Jake Hooker

Vocals & Upright Bass

Jake Hooker was born listening to the sounds of traditional country music through his father's west Texas country band. Jake began playing the bass at the age of seven and practiced diligently until he mastered the honky tonk sound. Jake formed his own band at the age of 14 and began performing. By the age of 18, Jake was playing bass and singing full time. He spent some time at South Plains College in Levelland, Texas, studying music and theory. Jake moved to the Fort Worth area in 1998 where he quickly became the local favorite. Jake signed with Southland Records that same year and began recording. Jake's popularity continues to grow. His love and passion for traditional country music never ceases. He feels it is necessary to relay that love to the fans who are so dedicated to it as well. There is no doubt that Jake is strongly influenced by the sounds of Ray Price, Johnny Bush, Farron Young, Curtis Potter, Leon Rausch and Darrell McCall. He spends much of his spare time studying these artists' music in depth. Jake is consumed by his dedication to the music and his hobbies include playing the drums and learning the steel guitar. Jake's graceful and professional image on the bandstand, along with his voice and talented band, make his show unbeatable.


Tommy Detamore

Pedal Steel

Tommy Detamore is an acclaimed engineer, producer, musician, and owner of Cherry Ridge Studio in Floresville, Texas. He has engineered, produced, and mastered over 150 albums, and has played steel guitar, electric guitar, acoustic guitar, dobro, and mandolin on well over 300 albums to date. He has recorded and produced numerous top-ten hits on the Americana and Texas Music charts.

In 2001 Tommy engineered a recording that received a Grammy nomination for “Best Country Instrumental”. The song was Bill Kirchen’s “Poultry in Motion”.

In 2008 the Academy of Western Artists named him Record Producer of the Year.

A native of Charlottesville, Virginia, Tommy graduated from Albemarle High School with honors and went on to attend Virginia Polytechnic and State University in Blacksburg. In 1978 he graduated cum laude from Piedmont Virginia Community College with a degree in education.

In 1976, he took up the pedal steel guitar and began studying with steel guitar great Buddy Charleton. All throughout his high school, college and post-college years Tommy played guitar and later pedal steel guitar in area bands until 1981, when he moved to Texas to play steel guitar with Darrell McCall. The following year he joined Moe Bandy's band, and toured extensively for the next seven years in Europe and the U.S., while also making numerous live television and radio appearances including The Grand Ole Opry, Hee Haw, Nashville Now, and New Country.

In 1989 he teamed up with Johnny Bush and the Banderleros and played throughout the southwestern United States. After a summer tour with Ronnie Milsap in 1990, Tommy joined Clay Blaker’s "Texas Honky-Tonk Band" and spent the next 13 years playing numerous dates throughout Europe and again throughout the southwest.

In 1991 Tommy founded Cherry Ridge Studio in Floresville, Texas, where he began making his own demos as well as and demos and albums for other clients.

Since he began his career, Throughout his career spanning more than 30 years, Tommy has produced and/or performed and recorded with many artists including Ray Price, Micky Dolenz, Dallas Wayne, Ronnie Milsap, Johnny Bush, Jim Lauderdale, Doug Sahm, The Texas Tornados, Gary P. Nunn, Augie Meyers, Robert Earl Keen, Clay Blaker, Sunny Sweeney, Rick Trevino, Raul Malo, Kevin Fowler, Bill Kirchen, Redd Volkaert, The Derailers, Gary Nicholson, Kyle Park, James Talley, Heather Myles, Dottsy, Eleven Hundred Springs, Mando Saenz, Tommy Alverson, Ram Herrera, Tony Booth.

Always active in church music, Tommy has played guitar and steel guitar at San Antonio’s Trinity Baptist Church, served as Pastor of Music at Floresville’s Oak Hills Baptist Church, and served as chief sound engineer as well as a frequent instrumentalist at the First Baptist Church in Floresville. He currently plays guitar in the church band at Life Church in La Vernia, Texas.

Tommy was a featured performer in a live country music show, “San Antonio Rose Live”, that ran for three years at the historic Aztec Theatre on the Riverwalk in San Antonio, Texas. Tommy continues to operate Cherry Ridge Studio, and Steel Guitar Tracks Online (a website devoted to online delivery of steel guitar tracks).

