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| DOYLE LAWSON & QUICKSILVER When the history of modern bluegrass is written, few figures will loom larger in the telling than Doyle Lawson. Yet though he’s already a legend with an unexcelled claim to a place in the bluegrass Hall of Honor, Lawson’s not the kind to rest on his laurels or enjoy a quiet retirement. Indeed, as he gets ready to release his Rounder Records debut, You Gotta Dig A Little Deeper, he’s burning up the road as fiercely as ever—and with a band that is arguably the best he’s ever assembled. Born in 1944 in East Tennessee, where he still makes his home today, Doyle Lawson grew up enthralled by the singing he heard in church, the country, gospel and rhythm and blues he heard on the radio—and, above all, by the emerging bluegrass sound of Bill Monroe & His Blue Grass Boys, Flatt & Scruggs, the Stanley Brothers and other first generation bluegrass artists. Even as a youngster, he knew that he wanted a career in music, and so, although the mandolin was his first love, he became a banjo player because he thought it would be easier to find work—and sure enough, February 3rd 1963, he joined the legendary Jimmy Martin and His Sunny Mountain Boys. Still green, he lasted only six months, but the experience was enough to prove that the musical life was in his blood, and when he had the chance a few years later to play guitar with banjo innovator J. D. Crowe —he took it. Over the next decade and a half, Lawson became one of bluegrass’s preeminent musicians, thanks to long stints as a member of Crowe’s Kentucky Mountain Boys and then the internationally renowned Country Gentlemen, with whom he would take up the mandolin again, this time for good. Noted not just for his immense talents as a lead and harmony singer and instrumentalist, but for his contributions to both groups as song finder, arranger and, with Crowe, as a on-stage spokesman, he was the consummate sideman. Yet Lawson also had a creative vision of his own, and in 1979 he left the Gentlemen to form Quicksilver—and if he was already one of the most important and respected bluegrass musicians of his time, the pursuit of an original sound that was his alone would quickly propel him to the status of one of its ultimate greats. Even before the release of their epochal self-titled debut, Doyle Lawson and Quicksilver had burst onto the scene with remarkable force. Building on Lawson’s deep mastery of the bluegrass tradition and his keen eye for a wide range of songs from both within and beyond the genre, the quartet created a compelling new standard for vocal precision -- delivered with the hard drive of Martin’s classic sound -- to create a new kind of sound that quickly spawned legions of imitators. And when the group released 1981’s all-gospel Rock My Soul, those elements served yet another innovative step—a powerful kind of gospel music that had deep roots not only in bluegrass, but in the southern and African-American gospel quartet sounds that Lawson had followed since childhood. At the same time, even as he broke new ground with Quicksilver, Lawson contributed to the maintenance of bluegrass’s roots with the Bluegrass Album Band. Drawing almost exclusively from the catalogs of Monroe, Flatt & Scruggs, Martin, Reno & Smiley and other first and second generation greats, the Band—which, among other things, reunited Lawson and Crowe, together with guitar great Tony Rice, who had followed the former into the latter’s band—brought the classics of bluegrass, many of them out of print and forgotten, to a new generation of listeners and musicians. Still, it was with Quicksilver that Doyle would make his most important mark over the next quarter of a century. The group turned out album after album and show after show filled with brilliant music in what quickly became known as the Quicksilver mold, and whenever a musician would depart to pursue another venture, Lawson would bring in another, no less talented youngster and teach him the essentials of the sound and of the business—a process that made the group, as the title of a 2004 collection of rehearsal, show and previously unreleased recordings had it, “a school of bluegrass” unrivaled on the bluegrass scene. Indeed, a look at not only the awards and nominations (including nine International Bluegrass Music Association honors, four Dove Award and three Grammy nominations) that Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver