Shannon and Heather Slaughter have announced that Blake Bowen has joined their touring band, County Clare. He has worked previously as a member of Randy Waller & The Country Gentlemen, Michael Cleveland and Flamekeeper, and the Tina Adair Band. He comes by his talents naturally, as the son of noted mandolinist and vocalist, Jimmy Bowen.
The move is in response to the departure of original mandolinist Ronald Inscore, who had joined the band when they were based in western North Carolina. With the Slaughters now living in north Alabama, the travel distance for Ronald became an obstacle, given his commitment to a full time career in nuclear medicine.
Heather is moving to mandolin, with Blake taking her bass spot. John Boulware remains on fiddle, Casey Murray on banjo and Shannon on guitar.
Blake tells us that he is delighted to come aboard.
“I am absolutely thrilled and honored at the opportunity to play with Shannon and Heather. They are all such stellar players and even better people. I greatly appreciate their unique and inspiring sound and look forward to being a part of it.”
And Shannon is happy to have him.
“While we are saddened that the logistics will no longer allow Ron to play with us full-time, we are thrilled that Blake has joined us in County Clare. He is a great person, a family-oriented man, and he really grooves on the upright bass!!
We are also excited to move Heather over to mandolin, as she is an outstanding player. She chose to learn how to play the bass four years ago, so we could play and sing with Ron, but now she is back on her main instrument. We are really excited about the new possibilities of the band!!”
The band’s debut album, One More Road, was released in March, 2013. You can follow their tour schedule online.
Most artist management and music business consultants will tell you that an identifiable vocal sound is the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd most important element in an artist or band sound. The ability to immediately recognize a vocalist is said to be key to success on the radio.
Likewise, having multiple lead vocalists in a band is said to be a bad move, resulting in confusion among consumers and radio listeners, something to be avoided at all costs. Bluegrass acts have honored this credo largely in the breach over recent years, however. Starting as early as Seldom Scene, we have embraced groups with more than one primary singer, with current examples like Lonesome River Band, Blue Highway and The Boxcars continuing the trend.
One More Road, the debut album from Shannon and Heather Slaughter & County Clare, is another example of doing this right. Their two voices couldn’t be more different; Shannon’s with a gravelly edge, Heather’s sweet and pure. But the husband/wife duo harmonize beautifully, and their distinct vocal styles offer the band the ability to mine more than one vein in the bluegrass world.
But you still need a good cast of backing musicians, and strong material, to make a stellar album.
Fortunately, Shannon is a first rate songwriter, something we have discussed here many times in the past, and works with a number of compatible co-writers. 7 of the 12 tracks on the new record come from this well, with help from Shawn Lane, Dale Felts, Mike Bentley, Terry Foust, and Heather Slaughter.
And County Clare provides all the support you would expect from a crack rhythm section. Ronald Inscore is on mandolin, Casey Murray on banjo, and John Boulware on fiddle, with Shannon on guitar and Heather on bass. Also assisting in the studio were Rob Ickes on resonator guitar, Tina Steffey on clawhammer banjo, and Mike Johnson on pedal steel guitar.
The songs fall into a number of categories. Shannon sings The Lives of the Innocent, Ballad of Johnse Hatfield and Daddy Killed The Calf, which all present as historical fiction, telling stories of hard times in an earlier age. Shannon really shines as a writer in this setting, combining his own study of American history with a vivid imagination and an obvious compassion for his subjects.
From Heather, I Might Be and You An’t Going Nowhere are both hopeful and upbeat, while the poignant They Never Got The Chance carries a strong pro-life message, minus the finger-pointing and recrimination you might find in a political debate.
Banjo players, and fans of Earl Scruggs (which is everyone reading this, yes?), will enjoy WhenScruggs Made Me A Star, a tribute to the late banjo man told from the perspective of the 5 string banjo he elevated to prominence.
For the most part, the Slaughters take their turns singing lead, but pair up for a a duet on Tom Hardin’s If I Was A Carpenter, a hit in 1970 for Johnny Cash and June Carter.
All the picking is superb, but special kudos go to Inscore whose mandolin sparkles throughout.
