About the Band

The first Uptown Country group was started in 1984. The group performs a high energy country show throughout Ohio and the surrounding states. The five members have over 125 accumulative years of experience in the music industry. The groups vocal versatility takes you from the early traditional country to today’s newest country sounds. The group also blends in some 50’s and 60’s rock-n-roll with a twist of bluegrass in their show.

Uptown Country takes great pride in their accomplishments over the years. Some of these accomplishments include opening for legendary Grand Ole Opry stars Bill Anderson, Joe Diffie, and the late Porter Wagoner. The group has also opened for other Nationally known recording stars like the Oak Ridge Boys, Doug Stone, and Paul Brandt, to name a few. They have performed with Grand Ole Opry stars and CMA award winners Jack Greene and David Frizzell. They have done some special shows in Ohio with the Brett Family Singers from Branson, MO. Working with Michael and Tre Twitty on their show, “Memories of Conway” has also been very special to the band.

In 2006 the band achieved one of their milestones by performing their own show at The Gibson Showcase in Nashville, TN.

2007 was also a memorable year for the band, they performed again at The Gibson Showcase in March and were honored to open for Gene Watson at the Norwalk Theatre, Norwalk, OH in March, and the “The Possum” George Jones in April at the Stranahan Theater in Toledo, OH.

2008 - The band performed at the Annual AllStar Country Music Spectacular held at the Wayne County Fairgrounds in Wooster, OH. During the day of entertainment, they were also the back-up band for International Country Duo of the Year, International Entertainer of The Year, and Songwriter of the Year winners Moore & Moore (Debbie Moore & Carrie Moore-Reed), Billy Yates, European CMA Male Vocalist of the Year, and Michael Twitty for his performance of "Memories of Conway". On August 24, they had the honor to entertain with Opry Legend Stonewall Jackson at the Sandusky County Fair in Fremont, OH. The crowd truly enjoyed Stonewall's amazing voice. He and the group received a standing ovation at the end of the show for their outstanding performance. Among the many songs he sang, the crowd was on their feet while he sang his No. 1 hit "Waterloo". A great time was had by all.

Jim is proud of his first CD recorded in 1997. Since then he and the band have recorded three more CD’s, all with originals by Jim and other band members. (Jim is the only original member of the Uptown Country Band.) Check out clips of the songs on our Music page - 2001 CD "Miles & Memories" with the original "Memories" by Jim Sleek and Jim Lash and the 2003 CD original and title cut "Don't Sweat the Small Stuff" by Jim. The 2008 CD "In The Caribbean" features originals by Jim Sleek "In the Caribbean", "I Just Don't Understand", by Dan Long and his mom Barb, and "Picture Perfect Fool" by Mark Wilkins. As band members have changed over the years, Jim makes sure the new members bring with them experiences and a level of musicianship that maintains the band's overall entertainment ability.

Uptown Country performs at Eagles and Moose clubs, VFW halls, and wedding receptions. The group especially enjoys performing at county and state fairs, and festivals throughout their own state of Ohio.

The band performs at the Sandusky County Fair in Fremont, Ohio on August 24, 2008 with Opry Legend Stonewall Jackson.