have won on their own, but at those won by alumnae of the band in such groups as IIIrd Tyme Out, Mountain Heart, Ricky Skaggs & Kentucky Thunder, the Lonesome River Band and Blue Highway, proves the point conclusively. Lawson broke new ground, too, in reaching out to southern gospel audiences, especially in the 1990s, when Quicksilver concentrated almost exclusively on all-gospel recordings. Incorporating an ever-growing measure of southern gospel quartet influence, the group became favorites at the music’s biggest annual gathering, the National Quartet Convention held in Louisville, KY, following up with a steady string of performances at churches around the country that exhibited his commitment both to a bedrock faith and to entertainment. His preeminence in the bluegrass gospel field assured, Lawson began to reinvigorate his profile in the bluegrass field, too, as the new century dawned. With current lead tenor singers Barry Scott and Jamie Dailey on board, Quicksilver captured its first IBMA award in four years when it took home the Gospel Recorded Performance of the Year for Winding Through Life in 2000. The following year, the group won the first of four consecutive awards for Vocal Group of the Year, and when they released their first bluegrass CD in more than half a decade in 2002, the Association responded by handing them Song of the Year and Gospel Recorded Performance for two selections from the album. Today, with Scott and Dailey now veteran members, hot young fiddler J. W. Stockman, and banjo man Terry Baucom simultaneously the newest and oldest member—he was part of the very first Quicksilver lineup—Lawson has not only achieved a legendary status of his own, but is fielding a lineup that is, in the words of one critic, fully capable of making his best album ever. Admired, respected and beloved by gospel enthusiasts, long-time bluegrass followers and a growing number of newly-acquired fans from across the musical spectrum, Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver have truly become a bluegrass band for the ages. |
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| “…typically formal and typically great, with four harmony singers jutting out from the six-man group and twin-fiddle breaks answering the mandolins…” -- NEW YORK TIMES "...Lawson is one of the key innovators in bluegrass history. In 1981, this former Country Gentleman integrated the progressive string-band picking of his former employer, J.D. Crowe, with the a cappella, four-part hymn singing of the Stanley Brothers. The result was a new kind of bluegrass gospel music, unprecedented at the time and unsurpassed since." -- WASHINGTON POST DOYLE LAWSON & QUICKSILVER SOAR ON ROUNDER DEBUT Collection of traditional bluegrass anointed with Southern gospel quartet style harmonies Already legendary among modern bluegrass artists, Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver head for even greater glory with the release of You Gotta Dig A Little Deeper, their first disc for Rounder Records. Country classics, band-penned originals and songs from some of Lawson’s favorite writers get the master’s touch with fiery picking and the group’s trademark soaring harmonies that have earned them comparison to giants like the Louvin Brothers and brought them four consecutive International Bluegrass Music Association Vocal Group of the Year awards. The new disc brings all the fervor of 2004’s stunning, all-gospel Thank God to bear on a set of secular bluegrass material that picks up where 2002’s award-winning The Hard Game Of Love left off. For Lawson, the renewed enthusiasm of the bluegrass faithful—and the growing number of new fans that Quicksilver’s jaw-dropping virtuosity has made in recent years—has been especially sweet. Focused through most of the past decade on reaching churchgoing audiences with spirited gospel albums, he’s retaken the bluegrass world by storm, putting his signature blend of gospel-based harmonies and traditional bluegrass sounds in the hands of what is arguably the best-ever edition of Quicksilver. With riveting singers Jamie Dailey (guitar) and Barry Scott (bass) trading high leads and even higher harmonies, the driving banjo of Terry Baucom (an original band member returning after a decades-long absence) and the youthful zest of fiddler J. W. Stockman, today’s Quicksilver is the ultimate vehicle for reaching new audiences with what the LA Daily News