Most musicians, especially the mammothly successful ones whose names appear on the cover of Spin, have honed their skills since before puberty. And stories of bands struggling to edge into “the biz” permeate the industry.

But one such artist happened upon her profession quite by accident. Sherri Jackson, who is touring with Glenn Esparza on bass and Brian McRae on drums, will be at People’s Bar and Grill tonight to open for Sean Kelly of The Samples.

Jackson and The Samples go way back to when they all attended the University of Colorado in Boulder. The guys were just a local band playin’ gigs around town, and she was a lowly business major. “The Samples were playing when I was in college,” Kelly said. “I love their first album. I just didn’t go to their shows that much.”

And in order to get rid of those freshman-in-college blues, Jackson embarked on a track that would eventually lead her to music, no matter how bumpy and detour-y the road was. “When I came outta high school and into college, you go through that whole thing of, ‘I don’t know anybody; I hate the food,'” Jackson explained.

“This football player was bragging about how good the food was at training table, so I decided to join the track team. That’s what put me through school. I got a four-year track scholarship. Then I found out that we don’t get training table, but I wanted to keep my scholarship.”

So the free tuition kept Jackson in shape and running, but again Fate stepped in (and this time, stuck out a foot and tripped her), and turned Jackson down Music Avenue.

“I stumbled into a band,” Jackson explained. “I never intended to be a musician. It’s all because of a tequila shot. When I ran track in college and I broke my leg, I needed something to do until I got better, so I joined a comedy group on campus. One night I was dressed up like Diana Ross, and I walked into this bar in a full gown.

“I never really drank, but they bought me a shot of tequila, and I was pretty gone on that alone. They wanted me to come up and sing, and I started singing, and afterwards they offered me a job.”

Jackson ended up joining Band du Jour in 1991, but her ever-restless spirit started urging her to be more than just a pretty face (with a great voice) in the background. “I was trained classically with a violin,” Jackson said. “That paid off ’cause I played a violin for three and a half years. I was in this band, and I got tired of singing back-up vocals, so I tried the guitar. The guys in the band were trying to discourage me, saying how hard it is.”

Lucky for us, the story ends with Jackson blowing off the chauvinist dudes and grabbing the guitar, thus setting out on her own mission. She joined forces with McRae and Esparza couple of years ago, with herself on violin, vocals and (surprise!) guitar, and now the raves have begun pouring in.

So have the comparisons. “We’ve been compared to maybe Sheryl Crow, Tracy Chapman,” she said. “I respect them as artists so I don’t mind.”

As for the future, she’s set to take whatever life dishes out. (She will for sure, however, be at People’s tonight.) She has learned to take everything in stride. “I just don’t know what else is gonna happen,” Jackson laughed. “I kept planning on quitting [music], but things kept going so well.”

Jackson and company will open up for Sean Kelly of The Samples tonight at People’s. Showtime is 9:30 p.m., and an ID and $7 at the door will getcha in.