Southern Illinois Steel Guitar Show

April 11 & 12, 2025

At Granada Theatre

108 N. 9th St.

Mt Vernon, Illinois 62864

On behalf of the Southern Illinois Productions Board,

we appreciate your loyal support for our

2025 Cord Fitch Memorial Steel Guitar Show

in Mt Vernon, Illinois and You are truly making a

difference and Shriner’s Hospitals for Children

values your support tremendously.

SIP Board Members puts on only one show per year

and since we are a not-for-profit organization,

we work very hard to raise as much money as possible

for the Shriner’s Hospitals for Children. We appreciate

each and every one of you that came to the show

and our donors and we wouldn’t be where we are

today without your support.

Because of your support we are able

to give $5,000 to Shriner’s Hospitals for Children this year.

Thank You!

Sincerely,

      The SIP Board Members

you can visit our website; https://www.southernillinoisproductions.org/

https://www.facebook.com/S.I.SteelGuitarShow/



Welcome to our 22^nd Annual Benefit Show in support of Shriners Hospitals for Children. We are proud to provide our audience two full days of Classic Country Music featuring the Pedal Steel Guitar with performances by nationally acclaimed artist and local musicians. The Southern Illinois Productions Board has worked very hard to bring you the best star-studded entertainment available. Enjoy the show!

We have the fabulous and legendary Justin Trevino performing Friday evening. A singer and song writer for three decades Justin has traveled and performed with many talented musicians and his idolized heroes; Tony Booth, Curtis Poter, Darrell McCall, and in the Johnny Bush Band for nine years.  Justin’s signature song and most requested is “Texas Honky Tonk”.  Also, featuring the sensational 20-year-old pedal steel player and Recording Artist, Jack Phillips.  Jack has been quoted as having “Talent as tall as Texas”.

The Malpass Brothers, Chris & Taylor, performing Saturday evening.  Influenced by the Louvin Brothers and Hank, to Haggard and Jones…they are the definition of country music. They have their own tv show and can be heard every Saturday night on RFD-TV 8:00 pm ET.  Featuring, on pedal steel, Jack Phillips.

Also performing on Saturday is the Honky Tonk Fiddler, Dennis Stroughmatt   and Friends.  Dennis will dazzle the audience with his diverse style of entertainment as an artist, vocalist, story teller and educator. Dennis plays all his music with great passion from Traditional Country and Country Swing to French Creole Music. Influenced by Ray Price, Bob Wills, Tony Booth, Wade Ray, Cherokee Cowboys and a hint of Haggard and Tillis. Dennis is an Award-Winning Honky Tonk-Creole-Swing Fiddler and Vocalist, Heart of Texas Records Artist and 2015 Old Time Fiddlers Hall of Fame.

Steel Players this year are Mike McGee, Darrell Cummings, Mike Sweeney, Jack Phillips, Barry Wheeler, Eddie Long, johnny Norris, Janice Zilm, Gary Lloyd, Ron Kyne, Dave Flanagan, Nick Stine, Dan Burnham, Larry Dolan, Carl Borders, Gene Mulvaney, Dave Bolin, Gary Sill, John King, Virgil Franklin, Kendell Scott and Clayton Deering.

Additional artist include the incredible and legendary Leona Williams, soft spoken Ron Williams, singer and song writer Joe Arview, and the inspiring Stoffel Family Gospel Show.

Our talented and devoted Stage Band Members; Rick Boyer, Joe Arview, Jeff Stoffel, Earl Erb, Mark Fitch, Jason Zilm, Polly Bug, Everett Bug, James Jinkerson, Peggy Bode, Dennis Stroughmatt and Jerry Mayo.

Visit us on Facebook at

https://www.facebook.com/S.I.SteelGuitarShow/

Mel Tillis Jr.

Mel Tillis, Jr., from Nashville, TN, proudly carries on the musical tradition set forth by his father, Country Music Hall of Famer Mel Tillis. For years many people have listened to the countless hits either written or performed by Mel Sr., such as “I Ain’t Never,” “Send Me Down to Tucson,” “Ruby,” “Heart Over Mind” and “Coca-Cola Cowboy.” Mel Jr. toured with his father for many years, worked with him for many seasons at his Branson theatre and intimately knows the stories and funny themes behind many of those famous songs. But Mel Jr. is a great vocalist and songwriter as well. As a songwriter, Mel Jr. has had songs recorded by Reba McEntire, Trace Adkins, Lee Greenwood, Billy Currington, Ricky Skaggs, Chris LeDoux, Gene Watson, Suzy Boguss, Ty Herndon and Clinton Gregory, and received BMI honors as co-writer of Jamie O’Neal’s #1 Grammy nominated hit single, “When I Think About Angels.”
https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100082058611471

Tony Booth

 Tony Booth will be on hand Thursday evening during our "Singin' Contest" for a short appearance and performing Friday night, accompanied by featured steel guitarist Mike McGee from Branson, MO area. Don't miss a true legend in Country music with hits like "Keys in The Mailbox," "Cinderella," "Lonesome 7-7203" and who has been featured on The Grand Ole Opry, Hee Haw, RFDtv's Country Family Reunion, and many more.

Norm Hamlet

Norm Hamlet is an American steel guitarist and a member of Merle Haggard's The Strangers band for the past 49 years.

Hamlet was born on February 27, 1935, in Woodville, California. He began playing guitar in his teens and played throughout North Central California for a number of years with several groups, before going to Bakersfield, California, in 1965 where he became an influential part of the Bakersfield sound.  He has won many awards, including induction into the Western Swing Society Hall of fame in Sacramento, California, and the Steel Guitar Hall of Fame.

