Polebridge ranch hosts summer music events

The Home Ranch Bottoms in Polebridge has announced their summer season music events at their beer garden stage surrounded by the beauty of the North Fork.

The public is invited and no vehicle reservations are needed to access their location at 8950 North Fork Road. Weekly locals sing along with singer-songwriter Ross Voorhees (“Ranger Ross”) are scheduled on Friday nights in June, and Thursday nights in July and August.

The following special events are planned:

Tin Finley: Saturday, June 24 at 6 p.m.

This trio of indie-pop-folk goodness will make you happy you decided to “Take the Back Roads,” as one of their original songs exemplifies their lush harmonies, thoughtfully crafted lyrics and strong melodies. Originally hailing from the Flathead Valley, with years away in Nashville honing their craft, Tin Finley is a collaboration of locals Annette Strean, Kati O’Toole and Kirk Cornelius.

Lee Zimmerman: Sunday, June 25 at 11 a.m.

Sunday brunch accompaniment by Lee Zimmerman, one of the new cello innovators, weaving cello and voice into a broad musical fabric. Influenced by American pop music, swing, jazz, classical and world music, Lee brings a singular approach to the cello.

Kimmi Bitter: Friday, June 30 at 6 p.m.

Centered on the vein of old-school country with a cosmic twist, Kimmie Bitter and the Westside Twang Theory offer harmony-stricken ballads that have grown comparisons reminiscent of Patsy Cline in the 60s. Bitter recently won the 2023 Best Country/Americana Artist at the San Diego Music Awards.

Bo DePena: Tuesday, July 4 at 6 p.m.

Colorado-based Americana/country musician Bo Depena is originally from Texas bringing high-energy shows around the mountain west. Influenced by the likes of Townes Van Zandt, George Strait, Willie Nelson, and Merle Haggard, his lyrical content is often universal, evoking memories of past lives, lost loves, and a longing for home.

Ian Thomas & the Band of Drifters: Friday, July 7 and Saturday, 8 at 6 p.m.

Playing modern Americana roots music while drawing from honky-tonk and blues traditions, you will want to bring your dancing shoes. Hailing from Montana, Tennessee and points between, they keep their music varied in arrangement, instrumentation and regional influences, including their latest release, Heavy on the Lightfoot, songs of Gordon Lightfoot.

Lee Zimmerman: Sunday, July 9 at 11 a.m.

Sunday brunch accompaniment by Lee Zimmerman, one of the new cello innovators, weaving cello and voice into a broad musical fabric. Influenced by American pop music, swing, jazz, classical and world music, Zimmerman brings a singular approach to the cello.

Paul Lee Kupfer: Friday, July 14 and Saturday, July 15 at 6 p.m.

Originally from the Appalachian mountains of West Virginia, Kupfer continues to work on his craft while touring around the United States based out of Knoxville, Tennessee and Western Montana. His style is somewhat of a throwback to traveling musicians and songwriting of long ago with songs ranging from quiet melancholy to shuffling blues and vibrant, fiddle-fueled road anthems.

Izaak Opatz + Jonny Fritz: Tuesday, July 18, at 6 p.m.

Izaak Opatz is an ungulate in life’s winter pasture, chewing on and metabolizing disappointment, heartbreak, and other tough stuff into enjoyable musical carbohydrates, adding a dose of wry humor with his close observation. Fresh off his Under the Big Sky festival debut, Izaak will be bringing special guest Jonny Fritz to the bottoms.

Mr. Sam Band: Wednesday, July 19, at 6 p.m.

Hitting the bottoms all the way from New Orleans, Sam Gelband envisions his music as a vehicle to celebrate love and joy, and his honeyed vocals are not hindered by the limitations of the genre. The music of Mr. Sam is created from bittersweet reality, an acknowledgment that all we really have in this life are the sweet moments we allow ourselves and share with one another.

Prison Baby: Friday, July 21 at 6 p.m.

Prison Baby is a country music supergroup hailing from Butte. “The Baby’s” six members bring a collective love of country music to the stage and cover songs from the likes of George Jones to Patty Loveless to Terry Allen and everywhere in between.

