Perogies and Jam were pleased to have the Off Ramp Boys a.k.a. “Vegreville’s Tallest Band” perform at the Sunshine Club on Saturday, January 21. As it turned out there were three major events in Vegreville on this same evening including the Legion’s 90th anniversary and so we really appreciate having 80 faithful music fans come out to enjoy a fun evening of live music. Perogies and Jam MC Don Harfield opened the evening at 6:50 pm with a warm welcome to another of our monthly events.

Well before the evening started, Dwayne Hlady and his able assistant Bob Carter were firing up the pots and grill to serve up perogies (and jam), local Ukrainian sausage, hamburgers and hot dogs to feed early arrivals. A new menu item was chocolate dipped bacon called “hog heaven”.

Starting off the evening in our “Open Mic” session was Albert Stewart performing several classic fiddle tunes. Next up was Shirley Preuss on harmonica accompanied by Rob Hughes on drums for several tunes including Danny Boy.

Newly formed C.O.O.L. (a.k.a. “couple of old lads” Peter Arnold on vocals and guitar, and Don Harfield on guitar and vocals) along with Liam Bonser on flute, penny whistle and back-up vocals, and Denver Balid on the cajon (“beat box”) drum. They performed Blackbird, Banks of the Roses, Amazing Grace and Strangest Dream.

Lorne Fill on guitar and vocals concluded the Open Mic session with several songs including Down on the Corner, Mr. Bojangles and an original song Train Station Stomp, accompanied by Rob Hughes on drums and cajon.

The Off Ramp Boys stormed the stage at 8:00 pm to the great pleasure of local ORB fans. The Off Ramp Boys consists of Randy Kereliuk on vocals and guitar, Ralph Lange on anything with strings (upright bass, fiddle, and mandolin) and vocals, Gordon Forbes on electric guitar and vocals, and Rob Hughes on drums and vocals. They played a solid set of 25 songs starting with Roy Orbison’s Pretty Woman. ORB has been performing in the Vegreville area for over 4 years now and serves up a blend of old and new country, bluegrass and fiddle tunes.

Included in their repertoire were familiar tunes such as Chattahoochee, Country Roads, Forever and Ever, The Gambler, Bye Bye Love and Long Time Gone. Intermixed in the set were fiddle tunes including Pan Handle Rag, San Antonio Rose and White Freightliner. The crowd had fun watching the antics of Gordon Forbes on stage, swapping out Ralph’s hat to Randy’s head, and Gordon cruising the audience playing his wireless electric guitar.

The Off Ramp Boys concluded their set with Wagon Wheel and inviting others to join them on stage.

It was a great evening and all the $ 320 raised were donated by the ORB to the Vegreville Sunshine Club in appreciation for the charitable work that they do and their strong support of Perogies and Jam music in our community.

In addition to Dwayne and Bob in the kitchen, we thank this evening’s volunteers Byron James (sound tech), Liam Bonser (photographer & cash box), Carol Larrivee (cash box), and Nick Crapko for their great help in setting up and making everything go smoothly. Perogies and Jam is committed to developing an enduring live music scene in Vegreville by cultivating local music talent.

Thank you all for supporting Perogies and Jam!

Photo Gallery
Photographs by Liam Bonser, Rob Hughes, & Don Harfield