Well, in our humble opinion, the gig at Rapunzel’s this past weekend was outstanding. We played three sets for the good folks down in Lovingston, and it appeared to be very well received. One couple told us that they felt like they were at a Kingston Trio concert. I don’t think we’re anywhere near that talented, but it was quite a compliment all the same.

The Sheriffs also performed our first-ever live children’s set (with two dads on stage and two daughters in the audience, we couldn’t very well turn down their requests), which included Old MacDonald, The Alphabet Song, Apples and Bananas, and others. We ain’t proud, but you do what you gotta do. 😉

Many thanks to TJ, one of the founders of Carbon Leaf fansite countrymonkee.org, for coming out, donating his time and equipment, and recording our entire show. Keep an eye on the website in the coming weeks; we’ll likely post some tunes from the show soon.

And thanks to everyone who came out…it felt great to be onstage again.

View our setlist from the gig.

Just a reminder of our upcoming Rapunzel’s date in Lovingston next month. Check the Gigs page for directions and details, or email us at info@johnsoncountysheriffs.com.

We’ve switched the Latest News page over to a Blog-based format. Hopefully this will help expedite updates.

In case you hadn’t noticed, there’s a shiny new look to the website. This is what happens when my wife goes out of town for the weekend. I get bored and redesign websites. I’m such a nerd. Hope you like the new look.

New songs, new songs, new songs! That’s the order of the day “in the studio”. That’s right, we’re recording again. Our first attempt at recording practice went rather well. In addition to adding several new songs to the lineup, we managed to put a couple down on tape (well, digital tape via the computer). You can check one out here. Ain’t exactly Sun Studios quality, but as far as we’re concerned, it’s gold. Keep an eye on JCS.com for more nuggets from the studio.

There is life again at Johnson County Sheriffs dot com. After a (long) period of stagnation, we’re talking again about lining up some more gigs this spring and summer. There’s also a renewed interest in getting a short CD finalized to use as a demo and possibly to sell at live shows. Please e-mail if you need to line up some entertainment for your upcoming event, and keep checking back for (hopefully) more frequent updates.

Jeff

Well, I just noticed that there hasn’t been an update here in…oh, about a year. So i figured I’d fill you all in on what’s happening with the Sheriffs…

Jeff is now living in Amherst, VA, working for the VA Commonwealth’s Attorney’s office. He and Jen recently hosted a big bash for their daughter Alyson’s first birthday. OK, it wasn’t that recent, but relative to the updates this page has seen, it’s recent. Jeff also just bought a brand new Jeep Grand Cherokee, no doubt in a ploy to make me insanely jealous.

Speaking of babies, Christian and Liz just had their first, Savannah Grace, on July 11. Both mother and daughter are healthy and happy. Christian and Liz are also in the process of renovating the kitchen out at Oaksby, and we’re hoping they invite us over for dinner one night when the construction is done.

As for me, a lot has happened since the last update. Let’s see…I got engaged to my lovely fiance Lara, we bought a house…hmmm…OK, not a lot, per se, but those two are pretty big, so it seems like a lot. The wedding is set for Sept. 4 in Charlottesville. But sorry, the Sheriffs will not be playing the reception. Instead, I deferred to the region’s premier Dixieland/Zydeco act, the Dixie Power Trio. Afterwards, Lara and I are off for a week-long drive across Ireland. Hopefully I’ll pick up a few pointers on the “proper” way to play Irish music.

As for the band, well, we’re hoping to get rolling again soon, once all of our personal lives settle down a bit. We’ll be taking our yearly fall trip to the mountains come October, which will hopefully rejuvinate us and get us back in the mood for making music. There may also be another Rapunzel’s show in the makings sometime this fall, so keep an eye on the schedule page.

Take care, and we’ll see you again soon!

Kyle

Howdy all! Hope your summer is a blast…ours seems to be flying by. For those of you who didn’t make it, we played Buddhist Biker Bar and Grill in Charlottesville this past Friday and had a great show. We’re told that our new rig sounded awesome (it ought to, as much as we paid for it), and the turnout was pretty big. So if ya made it out, thanks for coming, and if you didn’t, well..fooey on you. But we’re gonna play there again in August, and we’ll let you know as soon as we set a date.

For those of you Northern Virginia Sheriffs’ fans, we thank you for the continued emails about when we’ll find another bar up in your area. We’re workin’ on it. 🙂 Make sure you come on out and see us at the Signal Hill Concert Series in Manassas in August…we’re pretty excited to be playing for you guys again.

So…keep in touch, and keep an eye on the Beat page. Even though it looks like we’re slowin’ down, it’s intentional and temporary. Once everyone gets settled into new houses and used to babies, etc., we’ll be back out again. And as always, keep an ear to the ground for any places you think the Sheriffs should play.

Stay cool out there…The Sheriffs

Jeff and his wife welcomed the newest deputy sheriff into the world – Alyson Mackenzie Bennett – on June 3. May 9, 2003 Not a whole lot going on this summer. All of our former fans and friends from Ben’s BBQ will be pleased to note that we do have a gig lined up in Manassas on Saturday, August 23. We apologize for the slack performance schedule this summer, but things have become rather hectic. Jeff and his wife are expecting their first baby in early June, Christian has recently started a new job, and both guys are going to be moving into new homes this summer. But we ain’t giving up yet! Stay tuned…

Hey folks…just a quick update for y’all. Since we haven’t played live in about a month now, we’ve spent our spare time practicing and are well on our way to adding nearly another set’s worth of music to the JCS repertoire. Look for new bluegrass and Celtic numbers at our next show, as well as some surprises from Queen, the Eagles, and others. Never a dull moment with us, you know.

We’re finalizing the first few tracks of our new live album as well, and six new cuts have taken shape thus far. We’re also taking a crack at recording practices since every once in a while we’ll pull something brilliant when no one is listening.
Lastly, we’re negotiating with two clubs in NoVA and one in the Cville area for spring JCS gigs. We’ve gotten a ton of fan recommendations, help, and support with lining up new NoVA gigs to replace Ben’s, and it’s appreciated. We’re looking forward to playing up that way again for you guys. Wherever we do get a gig, you better all be there so we get invited back. That’s about it for now. See you soon!