The Voice of Central New Mexico
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  • PROGRAMS A-Z/Archives
    • PROGRAM DIRECTORY
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    • Sounds of Central New Mexico Archives >
      • LLJ Band 10/1/21
      • Michael Godey 10/8/21
      • Michael "Miguelito" Romero 10/15/2021
      • Red Gorilla Studios 10/22/21
      • Michael Glenn 10/29/2021
      • Dennis Higgins 11/5/2021
      • Flying J Wranglers 11/12/2021 & 11/19/2021
      • The Nolan Brothers 11/26/2021
      • July - September 2021 Shows >
        • Chris Nolan 7/2/2021
        • Iron Chiwawa 7/9/2021
        • MusicHouse Mal 7/16/2021
        • Ryan Montano 7/23/2021
        • Peter Vigil and The All-star Band 7/30/2021
        • Doug Muchmore 8/6/2021
        • Larry Freedman 8/13/21
        • Watermelon Mountain Jug Band 8/20
        • Curio Cowboys 8/27/21
        • Paul Pino & The Tone Daddies 9/3/21
        • Roger Dale 9/10/21
        • Bud Warner 9/17/21
        • Roadhouse Karma 9/24/21
      • April - June 2021 Shows >
        • Sally Townes Band 4/2/2021
        • Marc Malin and Paula Rhae's Roadside Distraction 4/9/2021
        • Freddie Schwartz 4/16/2021
        • Leigh Baca and Ken Hume 4/23/2021
        • Bad Katz 4/30/2021
        • Jim Kono 5/7/2021
        • Black Hats N Pearl Snaps 5/14/2021
        • Alchemie 5/21/2021
        • Friends Forever 5/28/2021
        • Fair Trade Fusion 6/4/2021
        • Ryan Painter and the Resisters 6/11/2021
        • Jazz Brasileiro 6/18/2021
        • Take 2 - Reverend E and The Vagrants 6/25/2021
      • January - March 2021 Shows >
        • Reverend E and the Vagrants 1/8/2021
        • Swing Shift 1/15/2021
        • Rye Creek 1/22/2021
        • Odd Dog 1/29/2021
        • Gilbert Ortiz 2/5/2021
        • The Keys Band 2/12/2021
        • Stanlie Kee and Step In 2/19/2021
        • John DeYoung 2/26/2021
        • JJ and The Mystics 3/5/2021
        • The Larry Conga Show 3/12/2021
        • The Rudy Boy Experiment 3/19/2021
        • Dick Orr 3/28/2021
    • Archaeology in Your Backyard Archives >
      • Conflicts and Military Actions >
        • Coronado's Entrada
        • Pueblo Revolt
        • Tiguex War
        • Tumultous 1600's
        • 12-Years of Revolt
      • Ghost Stories and Mysteries >
        • Deadman's Curve
        • Ghost Towns
      • Influential Men >
        • Sherrif Elfego Baca
        • David Meriwether
        • Ernie Pyle
        • Delbert Redfern
        • Clem (Pop) Shaffer
        • Montague Stevens and Grizzly Bears
        • Delmar Thomas
      • Influential Women >
        • Eve Ball
        • Carol Bishop
        • Ella Foley Clayton
        • Mabel Sibley Jones
        • Carmen Padilla
        • Emily Post's Roadtrip Through New Mexico
      • INDIGINEOUS PEOPLE >
        • Alamo Navajo Tribe
        • Chief Manuelito of the Mescalero Apache
        • Plight of the Chiricahua Apache
        • Gran Quivira Mythical City of Gold
        • Gran Quivira's Preservation
      • interesting Places >
        • Antelope Springs
        • Baca Car Dealership
        • Belen Cutoff
        • El Bosque Homestead
        • Cedarvale School
        • Cedro Peak Fire Lookout
        • Estancia Salt Lakes
        • Hanging Trees
        • Manzano National Forest
      • Paleo-American >
        • Clovis and Theories
        • Mammoth Steppe Hypothesis
        • Solutrean Hypothesis
      • Significant Events >
        • Community Buffalo Hunts
        • Last Hanging in New Mexico
      • Torrance County Pioneers >
        • Baca and Barela Families
        • Early Villages Along The Monzanos
        • Tabet Family
        • Torrance County Early Days
      • Towns, Settlements and Villages >
        • Encino
        • Estancia
        • Gran Quivira
        • Madrid
        • Magdalena
        • Punta de Aqua
        • Socorro
        • Stanley
        • Stanley
      • Wild West >
        • Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid
        • Cowgirls and Wildwest Stars
        • Dime Novels and Pulp Westerns
  • ABOUT KXNM
    • BOARD of DIRECTORS >
      • Meeting Schedule, Agendas and Minutes
    • CONTACT US
    • HISTORY/MISSION
    • STAFF & VOLUNTEERS
    • In-Kind Donations and Services
  • SUPPORT
    • BECOME AN UNDERWRITER
    • CORPORATE SPONSORS
    • VOLUNTEER
    • RADIO INTERNSHIPS
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Watermelon Mountain Jug Band 
has been entertaining audiences, young and old, since 1975, and celebrated 45 years of performing in 2020!  True to the original 1920’s jug bands of the South, their music comes alive with washboard, jug, kazoo, washtub bass, jaw harp, guitar and banjo. The band delights audiences with country, bluegrass, jug band, ragtime, Spanish and original music and even some rock ’n roll classics.

