Kenny Honeycutt's love for Bluegrass

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Kenny Hunnycutt

February 9, 2012

Staff Writer Mayah Collins The Daily Southerner Thu Feb 09, 2012, 05:05 PM EST

TARBORO — Country music was, is, and forever will be in the heart of Kenny Honeycutt, owner and operator of Tarboro's Piggly Wiggly.

At the early age of 13, Honeycutt lovingly embraced the genre in a special way. He was a vocalist in The Honeycutts, a family gospel band, and explored a newfound interest in the acoustic guitar. His passion unraveled each time he watched his father play for hours in their home at Portsmouth, Va.

"When I was growing up, we had a family gospel band, and I learned how to play the guitar by watching my dad play," Honeycutt said. "Since we were poor, we didn't have much money for another guitar. I had to sit and watch him when the family band and various friends came over to play as well. After they went home, I would get my daddy's guitar, and mimic what he would do when he played."

Other creative souls who have inspired Honeycutt to keep the fire burning for country and bluegrass music over time include Bill Monroe, Steve Martin and The Steep Canyon Rangers, Tony Rice, Earl Scruggs and Lester Flatt, and the king of rock and roll, Elvis Presley.

Originally from Raleigh, Honeycutt moved to Tarboro in 1987. Since then, he has formed a four-man band that utilizes a bass guitar, a Dobro guitar, an acoustic guitar and, of course, the banjo.

"If it ain't got a banjo, then it's not bluegrass music," he said.

The band, Almost a Band, plays on Tuesday night twice a month in Honeycutt's two-story garage. Downstairs is where he keeps his cars, but as you make your way up the stairs, well, that's where the magic is created. In this room, framed Bible scriptures are hanging on the walls and help set a tranquil mood for all.

Fellow band members include Jim Proctor, James Brown, and Mitchell Causeway but before the band was formed, some of the current members responded to a newspaper ad that expressed Honeycutt's desire to collaborate with local bluegrass lovers and most of all, performers. A deep bond between the members grew thereafter.

"The session here in this room got started four years ago," said Honeycutt. "I intended for it to be a ministry outreach for the community, but that did not work out. I guess for a year or more, close to two years, it was pretty much just Jim and I. Every once in a while, someone else would show up. Eventually, James and Mitchell became a part of the jam session."

The room that Almost a Band plays in is fairly small, but it still packs in loyal audience members from time to time, Honeycutt said.

The origin of the band’s name goes back to a conversation about the group.

Honeycutt said, "I was talking to some guys, and someone asked me, 'Are you guys a band?" and I said, "Well, we're are almost a band.' The name stuck with the group over time."

"I like all kinds of music, really," continued Honeycutt enthusiastically. "I especially like a lot of country and bluegrass gospel music. From the beginning, the session held in my garage was intended to be that way. It was going to be 100 percent gospel and well, that just didn't work. Folks just didn't come and that is why it evolved into a jam session."

Honeycutt and Almost a Band have been performing for audiences all over town, including the E.L. Roberson Center and the Alzheimer's Walk. The band willingly shares its talent.

"I don't go out actively seeking gigs," said Honeycutt. "Mostly, we just play for our own amusement."

Playing in front of a large or small audience is great, but he is content playing anywhere, literally.

"I love music, and I love to play and sing because it makes me feel good," Honeycutt said. “It really makes me happy. It doesn't matter whether we are up here (in his garage) or whether I am singing in the house at the dining room table with just me and the dog."

After laughing hysterically as he grasped his acoustic guitar before one of his jam sessions started he said, "I don't need an audience, but an audience helps. Anybody who plays or sings will tell you that having an audience is good. When you're just fiddling around in the house, there is no pressure to do well. Who cares when you miss a note, but when you have two or three people out there listening to you, you will step it up a little bit and pay attention to what you're doing."

At 61, Honeycutt balances his life as a business operator, musician and a member of First Baptist Church of Tarboro. At church, his responsibilities include being a Sunday school teacher, a deacon, a treasurer, and a praise team guitarist.

For six years, he has been a part of the church's contemporary praise team and, according to him, his love for music will allow him to steady embrace his craft (a singer and guitarist) for years to come.

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