BOB WILES AND COWBOY JONES
A
PHOTO by SARAH BARKER HUHN mericana , Country , Red Dirt , Rock , Folk … Call it what you want , it ’ s good music from Oklahoma . Music can be magical . It can help us forget the troubles of the day , help us heal . When Cowboy Jones gathers together to play music , they forget all about the real world and they slip into the magical world of music .
When you listen to Cowboy Jones , whether the recordings or at a live show ; they hope it can do the same thing for you .
Cowboy Jones is a bunch of veterans of the Oklahoma Music Scene . They ’ ve been getting together for the last 15 years or so and finally have a recording called Bob Wiles and Cowboy Jones .
All the band members play in several different bands from several different genres of music . When they gather as Cowboy Jones , something special happens . That is why , whenever they can , they each put aside their other projects and come together as Cowboy Jones .
Cowboy Jones is fronted by Bob Wiles on rhythm guitar ( a founding member of the Red Dirt Rangers ) and the band includes : John Williams on harmonica , Kurt Nielsen on mandolin and tenor guitar , Steve Huhn on bass , Anthony Pierce and Jeff Overbeck on lead guitar , Dana Hazzard on fiddle and Jean Wiles on vocals and percussion .
The band has a great album out with a dozen songs – some old , some new – that were recorded at Teegarden Studios in Tulsa , OK . One of the new songs from Bob Wiles is “ I ’ m Gonna Wake Up ”. Wiles started this song when Bob Childers died ( a wake-up call ), wrote another verse when Tom Skinner died , wrote some more when Brandon Jenkins passed and finally finished it when Jim Paul Blair passed away . Jim was a dear friend and member of Cowboy Jones . His untimely passing came when the band was preparing to record . IBF
CLIFF TOP
Cliff Top is an eclectic mix of age and music backgrounds . Their storytelling writing style and music influences range from bluegrass , traditional country to classical come together to create
their original sound . Lead vocalist Phillip Wilson has
been playing and writing music for five decades . His love for the story telling writing style was heavily in-
CLIFF TOP
fluenced by cousin Nat Stuckey and other great Texas song writers . This style of writing is what drew Phillip to bluegrass and traditional Americana music .
Fiddle player Elizabeth Venegas grew up in central Oklahoma and has spent most of her musical life performing as a classical violinist with a number of orchestras in the state and is the General Manager of
Oklahoma Virtuosi Chamber Orchestra , and the Program Manager for Students and Families of Oklahoma Youth Orchestra .
Singer Courtney Duncan grew up in choir , church choir and theater . She studied voice at the University of Central Oklahoma and has been writing music for over a decade .
Bassist Nick Fedder is studying double bass at the University of Central Oklahoma and brings his background gigging with a variety of bands and ensembles to the group .
Multi-instrumentalist Joe Kahlden is a highly skilled mandolin , dobro and guitar player , and was the runner up in the 2018 Oklahoma State Flat Picking Championships .
Guitarist and mandolin player Sam Conrey ’ s first love was blues , growing up near Memphis , but when work brought him to Oklahoma he fell in love with bluegrass and rarely looks back . IBF
OKLAHOMA ’ S INTERNATIONAL BLUEGRASS FESTIVAL 2022 / 9