Band Members  are professionals on stage as well as off.  Gary Oleson (washtub bass) is a retired math teacher from Los Lunas High School.  Five-time New Mexico banjo champion Ben Perea (banjo, guitar) is a retired band director from Valley High School in Albuquerque and owner of New Mexico Academy of Driving in Rio Rancho. Pat Houlihan (vocals, guitar, jaw harp, kazoo, jug) is a retired professor of English at Central New Mexico Community College (CNM). Barbara Piper (washboard, high-hat, percussion, background vocals) is a retired teacher from Albuquerque Public Schools and an independent education consultant.
 
Performances have included appearances at the KIMO Theater, Rio Grande Zoo, Albuquerque Bio Park, Rio Grande Arts and Crafts Festival, Placitas Artists Series, International Hot Air Balloon Fiesta, with the New Mexico Symphony Orchestra and much more.  They have performed at national and international conferences, weddings, private parties, school and community events.  Their latest CD, “Radio Station WMJB,” was released in 2011.  Other special recognition includes: being chosen by Jim Kweskin as one of the top 20 jug bands in the USA for the CD “Jugs Across America”receiving recognition by NM Music Awards for an original song “Beer” written by Pat Houlihan, and BenPerea playing the NM state guitar at the dedication ceremony at the request of Pimentel Guitars.
 
The Watermelon Mountain Jug Band is recognized as “one of New Mexico’s treasured natural resources”…“a truly unique mixture of music, mirth and pure entertainment”…“totally irresistible.” So sing along! Grab a kazoo and enjoy! It’s just too much fun to miss!
Contact Information:  watermelonmountainjugband.com
Sounds of Central New Mexico is hosted by Bill Cochran, a musician with the Tijeras-based band, Reverend E & The Vagrants.  
On Demand Performance - KXNM archives the Sounds of Central New Mexico  as MP3 files, allowing you to listen to your favorite shows on demand, whenever you choose.  Click on the audio file below to hear the Watermelon Mountain Jug Band show originally broadcast on August 20, 2021.

