The Quebe Sisters are amazing!

Herb Steiner · Post by **Herb Steiner** » 16 Aug 2008 2:34 pm

The Quebe Sisters... and their band... are simply amazing. Three young ladies who play incredible hoedown fiddle each, and then play precision Spade Cooley triple violin arrangements with ease and expression.

Oh, and they sing western songs and the best standards just like the McGuire Sisters. More complex harmonies than the Andrews Sisters.

And they are clean and totally beautiful Texas sweethearts.

They'd been recommended to me for almost a year now, but I've only just the other night saw them for the first time here in Austin. I was astounded, and was actually brought to tears a couple of times in their performance. The some of the best and legendary musicians in town were in the audience listening to every note.

All their arrangements, vocal and instrumental, are handled by their leader/manager/arranger/rhythm guitarist Joey McKenzie, himself a great fiddler and a Fort Worth A-team guy for decades. Their bassist is Drew Phelps, a veteran jazz musician. No drummer and no lead guitar.

And although Morrell and Carp are on a couple cuts of their first (instrumental) CD, there's no steel guitar with this band, just a whole lot of wonderful fiddling and absolutely the sweetest western singing you've heard in long, long time.

Do not miss a chance to see these fantastic and talented young women.

Their website

Chris Schlotzhauer · Post by **Chris Schlotzhauer** » 16 Aug 2008 4:19 pm

I have not seen them live yet, but our sound man will have them blasting at the Broken Spoke tonight while we set up. When I first heard them my jaw dropped.
They don't play the regular circuit like some of us.
Where did you see them Herb?

Greg Cutshaw · Post by **Greg Cutshaw** » 16 Aug 2008 4:31 pm

I bought their first CD and it was really great! Their arrangements are classic.

Greg

Herb Steiner · Post by **Herb Steiner** » 16 Aug 2008 11:49 pm

The first album is instrumental. You've got to hear them sing!

Michael Johnstone · Post by **Michael Johnstone** » 17 Aug 2008 2:08 am

They're the hard core real deal. It's refreshing to find that what they do is not extinct...

Bryan Daste · Post by **Bryan Daste** » 17 Aug 2008 2:20 am

Got to see them live in Austin when we were down there for SXSW. Very impressive.

Mitch Drumm · Post by **Mitch Drumm** » 17 Aug 2008 7:09 am

I stumbled across their web site maybe 18 months ago. I give them 5 stars. Great to see anyone of that age with the audacity to do those tunes and arrangements.

Red Wing (with Tom Morrell) and Across The Alley From The Alamo are the two that knocked me out.

John Rosett · Post by **John Rosett** » 17 Aug 2008 8:02 am

They're just great. It always makes me feel alittle better about the future when I see such young people who are so talented and with such good taste.
It's also good to see Joey McKenzie. I remember seeing him at all the festivals and contests in the Northwest before he moved to Texas. He's one of the greats.

Post by **Dave Mudgett** » 17 Aug 2008 9:17 am

I stumbled across their website a couple of years ago - the instrumental stuff was just great. But the addition of the vocals is mind-boggling - the arrangements are stellar. Hopefully they'll take a swing up north. I see they're playing a museum in Indianapolis, IN Sept 26-27. That's a start.

Interesting that Joey - who was their fiddle teacher - is their swing guitarist - and a very good one. That style is much harder to do well than a lot of people think. He nails that stuff.

No drummer and no lead guitar.

Emphatically not needed, and that's coming from a guitar player.

Mitch Drumm · Post by **Mitch Drumm** » 17 Aug 2008 10:24 am

There are several videos on you tube:

Here are a couple of representative performances for those who haven't heard them. Both are old Mills Brothers tunes:

http://tinyurl.com/5q5j5c

http://tinyurl.com/55razl

Chris Forbes · Post by **Chris Forbes** » 19 Aug 2008 1:15 pm

Dave Mudgett, They were just up our way. I stumbled across them playing down on the Mall in DC in July for the Folklife Festival. I had my 78 year old father with me who was just tickled pink hearing songs he hadn't heard in years. I was too busy trying to get my jaw off the ground to have much of a reaction.

Post by **Dave Mudgett** » 19 Aug 2008 1:56 pm

I'm about 4 hours from DC, but if I'd known about the amount of great music - part of a Texas celebration - I'd have gone down. Lots of other music too, including a Ralph Rinzler memorial.

There's a bunch of live video from that festival, including the Quebe Sisters, Marcia Ball, Guy Clark, C.J. Chenier, and others here: http://www.folklife.si.edu/festival/200 ... index.html

Pretty cool.

Chip Fossa · Post by **Chip Fossa** » 19 Aug 2008 9:45 pm

Hey Herb,

I bought their first CD, "Texas Fiddlers", around 2 or 3 years ago and it is just awesome, as you've mentioned.

This CD does have pedal steel in it, and just some superbish steel guitar, at that. I forget who the great player is at the moment.

As I was going nuts over "Texas Fiddlers" I checked out their website (at the time) and incredibly, they were just getting going, had about 10-15 gigs lined up, and one of them was up here in Boston, at the folk and heritage festival, or something like that.

They are unbelievable, talented, good-looking (always helps) vibrant young ladies, who could never hit a wrong note.

But Herb, I'm surprised, and astounded, that you of all people, from Texas yet, are just getting hip to these gals; shame, shame, shame.

And as you said...never mind their outstanding instrument playing - the vocals and intricate harmonies (this isn't just your basic 1-3-5) are mesmerizing. Their vocals could stand alone, occoppelo(sp).

These gals move ya, man. Make you want to jump up and dance; or just listen, too.

Check them out!

John Floyd · Post by **John Floyd** » 20 Aug 2008 4:17 am

This is Music The Way Its Supposed to be Played.
Refreshing!!!!!!!!

Bill Rowlett · Post by **Bill Rowlett** » 20 Aug 2008 12:03 pm

I saw them last year in Fort Worth with Asleep at The Wheel ("A Ride With Bob" musicial). That show format really showcases their talent and lets them interact with other great fiddlers. If you get a chance to see them with "A Ride With Bob", don't miss it. I don't think that they do many of the shows, so it would be a rare treat.

Drew Howard · Post by **Drew Howard** » 20 Aug 2008 12:51 pm

Quebe Sisters please come to Michigan

Mike Gross · Post by **Mike Gross** » 20 Aug 2008 4:31 pm

Herb,

As you say, these gals are really top shelf. I have been featuring material from both of their CDs on "Swingin' West."

There is a review of their beautiful second CD in the Review section of my "Swingin' West" web site. www.swinginwest.com

David L. Donald · Post by **David L. Donald** » 22 Aug 2008 4:29 am

Class act. and if you read a bit you see pickers they like.

As for musicians, a partial (very partial!) list includes Ella Fitzgerald, Django Reinhardt, Marty Robbins, Tommy Duncan, Patsy Cline, Faron Young, Merle Haggard, Joaquin Murphy, Alex Brashear, Speedy West and Jimmy Bryant, Jethro Burns and Charlie Christian.

A couple stand out of a stellar grouping.

Howard Kalish · Post by **Howard Kalish** » 22 Aug 2008 11:29 am

Herb - I couldn't have said it better. The Quebe Sisters Band are astounding. I saw them in the Ride with Bob play and on their own several times and each time my face hurt from smiling so much. It's so great to see this music getting played and sung with such feeling and authority by these lovely young gals. And those two hairy-legged boys too. See the Quebe Sisters whenever you can.

The Steel Guitar Forum

The Quebe Sisters are amazing!

The Quebe Sisters are amazing!

Thanks Herb