In our annual series spotlighting the annual Ellwood City Arts, Crafts, Food & Entertainment Festival, we look at a series of subjects, people, and entertainers who will help the festival make its mark this 4th of July holiday season.
VIEW PART THREE | VIEW PART TWO | VIEW PART ONE
PART FOUR: Ellwood City Arts, Crafts, Food & Entertainment Festival Series: Honky Tonk Heroes to Play Country, Rock Favorites
They are a little bit Honky Tonk … they are a little bit Rock n Roll.
With songs from Willy Nelson and Waylon to Lynard Skynard to Creedence Clearwater Revival, the variety is sure to please everyone in the crowd.
Honky Tonk Heroes are the premiere outlaw country western band in the tri state area. It has been said that Tony Barge sings Willie Nelson better than Willie!
You can decide that for yourself on Sunday night from 6 to 7:30 p.m. at the Ellwood City Arts,Crafts,Food & Entertainment Festival.
The rest of the band is Rockin Ron Lantz on bass and vocals, Tony Lang on guitar, Stefan Rodriguez on drums, and Scoot Dog on harmonica. In addition to country and rock you might hear some blues too.
The band came together about three years ago. Lang said Tony and Ron had a band and they met at work.
“They invited me out to play and next thing you know we were playing gigs,” Lang said.
The name Honky Tonk Heroes was actually given to them by Bruce Kohler one night when they were first playing in Grove City and it stuck. The Honky Tonk Heroes now play at Kohler’s Brewery in Ellwood City too.
The band is an Ellwood City based band, but they play all over the region. Gigs include, a lot of clubs in Ellwood City like the Sons of Italy, The Moose; bars in Ellwood City like the Shelby, Mike’s Mainstreet, Kohler’s; once a month at Mario’s in Beaver; Jergels; Hard Rock Café; Ogelbay.
“All road lead back to Ellwood City because of Tony Barge,” Lang said. “We are the hardest working band out there with 160 shows booked this year. We’re really good at what we do. There are no backing tracks.”
The band looks forward to playing for the community at the Festival.
“We get to meet alof of new people who don’t go to the bars, kids can come, and the next thing you know we have new followers,” Lang said. “It’s a chance to pick up a handful of new fans. It’s a great way to make new friends. Once they see us ,they fall in love with us.”
The crowd can expect some interaction. Lang said sometimes the drummer heads out into the audience to get the crowd involved and they always sing along.
“The crowd like to see how much fun we are having on stage,” according to Lang “It’s contagious.”
And the Honky Tonk Heroes LOVE their fans and followers.
“We really appreciate our loyal friends and fans that follow us. We have so many people that travel longer distances. We do have dedicated crowds in each area, but some follow us anywhere. How can you ask for anything better.”
The relationships that the band builds with their fans is evident in their Honky Tonk Heroes Facebook Group, where they consistently celebrate the birthdays of their followers.
Lang said he hopes to see you all at the Festival.
It’s a blessing to get to do what we do. We have two of the finest singers in the area … Rocking Ron and Tony Barge—the best country singer in the nation.”
awesomely written, thank you