Meet Jack Norton and the Mullet River Boys, musical purveyors of vaudeville, bluegrass, western swing and gospel. The boys have been called, one of the most entertaining acoustic groups in the Midwest by the Minneapolis Star Tribune.

Jack Norton’s stated goal is to, literally, corrupt an audience with pleasure. For the past decade or so, he has been doing just that by quietly producing a body of work that includes some 60 albums, countless songs, poems, short stories and about 200 shows a year in the United States, Mexico and Europe. They call him The Hobo Minstrel and his band of merry madmen are called, The Mullet River Boys. They play guitar, ukulele, banjo, fiddle, mandolin, string bass, whizbang, and have performed at some of the largest and most well respected venues in the world. The group was named Artists of the Year by the Minneapolis Star Tribune in 2000, and after seeing a Jack Norton appearance, oddball crooner Tiny Tim hailed, he is the greatest entertainer I have ever seen. Norton has shared the stage with such greats as: Norah Jones, Squirrel Nut Zippers, Dave Van Ronk, Alejandro Escovedo, Greg Brown, Leon Redbone, Dave Moore, Merle Haggard, Tiny Tim and Willie Nelson.

The Mullet River Boys play what the St. Paul Pioneer Press describes as a, fresh and refreshing blend of absolutely original folk, country and ragtimey jazz. Billboard Magazine hailed the boys as, a group to watch...certainly deserving of far greater recognition. That recognition has arrived for the boys, after numerous awards including: Album of the Year, Artists of the Year and Instrumentalists of the Year by magazines and newspapers across North America. The Mullet River Boys are inspired by the numerous traveling medicine show and minstrel troupes of the 1920s, gypsy swing jazz of the 1930s and 40s, early country greats like Jimmie Rodgers and Hank Williams, and the vaudeville artistry of novelty acts like Spike Jones, the Hoosier Hot Shots, and Emmett Miller. Their style has been described as acoustic vaudeville folk, honky-tonk ragtime and hobo bluegrass.

Performing original songs, hokum ballads, country gospel and instrumental breakdowns along with barbershop-style vocals in three part harmony, sight gags and comedy, the boys are highly entertaining. They literally perform vaudeville in miniature at every show. The group has been together since 1997 and has performed at nearly every venue imaginable from intimate coffeeshops to major theatres and arts centers in North America and Europe. Fully costumed, clean, and wonderfully humorous, the boys aim at pure family-friendly entertainment, and are an authentic throwback to a simpler time and bygone era.

The boys also perform old-fashioned bluegrass Gospel shows, perfect for your church service or community celebration, as well as a Holiday show with vintage songs and memories of the winter season.