Stockyards Brewing’s Sunday Service celebrates a decade worshipping KC’s bluegrass scene

Cow Town Country Club // Courtesy of Stockyards Brewing

It was 1912 in the West Bottoms. Over 200,000 cattle mingled as far as the eye could see, the land owned by the Kansas City Livestock Exchange. In a good year, two million cows were shipped to be slaughtered. Now, over 100 years later, something has risen from these heifer-hallowed grounds: some damn good music and beer. Both are part of Stockyards Brewing’s concert series, Sunday Service, which has been held every Sunday afternoon for 10 years and is a staple of Kansas City’s folk scene.

Located in the historic Golden Ox, Stockyards Brewing opened its doors on April 15, 2016, exactly 10 years ago. The brewery continues to embrace the cattle-prodding legacy of its location, seamlessly weaving the past into its present.

Greeting patrons as they approach on Genessee Street is the painstakingly maintained hand-painted “Golden Ox” sign displayed in the window. A heavy wooden door that sticks a bit guards the early 1900s history. A faithfully recreated saloon awaits – the centerpiece is the solid-wood bar with stained-glass decorations hanging from the ceiling. Traditional wood accents and light fixtures adorn the walls, all leading to a backdrop of cattle ranchers on a Western horizon. It’s here that every Sunday at 3 pm, Americana amplifies out into a packed house.

Sunday Service stage // Courtesy of Stockyards Brewing

Inside, friendly faces such as Jordy Brady—Sunday’s expert bartender who never forgets a face or order—set the tone. Alongside Jordy is Melissa VanGoethem; together, they’ve maintained the show’s consistency for a decade. Supported by ‘trailboss‘ Greg Bland and the team, Stockyard Brewing celebrates navigating the open plains of alcohol vending and concert hosting in the 21st century.

“We originally were calling it Bluegrass Sundays,” explains founder Bland. “We eventually expanded that genre, and it became all about the community. Bluegrass has always been a gathering place.” The community Bland is referring to is a diverse crowd: from a web of musicians to entire families to the regulars who leave saying, “church was great today.”

A typical Sunday, friends, strangers, old-timers, and families packed shoulder to shoulder, exchanging hugs and ‘how the hell have you been’. It’s the sort of environment where everyone knows everyone, even if it’s your first time, you’re included in that hospitality. The brewery for a concert venue is quintessentially intimate – you are never 30 feet away from the musicians or another beer.

The typical bluegrass outfit (guitar, mandolin, banjo, and upright bass, with the occasional fiddle) is most likely to make up the sermons that grace Sunday Service. The music is tight. Bluegrass is technical, yet mainly improvisational. Any given week, a new arrangement of some of KC’s most talented musicians will come together. Maybe make you cry with a new cover of a Glen Campbell song (just a hypothetical). And even though the lineup is set, you never know what you’ll get.

“It’s the kind of music where people step in, and they jam together,” explains VanGoethem. “We don’t care who’s coming. We’ll know it’ll be great.” Bands such as Cee Dee Vee, Whiskey Mash Band, and John Brown Boys (or any of the other 10 years’ worth of folk bands) have made the stage their home.

According to Bland, Sunday Service just started to catch on once they got the first concert started. “I think one of the first bands was an employee connection. After that, if a band played here, we would ask them, ‘Who else should we reach out to?’ Then those bands would start to tell their band friends, and those people would start reaching out.”

Stockyards hosted the event quarterly until the team realized there was enough traction to move it to every Sunday afternoon at 3 pm. “We quickly changed to that, and we’ve done it ever since. I think we’ve only missed stupid Super Bowls,” VanGoethem explains. Even for Chiefs fans, there’s just something about Sundays at the stockyards.

Barroom Billies // Courtesy of Stockyards Brewing

“Now it’s up to the musicians if they want the Chiefs games on,” explains Brady. “One Sunday, The Matchsellers came over to the TV and narrated the game. They moved the whole band right here, and he was banging on his banjo while the game was going on. It was hilarious.”

The Sunday Service concerts are usually held inside Stockyards Brewing, but when the weather is favorable, they have also been held outdoors in the brewery’s West Bottoms backyard. Due to recent wind-related transgressions against an upright bass, outdoor events have been paused, but the upcoming April 11 celebration marks their return to this space for the 10-year anniversary.

A celebration with food, drink, and music is set for Sunday, April 11, featuring longtime performers Konza Swamp Band and special guests.

“They’ve had a couple of shows where they have gone full acoustic,” explains Bland. “One day they went full unplugged, and the band got behind the bar and played the entire show there.” When any given Sunday has a chance to be memorable, nobody wants to miss it.

Jordy and Melissa trade stories over the long-term friendships these walls have cultivated. A bridesmaid’s request mistaken for a marriage proposal, the merchandise Melissa has helped curate over the years, and swooning over surprise performances like the most recent fiddle step in from Betse Ellsi.

To top it off, Jordy Brady met Mr. Brady while working a Sunday Service. “Billy is my husband, he’s in Whiskey Mash Band. I was bartending here, and he had played here for years. I just batted my eyes at him for a bit,” described Brady. A bluegrass brewery hallmark movie.

Not only has Stockyard’s scene been a staple for people who have been coming there for 10 years, but the beer is also finding its roots in the Midwest. Stockyard Brewing has recently crossed a state line. The Kansas takeover has commenced with the opening of their taproom in Overland Park. This expansion looks away from the history of the meat trade and towards the history of the meat counter.

“Once we started construction and ripping things out, we found remnants of the old Piggly Wiggly,” explains Bland. “The bar was designed to be like the meat counter at the grocery store; we wanted to mix in a sort of mid-century modern cowboy feel to it.”

Soon, the team hopes this space will take on a life of its own, hosting events. “If we tried to recreate Sunday Service down there, people would still come to this bar. This room is electric on Sundays,” explains Brady.

After years in the Kansas City ‘burbs, it’s easy to overlook the city’s bluegrass roots. But whether you wear boots or Converse, cowboy hats or beanies, Stockyard Brewing’s Sunday Service remains welcoming. The service’s principles—love, acceptance, and a sense of higher power—are always easier to celebrate with a beer in hand.

After  Brady summarizes the Sunday Service mentality, “We’re a big ole’ honkin’ family. And people feel it pretty quickly. If you come to town and you’re looking to meet people, it’s a great place to do it.”