The Circle City Sidewalk Stompers band poses for a photograph during filming of “Mayberry Man” in Danville on Sept. 7, 2020. The band, founded by Franklin resident Steve Sutherlin, is featured in the movie.
SUBMITTED PHOTO BY CHRIS MINNICK
For nearly 50 years, the Circle City Sidewalk Stompers have made a name for themselves clowning around.
Part marching band, part clown troupe, the energetic collection of musicians have brought smiles to audiences all over the world.
They routinely entertain crowds at Indiana Pacers and Indianapolis Colts games, and have marched in parades and at the Indiana State Fair. They’ve played the San Diego Fair, the New York State Fair, the Wisconsin State Fair and the Alaska State Fair. Their reputation has brought them to play Carnival in Nice, France, and the Shanghai International Music Festival.
Emily Sutherlin has seen their impact first hand. Her husband, Bryan, is a member of the band. Her father-in-law, Steve Sutherlin, founded and directs it.
The incredible journey of Steve Sutherlin and the Circle City Sidewalk Stompers inspired her to write “Stompin’ Steve.”
“Steve has been talking for a long time about writing a book,” Emily Sutherlin said. “I am really passionate about children’s literature. I have just fallen in love with kids books, and the stories that they’re able to tell in a different way, and how much I enjoy them as an adult has been really fun. And so when we were talking about Steve’s book, I thought, ‘Why don’t I write a book and we can really honor your dad and honor his story?’ Because they’re coming up on their 50th anniversary as a band, which is pretty unique.”
Here’s what else Sutherlin had to say about the new children’s book:
What was your idea for the book?
A: I thought I could tell their story, and it would be appropriate for all ages. The fun that the band always brings, and their colorful nature , immediately I had images of what I could do with that and and how much fun it would be in a book. So I decided to try it.
What was the process of creating the book like?
A: I wrote the text. And then I found an illustrator who did acrylic on canvas for all of it, which is also a little unique to have just real illustrations at this point. And then her best friend is a graphic designer, so she ended up doing the design piece for our book. It was just kind of trial and error as we went. We learned a lot, but it has been really fun. I’m a mom, and have been a stay at home mom for nine years, so this is like my first thing outside of being a parent. And my husband and I worked on it together, because he is in the band and knows some of the history. So it was a fun thing to do together.
How did you try to tell the story of the the band?
A: I started with Steve as a child because his dad also played an instrument, and he played in a lot of different clubs and things. He would actually call home, and all of his children were required to play their instrument over the phone to make sure they were practicing. Some of those stories that I had heard of Steve growing up was like, Yeah, this totally lends itself to telling a story.
(Steve) was raised in a family of five musicians, and the family played and were all pretty passionate about music themselves. When Steve had the idea for the band, he went to them first. And at first it was kind of a family gig, which is not really anymore, but I just thought it was cool. So I started with him as a kid and how he likes to entertain, and his love of music. And then we just turned it into how he still continues to entertain and play as his horn, which he’s passionate about.
What was it like putting this all together and seeing the finished product?
A: It was really exciting. I think there were times when it was like, hurry up and wait. Sometimes we’d be waiting on the illustrator to finish the painting, and then we’re like, Okay, now we have all the paintings, but now we have to wait until they get digitized so we can put them in a digital format. Those kind of things. So it did feel like there was a lot of waiting involved, and some of that was just us not knowing the next steps and trying to figure it out.
But then I feel like it was so exciting getting a copy of it. ‘Wow, this is real!’ And now, I can buy my book on Amazon, which feels surreal to me. I order things all the time, but now I can pull up my book and it has my name on it, and that’s really fun.
For people who read the book, what do you hope they take away from it?
A: I hope that people will take away from it, that you can do something you love. Steve is so passionate about playing his horn, and he found a way to not only play it and get paid for it, which he gets a kick out of. But also, he’s traveled all over the world; he’s been to China and France and Alaska, and a lot of places that he probably never would have gone. So I hope that both adults and kids will just say, he had this idea, and he made it happen.
That’s how I feel about the book, too. I wanted to do it, and it was kind of on a whim. Even if it’s just a first step, and I never do it for anybody else, that’s fine. But then it turned into something that we’re offering to the community, and it’s in the libraries and stuff, and that feels really fun to me.
AT A GLANCE
“Stompin’ Steve”
Author: Emily Sutherlin
Synopsis: A biographical picture book telling the story of the Circle City Sidewalk Stompers Clown Band, inspiring readers to follow their dreams and work hard.
Where to purchase: store.bookbaby.com/book/stompin-steve