called his “state-of-the-traditional-art musical revivalism.” Yet as anyone who’s seen the fabled live performances that blend hard-as-nails bluegrass, southern gospel quartets and a healthy dose of humor can attest, it’s Lawson who holds the music and the band together with the assured touch of a great musician, bandleader and entertainer. The result is that while Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver have been shaped by their gospel-singing experiences this is no genteel, mild-mannered disc. Combining the energy and emotion of a live performance with the sonic polish of the studio, it’s a spirited journey through the classic themes of bluegrass, from the rattling train imagery of the opening “Heartbreak Number Nine” to the closing celebration of Kentucky, “When I’m Knee Deep In Bluegrass,” to the wrenching ballad, “Saving Grace,” a story of Alzheimer’s that’s already brought thousands of concert goers to tears”—and, as the icing on the cake, there’s “Rosine,” a spirited new instrumental from Lawson himself. From its first note to the last, You Gotta Dig A Little Deeper demonstrates compellingly that you don’t have to be hip or trendy to be very, very cool. ### DoyleLawson.com For more information on Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver, please contact: Commotion PR: 615.467.6677 / Kay Clary / Donica Christensen Rounder Records: Lauren Calista at 617.218.4483 |
| ROUNDER RECORDS SIGNS BLUEGRASS LEGEND DOYLE LAWSON & QUICKSILVER NEW STUDIO ALBUM, YOU GOTTA DIG A LITTLE DEEPER COMING MARCH 29, 2005 Cambridge, MA (Jan. 5, 2005) – Rounder Records is pleased to announce that it has signed a multi-album deal with bluegrass legend Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver. Doyle’s Rounder debut, You Gotta Dig A Little Deeper will be released this March. A renowned mandolinist, vocalist, producer, and arranger, Doyle Lawson began his extraordinary career over forty years ago, playing banjo for Jimmy Martin & The Sunny Mountain Boys at the age of 18. From there, he played in J.D. Crowe’s Kentucky Mountain Boys and the Country Gentlemen. His solo career began in 1979 when he formed the groundbreaking band Quicksilver, which he leads to this day. At the same time, Doyle played with the Bluegrass Album Band and can be heard on all of their Rounder recordings. To say that Doyle Lawson changed the face of bluegrass gospel music would be an understatement. With the help of Quicksilver, Doyle combined the techniques and traditions of southern gospel music (drawing from both black and white gospel vocal quartets) with bluegrass instrumentation. The result is a very dynamic, vocal-driven sound that weds the speed and dexterity of bluegrass music with intricate, perfectly-executed vocal arrangements. Unprecedented early on, this landmark sound made a significant impact on the genre and established Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver as one of the best bluegrass bands around. In addition to their numerous Grammy nominations, the band has garnered many awards from the International Bluegrass Music Association and is currently the reigning Vocal Group of the Year (for 4 consecutive years). The current band lineup is one of the strongest in years and their signature sound - soaring 4-part harmonies, innovative song arrangements and fine showmanship – can be heard in concert and on You Gotta Dig A Little Deeper. Members include Doyle on mandolin and lead and tenor vocals, Terry Baucom (an original member who rejoined in 2003) on bass vocals and banjo, Barry Scott on lead and tenor vocals, bass, guitar and piano, Jamie Dailey on lead and baritone vocals, guitar and bass and J.W. Stockman on baritone vocals and fiddle. The band tours extensively throughout the U.S. performing in a varitety of venues including churches, schools, theatres, and festivals. Founded in 1970, Rounder Records is America's premier independent label. Rounder and its Zoë, Heartbeat, Philo and Bullseye Blues imprints have a catalog of over 3000 albums, representing a wide variety of folk, roots, rock, blues, and reggae music. ### DoyleLawson.com For more information on Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver, please contact: Commotion PR: 615.467.6677 Rounder Records: Lauren Calista at 617.218.4483 |
