Band History!
Five of A Kind started in 1980 as a group of friends jamming in a garage at the home of Strasburg residents Winston and Martha Brill. The pickers were Jimmy Drummond on guitar, Gene Stokes on mandolin, Doug Arthur on bass, Charlie Nicholson on banjo and Richard Kleese on resonator guitar. They soon started playing at parties and other events in the area. They were invited to perform at Winchester's Apple Blossom Parade, and that made the group official.
Throughout the next 3 decades, personnel changes altered the band's lineup, but anchored by Jimmy's lead vocals, the sound remained consistent. A lot of fine musicians have come and gone; Vince Polling, Norman Racey, Bill Poffinberger, Joe Passolano, Terry Barbin, Bill Foster, Tom Knowles, Ben Whitman, "Buggs" Richard Franks, and Tim Lansberry.
As the mid-point of the second decade of the 21st century rolls in, the current band has taken shape. Jimmy and fiddler Jamie Thomas are joined by Steve Spence on bass and Del Purkey on banjo to become the most recent iteration of the band.