Biography
Carol Elizabeth Jones and James Leva, a married couple based in Virginia, perform as a folk duo devoted to Appalachian mountain traditions. They revive longstanding material while also composing original pieces that echo the character of old-time music. Leva began on guitar at age eleven and later mastered the banjo and fiddle. During a four-year stay in France he toured with a trio; back in the United States he performed with the Hellbenders and the Freewill Savages while completing a PhD in French at the University of Virginia. Jones took up guitar after hearing the Coon Creek Girls and subsequently played alongside Suzanne Edmondson in the Kentucky Warblers as well as with the Wildcats and the Wandering Ramblers.
The duo launched the Renegades in 1992 and issued their debut album together on Rounder in 1997. The following year they delivered Journey Home, again through Rounder Records. Their initial Copper Creek title appeared in 2000. Leva has also issued the solo recording Memory Theatre, on which he handles fiddle, guitar, and banjo. He worked with guitarist John Doyle on the project, blending his own compositions with pieces acquired from noted old-time sources including Tommy Jarrell, Edden Hammons, and Roscoe Holcomb. Jones has produced solo recordings and contributed to the 2001 anthology O Sister! The Women's Bluegrass Collection.
The duo launched the Renegades in 1992 and issued their debut album together on Rounder in 1997. The following year they delivered Journey Home, again through Rounder Records. Their initial Copper Creek title appeared in 2000. Leva has also issued the solo recording Memory Theatre, on which he handles fiddle, guitar, and banjo. He worked with guitarist John Doyle on the project, blending his own compositions with pieces acquired from noted old-time sources including Tommy Jarrell, Edden Hammons, and Roscoe Holcomb. Jones has produced solo recordings and contributed to the 2001 anthology O Sister! The Women's Bluegrass Collection.