Eddie Barbash (Cory Wong, Jon Batiste), Jeff Picker (Nickel Creek, Ricky Skaggs), and Mark Raudabaugh (Sierra Hull) play jazz in a way that only three Nashvillians could — fiddle tunes become jazz standards and classic jazz is crooned with old soul.
Jeff Picker is an in-demand double bassist, bass guitarist, composer, and bandleader in Nashville, TN. Hailed as the "designated bassist to the stars," (The Willamette Week) Jeff is a touring member of platinum-selling, genre-bending bluegrass band Nickel Creek (Chris Thile, Sara Watkins, Sean Watkins). He spent 5 years as a member of Country Music Hall of Fame member and Grand Ole Opry star Ricky Skaggs' band Kentucky Thunder, and one year as a member of IBMA Award-winning bluegrass ensemble East Nash Grass. He appears frequently on the Grand Ole Opry with various artists and as a member of the staff band. Jeff has also appeared on over 50 records in styles ranging from bluegrass to country to jazz to Americana, and has performed or recorded on a freelance basis with dozens of other artists including Rodney Crowell, Sarah Jarosz, Skip Ewing, The Infamous Stringdusters, Mark O'Connor, John Jorgensen, Tim O'Brien, Sierra Hull, Jake Workman, Jacob Jolliff, and Jordan Tice. His first solo album, "With the Bass in Mind," debuted at #13 on the Billboard Bluegrass chart. Hailed as "remarkable," (Bluegrass Today) this collection of original compositions deftly weaves together Jeff's formative training in jazz within his adopted home format of the bluegrass string band. His follow-up 2022 release, "Liquid Architecture," co-produced by Viktor Krauss (Bill Frisell, Lyle Lovett), takes these sounds one step further, utilizing unique instrumentations and offering cinematic arrangements of genre-less melodies. When not on tour, Jeff works extensively in clubs and studios around Nashville, TN.
Hailed by Jon Batiste as "one of the world's most important saxophonists," Eddie Barbash was a founding member of the house band for the Late Show With Stephen Colbert and currently tours the world with Cory Wong and the Wongnotes. His unmistakable sound is featured on the Oscar and Grammy-winning soundtrack of Soul. He has performed at venues ranging from Carnegie Hall to Madison Square Garden to the Village Vanguard and has headlined both the Newport Jazz and Folk Festivals, the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival, and the Umbria Jazz Festival. Barbash's versatile sound has led him to collaborate with musicians in many styles. At 18 he joined the sextet of legendary jazz drummer Chico Hamilton and the quintet of emerging jazz star Jon Batiste. In his 20's he fell in love with American traditional music and began touring with bluegrass phenom Sierra Hull. He's a frequent guest with funk band Vulfpeck and indie rocker Sam Evian. In 2016 he performed a duet on national TV with Yo-Yo Ma and in 2024 he performed the world premier of "Songs Of Nature," a concerto for saxophone and choir by Pulitzer Prize winning composer Paul Moravec.
Eddie has released 5 albums: "For Murray and Lillian", a collection of crooning melodies dedicated to his late grandparents, arranged by Kyle Athayde for an octet of four strings and jazz quartet; "Eddie Barbash Live Parts 1-4", a selection of the best performances of 6 years of leading bands in NYC; "Live With Jim, Joe, and Dave", a snapshot of one night of improvised music in Brooklyn, recorded directly to tape in one of the borough's hippest local haunts; and most recently "Larkspur", an album of classic fiddle tunes for solo saxophone. Eddie was born in West Islip, NY and was raised in Oaxaca, Mexico, Atlanta, and Winston-Salem, North Carolina. He lives in Nashville.
Nashville based drummer, Mark Raudabaugh, is a versatile and skilled musician who stays busy touring and recording. Mark has worked with Sierra Hull, Donna the Buffalo, Jim Lauderdale, Peter Rowan, Bernard Purdie, Jeff Coffin, Marcus King, Oliver Wood, Lee Fields, Nigel Hall, Lindsay Lou, Eddie Barbash, John Mailander, Seth Walker, Grant Green Jr., Kevin Scott, Kristina Train, Roosevelt Collier, Jimmy Hall, Jennifer Hartswick, Charles Walker and The Dynamites, Papa Mali, Bobby Lee Rodgers and The CodeTalkers, and many more. He has also had the honor to sit in with Bela Fleck and The Flecktones, Zac Brown, Robert Randolph, Sam Bush, Keller Williams, Anders Osborne, Ketch Secor (Old Crown Medicine Show), Steve Kimock, Vince Herman (Leftover Salmon), and many more. Mark began playing drums while living in England during the early 90's. After moving back to the States, he attended Gainesville High School in Gainesville, FL where he was involved in both the marching and jazz bands. He later received a jazz scholarship to Florida State University where he studied under Leon Anderson Jr. During that time, he had the opportunity to perform with Wyclef Gordon, Ellis Marsalis, and Manuel Valera to name a few. Since graduating from FSU, Mark has toured throughout the US, Europe, Canada, Japan, and Bangladesh. When not on the road, Mark stays busy gigging/recording throughout the Southeast area.
