The Blue Moon Ramblers
The Blue Moon Ramblers (BMR) band consists of Durango-area musicians George Usinowicz (5-string banjo), Red Greer (fiddle) and his wife Moana (vocalist), Jenny Winegardner (guitar), Glenn Keefe (bass), and Joel Denman (mandolin). BMR is the regular Sunday night band at the Diamond Belle Saloon of the Strater Hotel, with over 1,900 performances spanning 3-1/2 decades for the Strater “family.” The Ramblers are the only band to have played for every Durango Bluegrass Meltdown, and George and Red have played in every one of them. The original BMR needed a guitarist and additional vocalist to support a banjo and fiddle, and Jenny has fulfilled that for the band for decades, along with her extraordinary vocals and some original songs. Glenn, who was one of the original members of the Leftover Salmon band, provides the smooth bass lines, and Joel has joined BMR as a multi-instrumentalist and arranger.
In September 2022, the United States Navy Band Arranger said this about the band after listening to the Blue Moon Ramblers in the Diamond Belle Saloon:
“(They) checked all the Arranger’s boxes: balance, vast repertoire, harmonies, taste, instrumentation.”
During the Durango Bluegrass Meltdown 2023 week, the Blue Moon Ramblers are being recognized and honored by the Strater Hotel with the dedication of Room 223, adjacent to Louis L’Amour’s National Historic Site Room 222, with a brass plaque on the door identifying the room as the “Blue Moon Ramblers” suite. The Ramblers also recognize over 50 musicians in the room’s bio sheet, who, over the years, helped to fill the band for Sunday night performances.
