. Best wishes to y'all from Alabama.
I love Chico and used to visit there. Maybe you know my old friend - Sarah Salisbury? She used to teach drama there at the University and is a great spirit, plus fabulous dancer. Nice to hear ya'!
All the best ~ Elizabeth Seattle
SONGS OF LOVE, LUST & LOSS *All songs available on iTunes
Hey everbody out there in Californ-eye-ay. Wanted you to know we played the first-ever bluegrass concert at Carson-Newman College (good ol Mossy Creek) last night to a packed house of over 500 in Grant Auditorium. Wish you all could have been there. contact Jimmy Stringer at WMTN radio in Morristown, TN or John Bell of Deep Subject Bluegrass (see 'my friends' - a really good high school bg band from Jefferson County HS) about possibility of being added for future shows.
