BLUE RIDGE SOIL CONSULTING - Key Persons

Bill Emerson, as Pete recalls one night in a small club, played with them and did a Bill Monroe song, I hear a Sweet Voice Calling, and when they finished the song, Bill turned to Pete and said, "I have never heard anyone sing that song that good before." He said, "I've got chill bumps." Bill was singing the baritone with Pete and they performed in perfect pitch.

Bubba Harper grew up around music and always considered himself a performer and writer. His father was an entertainer and had a band called The Waterhole Gang. The first person Bubba ever performed with was Tanya Tucker when he was 5 and they sang "Delta Dawn". As he grew up he started bull riding and competing in rodeos. He decided to stop competing in the sport because in his words "I think more of them covered me than I was covered" but music played a key role in his decision to leave the rodeo circuit. Bubba has always created and performed country music. In 1996 he moved to La Vergne, Tennessee and did a live show with Vern Gosdin where 9 songwriters were invited to perform their songs with Vern. That was a highlight for Bubba. His music is his own style with his heart and soul in it. He has been influenced by George Strait, Merle Haggard and George Jones. Bubba moved to Nashville and recorded a CD "Heart On The Line" and got a lot of airplay on Nashville's WSM-FM. Through the years in Nashville and Texas, Bubba enjoyed the lifestyle that was presented to him from the music industry. Over time he realized he needed to do something different or his lifestyle was going to be detrimental to his life. He has 2 children that he needed to be the dad he knew he wanted to be. At that point in his life he turned to God and put his total trust in Him to get his life back on track. Since that time, Bubba continues to perform for groups but has put his effort into writing and performing Country Christian music. Bubba plays in his Church's band, North Texas Trinity Cowboy Church, on Sundays and the Wednesday night worship service. He has performed at area churches, gatherings and events in the Dallas/Ft. Worth area and has finished recording a Country Christian CD. God has walked with him in every area of his life and he knows God wants him to devote his time, talent and love for music to honor Him through performing and writing music. One of Bubba's biggest blessings to date is that his son and grandson came to church with him on Father's Day and was moved with so much emotion and led by the spirit that his son decided to pursue God a little further. After seeing how God had changed his dad's life, he decided to continue to go. His son, daughter-in-law and 2 grandchildren not only attend church but have become an active member. Bubba feels that is his biggest accomplishment.

Lee Cole had taken Curley's place on the bass because his son, Smitty had returned from service and he had gone back to North Carolina to play with him. Pete got on the phone and hired Donnie Bryant on the five-string banjo and Johnny Hall on the fiddle.

Pete, Buck, and Franklin began playing on Wednesday nights at a little theater in the Village of Amelia, and when Pete was sixteen, his dad started letting them play some with him and his uncle (who was also the state champion fiddle player in the 1930's). This gave them a lot of experience onstage and soon they were playing a lot of dances in and around the Eastern Virginia area.

Scotty Stoneman was another great musician that graced the stage with them. "He's just one of the best", says Pete. "Listen to him play on the record Lonesome Wind Blues, and you will agree."

Job Titles:

• Owner
• Member of Spring Hill Baptist Church

Tom plays banjo and guitar and is a former member the The Virginia Ramblers bluegrass band. Tom is active member of Spring Hill Baptist Church in Ruckersville and uses his musical talent by playing in the church worship band. When Tom is not digging holes, playing music, or enjoying a round of golf with his dad, he may be found playing with his wife and kids, cooking, or working in his garden.