Fulfilling promise to dad, Tunstall grad takes bluegrass on the road

On the day his father, Steve, died of a massive heart attack nine years ago, Clay Lillard made a promise he would learn to play bluegrass on the banjo like his daddy had.

With lessons from his father’s teacher and talent inherited from his musical family, Lillard quickly learned. He never thought he’d take it one the road, though.

But fate picked him up, put him on the James King Band van and he’s not looking back.

It took Lillard, 21, about a year of lessons to get so good on the banjo that his grandfather, Julian Lillard, also a bluegrass musician, said Clay would be able to teach his dad some licks.

His family’s participation in bluegrass festivals far and wide helped heal them from the loss of Steve, especially when Clay began winning competitions. Six years ago, he won first place banjo at Wayside Park Fiddlers Convention in Stuart.

“That was a big one because my grandpa took me to that one, and I got to see a lot of the people I love pick. It was a big deal,” the young Lillard said.

After graduating from Tunstall High School in 2008, Lillard had worked with his stepdad for two years, got some things he wanted, like his car, and was playing the banjo for fun on the side.

Then three years ago his Aunt Julie married James King of the James King Band, a bluegrass band of some renown that tours nationally.

Lillard wondered what that might mean for him, but he really had no desire to play professionally.

“I didn’t know if I could handle the road and playing in front of enormous crowds,” he said.

Then there was the fact that he plays more contemporary, bluesy bluegrass and King plays more traditional bluegrass, according to Lillard.

But he started to play in front of King and scheduled an official tryout for this past March 14 when King was going to be performing in Fredericksburg.

“My aunt told me to practice, so I took it seriously at the computer, learning James’s stuff, but he wouldn’t listen to it until the audition,” Lillard said. “Then I drove to Fredericksburg on the 14th, and King told me to kick off with his song ‘Leavin’’ I did, and he sobbed up on me.”

King said that Lillard had played it exactly like on the record and hired him right there on the stage in front of the audience, letting him play with them the rest of the evening.

“I haven’t looked back since,” Lillard said.

Hitting the road

So far Lillard has traveled to 27 states in four months — not bad from a country boy from Cascade. He just got back from Canada.

On a recent three-week tour out west, the band played in West Virginia and then traveled out to Nevada, California, Washington, Oregon and Idaho.

“I was ready to come home,” Lillard said. “Then we went to Stuart and played at the Wayside Bluegrass Festival where I had gotten my ribbons.”

Most of the time, the band plays at festivals, private parties, and bluegrass concerts and recently participated in the Musicians Against Childhood Cancer concert in Columbus, Ohio, where the musicians donated their proceeds to fight childhood cancer.

The four members of the band — they are looking for a fifth — travel in a van with a bed in the back. Lillard does most of the driving.

King did travel in a bus, but the cost of diesel fuel forced him to park that a while back.

“The road is rigorous,” Lillard said. “We stay in hotels or in campers at the festivals. I try to make the right food choices, but that doesn’t always happen. And I try to drink lots of juices and lay off the soft drinks.”

The benefits

Besides auditioning for his band, another benefit of King’s marrying his aunt was Lillard’s being able to go to shows with his newly acquired uncle.

“I got meet my mentors like J.D. Crowe. I actually got to pick a song with him,” Lillard said. “And I got to pick on stage with Don Rigsby and Ron Stewart.”

So far, the money is good and will get better, Lillard said.

“The big dogs can make up to $1,000 a night,” he said. “And I’ve gotten to do so much I couldn’t have done otherwise and gotten to be with people I look up to, even though they tell me, ‘I pull my pants up too in the morning, boy.’ I just go by the tables and sit and visit with them.”

He also loves to go out into the campgrounds at the festivals and see what picking is going on and talk to the people. He’s amazed that he’s been asked already to autograph 20 of King’s CDs and he’s not even playing on them.

“I don’t know why I did a 180 about playing on the road,” he said. “At first I wasn’t confident in my playing, but I just tried to do my best, and in four months time I’ve just progressed and progressed. It’s been like a year.”

The young picker was soon headed off to Ohio and then back to North Carolina. Then it was back to the Galax Fiddler’s Convention for what he said would be his 22nd year there — his first year being “in his mama’s belly.”

And then back on the road again to who knows where for who knows how long.

“I’m pretty content with this for a while until I find another calling,” he said. “I will always be playing my banjo.”

And having, as his grandfather tells everyone to do, “having a bluegrass day.”

See Lillard play on YouTube. Searching for “James King” and either “Clinch Mountain Step Back” or “Leavin.’”