5. Penn’s Store

Just before Thanksgiving, 2023 we were privileged to return to The Old Mud Meeting House in Mercer Co., Kentucky. The Meeting House was used to record Episode 6 of the first season of The Grinnin' Possum Podcast. This time we brought The Grinnin' Possumaires (Deborah Payne - Fiddle, Brian McDonald - Mandolin and harmony vocals, joining Maurice Manning - Guitar, Banjo, and lead vocals) and recorded the results, which we now offer as a bonus to the first season. The acoustics of the Old Mud Meeting House are amazing, and I hope our recording does it some justice. Thanks to everyone who attended, and to all who have downloaded the original ten episodes so far.  Keep it in your pouch! Steve Cody

The Possum Outfit went all the way to Paducah, KY to find the remains of Rocky Hill Plantation, the sight of a ghastly murder during the New Madrid Earthquake of 1811-1812. Maurice tells of the murder, committed by the nephews of Thomas Jefferson, the earthquake, the Lewis and Clark Expedition, young Abraham Lincoln and John James Audubon and the fate of the now thought to be extinct ivory-billed woodpecker, also known as The Lord God Bird due to its striking appearances. We use a recording of the ivory-billed woodpecker with permission granted by the Macaulay Library at the Cornel Lab of Ornithology.   Maurice weaves together the work of Robert Penn Warren and diary entries by Audubon with the original works Time Is The Hum Of Gods Dream, Another River Still, and sings Banjo Pickin' Girl to help make sense of this age-old, tangled tale. We wrap up the season with a Manning original tune, Gloryland. Shaker Village of Pleasant Hill graciously allowed us to bring a chorus of friends and family to their Meeting House to help bring It all home. We want to thank you for listening and reading along and hope you will see fit to share our podcast with anyone you think might enjoy it, and some who you think wouldn't! Until next season - Keep It In Your Pouch!

The Red River Gorge is a climbing Mecca and one of our great geological wonders. The intrepid GP crew hiked to beautiful Coppers Falls, crossing Copperas Creek approximately 273 times, microphone and banjo in hand, and used the massive rock house under the falls for natural reverb. There we recorded a reading of Treatise On Milk Gravy. On the return trip, we walked directly into a swarm of hornets, the possum's habit of playing dead helping not in the least! The episode opens with Maurice performing the hymn A Mighty Fortress Is Our God in the 900 foot Nada Tunnel, known as the Gateway To The Red River Gorge and ends with a studio recording of Della Mae, with Maurice on banjo and vocals and Steve Cody on guitar, bass and harmony vocals. 

We loaded our recording equipment into a cigar box and headed for Pike County, Kentucky at the invitation of poet Jay McCoy, to visit the Church Of God In Jesus Name on his ancestral land on Chloe Creek, near Pikeville. Maurice reads To The Sons And Daughters Of Yee, and The Stranger then pulls out the banjo for an original song he wrote, based on an old Charlie Patton song, High Water Everywhere. The song is in honor of all of the people affected by the horrific flooding in Eastern Kentucky and the surrounding area in July of 2022.  

The Possum Crew ambled over to Bourbon County, KY to record at the Colville Covered Bridge. Built in 1877, the bridge is one of only a handful of covered bridges left in Kentucky.  The 124 foot structure crosses Hinkston Creek and was likely turned into a musical instrument for the first time during our visit.  We recorded A Thread Worth Pulling, Oral History, How To Fix A Cooch and two musical numbers, Mamma Don't Allow plus one very unusual version of Hard Times.

Mercer County's Old Mud Meeting House, built in 1800, is the oldest low Dutch Reformed Church west of the Allegheny Mountains. As its name suggests, the walls are made of mud, and in concert with its amazing wooden beams and floor, create an incredible acoustical space. Maurice steps into the pulpit to recite A Reaching Thing, The Finding Place, and plays a beautiful, emotional rendition of Leaning On The Ever-Lasting Arms.

The Possum goes mobile to record at Penn's Store in Gravel Switch, KY, the oldest continuously owned and operated country store in America (it opened in 1845!). Maurice sits on Penn's porch to read Knowledge Is The Sop and The Living Waters. This episode welcomes the company of several local dogs and the song Will there Be Any Stars In My Crown? 

We're back in the Possum Den to record All The Ways Tippie Biggs Was Tied, Fattening Up A Possum, The Yonder Side Of Sourwood and Maurice plays I Wish I Was A Mole In The Ground.

The GP Outfit goes to Mercer Co. to record The Complaint Against Roney Lawsell, The Invention Of Hooky, Why Pearlie Kept The Weasel and play the mournful Crash On The Highway. Maurice also recites an unnamed poem by his father, Alex Manning.

In the studio this week, Maurice reads The Treasure Book and Why Poor Old Mama Took To Bed. He then performs I Was Born About 10,000 Years Ago on banjo and percussion, joined by Steve Cody on guitar and bass.