Christy Hays: Saturday, July 22, at 6 p.m.

Hays cut her teeth as a professional Americana folk, alt-country, psychedelic rock and roll, singer-songwriter in Austin, Texas and toured nationally for a dozen years before heading north. She settled in Butte, where she runs a nonprofit called Working Quiet and a writers-in-residence program called Dear Butte, while continuing to create music and perform her limited live events.

Sterling Drake: Friday, July 28, at 6 p.m.

Drake’s passion for country and roots music is ever apparent in his latest EP, Highway 200, reflective of his time spent between the northern Rockies of Montana and Music City, USA. His songwriting delivers a traditional old country sound with a contemporary presentation.

Kathryn Claire and Margot Merah: Saturday, July 29 at 6 p.m.

Growing up on opposite sides of the world and meeting in a small Irish pub in Amsterdam, their musical connection was instant and has brought them all over the globe. Fresh off their spring European tour these two feature original and traditional songs, along with their favorite covers bringing together breathtaking vocal harmonies playing guitar, fiddle, ukulele, bodhran, and harmonica

Tom Catmull: Friday, Aug. 5 and Saturday, 6, at 6 p.m.

Catmull is a singer-songwriter who has adopted Missoula as home for 25 years, entertaining audiences around the state with his infectious melody, thoughtful arrangements, keen fingerpicking and storytelling. His roots-driven Americana songs are beautifully delivered on his acoustic guitar and harmonica.

The Montvales: Tuesday, Aug. 8 and Wednesday, Aug. 9, at 6 p.m.

Sally Buice and Molly Rochelson of The Montvales cut their teeth busking on the streets of their hometown of Knoxville, Tennessee, and playing short sets on various programs of their local Americana radio station. Currently located in Cincinnati, Ohio, they spend their days crafting stripped down, banjo-and-harmony-driven songs that strike just the right balance between catchy and lonesome. Their shows will take you to places both raucous and reverent, equal parts honky tonk mischief and earnest meditation on friendship, heartbreak, and place.

Comedy in the Woods Rich Hall: Friday, Aug. 11

Ticketed event with the gate opening at 5 p.m. and show at 7 p.m. Rich Hall is an award-winning American comedian, writer, documentary maker, and musician, first coming to prominence as a sketch comedian in the late 1980s. He wrote and performed for a range of networks in series such as “Fridays,” “Not Necessarily the News,” “Otis Lee Crenshaw” and “Saturday Night Live.”

Sean Devine: Saturday, Aug. 12 at 6 p.m.

A fifth-generation Montanan, musician Sean Devine’s live performances bring together the rugged landscape of the West, a wealth of original songs, and a lifetime of personal experience. His latest album, Here for It All, showcases his ability as an acoustic guitarist and storyteller sharing his experiences with finding a way forward while bringing your past with you.

Chris Acker: Tuesday, Aug. 15 at 6 p.m.

New Orleans-based country-folk songsmith Chris Acker will share his collection of songs brimming with true tales, eloquent songwriting and fearless honesty. His third and latest record, Odd, Ordinary & Otherwise, flows gracefully from introspective, quiet tunes worthy of the modern folk music cannon, to downright barn burners ready for any dancehall and all the space in between.

Lee Zimmerman: Sunday, Aug. 20 at 11 a.m.

Sunday brunch accompaniment by Lee Zimmerman, one of the new cello innovators, weaving cello and voice into a broad musical fabric. Influenced by American pop music, swing, jazz, classical and world music, Lee brings a singular approach to the cello.

Danny Bee: Friday, Aug. 25 and Saturday, Aug. 26 at 6 p.m.

Gracing the beer garden stage all the way from Florida these married metal heads, turned acoustic rock and roll duo, display an amazing range and passion for their craft. Danny is a multi-instrumentalist and Bee’s vocals will soothe, haunt and amaze you.

For more information go to www.homeranchbottomsmt.com or call 406-888-5572.