Toy Factory Project To Bring Marshall Tucker Band Co-Founder Toy Caldwell’s Legacy To DelFest 2026 [Interview]

Toy Factory Project will bring Marshall Tucker Band co-founder Toy Caldwell’s catalog to the Allegany County Fairgrounds in Cumberland, MD, and into the jam-friendly air of DelFest over Memorial Day weekend, not as a nostalgia act, but as a living continuation of a Southern rock legacy. A project rooted in tradition, celebrating a songbook built for reinterpretation, the new supergroup carries Caldwell’s songs to a new generation of listeners.

Anchored by co-founding Marshall Tucker drummer Paul T. Riddle and powered by Marcus King, Blackberry Smoke frontman Charlie Starr, former Allman Brothers Band and Dead & Company bassist Oteil Burbridge, and Mountain Heart multi-instrumentalist Josh Shilling, Toy Factory Project exists to honor Toy Caldwell’s songwriting without freezing it in time.

“We are not a copy band,” Riddle told Live For Live Music. “We’re honoring and paying homage. The melodies are sacred, but there are no boundaries for individual expression. …We feel obligated to carry the torch and give our audience new versions of these iconic songs inspired by Toy’s great songwriting.”

That philosophy didn’t materialize overnight. Riddle had considered a project honoring Toy’s catalog for nearly 30 years. Vince Gill and Warren Haynes served as sounding boards, and Oteil Burbridge stayed close to the idea for more than a decade. Still, timing and prior commitments kept the project on hold.

“Oteil kept telling me God would tell me when the time was right,” Riddle recalled. “And that’s exactly what happened.”

Through Burbridge, Riddle connected with Charlie Starr. “I was humbled by how much my peers loved this music,” Paul, who co-founded MTB with Toy, his brother Tommy Caldwell on bass, guitarist George McCorkle, and multi-instrumentalist Jerry Eubanks in 1972, said. Charlie Starr, who grew up on Marshall Tucker’s catalog, told Riddle it would be an honor to contribute.

Then came Josh Shilling. Riddle knew he wanted B3 organ and fiddle to reinterpret the original flute and saxophone parts—not to replicate them, but to reshape them. “When Josh started playing B3, I thought, ‘This could be my guy,’” Riddle recalled. “The more I listened, the more I knew.”

Marcus King’s path felt equally destined. After hearing King’s demos—and realizing that Toy himself had turned Paul onto Marcus’ dad, guitarist Marvin King, years earlier—Riddle was blown away. “The more I listened to Marcus, the more I realized he was meant to play this music,” Riddle said. Seeing a video of King perform “Can’t You See” with Gov’t Mule sealed it. “When I called to ask if he wanted to do it, his reaction brought me to tears.”

As Shilling sums it up: “To keep it simple: Paul T. Riddle is the answer. This project has been his dream for years. Most of us had crossed paths before, but it didn’t fully register how special this would be until we were in the studio together. Paul saw it early. He had the vision. And it feels perfectly put together.”

Riddle then called Vince Gill. “He agreed 100 percent,” Riddle said. “It was time to move forward.”

Burbridge, who remained by Riddle’s side through the years of dreaming, was all in from the start. “He called me before I could call him and said, ‘I’m in,’” Riddle remembered. The band eventually convened at Peter Frampton’s studio in Nashville in November 2021, with Chuck Ainlay co-producing and engineering.

The sessions at Frampton’s Nashville studio became the proving ground for the new project. With Chuck Ainlay co-producing and engineering, the band tracked a forthcoming live record, expected later this year, capturing the electricity of seasoned musicians discovering something new inside familiar songs. Contributions from Vince Gill, Derek Trucks, Peter Frampton, and others deepened the project’s embedded generational lineage. Once the group spent time in the studio, they knew they had to bring this project to stages across the country.

After navigating legal hurdles, Toy Factory Project officially debuted as Telluride Bluegrass Festival headliners in June 2025. When the band finally stepped onto the stage for the first time, something immediate happened.

