A few samples of Jez's music are available in the format:

• London Danny from the Bad Penny CD
• Tom Tom from the The Parish Notices CD
• Spitting Cousins from the The Parish Notices CD
• Parish Notices from the The Parish Notices CD

Jez Lowe released his first solo album in 1980, after spending much of the previous decade wandering around the folk clubs and folk festivals of Great Britain, soaking up influences, making music and making friends, and basically learning his craft as a musician.

His main interest seems to have been in traditional music, especially Irish and Scots music, before he discovered the wealth of great songs and tunes on his doorstep in the Northeast of England, where hed grown up.When Jez began to write songs, he was very much influenced by the traditional music hed been playing for all those years.

Jez's solo career has always been a priority, and much of his work sees him alone on the stage, but when his duo with Jake Walton ended in 1989, The Bad Pennies were born, and through several changes in line-up, they have backed Jez on most of his recordings in recent years, and toured the world with him.

He worked throughout those early years with his school friend Ged Foley, and only went solo when Foley joined Battlefield Band in early 1980. By the summer of that year, Jez had recorded and released an album for Fellside Records, beginning a close relationship with that label that was to go from strength to strength over the next 15 years.

In the 1980's Jez toured as a duo with hurdy-gury wizard Jake Walton, but by 1989, this was coming to an end, and following the success of his BAD PENNY album, Jez decided to form a small band to take some of the bigger album arrangements to a live audience. So The Bad Pennies were born, initially featuring Rob Kay on keyboards, and Bev Sanders on vocals. For the next decade, Jez Lowe and The Bad Pennies would provide Jez with an alternative to his solo career, backing him on all his subsequent albums, and eventually touring with him all over the world. The line-up has always been fluid, but an early peak was reached when Jez and Bev were joined by the Surgeoner brothers, Bob and Billy, for the 1993 album BEDE WEEPS, which contained as many instant classics as GALLOWAYS had a decade earlier. Jez also became the unofficial "songwriter in residence" for the East Durham Arts Council, with the release of the album BANNERS in 1994, written and produced by Jez and featuring 200 local musicians of all styles and persuasions.

Meanwhile Jez's profile overseas, notably in America and Australia, meant that he was spending almost all his time travelling around the world. He also left Fellside Records around this time and released his next two albums, TENTERHOOKS and THE PARISH NOTICES on the American label Green Linnet. THE PARRISH NOTICES was chosen as one of Billboard magazine's best of 1998 list. The Bad Pennies' line-up now featured Judy Dinning and Simon Haworth, and in 2000 they were joined by Kate Bramley, as the ratio of band versus solo bookings shifted so that the group's interests began to dominate Jez's career.

Jez started his own record label, Tantobie Records, and CDs on that label include the re-release of some of the earlier records, like TWO A ROUE and THE PARISH NOTICES. A double live album, LIVE AT THE DAVY LAMP, was followed by HONESTY BOX in 2002. Kate Bramley's theatre career resulted in a soundtrack album for a play called FIGHTING THE TIDE in 2002 as well. The latest 2004 release of 'DOOLALLY' has just come out on Tantobie Records.

Jez's respect for other peoples' songs and for Northern English folk songs in particular, was demonstrated in 1999, when he wrote and presented a seven-part series for BBC Radio 2, entitled A SONG FOR GEORDIE, that was a great success, introducing national audiences to several local acts that had not had such coverage before.

The Bad Pennies, now featuring champion piper Andy May in their ranks, as well as Kate Bramley and the newest Penny, Sean Taylor. The band has become a much sought-after act around the world. Jez has also formed part time collaborations with fellow singer/writers around the globe, notably James Keelaghan from Canada, and more recently Kristina Olsen from the USA, both of whom toured the UK with The Bad Pennies as The Three Nations Tour in late 2003 to huge acclaim wherever they went.

Jez was recently described as Northeast England's chief ambassador for folk music, a title deserved by many people, he insists, but reflecting what a great region that part of the country is, in terms of how much great music springs from its loins.

While there is only one Richard Thompson, Lowe is a songwriter from his tradition, full of an Englishman's ironies, practical jokes and tomfoolery. His music sounds traditional, but it's a new tradition he's making up as he goes along.
J.M., FAIRFIELD COUNTY WEEKLY

Some of the best contemporary folk songs since early Richard Thompson are coming from the pen of Jez Lowe.
Andy Nagy, BOSTON GLOBE

• JEZ LOWE 1980
• THE OLD DURHAM ROAD 1983 & 1999
• GALLOWAYS 1985 & 1997
• TWO A ROUE with Jake Walton 1986 & 2001
• SELECTIONS FROM THE PENGUIN BOOK OF ENGLISH FOLK SONGS with Various Artists 1986
• BAD PENNY 1988
• BRIEFLY ON THE STREET 1990
• VOICES with Various Artists 1991
• BACK SHIFT 1992
• BEDE WEEPS 1993
• TENTERHOOKS 1996
• PARISH NOTICES 1998 & 2003
• LIVE AT THE DAVY LAMP 2000
• HONESTY BOX 2002
• DOOLALLY 2004

In 1990 Jez Lowe began working with The Bad Pennies, a quartet of singers and musicians with whom he has recorded three albums. They have gone on to be one of England's top folk bands, combining what has been called "acoustic simplicity with electric vitality" at festivals and concerts across Europe and North America. Their 1996 album Tenterhooks, for the Green Linnet label, has won them rave reviews, and their contributions to the top selling album of acappella folk songs Voices was one of the outstanding tracks.Parish Notices, was chosen for one of Billboard magazine's best of 1998 lists and Jez's newest CD Live at the Davey Lamp was just been released in late 2000.

Jez is joined in The Bad Pennies by Kate Bramley, Simon Haworth and Andy May. Kate plays fiddle and does some vocals. Simon Haworth plays bass and keyboards. Andy May brings new instrumental variety to the group on accordion, whistles, keyboard and Northumbrian small pipes. He also tours with Kathryn Tickell's band.

Click here to listen and see a live performance at the Kennedy Center's Millenium Stage on January 9, 2001.

Lowe and the Bad Pennies sing and play with a luminous sparseness that rises above the current trendiness of Celtic music and harks back to its wild heart.
John Foyston, THE OREGONIAN,

http://www.jezlowe.com
http://website.lineone.net/~jez.lowe/
Tantobie Records