Sizzling contemporary bluegrass & Americana from California
FURTHER UPDATE – as at March 2021, we have now once again cancelled the proposed Blue Summit dates due to ongoing uncertainty.
We’re re-scheduling Blue Summit’s 2020 UK tour which had to be cancelled due to the Covid-19 crisis. New dates now being booked for late Oct/early Nov 2021
AJ Lee & Blue Summit made a big impression on their first short tour of the UK in 2019, with several sold out shows and glowing feedback. Formed in 2015, the band brings a fresh contemporary approach to bluegrass and Americana, combining virtuoso instrumental work with soaring vocals and sweet harmonies, and taking in elements of western swing, soul, folk, jazz and pop/rock. A powerful singer, talented mandolinist and gifted songwriter, bandleader AJ Lee has been making waves on the acoustic scene for many years, performing in The Tuttles with AJ Lee (alongside Molly Tuttle) since she was just ten! The band also featured Blue Summit’s flatpicking guitar ace Sully Tuttle (Molly’s younger brother). Now in their early 20s, these days AJ and Sully are making a big impact with their equally talented Blue Summit bandmates Jesse Fichman (guitar/vocals), Chad Bowen (upright bass/vocals) and Jan Purat (fiddle).
“Soaring harmonies, top notch picking and a reverence for the classic country, bluegrass and folk music of the past all add up to a band who are masters of the genre. While AJ Lee & Blue Summit tip a hat to the masters of the past, their sound is modern and thoroughly of today. ” – Buckeye Community Arts Network
AJ Lee & Blue Summit have performed across the USA, and their star has been rising in the last couple of years. 2019 saw their international touring debut, with an early summer tour of the UK and Ireland, plus a main stage appearance at the huge La Roche Bluegrass Festival in the French Alps. The band also released their first full length album (Like I Used To) featuring 11 original songs written by AJ Lee. In September 2019 Blue Summit also made a splash as official showcase performers at the big International Bluegrass Music Association (IBMA) annual festival and conference in North Carolina, where AJ Lee won the coveted IBMA Vocalist Momentum Award. Just a few days previously, the band had won the major Freshgrass band contest in Massachusetts, and the very same week, Sully Tuttle took second place in the prestigious flatpicking guitar championship contest in Winfield, Kansas! With soulful songs, exceptional musicianship and a charming stage presence, AJ Lee & Blue Summit are sure to make many more fans on their 2021 return to the UK!