Hamlet continued to tour with Haggard until Haggard's death in April 2016 and is now touring with Haggard's sons, Noel and Ben, as well as pianist Mario Carboni.

Watch Video of Norm playing  with Merl Haggard " Working Man Can't Get Nowhere Today".

Leona Williams

Leona Williams  (born January 7, 1943, in Vienna, Missouri, United States) is an American country music singer

known professionally as Leona Williams. Active since 1958, Williams has been a backing musician

for Loretta Lynn and Merle Haggard and The Strangers. (She and Haggard were married between 1978 and 1983.)

She also charted eight times on Hot Country Songs, with her only Top 40 hit being a duet

with Haggard titled "The Bull and the Beaver."

https://music.leonawilliams.com/

Ron Williams

Ron Williams was born in Nashville Tennessee and was exposed to Country Music from a very early age.

His parents Leona and Ron Williams Sr. were both in the music business when Ron was

born, and as he puts it “ I was so immersed in music, all around me really, that I knew I

would “step in it” somewhere”, he says jokingly. Both parents toured all of Ron’s young life

with artists from Ernest Tubb to Loretta Lynn. “ I’ve even seen pictures of me when I was a

child, sleeping in a guitar case next to the stage” he states, and some say that is where he began

his road to becoming one of the music industry’s premier traditional country music singers.

https://musicstore.ronwilliamscountry.com/

Dennis Stroughmatt

 I love Western Swing and old traditional Country, and I'm excited to be back playing it more these days .

In the past few years I've had the pleasure to perform with Leona Williams, Tony Booth,

Claude Gray, Ron Williams, Darrell McCall, Justin Trevino, Tayla Lynn, Teea Goans, T Graham Brown,

 Mandy Barnett, Marty Haggard, a group of Ray Price's Cherokee Cowboys, and many others.

When time allows, I'm looking forward to more fun and more playing and paying tribute to my

heroes like Ray Price and the Cherokee Cowboys, Bob Wills, Tony Booth, and of course

Wade Ray, Buddy Spicher and Tommy Jackson."

http://www.honkytonkfiddle.com/

Mike Sweeney

Mike Sweeney is a real pro and performed at several of our show over the years. Mike has worked with many artists

including: Clinton Gregory, Jack Greene, Shawn Camp, Ray Price, Vern Gosdin, and many others.

He also played at the Country Music U.S.A. show at Opryland and The Broken Spoke among other places.

Today he works as a freelance musician and teacher.

https://bb.steelguitarforum.com/viewtopic.php?t=367635&sid=8cd091de14da4928dd0c521834a64cf8

Mike McGee

We are excited to offer a pedal steel guitar workshop this year with steel guitar guru Mike McGee on Saturday morning April 20 at 10am in the side room of the Granada Theater. The cost will be $50 and will last over 2 hours. You can bring your guitars to learn some new licks or just learn about the instrument. Mike is a legend of the southwest Missouri music scene having worked with many top performers in the industry including Stan Hitchcock, The Hager Twins, and many other stars of Hee Haw. Mike will perform his own show and perform with Tony Booth.

Cowboy Eddie Long

Cowboy Joined Hank Williams Jr at 21, completed 15 years with 21 Gold albums by 1995, featured on All My Rowdy Friends Have settled Down, Country Boy Can Survive, Born to Boogie, Monday Night Football, Super Bowl 1991 and all of the steel guitar on all songs on Hank albums from 1980-1996.  When he left Hank to tour and record with Kenny Chesney in 1995.

In 1992 1997 he also recorded all the steel on all of the 1st five Confederate Rail Road albums featuring even more number hits such as Jesus and Momma, Queen if Memphis, Trashy Women, Daddy Never Was the Cadillac Kind.

In Aug of 2005 he took his music into a new artist while steel guitar was literally dying in country music and teamed up with Jamey Johnson.

Tracer James

“I've recently become aware of a really good steel guitarist who plays the instrument in the traditional form the session players of my era (1960s-1980s) approached. Tracer plays music on the instrument with emotion and his own creative ways of expression and with expertise. While I'm certainly a believer in the evolutional adaptation of changing sounds as the music shifts to newer generations, I sure appreciate and love to hear a player like Tracer who can also dive back into the music like I recorded in the past...and, in doing so, wins a gold medal with his expertise!         

Lloyd Green

http://tracerjames.com/home

Darrell Cummings

Darrell is from Lincoln, Illinois. He plays lead guitar and steel guitar. Darrell likes to go to Nashville and play music with his friends and hang out with Doug Jernigan.

Ron Kyne and Little Man

I have been playing the steel guitar since I was 9 years old. Now, I play at many kinds of venues!

https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=2107635266206984

On behalf of the Southern Illinois Productions Board,

we appreciate your loyal support for our 2024 Cord Fitch

Memorial Southern Illinois Steel Guitar Show

in Mt Vernon, Illinois and You are truly making a

difference and Shriner’s Hospitals for Children

values your support tremendously.

SIP Board Members puts on only one show per year

and since we are a not-for-profit organization,

we work very hard to raise as much money as possible

for the Shriner’s Hospitals for Children. We appreciate

each and every one of you that came to the show

and our donors and we wouldn’t be where we are

today without your support.

Because of your support we are able

to give $10,000 to Shriner’s Hospitals for Children this year.

Thank You!

Sincerely,

      The SIP Board Members



you can visit our website; https://www.southernillinoisproductions.org/

https://www.facebook.com/S.I.SteelGuitarShow/