Joseph Decosimo

the Bucking Mules

A straight-shooting Old-time string band, the Bucking Mules deliver American Old-time music at its pure and joyous best. The band cut their teeth in Tennessee, North Carolina, and Virginia through extensive time spent with old 78s and elder master musicians from the region. The result is a group of well-studied musicians who know how to bust down on a fiddle tune, belt an old song, and move square dancers. The Mules traverse the traditional musical landscape of the Cumberland Plateau, the Tennessee River Valley, the Blue Ridge, and beyond. Favoring spirit and simplicity over pretense, the band distills a reverence of the past into a potent performances tailored for contemporary fans of folk, roots, bluegrass, and more. A blue ribbon winning band and a favorite on festival stages and in dance tents, the Bucking Mules create some of the most exciting, engaging, and rooted Old-Time music being made. contact/booking

band member bios          

Joseph Decosimo fiddle, banjo, and vocals

Raised in East Tennessee, Joseph keeps the musical traditions of his region alive. In his teens, he spent much of his time with the region's older fiddlers and banjo players, learning their music and stories. Drawing inspiration from these encounters and from the region's deep musical well, he injects new life into the old tunes. A sought after performer and teacher, he has shared his music at festivals, camps, and venues throughout the country and abroad. His fiddling and banjo playing have won blue ribbons at the most prestigious fiddle contests in the South. He served on the faculty in ETSU's Bluegrass, Old Time, and Country Music Studies Program. A trained folklorist, he has recently completed his PhD.

Luke Richardson banjo, harmonica, and vocals

Luke’s music rolls with the arresting and subtle beauty of the hills around his farm in Lawrenceburg, Tennessee. With an intuitive ability to match the fiddle, both on banjo and harmonica, Luke pushes the music along with grace, ease, and drive. A practitioner of multiple styles of old time banjo, Luke explores the potential of the banjo in a strikingly creative and regionally-informed way. His banjo playing has earned him two National Old Time Banjo Championships. His fiddling, ace harmonica playing, and singing bring texture and range into the Mules' performances. A cosmopolitan old time musician who has been a key feature of old time scenes from Brooklyn to the UK, Luke is an in-demand performer and teacher.

Karen Celia Heil guitar and vocals

One of the finest guitarists on the Old Time scene and beyond, Karen lays down a driving foundation for the Mules to work their magic. Her singing brings the Mules' performances emotional richness and depth. Cutting her teeth in California's rich traditional music scene, she began making pilgrimages to Southern fiddler’s conventions, eventually finding herself in the living rooms of the region's master musicians.  A fun and skilled teacher of fiddle and guitar, Karen is an esteemed instructor in the Bay Area and has taught at the finest music camps and festivals. Her performing experience includes being cast in the award winning production of the musical “Fire On the Mountain” (2015) and the Kate Weare Dance Company production and recording of “Brightlands” (2011).

Joe Dejarnette bass and vocals

Raised in Virginia's piedmont and residing in the Blue Ridge, Joseph “Joebass” DeJarnette brings both rocksteady, driving bass playing and deep experience to the Mules. He has been playing and recording traditional American music for over a decade and knows how to draw audiences into performances of traditional music. As a founding member of The WIYOS, he toured the US, Canada and Europe. The only member of the band to have played dates on a Bob Dylan and Willie Nelson tour, he has connected with diverse audiences from stages at the Newport Folk Festival, to the Lincoln Center, to the Appalachian String Band Festival in West Virginia. Joe's tasteful bass playing, musical acumen, and joyous stage presence put him in a category all his own. A veteran of festivals and camps, he directs the Augusta Heritage Center Old Time Music Week. 

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