Three and a half years ago, Adair County’s Green River Band started with one member and a booking. Last week, the group celebrated a victory they never imagined. Green River Band was named Kentucky Living’s Best in Kentucky musician or band, defeating finalists JD Shelburne and Tyler Childers in a contest decided by popular vote.
In the previous four years, Chris Stapleton and Tyler Childers have taken the top spot.
For Green River Band, simply making the top three was already an accomplishment.
John Conover was contacted by a representative from Kentucky Living magazine and notified that Green River Band had made the top three. Conover said he asked what the standings were and they couldn’t tell him, but he was told “I don’t know what you guys are doing, but whatever it is, it’s working.”
Voting opened May 1 and the mission began.
A billboard went up, and information about how to vote was shared across local media outlets and social media. One vote per day per email address could be cast.
The community responded, with voting becoming a frequent topic of conversation throughout the month.
Voting ended May 31, but the band and the community rooting for them would have to wait until Aug. 19 to learn the results.
The support was not entirely unexpected.
In 2024, the band won Battle of the Bands at River Festivus in Burkesville.
“I didn’t really know and I don’t think anybody else did how big of a following we had until we played down there at the River Festivus,” said Jake Hill. “We could look out at the crowd and a lot of people had on our shirts and we had a lot of crowd participation, clapping and cheering.”
Competing against some of Kentucky’s biggest names in the industry made the possibility of winning this contest seem unlikely, but the band and the fans were willing to go above and beyond to try.
Kentucky Living magazine held a live broadcast to announce the winners.
“I sat through several categories and then they got to musician/band. They said third place, Tyler Childers, second place JD Shelburne and I am like, ‘no way.’ Then they announced us as the winners,” said Conover.
“My initial reaction was disbelief. I was so surprised. We knew Chris Stapleton won it last year and we knew who all was in it, and we were just like there is no way that a cover band from Columbia is going to win,” he said.
The victory also adds an interesting twist to one of the band’s upcoming performances.
Green River Band is scheduled to open for JD Shelburne at the Casey County Apple Festival on Saturday, Sept. 26.
Hill said the band has been joking about what would happen if they beat Shelburne in the Kentucky Living contest. He jokingly said they were going to tell him he was closing for them instead of them opening for him.
But while the award belongs to the band, the victory would not have happened without the people who supported them.
“All the credit has to go out to the fans; it really does. Other than us sharing it and voting ourselves, if we didn’t have the following and the great people we do, we wouldn’t have gotten even close,” said Hill.
The band hopes the recognition will lead to opportunities to perform at more venues throughout Kentucky.
“We are all hoping this will open some new doors for us, maybe some new venues and variety around the state. Help us get into more places to play,” said Hill. “It is amazing what a little small-town band can accomplish with a little elbow grease and a big following.”
From one booking to a statewide following
The band’s origin is unique in itself.
Conover said he was driving from work one day when he received a call from Eric Townsend, who asked if he was free to play drums at a gig booked for Memorial Day. He said that he was free and asked who else was playing.
Townsend’s response was “I have no idea, I don’t have a band yet,” laughed Conover.
Townsend enlisted Chris Reeder, Jake Hill and Craig Dean to join.
“Nothing worked out. We could not get together to save our lives,” said Conover. “The first time we ever got together was the night before the show. We got together in my garage and started playing. It was like we had played together for years.”
After they played that first show, they all knew it was too good not to continue. Everything came together almost flawlessly.
“It just clicked and we decided that we needed to keep on playing and try to keep booking shows,” said Hill. “At that point, we didn’t even have a name.”
The band began booking local shows at marinas and other venues.
After the first year, Townsend moved and left the band. Harris had filled in a few times, and they asked him to join the band.
Last year, Reeder left the band to focus on his career, and Adam Capps was invited to join.
A couple of members may have changed since that first Memorial Day booking, but the band’s following has continued to grow and carried the Green River Band to the top of a statewide competition featuring some of Kentucky’s most familiar names.
For a group that began with one member, one booking and a last-minute rehearsal in a garage, the journey has been anything but ordinary.
By Amy Pike
amy@adairvoice.com