Tommy and his wife, Sandy, live near Floresville. Sandy owns and operates "Drama Kids of Greater San Antonio”, a company devoted to the development of life skills through drama for children and young adults. They have one son, Thomas, who works for "Drama Kids" as a teacher and administrative assistant.

Tommy Detamore uses and endorses: Telonics Amplifiers, Volume Pedals, and Pickups / Jagwire Strings / Schertler Pickups / BJS bars / Steeler’s Choice Seats / Sonic Research Tuners / Pork Pie Percussion / Soultone Cymbals / Mojave Audio Microphones


Jess Meador

Fiddle

At age six, Jess Meador 'found his calling' when he started fiddle lessons with world champion fiddler Dale Morris, Sr. When Jess was about ten he fell in love with the Western Swing Music of Bob Wills and the Texas Playboys and the honky-tonk sounds of greats Ray Price, Johnny Bush, and Faron Young. This sparked his desire to not be just a ‘breakdown player’ but to ‘play in a band’. Luckily he was given this chance. At age 10 Jess got his first band job with Aris Cook. Needless to say he was the smallest band member but held his own and hasn‘t missed a beat since. When Jess was about 12 he also began playing with Bill Gilbert and ‘The Boys’ at Bill’s famous Wednesday Night Jam. This jam was the ‘icing on the cake’ to further his love for playing swing and the oldies and is what stirred his interest to play jazz. No doubt all these experiences in his early playing years contributed to the successful career that he has today. Now, about twelve years from his first lesson, Jess is a favorite among the honky-tonk and dancehall crowds in the North Texas area and is noted for his versatility, ability to improvise, and also to play twin fiddle and two- and three-part harmony. Jess has been a regular band member for Tommy Hooker, Landon Dodd, Johnny Bush; Dan Roberts; Kinneth Doyle; Dave Alexander; and the Texas Tumbleweeds Swing Band. Plus he is a fill-in for many others including Tommy Allsup and the Texas Playboys, Durwood Strube, Jerry Webb, Bubba Cox, and Chad Rueffer. He has made duo and trio appearances with greats Devon Dawson, Randy “Snuffy” Elmore, Rich O’Brien, Buck Reams, and others. In addition to the four-string and five-string fiddle, Jess plays the electric mandolin and guitar. He also does session work. Jess has won many awards and honors including Texas State Junior Fiddle Champion, Junior World Fiddle Champion, the Red Steagall Cowboy Gathering Champion Fiddler, and the Cowtown Society of Western Swing' Rising Star Awards. Needless to say, he is a REAL asset to the Outsiders and we are so excited and proud to have him on board!


Eugen Kim

Fiddle

With numerous world tours, performances and masterclasses, Eugen Kim has built her careers in classical music, contemporary improvisation, and jazz scenes around the world. At the age of 17 while she was attending Gimcheon High School of Music, she gave a debut concert with Daegu City Orchestra as a winner of concerto competition. After graduated from Keimyung University, she was hired by Gyeongbuk Symphony Orchestra and was invited to Asian 21st Century Project hosted by Nagoya Philharmonic Orchestra in Japan. After moved to the United States, she was presented by several chamber music societies, such as Chamber Music America Conference in New York, Vancouver Chamber Music Society in Canada, and Encino Chamber Music Society in Los Angeles.

Kim has toured Asia with a New York based contemporary jazz ensemble, Matt Davis’ Aerial Photograph in 2014, 2017 and 2019 and performed various venues including Jarasum International Jazz Festival, the Asian’s largest music festival. As a part of Pyeong Chang Winter Olympic 2018, she was invited to perform in Pyeong Chang in Korea. 2019 Gwangju FINA World Championships presented Eugen Kim Jazz Violin Quartet as well. Kim also went Korea tour in September 2019 with two grammy winner jazz musicians, Ariacne Trujillo Durand and Arturo Stable for Daegu International Jazz Festivals and several masterclasses to college/high school level jazz students. As a composer, Kim wrote several orchestral works which were ranked one of top selling albums in Korea’s music industry. Kim wrote a jazz violin concerto "Bach to Blake" dedicated to John Blake jr. and Blake premiered the piece at Indiana University of Pennsylvania.

