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I am a songwriter and singer, guitarist, accordionist, and mountain dulcimist. I have experience of over twenty-five years of performance in mainstream venues including coffee houses, festivals and fairs, bars, restaurants, and concert theaters. I play solo engagements, have had bands, and have played as side accordionist in the bands of other musicians. I have appeared on television (the Mr. Peppermint Show; I appeared in multiple editions that were syndicated world-wide and showed for years) and domestic and international radio. For a musical biography (including my musical dark ages, for inquiring minds) and links to some places I've played, visit my back pages. Currently in production: Miss Jenni's Pioneer Play Party, my researched children's show that teaches early Texas songs and dances, and Free Dallas Music! Songwriter's Open Mic, co-produced with Tom Peal twice monthly at Half Price Books and Records Northwest Highway, Dallas, Texas. My songs take their place among the most interesting and insightful being sung today in American folk music. Though I am influenced by traditional music (and in the case of my children's show, am a dedicated researcher) I am an artist of my time and place in grassroots Texas and American music. Songwriters famed and obscure are singing the times all around and it's thrilling to be part of this movement. Whether we live in the city, the country or in a small town, we all have close ties to our physical environment. Through song we share the existential: personal experience resonating within the impersonal world. Absurdities of our country's culture and politics, truths of human experience, observations philosophical and physical provide our material. Songs may be emotional or detached, grave or comical. They are called Americana, Texana, Acoustic Alternative, New Folk, Urban Folk. To my knowledge no one has yet defined this musical movement. We are not divided by language, discipline, or style because our songs come into the world like newborn babies and have a right to be here. Photos by Tom Peal, Alan Litt and others. "On a Limb" (c) Lisa Markley, performed by The Malvinas. Lisa Markley on MySpace. The Malvinas on MySpace. Used by permission. My music moved with me from Austin to Dallas in 2003: new marriage, new friends, old friends, old home town. My five years in Austin had taught me about artist community pride and reckless joy in performance, along with a heightened musicianship. Dallas (my friends and their music) welcomed me home. JMP "Wishing Well" (c)Kevin Sullivan, The Hammerknockers. Used by permission. Photos by Tom Peal. This slideshow covers fall 2006 to fall 2007. Thank you to all my friends and family who make my life so rich and keep me singing. Here are links to some other songwriters whose works share the common spring:
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