FLOYD, Va. – Downtown Floyd felt normal for the first time in a long time Friday night with the return of the Friday Night Jamboree. The iconic bluegrass dance party stopped for more than a year due to the pandemic.
There wasn’t a free square inch of the dance floor at the Floyd Country Store Friday night. Ben Harman and his friends have been coming for years and they couldn’t wait to be back at it.
“And there’s a rhythm to it you see and to dance by and when you’re sitting at the stage like we are and it just brings it out in you,” Harman said.
The Friday Night Jamboree went virtual and then to the backyard during COVID-19 and is now back inside after 18 months. Whether you’re just a kid, or 102 years young, Gina Dilg with the store said it feels good to flatfoot again.
“There’s an energy that you can’t capture outside and you can’t capture virtually, you can’t share the dance floor with people of all generations and ages when you’re either virtual or outside,” Dilg said.
The show inside was sold out, and outside on the street, the town felt alive again. With mini-shows on the sidewalk and even a farm tractor rolling through traffic, this economic engine of the community is back in full swing.
“We always have groups of people and friends of bluegrass and old-time musicians come and set up in different parts of the street and it’s a big part of the experience as well,” Dilg said.
As the Friday Night Jamboree pushes closer to 40 years they’re happy to see people enjoying the music once again. Harman said he’s looking forward to more dancing to come.
“It’s just joy I think, I mean people enjoy it so much hardly anyone ever comes that’s not satisfied with what’s going on and it’s good,” Harman said.
The Floyd Country Store offers a variety of other bluegrass shows every weekend.