Jim & Jesse
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Jim & Jesse were an American bluegrass music duo consisting of two brothers Jim and Jesse McReynolds. The brothers were born and raised in Carfax near Coeburn in Virginia.
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[edit] Line-up
Jesse plays the mandolin with a unique "crosspicking and split-string playing" method he had invented, and Jim sang as a tenor and played guitar. They played with a backing band, The Virginia Boys, consisting of a five-string banjo, fiddle and bass guitar.
[edit] Record releases and awards
In 1952, Jim & Jesse were signed to their first major label, Capitol Records. They have also recorded for Columbia Records, Epic Records and Opryland USA. They also released under their own Old Dominion record label. In 1960, their first single for Columbia, "The Flame of Love" backed by "Gosh I Miss You All The Time" spent weeks climbing the top 100 national charts. Their other classic songs include "Cotton Mill Man", "Diesel On My Tail", "Are You Missing Me", and "Paradise".
On March 2, 1964, they were inducted into the Grand Ole Opry after making several appearances as guest hosts, and they moved to Gallatin, Tennessee later that year.
Their numerous honors include induction into the Country Music Hall of Fame's "Walkway of Stars", the Virginia Country Music Hall of Fame, the International Bluegrass Music Association's Hall of Honor, and Bill Monroe's Bluegrass Hall of Fame. Individually and collectively they were nominated for several Grammy Awards. They also received the National Heritage Fellowship Award from the National Endowment for the Arts, presented by Hillary Rodham Clinton and Jane Alexander at The White House on September 23, 1997.
[edit] A record setting career for the duo ends
In 2002, both brothers were diagnosed with different types of cancer. Jesse's battle was successful, but Jim's was not. He passed away on December 31, 2002, ending the longest active professional brother duet in country music history - 55 years.
Jesse has carried on the Jim & Jesse tradition and plays all over the world with the Virginia Boys.
