jacob jolliff & michael daves

jacob jolliff & michael daves

Michael Daves and Jacob Jolliff are two of America’s premier bluegrass talents. After years of collaborating in various bands and informal settings they have teamed up as a formidable duo featuring high lonesome vocal harmony and fiery flatpicking. Their sound is an homage to the classic guitar-mandolin “brother duets” while leaving plenty of room for improvisation and inspired left turns. They effortlessly straddle the line between hard-core traditional bluegrass and experimental forms.

Born in Atlanta, Georgia, Michael Daves grew up playing bluegrass in the grand old tradition of staying up late & singing loud. Although he’s since moved north, the Southern roots permeate his music, however traditional or experimental. Heralded as “a leading light of the New York bluegrass scene” by the New York Times, Daves has garnered attention for his work with Chris Thile, Steve Martin, Tony Trischka, and others in addition to his solo performances. His album “Sleep With One Eye Open” with Thile earned a 2011 Grammy nomination.

Jacob Jolliff has become one of the country’s most notable contemporary mandolinists. He was a member of the beloved New England roots band Joy Kills Sorrow, while attending Berklee College of Music on a full scholarship. In 2012, Jolliff won the National Mandolin Championship in Winfield, KS. Now a fixture of the national bluegrass community, he has collaborated and shared the stage with Darol Anger, Sam Bush, Ronnie McCoury, Jerry Douglas, Tony Trischka, and David Grisman among others. When Joy Kills Sorrow disbanded in 2014, Jolliff got the call to join Yonder Mountain String Band with whom he toured full time through 2019. In 2022 Jolliff released a self-titled Jacob Jolliff Band album and toured with Béla Fleck as part of My Bluegrass Heart.