Beth and April Stevens make up the country duo known as the Stevens Sisters. The siblings began sharing stages in early childhood yet only turned professional during their early twenties. Their upbringing in a musical Tennessee household opened doors to styles beyond conventional country. Douglas, their father and a fiddle player, urged both daughters to learn instruments of their own. By twelve Beth Stevens had already taken up the banjo, while April achieved command of the mandolin. The fiddle, upright bass, and further stringed instruments followed, refining the pair into accomplished musicians within the Stevens Family Band. The duo issued their crossover bluegrass album Sisters on Rounder in 1996. Two years afterward, no longer under family direction, the Stevens Sisters began supporting Waylon Jennings, Merle Haggard, and the neo-traditionalist country act BR5-49 on tour. Their second album, Little by Little, appeared in 2002. By then the Stevens Sisters had gained enough experience and discernment for the record to assume a more polished character than its predecessor.
