The name came to me in a fever dream.
Years ago, in the middle of a particularly rough bout of strep (I have since had my tonsils removed, would not recommend).
Sometime in the middle of the night when my meds wore off, I bolted straight up in bed - fever raging, throat on fire - with this brilliant idea for a band name...
THE DIRTY FRENCH BROADS
Knocking over an abandoned bowl of mac & cheese (as I said, I was in a bad way), I scrambled for my phone, half-asleep, thinking "no way someone hasn't thought of this already..."
I dug and dug and only found "The French Broads," but nothing with Dirty in front of it. How could this be?? A badass group of ladies ("broads") called The Dirty French Broads in Asheville?! Amazing.
Alright then, I said.
Guess I need to learn how to sing!
And so I did - with this name in my back pocket for years, waiting for the right moment.
You see, the French Broad River runs through Asheville, and is well-known for being astonishingly yucky. Locals will warn you against putting any uptown orifices underwater, and most won't even touch it.
In summer of 2021, I started picking with mandolin extraordinaire Scott Anders, and we decided to start a project. After a few weeks, he accepted the name, and I accepted the fact that we could maybe have a couple dudes as honorary Broads : )
And so, The Dirty French Broads were born.
These days, The Dirty Frenchies take the stage with an acoustic guitar, fiddle, upright bass, and some combination of light percussion magic. With the addition of the cajon, they can't exactly call themselves a string band anymore... so what are they? They stumbled somewhere into the realm of Newgrass, but they turn the groove on.
What even is Americana? No one really knows, but they’re definitely probably that. A touch of country (the good kind) and a whole bunch of whatever it is Jeannie does on that fiddle. The solos are fire, the songwriting is charmingly fresh, and their spirited stage presence radiates the passion and love they share for each other and the music - that little thing keeping us all alive in these hard times.