“I think both the audience and the band knew we were witnessing something truly special,” Josh Shilling shared. “The crowd stayed until the very end, growing in size as the set went on. They sang every word—lyrics Toy Caldwell wrote 50 years ago—and many of the fans singing along were in their 20s. Everyone felt how special this group of players is. Like the early Marshall Tucker Band, it feels like we’ve caught lightning in a bottle again. That’s so rare. And we all felt it in Telluride.”

Toy Factory Project – “Can’t You See” — Telluride Bluegrass Festival — 6/21/25

For Riddle, that night was the culmination of decades of dreaming.

“That performance confirmed everything,” he said. “I have never been more excited playing music—from the first note of rehearsal the day before until the last song of the set the following night. We can’t express enough how much we love playing together. That’s why we’ve coined the phrase, ‘It’s all about the love of the music and the love in the room.’ This is the reason we all play music. As Oteil says, ‘We have complete joy.’ Personally, I can’t articulate how much playing with these dear friends—who are, without question, some of the best musicians on this planet—has moved the core of my very soul.”

Shilling remembers the moment the band’s identity crystallized back in the studio. While recording “Running Like the Wind” and “Take the Highway”, harmonies began forming organically in the control room.

Toy Factory Project – “Take The Highway” — Telluride Bluegrass Festival — 6/21/25

“During the first chorus, the vocal magic happened,” Shilling said. “Coming from the South, our vowel sounds turn the same naturally. It felt too good to be true. A really happy accident.”

That “accident” became the sound.

“Paul saw it early—he had the vision,” Shilling said. “And I agree; it feels perfectly put together. Hard-to-wrap-my-head-around perfect.”

Marcus King and Charlie Starr complement each other with restraint and fire. Oteil locks in with Riddle in a way that feels almost telepathic. Shilling threads Hammond organ through Caldwell’s melodies—often stepping into spaces once occupied by flute—without overpowering them.

“It feels like this seat was made for me in a divine way,” Shilling reflected. “I think we all feel that.”

Though The Marshall Tucker Band was often categorized as Southern rock, Caldwell’s writing always lived somewhere between structure and freedom, stretching through country, jazz, gospel, blues, and open-road rock and roll. Toy Factory Project leans into that elasticity. The band honors the form—the arrangements and melodic markers fans know by heart—but leaves everything between wide open.

“We start with the form,” Riddle explained. “Most of the solos are improvised. Because of the trust we have for each other, we anticipate surprises every time we play.”

That spirit makes DelFest a natural next step. Founded by bluegrass patriarch Del McCoury, the festival thrives on lineage, collaboration, and reverence for tradition while pushing it forward.

“We feel like this type of audience is tailor-made for this band,” Riddle said.

Both Paul and Josh confirmed that collaborations are already taking shape for DelFest.

“It’s already in the works. We are so excited,” they shared. “We feel you will be, too.”

Shilling added, “After years of touring and recording with so many artists on the DelFest roster, I can envision endless guests. I have close friends in many of the acts on the bill. My personal wish is to have Del sing some tenor with us, and to have Ronnie and Rob [McCoury] shred mandolin and banjo. Songs like ‘Long Hard Ride’, ‘Southern Woman’, and ‘Can’t You See’ come to mind. It’s gonna happen.”

As Shilling put it, “We want to play prestigious, hand-picked venues for audiences who truly understand our mission. This is all about love—for the music and for each other. There’s no limit to what this group can accomplish, and I’m beyond excited for the future.”

But first comes DelFest.

This won’t feel like a revival. It will feel like a continuation, a torch carried forward by musicians who grew up inside these songs, revere them, and refuse to let them sit still.

Don’t miss Toy Factory Project live at DelFest this year, set for May 21st–24th in Cumberland, MD. Tickets are available now here. Revisit the band’s full debut performance at Telluride Bluegrass Festival below.

Toy Factory Project – Telluride Bluegrass Festival — Telluride, CO — 6/21/25