The Full Moon Saloon Band
Named after the legendary bar in Key West Florida that inspired many of Jimmy Buffett's best songs, The Full Moon Saloon covers Buffett, Reggae, Classic Rock, and Blues. Formed in January 2000, the Charlottesville, Virginia based band got together to headline the inaugural "Parrot Heads for Pets" concert to benefit the Charlottesville SPCA. The concert was sponsored by the Central Virginia Parrot Head Club. Gaining rave reviews from local publications, the band walked off the stage with requests for additional gigs. The energy that was created from the show moved The Full Moon Saloon to the central Virginia club circuit.
The founding members of the band were Barry Collins, Mark Maslyk, Mike Spivey, Timi Ryalls, Fran Slayton and Chris Brancato. Bill Murphy, a close friend, and manager of Awful Arthur's (now West Main Grille) booked the band to play a few times at the restaurant as a prequel to the Parrot Heads for Pets concert. Ten years later, the band has headlined five Parrot Heads for Pets concerts as well as hundreds of club and private performances. Timi Ryalls left the band after two years. We thank Timi for helping us get started. For those that know Timi, he an outstanding musician and a good friend. Fran and Chris also left the band after several years. Kevin Russell joined the band in 2006 providing the band with his expertise on lead guitar. Leaving a void on bass and background vocals, Carter Conrad (also plays for the Boomerangs) joined the group in 2007 playing bass and laying down some excellent vocal harmonies.
Full Moon Saloon Band member Carter Conrad passed away, Monday, January 25th, 2021. Carter was a member of the band for 14 years. He was a tremendous musical asset and wonderful friend. Carter will be greatly missed.
Carter was a member of two bands, Full Moon Saloon and The Boomerangs. An opportunity has arisen to play a gig in memory of Carter with both bands. Full Moon Saloon and The Boomerangs will perform on July 10th at Riverbirch on Pantops from 6:30 to 9:30. Hope to see you there.