All across America, you can find musicians playing original music and putting their own spin on cover tunes by musicians who have influenced them. Perhaps you have a favorite band with a local, possibly regional following. I have discovered bands around town (Charleston, SC) over the years that caught my ear and my interest. Due to the far reaching effect of the internet, you don’t have to live in their town to enjoy a band.  Surf YouTube or your favorite streaming service and you can hear what a band is doing. In most cases, live is better but recordings provide a glimpse into their sound, hopefully getting you to want to hear more! I encourage you to read on and discover what I have found.

Three years ago, Forty Mile Detour (FMD) caught my ear and for good reason. FMD is the brainchild of Mark Yampolsky, singer and songwriter as well as guitar and mandolin player. They perform as anywhere from a trio to a sextet, depending on the size of the venue and the stage. They label their style as authentic American music. Most of the members have careers that support their love of playing live music around the Charleston, SC area. But how did this all start? Read on.

Mark was playing the coffee house circuit around town earlier in the decade, performing as part of the Mason-Dixon band; they started as a duo and then added a drummer. In 2010-11 Mark released a solo CD titled Forty Mile Detour, produced by Jay Clifford of Jump Little Children fame. Prior to this event, Mark was on a bicycle tour in Montana with others when they stopped for the night twenty miles south of the Canadian border. Most people would have had enough for the day but Mark was feeling a bit restless. He rode the twenty miles to the border and back, admiring the scenery of majestic Montana. On that ride, he came upon a pile of furniture, housewares and clothes apparently having been discarded by the resident of a nearby ranch. Perched atop this pile was a well-worn set of cowboy boots. Mark spent some time wondering why one would discard boots that still appeared to have some life left in them. He could only imagine the experiences those boots witnessed and the stories that they could tell. One of the songs on the Forty Mile Detour CD was called, “Boots,” which can be heard today on YouTube and iTunes. If you get to know Mark, you will learn that he is most comfortable working and playing in his cowboy boots.

Back in Charleston, Mark continued performing as FMD. A friend, Jodie March, told me about this group playing at a local coffee shop and I went to check them out. What I heard was a quartet performing original music and some interesting covers of artist that influenced Mark and company. Mark’s lyrics are creative and Eddie Phillips’s guitar licks drove these songs. Over the years there were band changes, with Krystal Halvorson joining the band and adding banjo, mandolin, and a female voice perfectly suited to the country/Americana lyrics that Mark was creating. Mike Sparks filled in at times on guitar and eventually took over lead guitar duties as Eddie decided to explore his love of the blues with the SC Blues Alliance. Mike plays the lead on an acoustic guitar and lays down some tasty licks; the band allows him to stretch out and show his mastery of the guitar. Scott Tucker joined the band in the last two years as drummer and along with John Auwaerter on the bass; they create a great rhythm section. Jig Wiggler plays keyboards and adds vocals from time to time. Ellie Jos is the latest Forty Miler, playing the fiddle and adding to the moniker of authentic American music.

The band has just released Ain’t No Devil, on the Spectra Music Group label. The collection contains eleven tunes written by Mark and one penned by Mark and his wife Ellen. Having seen the band every few months these last three years, these songs were becoming familiar and several are favorites of mine.                                                       

This CD has been in the works the last two years and has been worth the wait. Songs can be like your children, love them all but there may be a favorite or two. For Mark it’s, “Pour Me a Strong One,” a song co-written with Ellen. This song contains all of the elements of FMD and is a songwriter’s song. The collection contains a number of songs with strong references to the South. These include, “Following You South,” featuring Krystal on vocals and some very fine work by Mark on mandolin and Mike Spears on acoustic guitar. “Southbound,” and, “How Do You Want Me to Love You,” are excellent examples of Americana music with a southern twist. According to the Americana Music Association, Americana, “incorporates elements of various styles of acoustic country, roots, rock, folk, gospel and bluegrass music.”(*1)  Have a listen and tell me what you hear! “Rise Up on Wings,” has a spiritual feel, aided by the Shiloh Seventh Day Adventist Church Choir. It is an uplifting tune and could be a show stopper. The band concludes the CD with, “Fare Thee Well, Adios,” which I can see be their show closer for all the right reasons. You will find this CD on your favorite streaming services.

Mark is a devoted songwriter in his spare time. He is serious about his craft, as evidenced by the fact that he has been in attendance for the annual Songwriters Cruise called Cayamo, A Journey through Song, for the last eleven years. The next installment sets sail February 3-10, 2020 from Miami with Mark and Ellen aboard. Mark has been in the audience and on the stage, soaking in the ability to learn from the masters who have made their mark in the industry.  He’s played along with the likes of Steve Earle, Ed Roland of Collective Soul and Daniel Walker, keyboardist with the Ann Wilson (Heart) band.  

His goals for the band include gaining slots at music festivals locally, which are dotting the calendar. The band did appear at the Fifth Annual Charleston Bluegrass Festival at the Charleston Woodlands this past spring. Mark would also welcome an opportunity to open for a national act at the Charleston Music Hall and the Pour House.  He has begun writing songs on a second CD along with the band! Mark likes being around talented people and it shows. The band is capable of filling a listening room of paying customers and the venues will need to hold more people as their audience grows.

If you are in the Charleston area, the band will be performing at the Coastal Coffee Roasters in Summerville on Friday, Sept. 13 from 7 to 9. They will also be in Summerville on Sept. 21 for the Sweet Tea Festival and on October 17 for the Third Thursday celebration. If you are in Mt. Pleasant, they will perform at the Mainland Container Co. on Saturday, September 28 and The Southern Bar, Coleman Blvd on November 9. Come October they will perform at the Edisto River Blackwater Music Festival on October 12 and at the post-James Island Connector Run on October 26^th.  Check out their website, fortymiledetourmusic.com for a complete list of venues and dates. Like them on Facebook and listen to them on your favorite music service.  If you happen to hear them live, write us on this blog or at our Facebook page, Do You Believe In Magic.

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#FortyMileDetour  #Ain’tNoDevil #MarkYamopolsky #MikeSparks #ScottTucker #EllieJos

#KrystalHalverson #JohnAuwaerter #SCBluesAlliance #JigWiggler

 (*1) Pete Knapp (2008-10-06). “What is Americana Music?”. Peteknapp.com. Archived from the original on 2013-10-26. Retrieved 2014-03-23.