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WHO IS SLOPPY JOE? | |
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Every Sloppy Joe performance draws on a deep well of original songs. This material is frequently recombined with jug-band instrumentation (spoons, jug, wash-tub, etc.) all while band-members swap the guitar, fiddle, banjo, mandolin, and bass around the stage. One observer claimed to see the upright bass change players three times in one song. In this era when many bands perform out of a weak-eyed allegiance to pop-culture’s formula for “success” and a soul-less mimicry of music that’s already ‘been there and done that’ this originality of sound and subject-matter is the refreshing difference that sets Slopgrass apart from any other stage-style. Sloppy Joe has performed regularly in the tall pines of the north country (Manitowish Waters, Cecil, Swamp n' grass, Northland, Flat Rock, Prairiegrass festivals to name a few), and the mountains and cypress swamps of the south ( Suwannee Springfest, Americana, Magnoliafest, and Poppy Mountain) all the while maintaining the unique slopgrass sound. Although they are no strangers to these big stages Sloppy Joe has thrilled audiences from the rough roadhouses of America’s backwoods to old-time rendezvous gatherings and community celebrations on Main street USA. In their travels they’ve had the opportunity to share the bill with a variety of great acts including The late John Hartford, The Del McCoury Band, Dr. Ralph Stanley, Leftover Salmon, Danny Barnes, Michael Hurley, Piper Road Spring Band, Rev. Jeff Mosier, Vassar Clements, and Hayseed Dixie. Asking any other band to play slopgrass might get a, “You can’t get there from here!" response. Remember, "If it ain’t Sloppy Joe it ain’t Slopgrass”!
The band consists of 4 members, and boasts no less than 3 talented lead singers, each one an accomplished songwriter and instrumentalist.
GAVIN SCHABERG
(Vocals, banjo, guitar, mandolin) Many of the original songs performed by Sloppy Joe are Gavin’s creation often delivered in his rich baritone voice. Since the beginnings of Sloppy Joe his definitive slopgrass banjo sound has evolved into a style somewhere between 3-finger-pick-axe and clawhammer. With his roots set deep in the rural woodlands of the upper mid-west, Gavin spent many of his formative years traveling and working odd jobs. From roofer, falconer, migrant harvester, desert ranger, farmhand to deckhand on a Bering Sea long-liner, this lifelong exposure to the talk and experiences of “work’n folk” shows itself in the lyrics and subject matter of his songs.
JEFF SACHS (Vocals, upright
bass, fiddle, banjo, guitar, jug, mandolin Jeff is the undisputed Grandpappy of Slopgrass. His never-ending journey into the middle of music itself has led him to jaw-dropping performances on all the instruments listed above. The driving rhythm of his‘ slap bass’ has kept the dance floors full and he has been rated one of the best bassists of the mid-west. His hillbilly fiddle adds a warm southern flair that makes you want to “kick off yer shoes” (no telling what you’ll take off when he picks a banjo! ). Jeff has also written many of the songs considered cornerstones in the slopgrass circle. Inspired by bluegrass, heavy metal, and country music since adolescence, Jeff has been creating and playing music in various arrangements, transcontinentally. STEF LEE (Vocals, guitar, upright bass, fiddle, banjo, musical saw )
JIMERS SOUKUP (Washtub and upright basses, jawharp)
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