One More Road is a serious and effective launch for County Clare, and a sign that the Slaughters are likely to leave their mark on bluegrass music for many years to come.
The album via is available on CD or download from the band web site, or from iTunes and other popular download sites. Radio programmers can download the tracks now at Airplay Direct.
We heard this week from Shannon Slaughter, with an update on his and Heather’s upcoming band project, and some major milestones in their personal lives.
Shannon tells us that the new album, from Shannon and Heather Slaughter & County Clare, will be titled One More Road, and is due from Elite Circuit Music in March. Of the 14 tracks, 8 are written or co-written by Slaughter. Other writers include Heather Slaughter, Shawn Lane, Dale Felts, Mike Bentley, Terry Foust, and Rodney Crowell.
On the home front, Shannon reports that he and Heather have moved into their new home in Pell City, AL where he continues to teach U.S. History and coach football at St. Clair County High School. Both of them have completed Masters degrees (Shannon in Gifted Education and Heather in Special Education), and they have recently found out that they are expecting.
Sounds like a busy year in the Slaughter household – a new CD in March and a new baby in September!
Here’s a taste of their second single, especially pertinent this year.
The debut single, The Lives Of The Innocents, is available to radio programmers now from Airplay Direct.
Since taking his leave from Lou Reid & Carolina in July of 2012, Shannon Slaughter has been hard at work on a new project with his wife, Heather. They are settled now in Alabama, and have been working with their band, County Clare, on an upcoming 6-track album, One More Road. The full CD won’t hit until March, but a debut single is released today to bluegrass radio.
The Lives Of The Innocents is one of Shannon’s compositions, and like several songs from his 2011 solo record, The Sideman Steps Out, tells a serious story from the annals of American history. Slaughter is currently completing a masters degree in that discipline, and he knows of what he writes.
This Civil War story is a sad one to ponder, touching on the horror of war on all sides. It is told from the perspective of a North Carolina teen who enlists in the Confederate army, only to lose his life paying “for a rich man’s deed, dying for the sins of greed.”
Powerful stuff.
One More Road is set for a March 15 release on Elite Circuit Records. Radio programmers can download the single now from Airplay Direct, where fans can also have a listen.
What most any bluegrass watcher has known was inevitable has been announced. Shannon Slaughter is leaving his position with Lou Reid & Carolina to focus his energy on County Clare, his own group with his talented wife, Heather.
Shannon told us that it’s a decision that has been brewing for some time, but that it was a hard one for him to make.
“I have great respect for Lou and what he does, but it’s time for me to take the reins of my own band and my own career.
Lou and Christy have been so good to me, and Trevor Watson is one of my best friends in the world. I hate to leave a band where I feel so comfortable and like the people so well, but Heather and I have talked a lot about this, and it just seems like the right time.”
And we expect that Lou wasn’t shocked to hear the news. He’s seen Shannon’s star rising since the release of a solo project, The Sideman Steps Out, in 2011. Plus he knows that Slaughter has assembled a band primarily made up of musicians near where he lives in Alabama, and that they are working on a CD of their own.
Another element of Slaughter’s decision is found in the key word, Alabama. He and Heather moved there not long ago, where Shannon teaches in a local high school while completing his masters degree in history. Traveling back and forth to where Lou’s band is based in North Carolina has been tough, taking him away from Heather during his time away from school.
For Shannon, it keeps coming back to timing.
“We just bought a house here in Alabama, and have some really good guys playing with us. Heather and I are excited about all the good things that could happen with this band.
I’m 43… if I’m ever going to do it, now is the time.”
Shannon is on guitar, and Heather on bass with the two of them tag teaming the lead vocals. Rounding out County Clare is Ronald Inscore on mandolin, Casey Murray on banjo, and John Boulware on fiddle.
For the immediate future, Slaughter will continue on with Carolina.
“I’m going to work out a notice based on whenever Lou can find a replacement. He’s been nothing but gracious, and I really appreciate and respect him as a boss, friend and mentor.”
County Clare spent this past weekend in the studio, and have posted a rough mix of one of the tracks on their web site.
