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Duo's 'Still a River" CD all about Buffalo

25 Oct 2016 12:21 PM | Anonymous member

Duo's 'Still a River" CD all about Buffalo

Posted: October 25, 2016 at 1 a.m.

NWAOnline


Most paddlers who've gazed at the majesty of the Buffalo National River are thankful that it's still a river, free of the dams that were planned years ago.

So what better title than "Still a River," for the latest musical project by Kelly and Donna Mulhollan, who make up the Fayetteville duo Still on the Hill. Their compact disc and concert series tells the story of the Buffalo River in 11 original songs written by the Mulhollans.

Tunes tell about the joy of floating on the revered Buffalo, as in the disc's first song, titled "Ponca to Pruitt." The album dives into into the history of the Buffalo. Lyrics tell stories about people who've lived along the Buffalo such as Eveline and Peter Tyler, namesakes of the Tyler Bend access and visitor center on the river south of Harrison. Another song is about Granny Henderson, who raised livestock and grew a garden while living along the Buffalo. She was featured in a National Geographic article about the river.

The album is great listening, but even better is hearing Still on the Hill do the songs live in the free concerts they're performing in Northwest Arkansas and around the state. Not only are the concerts free, but everyone in the audience gets a free "Still a River" CD, one per family.

They've just completed their first round of shows and are gearing up for another tour. The next free concert is at 3 p.m., on Nov. 25 at Hobbs State Park-Conservation Area, part of the park's Green Friday, the day after Thanksgiving. The Mulhollans will perform "Still a River" at 2 p.m. on Dec. 10 at the Bentonville Public Library. They'll be at the Walton Arts Center in Fayetteville on Feb. 3. More concert dates are in the works.

Everything is free thanks to donors who sponsored the project, including individuals, the Buffalo River Watershed Alliance, Ozark Society Foundation and National Park Service.

"Still a River" is a natural follow-up to their "Once a River" CD and concerts about Beaver Lake, Kelly said. The couple did those concerts last year.

After telling those stories about the White River and a reservoir, they focused on the Buffalo, still a free-flowing river with no dams.

"We appreciate that one river was spared," Kelly said.

The songs are a celebration of the river and don't delve into controversy, such as the hog farm near Big Creek, a tributary of the Buffalo.

Paddlers on the upstream end of the Buffalo have floated under Bee Bluff. One of the tunes tells how some local boys schemed to get the gallons of honey created by the bees, high upon the cliff face.

"At one concert, a woman came up to us and said 'one of those boys was my grandfather'" Kelly said.

A great-granddaughter of Granny Henderson came to the concert in Harrison, Kelly said. Other relatives and friends of people in their songs have come to the "Still a River"shows.

Each CD comes with a booklet that explains more about each tune, illustrated with photos and art of the river.

Inspiration for a lot of the songs came from Ken Smith's book, "Buffalo River Country," first published in the 1960s.

"It's such a poetically written book," Kelly said. "We're real admirers of Ken for his work and for building miles and miles of trails along the river. He's one of the true heroes of the Buffalo."

The concerts feature Donna's special "Power Point" presentation that use artwork on quilts instead of pictures on a screen. She did a similar "Power Point" project that was a hit during their Beaver Lake concert series.

Those concerts were held primarily in Northwest Arkansas in the Beaver Lake watershed. "Still a River" has more of a statewide interest, Kelly said. Concerts are planned across the state.

They hope "Still a River" accomplishes for the Buffalo what "Once a River" did for Beaver Lake.

"We hope by singing these songs it will make people aware and become good stewards of the Buffalo."

Flip Putthoff can be reached at fputthoff@nwadg.com or on Twitter @NWAFlip

Sports on 10/25/2016


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