(Note: The picture above is a video capture from a long night of music at Cafe del Sol. Click here for the unedited video.)
Friends from other places often ask: “What is Floyd?” There are many answers, of course, but a good one can come on a warm Friday night in July when you stand in the middle of Locust Street and listen to the sound of music.

Last night, the Friday Night Jamboree was in full swing with Bluegrass and, just across the street at Whiskers Road House, the sounds of rock music escaped the walls. And Beggars Cirus entertained diners at Oddfellas north of the town’s only stoplight while a duo waited to set up at Cafe del Sol.

I had planned a long day of shooting video for a couple of projects. The music started early Friday with a special concert at the Floyd County Store for a group of visiting Quakers. Barbershop Grass, who would play again later that night, performed for an hour and the visitors quickly dispelled any notion that Quakers don’t know how to get down.

By 5 p.m., early arrivals began streaming into the County Store, where the music starts officially at 6:30. By 7:30 the crowd spilled off the sidewalk into the street, listening to music on the street and at the various venues up and down it. At Cafe del Sol, guitarist Bernie Coveney and bass player Chris Luster set up for what was booked as a duo for the evening. Fiddle player Michael Kovick dropped by after failing to find anyone to jam with outside the country store and the duo bacame a trio. I filmed them for a while and then headed back down the street to the Country Store and filmed until the music ended at 10:45 p.m.

When I wondered back out onto Locust Street, music still spilled out of Whiskers and I noticed the lights were still on at Cafe del Sol so I headed back there to find that Abe Goorskey had added his mandolin to the group and the coffee shop overflowed with people still looking for music. They continued to play until well past 11 when Oddfellas owner Rob Neukirch dropped by after closing his restaurant and joined in to sing two songs, closing with a rousing rendition to Route 66 with coffee shop owner Sally Walker adding her musical talent on spoons.

I thought I had finished shooting for the night but picked up my video camera and used what little tape I had left to capture that final song. The video is rough and unedited but should give everyone a feel of a late-night jam session in Floyd.

When I finally arrived home after midnight, Amy took one look and said “I see you met the music and it kicked your ass.”

Yeah, it did. But it was one hell of a good time and showcases, once again, some of what makes living here unique.