Entering a Bumper Jacksons Duo show is warm and inviting, like opening the front door of a neighbor who's just taken bread out of the oven. Roots jazz rhythms and country swing harmonies are vignetted by stories and sounds of Appalachia. Come in, take a seat, and be woven into a musical story that never stops being told. Bumper Jacksons' co-founders Jess Eliot Myhre and Chris Ousley lead with their signature sun-dappled vocal harmonies, and the multi-instrumentalists trade off on strings and horns, playing fresh originals and dusted-off tunes from their great-grandparent's coat closet. But don't let their disarming folksiness fool you: their performance is silver-polished and highly acclaimed. Bumper Jacksons have been honored multiple times as the Mid-Atlantic's "Artist of the Year" & "Best Traditional Band" by the Washington Area Music Awards while both Jess and Chris as individuals are award-winning songwriters, alumns of the Strathmore Artists-in-Residence program, and regular Maryland State Arts Council grant recipients.
You can find Chris and Jess performing and teaching as a duo at ukulele festivals, music camps, house concerts, and smaller, more intimate venues.
