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"If you plan a jamboree, better get you lots of friends."

The sign hangs loosely and prophetically on the outside wall of the old worn and weary Henderson schoolhouse in the hinterlands of Pike County. In just a few words, it tells the success story of Rex Locklar’s Bluegrass Festivals.

Locklar has more friends than he can shake a stick at, more friends than he can shake a dozen or more sticks at. So, when Locklar planned a jamboree, he had the friends to make it happen — again and again.

For 41 years now, Rex Locklar has been hosting bluegrass festivals at Henderson Music Park, which is nothing more or less than the old Henderson schoolhouse and the surrounding

Rex Locklar was quite a musician in his day. He played guitar, mandolin and piano and could sing “pretty good, too.” And, he was bragged on a good bit for his buck dancing. But now arthritis has paid him a visit and kind of hampered what he can do. He is pictured picking the guitar that was autographed and given to him by friends on his 75 birthday.

Rex Locklar owns and operates P.N. Locklar¹s Store in downtown Henderson. Just about any afternoon he can be found on the porch of “the hang out.” He¹ll get up to welcome visitor with a hug and then he¹ll sit down a spin a yarn or two. Visitors leave having been thoroughly entertained.

The Henderson Bluegrass Festivals have been held without fail since 1965 when Locklar talked his dad into letting him have the old schoolhouse for community use instead of renting it as apartments.

"It took more money to fix the place back up after the renters moved out than my daddy took in," Locklar said, as he pondered those early days of the festival. "Just looked like to me there could be a better use for the schoolhouse than that."

Locklar might have conceived the idea of family gatherings and school reunions as a way to sell his dad on the idea of giving the boot to renters, but the King of Bluegrass probably had an even better idea.

It was a quiet, sunny, early spring Sunday in Henderson. Locklar was where he usually is on days like that sitting on the porch of P.N. Locklar Grocery store and so close to the road that vehicles "breeze you" when they go by.

He was "jawin’" with friends who had stopped by to visit and obliged ’em by strumming a tune on the guitar the bluegrass gang gave him on his 75th birthday.

"I can’t do much playing anymore," he said and gestured with his gnarled hands. "But I can strum a little and (grinnin’) I can still sing: Just plain ole country, just plain ole me. Got no money, broke as I can be. Wealth and riches don’t bother me. Just plain ole country, just plain ole me."

For 41 years, Rex Locklar has been hosting Bluegrass Festivals at the old Henderson school. The building was heavily damaged by a rainstorm, but Locklar¹s not letting a leaking roof put a damper on the 2006 Spring Bluegrass Festival on April 14 and 15. Henderson is located in rural Pike County.

Sure, it’s the bluegrass, the old Southern gospel and country music that’s played there. But then music like that is played a lot of places. What makes the Henderson Music Park so special is Rex himself.

Anyone who frequents the Henderson Bluegrass Festival will say that "we’re here because we love Rex."

"And I’m here because I love them and bluegrass," is always Locklar’s response.

"These bluegrass folks are the best folks in the world," he said. "They’re in a class by themselves just good folks who’d rather play music and sing than eat or anything else.

"I reckon they like to come to Henderson cause there’s nothing fancy about it. We’re just here to make music and have a good time. I guess, it’s in our blood."

Locklar traces his love of music back to his father who played guitar and fiddle and his mother who sang.

"My mama could sing and she’d make me sing, but the one who could really sing was my aunt, Irene Carter," Locklar said, and added laughing. "If I could hear her sing alto one more time, I’d be ready to go."

Locklar played guitar, mandolin and piano and could do a buck dance like nobody’s business. "Can’t do that anymore but I still get a kick out of listening to others pick and sing and watch them dance," he said. "Over the years, these bluegrass festivals have brought me a lot of pleasure and I hope to a lot of my friends, too."

In years past, Locklar said it was "mostly old folks" who came to the festivals, but now many young people are dedicated bluegrass lovers. "It makes me feel good to see all these young folks playing bluegrass and singing," he said. "That lets me know that bluegrass won’t die because once it gets in your blood, it’s there to stay."

The Henderson Music Park is fertile ground and bluegrass grows there like weeds. "A lot of young’uns have come around totin’ guitars and learning to play," Locklar said. "And Carter Rushing did more to encourage young folks to play bluegrass than anyone else I know.

"It didn’t matter how good or how bad a young’un was, he’d pat them on the head and keep working with them. A number of young folks that got their start here in Henderson are making it big with bluegrass bands around the country. A few of them are in Nashville. Yeah. I feel good about bluegrass. It’s gonna keep growing."

But, maybe not at Henderson Music Park.

"Naw, I almost didn’t have the bluegrass festival this year," Locklar said. "Like I said, I’m getting old and the old schoolhouse is in worse shape than I am and I ain’t got the money to fix it up. But my friends all said that they were coming whether I had the festival or not. So, I started planning to have the festival. And I reckon we’ll have one."

Rex’s Spring Bluegrass Festival will be on Friday and Saturday, April 14 and 15, at Henderson Music Park.

He only has 88 hookups for RVs but there’s room in the pasture out back for tents for camping.

The RVs will start to pull in on Monday and Tuesday and, by Thursday, there probably will be only squeezin’ in room.

"We’ll have folks from nine states that come to stay from start to finish and folks will come in on Friday and Saturday all during the day and night," Locklar said. "There will be pickin’ and

singin’ from early morning until late at night and sometimes all night. Last year a lightning storm took out the lights but we lit candles and kept right on going. Once we get started you can’t hardly stop us."

Already 16 groups have told Locklar, "We’ll be there" and so have the Rivertown Girls and the Backwards Boy.

"Brandon Bostic is a lefthanded picker and he can play anything ‘backwards,’" Locklar said. "I believe he could even play a dishpan good."

There will be pickin’ and jammin’ at every crook and turn and under every shade tree at Henderson Music Park.

"If you don’t pick and sing, just come and grin," Locklar said. "Everybody is welcome at Henderson. You never ‘sausage’ a place. Everyone is a ‘wiener’ here."

Jaine Treadwell is a freelance writer from Brundidge.