Biography

Whether it’s in the studio or on stage, Chris Jones & The Night Drivers are making some of the most distinctively elegant yet driving music to be heard anywhere today, and they’re delivering it with a unique blend of dry wit, emotional authenticity and broad humor. Altogether, members of Chris Jones & The Night Drivers have won more than a dozen IBMA awards and have recorded more than twenty #1 songs. The band — Jones and Mark Stoffel (mandolin), Marshall Wilborn (bass) and Grace van’t Hof (banjo, ukelele, accordion, vocals) — had eight No. 1 songs from their last album, Make Each Second Last, an unprecedented milestone in Bluegrass radio. Their first release from a new set of recordings, “The Price Of Falling,” continued their streak of No. 1s. Today, they release “Pages In Your Hand” a thoughtful meditation on the value of old-fashioned correspondence. The song is the title track of their upcoming EP, which will be available for pre-save/add/pre-order the same day as the single release.

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For their newest single — and the title track of their forthcoming (10/6/23) Mountain Home Music Company EP — Chris Jones & The Night Drivers serve up “Pages In Your Hand,” a characteristically thoughtful mid-tempo meditation on the value of old-fashioned correspondence that’s full of distinctively elegant touches.

Opening with a delicate signature figure from mandolinist Mark Stoffel, “Pages In Your Hand” loses no time in getting right to its point:

Now that I’ve put my pen to paper
I guess I don’t have that much to say
But you should know that I’ve been thinking of you
So I’ll go and send it on its way

The chorus completes the thought, as Jones, Stoffel and Grace van’t Hof (ukulele) combine to serve up an eminently singable melody — another typical feature of a Jones original — over a gently wandering line from award-winning bassist Marshall Wilborn:

You know that I’m not one for lengthy phrases
You’ve known me long enough to understand
But I’ll smile, cause it still brings me pleasure
To know you hold these pages in your hand

“I'm somebody who still writes letters,” notes Jones, ”and in fact that was something that really helped my state of mind during the pandemic. My steadiest pen pal during that time was my sister Manya, and I was really grateful for how it brought us closer, and I was thinking that whether the content of the letter was lengthy and full of detail or just a few brief thoughts, I loved knowing that she was physically holding those pages in her hand after it was delivered. Email and text can't do that. I co-wrote the song with Thomm Jutz, who is a letter-writer himself and who has great appreciation for songs about real life.”

With steady, empathetic support from master drummer Tony Creasman and soulful fiddle from labelmate Carley Arrowood, who splits the solo passage with Stoffel, “Pages In Your Hand” shows an artist as comfortable with studio guests as he is with his own quartet — and one who can be counted on to range beyond the most well-worn themes of bluegrass songs.

About Chris Jones & The Night Drivers
Whether it’s in the studio or on stage, Chris Jones & The Night Drivers are making some of the most distinctively elegant yet driving music to be heard anywhere today, and they’re delivering it with a unique blend of dry wit, emotional authenticity and broad humor that’s won the loyalty of a growing number of fans across the country, from MerleFest in North Carolina to California’s Huck Finn Jubilee, and around the world.

Steve Martin referred to the Night Drivers as “. . . some of the best players in bluegrass! Chris Jones’ voice is there with the great masters.” Americana artist Jim Lauderdale said of Chris, “He continues to have one of the most distinctive and best voices in music, period.”
The band — which is Mark Stoffel on mandolin, Grace van’t Hof on banjo and ukelele and Marshall Wilborn on bass — is led by Chris’ soulful lead-singing, songwriting, and solid rhythm and lead guitar. Chris boasts extensive performance credits as a sideman with artists like Lynn Morris, Vassar Clements, Special Consensus, Dave Evans, Earl Scruggs, and the acclaimed Irish band The Chieftains.

Altogether, members of Chris Jones & The Night Drivers have won more than a dozen IBMA awards and have recorded more than ten #1 songs. The Night Drivers also bring name recognition in related fields, as bluegrass fans are well-familiar with Jones for his award-winning work as a SiriusXM DJ, on both Bluegrass Junction and Willie’s Roadhouse.