Ditty Bops

Description of the Ditty Bops:

folk, jazz, vaudeville, ragtime, western swing singer/songwriting duo

Comparisons:

The Ditty Bops call to mind some of the styles employed by folk artists like Joni Mitchell, some Beck and even Simon and Garfunkel, although they also incorporate ragtime and vaudeville-style old time pieces into their mix.

The Ditty Bops Are:

Abby DeWald – acoustic guitar, vocals
Amanda Barrett – mandolin, dulcimer, vocals

Starter CDs:

The Ditty Bops (Warner Bros., 2004)
Moon Over the Freeway (Warner Bros., 2006)

Background Information About the Ditty Bops:

The Ditty Bops are a folk-jazz-western swing duo based in Los Angeles, California. According to the bios on their Web site, they started playing together four years ago. Discovered by Warner Brothers Records during one of their Los Angeles performances, the duo was soon signed to the major label, for whom they've recorded two CDs.

According to several claims, the Ditty Bops were a couple long before they began playing music together, although both had grown up active in musical endeavors. Amanda Barrett began learning to play dulcimer as a child, before moving to Europe for some time to pursue a modeling career. Abby DeWald learned piano when she was younger, although that was mainly focused on classical training.

The two met in New York City in the 1990s and moved to Los Angeles together before starting to perform as the Ditty Bops a few years later.