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Drew Emmitt:
“Lord you know I’ve been so many places/At least I know I have a longer view”, sings Leftover Salmon lead singer and mandolin player Drew Emmitt over a rollicking mandolin lick on the title track of his third solo effort, Long Road. “I’ve been on the road since the 80’s – can you believe that? That’s 25 years, a quarter of a century…Long Road is all about where I’ve been, what I’ve seen, where I’ve ended up and I invited all of my friends I met along the way to help me tell the story.”
Revered as one of the most energetic and innovative mandolin players on the jamband/newgrass scene today, Emmitt’s “inestimable talents” (An Honest Tune) don’t end with just the instruments that can be picked. Holding the wheel steady on acoustic and electric slide mandolin, acoustic and electric guitar and mandola, Long Road also showcases Emmitt’s superlative storytelling and versatile vocal abilities. With seven originals, including co-writes with John Cowan (“Long Road”) and Jim Lauderdale (“I’m Alive”), Emmitt saavily chose a few best-of-life-on-the-road songs, such as Supertramps’ “Take the Long Way Home”, Marshall-Tucker Band’s “Take the Highway”, and Van Morrison’s “Gypsy in my Soul”. Co-produced by Emitt and Compass Records co-founder Garry West, “my heaven band”, is how Emmitt describes the special guest musicians on Long Road: Billy Nershi of The String Cheese Incident (dobro), Chris Pandolfi of The Infamous Stringdusters (banjo), Andy Hall of The Infamous Stringdusters (dobro), Stuart Duncan (fiddle), Tim O’Brien (harmony vocals), Alison Brown (banjo), Darrell Scott (vocals), Eric Thorin (bass), Jeff Sipe of The Aquarium Rescue Unit (drums), John Cowan (vocals), Reese Wynans (Hammond B3), Steven Sandifer (percussion) and Tyler Grant (guitar). Hallelujah.
Following a decade of success with Leftover Salmon, Emmitt released his first solo effort, Freedom Ride, in 2002 drawing on the talent of peers John Cowan, Peter Rowan, Sam Bush, Ronnie McCoury, Vassar Clements, Stuart Duncan and Randy Scruggs. Critics and fans loved the collaboration and Emmitt relished the chance to record with some of the giants with whom he’d shared festival stages. “It's amazing,” he said, “it's like walking in a dream….Standing on stage next to Sam (Bush) is pretty indescribable.” In 2005 he followed up with Across The Bridge, an equally impressive effort showcasing Emmitt’s bluegrass chops and songwriting talents as a straight-ahead bluegrass man. After touring as the Emmitt-Nershi band with Billy Nershi of The String Cheese Incident for the past year and making several reunion appearances with Leftover Salmon, Long Road finds Emmitt rejuvenated and once again taking the contemporary, live gig, fresh everytime approach to bluegrass music.
Drew Emmitt will be on tour throughout the summer and fall of 2008, including
appearances with Leftover Salmon at the Telluride Bluegrass Festival and the 10,000 Lakes Festival and with the Emmitt-Nershi band at the High Sierra Music Festival, the Rothbury Festival and Jam Cruise 7. Drew Emmitt and The Waybacks will tour the US October 2008.
Drew Emmitt is proud to play D’Addario Strings
Tyler Grant:
Tyler Grant is a young guitarist with high aspirations. A versatile musician, Tyler is an active and experienced performer and teacher of musical styles including classical, bluegrass, rock and roll, country, jazz, reggae, traditional Bulgarian, Macedonian, and American folk.
Tyler became interested in guitar during his freshman year of high school. He quickly became proficient in classic rock and blues styles, and would spend a decade playing and singing professionally around his hometown of San Diego, CA. He started teaching guitar lessons at the age of nineteen.
After graduating CalArts School of Music in 2000, Tyler spent a few more years playing and teaching in Southern California before moving to Nashville in 2003. He was an original member of Adrienne Young and Little Sadie. He played guitar and sang on Adrienne's album, Plow to the End of the Row, and spent over a year on the road, performing all over the US and Europe. In November 2004 he toured China with Abigail Washburn.
Tyler won first place in the Colorado State Flatpicking Championship at Rockygrass in 2003 and the Wayne Henderson Guitar Contest in 2005. In 2005 he was runner up in the National Flatpicking Championship in Winfield, Kansas. He placed first in the mandolin contest at Uncle Dave Macon Days in 2005. During the summer and fall of 2005 Tyler toured with Rounder Records recording artist April Verch as well as the Two Stringers, a bluegrass band. He can also be seen at festivals and around Nashville with TAVERN GRASS, a hardcore bluegrass band, and playing banjo with Bawn in the Mash. Tyler's first solo CD, "In the Light," was released in June 2006 on FGM records. He was subsequently featured on the cover of the July/August issue of Flatpicking Guitar Magazine.
Tyler has been playing guitar and singing harmony with the Drew Emmitt Band since 2005, and plays bass with the Emmitt/Nershi Band.
Luke Emig:
Luke has been playing drums for over fourteen years and have been teaching for about seven. He graduated from Berklee College of Music in 2002 and moved to Atlanta where he played with many of Georgia's finest musicians in all styles from blues, jazz, and rock to brazillian, african, and hip-hop. He currently teaches at From the Top Music Studios and the Colorado Contemporary Music College. He also plays with Fort Jazz, and Colorado Swing, two jazz big bands.
Eric Thorin:
A native Coloradoan, Eric got his start on piano and trombone at an early age from the prodding of his musical parents and later studied bass at the of Northern Colorado. He played in salsa bands such as Kizumba and Conjunto Colores, toured extensively with rock act The Thugs, made up a third of the Flamenco/Indian ensemble Curandero, and toured with the Tony Furtado Band for four years. He was a member of steel band Pan Jumbies and continues to appear in various Jazz settings throughout the year. Eric also teaches bass at the Yellowstone Jazz Festival.
He currently lives in Lyons, Colo., and continues to perform with a variety of musicians including Hamster Theater, Jefferson Hamer, Theano and Chuck Lamb, Matt Flinner, Drew Emmitt, K.C. Groves, Manuel Molina's Combo Caliente, Mark Sloniker and Art Lande. In 2004 Eric produced a collection of songs for Japanese elementary school children who are learning English.
CONTACT:
Booking:
Blue Mountain Artists
www.bluemountainartists.com
phone: 704-525-1559
Management & Emmitt Nershi Band Booking:
Madison House Inc -
www.madisonhouseinc.com
phone: 212.777.0922
Radio/Label/Publicity:
Compass Records
www.compassrecords.com
phone: 615-320-7672
radio@compassrecords.com
publicity@compassrecords.com
Tour Publicity:
Bridget Pleines
Groove On Music
bpleines@hotmail.com
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