Meet the Ramblers...

Chris Brashear
Fiddle, Guitar, Mandolin, Vocals

     "Rings like silver, 
​     Shines like gold."

Chris Brashear’s voice rings clear like a bell sounding through hills and valleys. Hailing originally from Ozark, Missouri, Chris was a child prodigy of ragtime piano. As a young man he sought out the musical masters of the Ozarks, learning from them the old fiddle tunes, songs, and ways of life. But he didn’t stop there–he is equally at home playing hot jazz violin as he is playing for a square dance. Chris’s direct and profound voice as a songwriter has led him to work with legendary Nashville producer Jim Rooney, as well as being selected as an artist-in-residence at the Museum of Northern Arizona, writing songs about the region’s history and land. He has performed as part of the Piedmont Melody Makers with American music legend Alice Gerrard, as well as with The Perfect Strangers, Robin and Linda Williams, and performed as a duo with Peter McLaughlin for over thirty years. He brings depth of tradition to the Ramblers in his mastery of the fiddle, mandolin, and guitar, as well as his beautiful singing and songwriting. In 2023 he was chosen as a presenter for the Smithsonian Folklife Festival in Washington, DC, representing the Ozarks region.

Jim Henry
Guitar, Dobro, Mandolin, Vocals

 "Jack O’Diamonds, Jack O’Diamonds,
                I know you of old."

Jim Henry is like a gunslinger out of the wild west: calm, collected, and ready to act in the blink of an eye. But instead of a gun, he’s got a dobro. Or a mandolin. Or a guitar. Jim is soft spoken (Midwest born and raised), but don’t let that fool you–his skills as a multi-instrumentalist and songwriter reflect the dues he’s paid traveling around the world as a highly in-demand sideman. Did I mention he’s a stellar songwriter with a creamy baritone voice? The list of musicians with whom he’s worked reads like a who’s who of folk, Americana, and country music, and includes multiple Grammy and CMA award-winner Mary Chapin Carpenter, pop icon and Grammy winner Paula Cole,  indie sensation Deb Talan,  Texas singer-songwriter extraordinaire Eliza Gilkyson, and many, many others. Jim is also the author of, "50 Pro Tips: Practical Advice for an Impractical Business", and host of the "Pro Tips for Musicians Podcast." Jim brings a wide and colorful palette of textures, sounds, and experience to the Ramblers, and we're all better off because of it.
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Paul Kochanski
​Electric and Acoustic Bass, Vocals

 "If I could, I only would
Stand on the rock where Moses stood"

Paul says he has the best seat in the house, but it could be said that it’s actually Jim and Chris who have the best seats–next to the rock upon which the Deep River Ramblers’ music is built. Hailing originally from northern Michigan, Paul grew up surrounded by good musicians playing for good people. “It was a pretty rural scene–there weren’t a lot of musicians, so we played whatever styles of music people wanted to hear.” Learning music in such a stylistically fluid environment has served Paul well throughout his career–whether with Americana pioneers Swinging Steaks (of which he was a founding member), singer-songwriter legend Lori McKenna, or playing full-band festival rock with Big Al Andersen (NRBQ), Paul is equally at home. Oh–and then there’s his two Grammy nominations with singer-songwriter Alastair Moock. There’s a reason he’s so in-demand as a bassist–through his deep rhythm and commitment to the song, he makes the people he plays with just sound better.