Audie Blaylock
Garrett, Indiana, United States | INDIE
Music
Press
In 1982, Audie Blaylock enrolled in the Jimmy Martin school of bluegrass as a 19-year-old member of Martin’s Sunny Mountain Boys.
He went on to work with such artists as Red Allen, Lynn Morris and Rhonda Vincent.
Today, he’s rapidly emerging as a bluegrass star in his own right.
Last year’s, “Audie Blaylock & Redline” debut album was well received by both critics and fans.
And “Cryin’ Heart Blues” is as good as or better than that album.
Blaylock knows two styles of bluegrass — hard-driving songs and lonesome ballads. And even the hard-driving songs — like “You Can Keep Your Nine Pound Hammer,” about a man in prison for seven years — are usually filled with pain.
There’s a reason “blue” is the first word in bluegrass.
Blaylock tips his hat to some of the founding fathers of bluegrass with Bill Monroe’s “Stay Away From Me,” Jimmy Martin’s “Pray The Clouds Away” and Carter Stanley’s “Let’s Part The Best of Friends.”
But most of the material is newer and less familiar.
Blaylock and Redline — Evan Ward, Patrick McAvinue and Matt Wallace — produce some strong harmony singing along with some great instrumental work.
Can’t find it in stores? Try www.AudieBlaylock.com. - Bluegrass Notes
When you get down to the basics of music, the bluegrass genre is where you will find the top-notch players and pickers. Audie Blaylock & Redline are arguably one of the best of the genre for a lot of reasons. Blaylock’s blending of traditional acoustic country based bluegrass with influences from across genre lines make for a very easy listen for those bluegrass aficionados as well as the casual fan and those aspects are no more clear then on their latest release Cryin’ Heart Blues. The album’s title track leads you in with the traditional based bluegrass sound led by outstanding harmonies and great banjo picking. This is a trend that is seen throughout the album although at times it is underlying on the songs rather than being a prominent feature. This is best displayed with songs like “All I Can Do Is Pretend” where a Beatles influenced bluegrass flavor is introduced to our ears and the oldies styled sounds continue with “Drink Up and Go Home.” Blaylock also shows a Christian side on this album with the outstanding “He Is Near” which utilizes and showcases the harmonies this group offers better than any other song on this collection. Though Blaylock and company found solid chart success with their last effort, Cryin’ Heart Blues is arguably Blaylock’s best overall album to date as it combines a little bit of everything, crossing through genre borders, and rolls it all together into one cohesive effort worth giving a spin to. - Today's Country Magazine
Arcadia, CA (12.28.10) Rural Rhythm Records is proud to announce Audie Blaylock & Redline begin the new year with the #1 bluegrass song in the country with “Cryin Heart Blues” topping the respected Bluegrass Unlimited Magazine’s National Bluegrass Survey Top 30 Song Chart for January 2011.
The hit song is the title track from the March 2010 album that also garnered significant chart success in 2010, hitting #1 on Cashbox Magazine Top 20 Bluegrass Album Chart for two months in row (Aug and Sept) and reaching #1 on the Roots Music Bluegrass Report in October.
Another hit track, “Matches” also celebrated a #1 reaching the coveted spot on Sirius-XM Radio’s Bluegrass Junction’s Top 40 Most Played Tracks last month.
Reviews have been impressive for CRYIN’ HEART BLUES including:
“.. If artistry and authenticity still really are bywords, then Cryin’ Heart Blues assures Blaylock’s place among the leading ranks of bluegrass’s headliners.”--BLUEGRASS UNLIMITED MAGAZINE
“Though Blaylock and company found solid chart success with their last effort, CRYIN’ HEART BLUES is arguably Blaylock’s best overall album to date as it combines a little bit of everything, crossing through genre borders, and rolls it all together into one cohesive effort worth giving a spin to.”--TODAY’S COUNTRY MAGAZINE
“This CD has some hard-driving bluegrass and some soft, sweet and gentle ballads, all with strong harmonies and cracking instrumental support. This is the best recorded work that Blaylock and his band has yet produced.”--AUSTRALIAN BLUEGRASS
“Blaylock’s is not your classic bluegrass high lead voice, but that’s what makes him interesting. His restrained power, crisp phrasing and ability to hit the high notes when warranted (as on Bill Monroe’s Stay Away from Me) are what make him unusually good.”--THE LONESOME ROAD REVIEW
“One hesitates to say ‘third time’s the charm’ when an artist has been as honored and critically acclaimed as has Audie Blaylock, but on this, indeed his third album, second with the sterling band Redline, he’s settled into a traditional bluegrass style full of energy and soul to burn that sounds as durable as the music itself has been over time.”-- THE BLUEGRASS SPECIAL
“Audie Blaylock's mellow, wailing tenor and lightening-fast guitar picking have made him one of the names to watch in the world of traditional bluegrass.”--ALL MUSIC GUIDE
“Throughout CRYIN’ HEART BLUES, vocal harmonies are just as important an element as the picking and strumming, and the young voices Blaylock surrounds himself with imbue the atmosphere with catchy hummable refrains.”--FAME
Audie Blaylock & Redline have had a tremendous year also participating in the critically acclaimed recorded event, THE ALL-STAR JAM – LIVE AT GRAVES MOUNTAIN album released in October on Rural Rhythm Records. Audie also performed on “Running Gun” from Michael Martin Murphey’s BUCKAROO BLUE GRASS II: RIDING SONG album also released this year.
