Sit and Watch It Rain video from Dunlap & Mabe

Jack Dunlap and Robert Mabe are veterans of the bluegrass scene in the northern Virginia/Washington, DC region of long standing. Serving as both sidemen and bandleaders over the years, these two have been working together since 2019, and have now made it official with the upcoming release of an album under the name Dunlap & Mabe.

Robert plays banjo with Jack on guitar, and they have Alex Kimble on bass and Mason Wright on fiddle. Dunlap is the lead singer and primary songwriter for the group, which dances around the boundaries of bluegrass on occasion, though staying largely within the borders in the main.

They are working now with Bell Buckle Records, who have released a music video for the first Dunlap & Mabe single, Sit and Watch It Rain, which they filmed at an abandoned farmhouse at Capon Crossing Farm in Hampshire County, WV.

Jack explained a bit about the structure of the song.

Sit and Watch it Rain is a classic heartbreak song. A man torn down by losing his love, he can only find peace and satisfaction when it’s raining. I also use rain as a metaphor for drinking, so this is also a song about how loneliness and desperation can lead to unhealthy habits and addiction.”

Check it out in the video below.

Sit and Watch It Rain from Dunlap & Mabe is available now to bluegrass radio via AirPlay Direct. It can be purchased for download directly from the band.

You can learn more about the band, including their performance dates for 2022, on the Dunlap & Mabe web site.

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About the Author

John Lawless

John had served as primary author and editor for The Bluegrass Blog from its launch in 2006 until being folded into Bluegrass Today in September of 2011. He continues in that capacity here, managing a strong team of columnists and correspondents.