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| DOYLE LAWSON & QUICKSILVER Incorporating impeccable musicianship, ethereal four-part harmonies, old-time, roof-raising showmanship and a palpable inner glow, Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver have been raising the bar for traditional bluegrass and Southern ‘jubilee’ gospel for a quarter-century (and counting). His early years spent with the likes of J.D. Crowe, The Country Gentlemen and Jimmy Martin gave mandolin wizard Lawson clear views of greatness; with the fluent, award-winning Quicksilver (keyed by the incredible lead tenor vocals of Jamie Dailey and Barry Scott), he’s become a legend in his own right. “Lawson's superb mandolin and one of bluegrass' finest bands . . .” ***1/2 Brian Mansfield, USA TODAY “…typically formal and typically great, with four harmony singers jutting out from the six-man group and twin-fiddle breaks answering the mandolins…” Ben Ratliff, NEW YORK TIMES "Lawson's mandolin is as impeccable as ever; so is the speedy interplay among this edition of Quicksilver's string demons ...this fast-picking bluegrass band with its embedded gospel quartet is back in church with a steeple-raising vengeance... state-of-the-traditional-art musical revivalism. It's transporting. " Bob Strauss, LA DAILY NEWS "No one since the late great Bill Monroe melds bluegrass with gospel music quite like former Country Gentlemen member Doyle Lawson..." MEMPHIS COMMERCIAL APPEAL "One of the finest bluegrass combos at work today...Harmonies don't get much more high and lonesome than the ones these guys turn out." Shane Harrison, ATLANTA JOURNAL CONSTITUTION "The all-gospel collection takes country and bluegrass gems from a half-century ago and polishes them to a radiant glow with impeccable musicianship and awe-inspiring vocals." Jon Weisberger, NASHVILLE SCENE "There are others now assisting Lawson in the preservation of bluegrass-gospel…but no one does it better." DIRTY LINEN "The premier bluegrass gospel band." SING OUT! "...Lawson is one of the key innovators in bluegrass history. In 1981, this former Country Gentleman integrated the progressive string-band picking of his former employer, J.D. Crowe, with the a cappella, four-part hymn singing of the Stanley Brothers. The result was a new kind of bluegrass gospel music, unprecedented at the time and unsurpassed since." WASHINGTON POST "...harmonies that can make the clouds part." Jeffrey Lee Puckett, LOUISVILLE COURIER JOURNAL "Lawson’s group is arguably the finest purveyor of bluegrass harmony working today." David Cantwell, COUNTRY WEEKLY "Consistently tight, focused vocal harmony and instrumental work that has remained the stock in trade of his band Quicksilver, for a generation." Paul Birch, NO DEPRESSION "Doyle Lawson and his band, Quicksilver, could convince you that bluegrass music is the soundtrack in the great hereafter." THE TENNESSEAN "Propelled by Lawson's keening tenor and top-shelf mandolin work... It's all about soaring harmonies and breakneck virtuosity here." Ray Waddell, BILLBOARD "The music and harmonies bristle with undeniable energy and spirit, making this tradition-bound sound as vital as any new music." ***1/2 Nick Cristiano, PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER "This is pure bluegrass music, unadulterated and ... uncompromised." Greg Crawford, DETROIT FREE PRESS Two veterans, two possible new stars, one ringer — Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver sound like the starting five of a championship basketball team. "You Gotta Dig a Little Deeper," the bluegrass group's latest release, is iron-clad documentation of the band's skills and chemistry. Bob Bahr, LOUISVILLE COURIER JOURNAL “an awe-inspiring demonstration of hot picking and wondrous harmonizing... Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver do it with smarts that never get in the way of soulful expression.” BARNES & NOBLE.COM " ...You Gotta Dig a Little Deeper, reaffirms Lawson's longtime status as a bandleader of the highest standard. Style stuffed with substance, that's bluegrass, and that's Doyle Lawson." Tom Netherland, RICHMOND TIMES DISPATCH "At 60, with 42 years of bluegrass under his belt, Lawson isn't resting on his laurels. He's still experimenting and his band...just keeps getting better." Keith Lawrence, KNIGHT RIDDER WIRE Publicity: CommotionPR 615.467.6677 Kay Clary | kay@commotionpr.com // Donica Christensen | donica@commotionpr.com Lauren Calista ~ Rounder Records | lcalista@rounder.com 617-218-4483 |
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