For more information on Audie Blaylock & Redline, please visit www.audieblaylock.com
CONTACT INFORMATION:
Audie Blaylock & Redline
RECORD LABEL AND RADIO CONTACT
Rural Rhythm Records
Sammy Passamano, III
MEDIA:
Hope River Entertainment
Penni McDaniel | Email
678-377-3298
MANAGEMENT:
PrimeTyme Solutions
Lorraine Short | Email
615-477-9262
BOOKING:
Main Street Entertainment
Karen Kouns | Email
606-324-0106
- Rural Rhythm Records
Discography
2009: Cryin' Heart Blues
2008: Audie Blaylock and Redline...
...hard drivin' bluegrass
Photos
Bio
AUDIE BLAYLOCK takes center stage again in 2010 with his self-produced album
Cryin' Heart Blues, his sophomore album on Rural Rhythm Records. He continues to wow audiences with the energy of the early days of bluegrass to every show. Blaylock, who plays guitar, is joined by his band Redline composed of exceptional fiddle, mandolin, banjo, and bass players. Whether these guys are unlimbering their formidable talents on a Carter Stanley classic (Lets Part The Best Of Friends), an old Jimmy Martin gospel staple (Pray The Clouds Away), a contemporary honky-tonker (Keith Stegalls Matches) or a reprise of a 50s Ray Price country hit (Talk To Your Heart), the result is first-rate. If artistry and authenticity still really are bywords, then Cryin Heart Blues assures Blaylocks place among the leading ranks of bluegrasss headliners.--BLUEGRASS UNLIMITED MAGAZINE
One hesitates to say third times the charm when an artist has been as honored and critically acclaimed as has Audie Blaylock, but on this, indeed his third album, second with the sterling band Redline, hes settled into a traditional bluegrass style full of energy and soul to burn that sounds as durable as the music itself has been over time.
--THE BLUEGRASS SPECIAL
TODAY'S COUNTRY MAGAZINE writes, ...Cryin Heart Blues is arguably Blaylocks best overall album to date as it combines a little bit of everything, crossing through genre borders, and rolls it all together into one cohesive effort worth giving a spin to.
Blaylock is not your classic bluegrass high lead voice, but thats what makes him interesting. His restrained power, crisp phrasing and ability to hit the high notes when warranted (as on Bill Monroes Stay Away from Me) are what makes him unusually good.--LONESOME ROAD REVIEW
This CD has some hard-driving bluegrass and some soft, sweet and gentle ballads, all with strong harmonies and cracking instrumental support. This is the best recorded work that Blaylock and his band has yet produced.--AUSTRALIAN BLUEGRASS
Audie Blaylock's mellow, wailing tenor and lightening-fast guitar picking have made him one of the names to watch in the world of traditional bluegrass.--ALL MUSIC GUIDE
Multi-Grammy® Award winner Carl Jackson writes in the liner notes of Audie's first album on Rural Rhythm Records "...This new project by Audie Blaylock and Redline is not only bluegrass its GREAT bluegrass no argument end of discussion!!! I was blown away by the professionalism of Audies performance at IBMA Fanfest this past year and this album further confirms that he is a force to be reckoned with in the world of bluegrass music for years to come."
Four-time IBMA Guitar Player of the year candidate, Audie Blaylock has performed with some of bluegrass musics most distinguished acts over the years including the great Jimmy Martin and Rhonda Vincent & The Rage as well as doing session work that earned him a Grammy® nomination for Best Bluegrass Album and an IBMA nomination for Recorded Event of the Year for" A Tribute to Jimmy Martin: The King of Bluegrass." This group project included Audie Blaylock on guitar and vocals along with a stellar lineup of musicians including former Sunny Mountain Boys J.D. Crowe, Paul Williams, and Kenny Ingram. He has also performed with the legendary Red Allen, The Lynn Morris Band and songwriting great Harley Allen. Audie Blaylock and Redline had the honor of being nominated for the International Bluegrass Music Association's Emerging Artist of the Year award in both 2005 and 2006.
In October 2007, while Blaylock was the featured artist with Michael Cleveland and Flamekeeper featuring Audie Blaylock, they brought home the Instrumental Group of the Year Award at the 18th Annual International Bluegrass Music Awards show held at the Grand Ole Opry House in Nashville, TN. Im extremely honored to receive the award that so many prestigious and talented musicians have been nominated for and received in the past. This is a great honor for myself and the entire group, said Audie Blaylock. This is particularly humbling when you consider the caliber of the past recipients such as Ricky Skaggs & Kentucky Thunder, Nickel Creek, Del McCoury and others, he adds.
Born in El Paso, Texas into a family whose roots go back to the hills of Virginia and Tennessee, Audie learned to play guitar and sing with his parents and siblings, and went on to play locally in the Lansing, Michigan area where he grew up. In 1982, at age 19, Audie Blaylock joined Jimmy Martin and The Sunny Mountain Boys and spent nine years on the road learning the craft of bluegrass from one of the music's first-generation legends.
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