Kim has earned two Masters degrees in classical and jazz music from Temple University and the University of the Arts. Kim is currently a jazz violin a doctoral student and a Teaching Fellow at University of North Texas.


Mack Hooker

Guitar

Mack Hooker has literally been listening to Western swing since birth! The oldest son of Jake Hooker, Mack is deeply rooted in the sounds of REAL country music and Western Swing. Mack was playing drums with his dad on the bandstand by the age of four but soon after developed an interest in guitar. Privately trained since he was 8, Mack quickly picked up the acoustic guitar and later transitioned to electric guitar. He has been hooked ever since.

Mack plays regularly with The Outsiders and loves every minute. He continues with lessons and also enjoys jazz alongside his passion for swing. Mack has studied with Marty Elmore, Steve Story , Cameron Baker and Joe Settlemier. Mack’s Influences include , Herb Ellis, George Benson, Pete Wade, Pat Martino, Eldon Shamblin, Grady Martin, Leon Rhodes and Hank Garland. Mack lives and breathes music, it truly is a part of his daily life. Music is a passion that he plans to continue learning, loving and playing.


Brian Dunn

Drums

Brian Dunn was born in San Angelo, Texas and was raised in the Gulf Coast town of Lake Jackson.  Coming from a family of musicians and performers, it was inevitable that Brian would want in on the family business. At age 3, Brian discovered the thrill of performing while participating in his first piano recital. When his mother, Audry Dunn, who also happened to be a piano teacher, asked him how playing in the recital made him feel, his response was “It made me feel big!”  He was hooked after that.

 

Brian continued his classical piano education with his grandmother, Katie Hunt, but at age 5, told his parents that he would like to tap dance like Gregory Hines and Gene Kelly.  His parents, Barry and Audry supported this desire to tap dance, although his mother thought to herself, “We don’t dance. We play the music for others to dance to.”  She signed him up with Pure Energy Dance studio where he got the opportunity to perform at the Sammy Davis Jr. Awards on stage at the Wortham Center in Houston and many other tap dancing performances and competitions.  Brian soon discovered that many of the tap dancers that he admired were also drummers, influencing his decision to pick percussion as his first choice when he joined band in the sixth grade. It then became clear to Brian’s parents that the rhythmical components of tap dance were what drew him to it, and was a crucial part of his musical development. 

Brian’s grandfather, jazz saxophonist Jim Hunt, took him on his first gig at the age of 11 playing jazz standards with sax, drums, and a piano player. The pianist enjoyed speeding up and slowing down for emotional effect, which forced Brian to learn to open his ears, listen, and to have a musical conversation from his very first gig. Brian continued to gig on kit as well as percussion through his school days, playing in band, jazz band, the Brazosport Symphony Orchestra, many theater productions, and two youth symphonies.  At the age of 15 Brian received the honor of playing at Carnegie Hall. He was also a member of a Stomp style percussion show at Six Flags AstroWorld in Houston when he was 18. Brian was blessed to have studied with acclaimed percussionists Brian Jones, Chris Deviney, and Mike Lefebvre. He now tries to teach his students the valuable lessons and techniques he learned from these great musicians.

After high school, Brian went on to study Music Performance at Brazosport College and University of North Texas, until at age 20, he moved to San Marcos to play with a country cover band. His music journey soon included teaching during the week in Seguin, playing bars around Texas on the weekend, and making it back to Austin to play at a Missionary Baptist Church on Sundays. Some of the notable musicians that Brian has had the opportunity to play with are Haydn Vitera, Jason Allen, The San Antonio Rose Live Band, Mark McKinney, Jarred Birmingham, Latasha Lee and the Blackties, Gary P. Nunn, Davin James and many others of varying genres.  As a session musician, some of the projects that Brian contributed to yielded number 1’s on Texas radio as well as several in the Top 10.

Brian is excited to be touring with Jake Hooker and the Outsiders. He loves making music and tries to spread it wherever he goes.  He considers it an honor to have the opportunity to do this with such great musicians and genuinely good people.  He hopes to see you down the trail.

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