The Souland Music Festival was an idea hatched in 2003 by a local music duo, Bliggins and Goines , comprised of Dr Seth Grossman and Bob (?). Seth was raised up in the Sourlands, and heard the music of the mountain in nature and the people who he grew up with. It is a traditional Piedmont Sound, one that has a long tradition from the mountain folk in West Virginia up the Piedmont range to New Jersey and further North. The music is characterized by the roots of American music, blues and bluegrass.

That first Sourland concert was held all through the Summer of 2003 at Joes Mill Hill Saloon in downtown Trenton, NJ. The music that Seth wrote was that of happenings in the mountain, how the folks there lived back in the day, right up to modern days, but mostly drawing on the Sourlands rich history. Some song titles from back then would be "Minnetown" tells the story of an African-American enclave near Hopewell. "Highfields" is named after the Lindbergh estate in East Amwell, where Charles A. Lindbergh Jr. was kidnapped and killed in a case known as the "crime of the century."

In 2004 the Sourland Planning Council joined with Seth Grossman in promoting the event along with the SPC as a fundraiser for the non profit . The Sourland Planning Council is a non-profit organization working to protect the ecological integrity, historical resources and special character of the Sourland Mountain region. The concert was held at the famous(and infamous) “Hillbilly Hall Restaurant”, where it was packed to the rafters. Musicians included Guy Derosa and other local blues artists.

In 2005 the venue was moved to Hillborough Country Club, on the polo field. The clubs owner, Bryce Thompson Jr, offered this as a festival site because of his and his family's support of the Sourland Planning Council. It has been there ever since.

Musicians have commented in the past:
“The Sourlands is a special place in New Jersey that deserves such attention”, says Jim Popik, a Hopewell resident who is both a past trustee of the Sourland Planning Council and a performer with the eclectic Ten Foot Tall Band."On one side is Flemington, on the other side is the Princeton Corridor," Popkik says. "In the middle is this remarkable area."

Another musician who is a fan of the Sourlands is Tom Marshall, longtime lyricist for the jam band Phish and leader of the group Amfibian. Marshall was born in Princeton Township and now lives in the Skillman section of Montgomery. "I hike in the Sourland Mountain Preserve (with my children) all the time," declares Marshall. "We're very interested in nature, and when (the Sourland Planning Council) approached me about playing, I was happy to agree. Any charity that helps a cool cause like this, we'd love to take part in."