Chris Stapleton Archives - Bluegrass Today

Cannonball from Wood Box Heroes

Bluegrass super group Wood Box Heroes is back this week with a new single, one written by bassist Barry Bales some years ago with bluegrass-turned-country star Chris Stapleton, called Cannonball.

The song isn’t actually released until tomorrow, but the band is offering our readers a sneak preview this evening.

Cannonball is sung by the Heroes’ guitarist Josh Martin, supported by Bales on bass, Seth Taylor on mandolin, Matt Menfee on banjo, and Jenee Fleenor on fiddle and harmony vocals. This one is a bit different from their recent releases, with a slower, darker, more brooding sound than their fast-moving Cross The Line, which is still moving up on our Bluegrass Today Weekly Airplay chart.

Have a listen to Cannonball…

Cannonball from Wood Box Heroes will be available from popular download and streaming services online on Friday, March 15. Radio programmers can get the track now from AirPlay Direct.

Gonna Be Raining When I Die from Ronnie Bowman with Chris Stapleton

The Engelhardt Music Group has released another single from Ronnie Bowman’s recent self-titled album.

It’s a bluegrass classic, Gonna Be Raining When I Die, written by Bobby Osborne and Pete Goble, which has been memorably recorded by a number of bluegrass artists in the past, like The Osborne Brothers, The Country Gentlemen, and Live Wire.

Ronnie picks up the speed a bit for his version, and gives it an even bluesier feel by bringing in his friend and frequent songwriting partner, Chris Stapleton, to sing harmony. As usual, he is backed by a pack of Nashville super pickers in the studio. Rob McCoury is on banjo, Wyatt Rice and Shawn Camp on guitar, Aubrey Haynie on mandolin, Stuart Duncan on fiddle, and Dennis Crouch on bass.

Gonna Be Raining When I Die is available as a single wherever you stream or download music online. Audio CDs of the Ronnie Bowman album can be ordered from his web site.

Radio programmers can get all the tracks from this project via AirPlay Direct.

Grassers score big win at the ACMs

While Chris Stapleton, former guitarist and lead singer for The Steeldrivers, continued his march through the country music institutions last night in Las Vegas, his dominance at the Academy of Country Music awards last night also included spots for several of his bluegrass buddies.

The 2016 Song of the Year award went to Chris for Nobody To Blame, one he wrote with Barry Bales and Ronnie Bowman, who accompanied him on stage to accept their trophies. The bluegrass world knows Barry as the long time bassist with Alison Krauss & Union Station and as a top bluegrass producer, and Ronnie from his work with Lonesome River Band, Band of Ruhks, and his own solo projects.

Chris’ success on country radio this past year has been warmly embraced by Nashville’s bluegrass community, with whom he has socialized – and written – since first hitting with The Steeldrivers in 2008. Of course, lovers of more traditional country music are also delighted to see him topping the charts, hoping that it presages another “real country” movement like we saw when Ricky Skaggs, Randy Travis, and Alan Jackson were big in the 1980s and ’90s.

Stapleton also took home ACM awards for Male Vocalist and New Male Vocalist of the Year, plus Album of the Year for Traveller.

No matter how big he gets, we’ll always remember him as a bluegrass boy.

Big night for Chris Stapleton at the CMAs

Chris Stapleton, the original lead singer and primary songwriter for The Steeldrivers, had a big night at the 49th Annual CMA Awards last night.

He had never really been a bluegrass guy – though he is from Kentucky – but his clever songs and gritty, bluesy voice ignited music fans when The Steeldrivers hit on Rounder in 2008. The band was a collection of friends who got together to play for fun, and decided to give it a whirl. And what a whirl it was. Chris’ sound and songs were an instant hit with everyone who heard the band, and critics were aflame with praise for the quirky new group.

Stapleton was known in Nashville primarily as a songwriter, but the town has plenty of stories about writers who eventually brought their music to the stage. After two records with the band, he took his leave to focus on his own music career, which looks to have been a good move.

His debut country album, Traveller, has been a clear hit since its release in May on Mercury Records.

And last night the former Steeldriver took home three awards from the Country Music Association: Male Vocalist of the Year, Album of the Year, and New Artist of the Year. That’s three for three, quite a haul for a road pro whose image and sounds runs completely counter to the fresh-faced, pickup-trucks-and-beer motif that has ruled country radio of late.

He was also highlighted on the show in a duet performance with crossover mega-star Justin Timberlake, which stirred up the assembled country music royalty in Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena, and millions watching at home on ABC TV.

But bluegrass fans can say, “We knew you when!” Congratulations to Chris Stapleton for his country music success.