By Noel deCordova

Sun Staff Intern

NORWICH – The Chenango County Fair will once again open its gates as an entertaining summer venture Aug. 11-16. The fair kicks off on the 11th with a day of free admission and multiple musical performances. including the headlining band New Riders of the Purple Sage (presented by the Chenango County Blues Festival).

The New Riders of the Purple Sage are a country rock band that dates back to 1969. Since then, the band has gone through many incarnations, taking on many group members in the process. The most notable of these musicians was a young banjo player named Jerry Garcia, who later gained national fame through his own band, the Grateful Dead. The New Riders often opened for the Dead in these early years, slowly building a following. In 1973, the band released what is considered their finest album, “The Adventures of Panama Red,” featuring the radio staple “Panama Red,”