  On Air + Live Streaming + On Demand                                                       

Toll Free 1-877-647-KXNM ~ 1-877-647-5966

Office Hours                                           Telephone                     Email                                 Studios and Office Address
            By Appointment                                  505-886-0605               info@kxnm.org               8 Clements  Rd.  McIntosh, NM 87032
Copyright 2015-2021 by KXNM Community Foundation, a 501(c)(3) non-profit, tax-exempt organization 
  • HOME
  • DONATE
  • COMMUNITY CALENDAR
  • PROGRAMS A-Z/Archives
    • PROGRAM DIRECTORY
    • PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENTS (PSAs)
    • Sounds of Central New Mexico Archives >
      • LLJ Band 10/1/21
      • Michael Godey 10/8/21
      • Michael "Miguelito" Romero 10/15/2021
      • Red Gorilla Studios 10/22/21
      • Michael Glenn 10/29/2021
      • Dennis Higgins 11/5/2021
      • Flying J Wranglers 11/12/2021 & 11/19/2021
      • The Nolan Brothers 11/26/2021
      • July - September 2021 Shows >
        • Chris Nolan 7/2/2021
        • Iron Chiwawa 7/9/2021
        • MusicHouse Mal 7/16/2021
        • Ryan Montano 7/23/2021
        • Peter Vigil and The All-star Band 7/30/2021
        • Doug Muchmore 8/6/2021
        • Larry Freedman 8/13/21
        • Watermelon Mountain Jug Band 8/20
        • Curio Cowboys 8/27/21
        • Paul Pino & The Tone Daddies 9/3/21
        • Roger Dale 9/10/21
        • Bud Warner 9/17/21
        • Roadhouse Karma 9/24/21
      • April - June 2021 Shows >
        • Sally Townes Band 4/2/2021
        • Marc Malin and Paula Rhae's Roadside Distraction 4/9/2021
        • Freddie Schwartz 4/16/2021
        • Leigh Baca and Ken Hume 4/23/2021
        • Bad Katz 4/30/2021
        • Jim Kono 5/7/2021
        • Black Hats N Pearl Snaps 5/14/2021
        • Alchemie 5/21/2021
        • Friends Forever 5/28/2021
        • Fair Trade Fusion 6/4/2021
        • Ryan Painter and the Resisters 6/11/2021
        • Jazz Brasileiro 6/18/2021
        • Take 2 - Reverend E and The Vagrants 6/25/2021
      • January - March 2021 Shows >
        • Reverend E and the Vagrants 1/8/2021
        • Swing Shift 1/15/2021
        • Rye Creek 1/22/2021
        • Odd Dog 1/29/2021
        • Gilbert Ortiz 2/5/2021
        • The Keys Band 2/12/2021
        • Stanlie Kee and Step In 2/19/2021
        • John DeYoung 2/26/2021
        • JJ and The Mystics 3/5/2021
        • The Larry Conga Show 3/12/2021
        • The Rudy Boy Experiment 3/19/2021
        • Dick Orr 3/28/2021
    • Archaeology in Your Backyard Archives >
      • Conflicts and Military Actions >
        • Coronado's Entrada
        • Pueblo Revolt
        • Tiguex War
        • Tumultous 1600's
        • 12-Years of Revolt
      • Ghost Stories and Mysteries >
        • Deadman's Curve
        • Ghost Towns
      • Influential Men >
        • Sherrif Elfego Baca
        • David Meriwether
        • Ernie Pyle
        • Delbert Redfern
        • Clem (Pop) Shaffer
        • Montague Stevens and Grizzly Bears
        • Delmar Thomas
      • Influential Women >
        • Eve Ball
        • Carol Bishop
        • Ella Foley Clayton
        • Mabel Sibley Jones
        • Carmen Padilla
        • Emily Post's Roadtrip Through New Mexico
      • INDIGINEOUS PEOPLE >
        • Alamo Navajo Tribe
        • Chief Manuelito of the Mescalero Apache
        • Plight of the Chiricahua Apache
        • Gran Quivira Mythical City of Gold
        • Gran Quivira's Preservation
      • interesting Places >
        • Antelope Springs
        • Baca Car Dealership
        • Belen Cutoff
        • El Bosque Homestead
        • Cedarvale School
        • Cedro Peak Fire Lookout
        • Estancia Salt Lakes
        • Hanging Trees
        • Manzano National Forest
      • Paleo-American >
        • Clovis and Theories
        • Mammoth Steppe Hypothesis
        • Solutrean Hypothesis
      • Significant Events >
        • Community Buffalo Hunts
        • Last Hanging in New Mexico
      • Torrance County Pioneers >
        • Baca and Barela Families
        • Early Villages Along The Monzanos
        • Tabet Family
        • Torrance County Early Days
      • Towns, Settlements and Villages >
        • Encino
        • Estancia
        • Gran Quivira
        • Madrid
        • Magdalena
        • Punta de Aqua
        • Socorro
        • Stanley
        • Stanley
      • Wild West >
        • Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid
        • Cowgirls and Wildwest Stars
        • Dime Novels and Pulp Westerns
  • ABOUT KXNM
    • BOARD of DIRECTORS >
      • Meeting Schedule, Agendas and Minutes
    • CONTACT US
    • HISTORY/MISSION
    • STAFF & VOLUNTEERS
    • In-Kind Donations and Services
  • SUPPORT
    • BECOME AN UNDERWRITER
    • CORPORATE SPONSORS
    • VOLUNTEER
    • RADIO INTERNSHIPS