With his wild gray beard, prominent tattoos, and piercing gaze, Jere Cherryholmes looks more like a street-smart tough guy than a devoutly spiritual man, loving and contemplative patriarch, or the founder of a family bluegrass band. In fact, he is all of these things.

In the Spring of 1999, still mourning the death of their oldest daughter just a month earlier, Jere and Sandy Cherryholmes skipped church to take their younger children to a bluegrass festival in Norco, near their home in urban Los Angeles. The festival was a revelation for the family; the day’s highlight was befriending legendary brother duo Jim & Jesse McReynolds. On the ride home, Jere and Sandy decided to build their own group from the ground up, using their four young children as raw material.

Their family band, now simply called Cherryholmes, has emerged as one of the hottest acts in the bluegrass world. Cherryholmes has performed at the Grand Ole Opry, the CMA Music Fest, and IBMA’s FanFest. They’ve signed a recording contract with Skaggs Family Records. Everywhere they play, and they play just about everywhere, this very traditional family—with Cia, 21, on banjo, B.J., 17, on fiddle, Skip, 15, on guitar, Molly Kate, 13, on fiddle, Sandy on mandolin and Jere on upright bass—turns heads and captures hearts with their electric, tightly choreographed shows.

by: Caroline Wright

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