Despite a rainy start and brunch relocation indoors, the sun came out on the 13th Bob Childers’ Gypsy Cafe to shine on one of the best yet! More than 600 fans flocked to five live music venues in Stillwater to hear 70+ musicians share songs and stories (AND ALL THE HUGS)!
We heard Mike Hosty’s anthem to “Save the Community Center,” Eric Hunker play his Jimmy LaFave Songwriting Contest winner “When it all Ends,” and watched with big smiles as Monica Taylor shared memories with friends as she accepted this year’s Restless Spirit Award. We wrapped it all up with a family jam finale featuring raucous renditions of ” Bob Childers’ “Restless Spirits,” Tom Skinner & Bob Wiles’ “Used to Be,” JJ Cale’s “If You’re Ever in Oklahoma,” Mike Hosty’s “Oklahoma Breakdown,” Carter Sampson’s “Wilder Side,” Red Dirt Rangers’ “Idabel Blues and The Band’s “The Weight” all organized by band leader, Paul Benjaman.
We are so grateful to our sponsors, venues, volunteers, production teams, the Gypsy Cafe committee and all the fans who came out to help us raise $40,100 for our Emergency Financial Assistance Fund to help Oklahoma music creators in crisis. God bless you and Bob Childers!
Check out photos from Phil Clarkin, Greg Bollinger and Adam Koloff below. Click here to check out a gallery from Mitchell Alcala with more to come from Tom Harris.
Paying homage to a popular Bob Childers’ song with a nod to the festival’s date on Cinco de Mayo, Bob’s “Mexican Morning” Brunch will take place from 10am-12:30pm at Stonecloud Taproom and feature a lineup of Monica Taylor and friends including Red Dirt Rangers, Jared Tyler, Chuck Dunlap, Scott Evans, Randy Crouch, Brad James, Gene Williams and more.
The set from these Red Dirt pioneers will include songs written by Childers, Jimmy LaFave and other forebearers of the genre.
Presented by The Collab Coffee, brunch includes a Mexican-inspired buffet from Good Little Eater, coffee from The Collab, two drink tickets from Stonecloud and general admission to the festival.
Limited tickets are available in advance and will not be available at the door.
For more than three decades Monica Taylor has been writing songs from the heart and has recorded and performed with a litany of famed Red Dirt, country and bluegrass musicians including Childers, Jimmy LaFave, Tom Skinner, Greg Jacobs, John Fullbright, Jared Tyler and Robin Macy. Taylor earned the nickname “The Cimarron Songbird” from La Fave and Childers because of her unique singing style and her home near the Cimarron River.
In the 1990’s, Taylor lived and cowrote with Childers at the Farm, the storied birthplace of Red Dirt music on the west side of Stillwater. Taylor has curated the Cimarron Breeze Concert Series for 10 years bringing countless acclaimed touring and local artists to Perkins, and she recently finished a double vinyl “Red Dirt Ramble” which features 55 guest vocalists and musicians paying tribute to pioneers of Red Dirt music with 18 new recordings of songs written by Childers, LaFave, Morris, Skinner and more. Read more about Taylor’s career and contributions on her website.
After performing at Brunch to kickoff the festival, Taylor will be presented the award at the Grand Casino Stage at Eskimo Joe’s at 5:30pm and perform in the following set. The Restless Spirit Award, named for Childers’ song with the same name, is given by Red Dirt Relief Fund in recognition of a musician who has impacted the Oklahoma music community in a spirit akin to Childers. Taylor joins a prestigious and beloved group of Restless Spirit Award honorees: Jimmy LaFave (2017), Brandon Jenkins (2018), Randy Crouch (2019), Steve Ripley (2020), Jim Paul Blair (2021), Chad Sullins (2022) and Jake Flint (2023).
Take a trip down memory lane and check out some of our past festivals and their highlights.
