jug band

American  

noun

1. a small group of performers who play chiefly blues or folk music on makeshift or very simple instruments, as washboards, harmonicas, kazoos, and empty jugs, the latter being played by blowing across the openings.

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jug band British  

noun

1. a small group playing folk or jazz music, using empty jugs that are played by blowing across their openings to produce bass notes

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Etymology

Origin of jug band

An Americanism dating back to 1930–35

Example Sentences

At age 16, he met Garcia, 21, in Palo Alto, Calif., and they formed a jug band, shifting to electric instruments following the rapid popularity of the Beatles in the U.S.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 11, 2026

Weir met Garcia on New Year’s Eve, 1963, at a Palo Alto music store, and soon formed the jug band Mother McCree’s Uptown Jug Champions with Garcia and future Dead bandmate Ron “Pigpen” McKernan.

From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 10, 2026

At first the band played a mix of British folk, bluegrass and old-time jug band music.

From BBC • Apr. 1, 2017

He also delved into the impact the Dead had on Americana, going back to the early 1960s when he formed a jug band with Jerry Garcia.

From The Guardian • Sep. 25, 2016

When he wears a slatted folding chair over his head like a jug band washboard and then beautifully executes the bent-back turn known as a vuelta quebrada, flamenco is reborn.

From New York Times • Mar. 14, 2014