| "Chris
is one of those treasures in bluegrass; a writer, singer
and musician who respects the past, while gently bringing
his own style and vision to the music."
-- Bluegrass Unlimited
Though he’s too reserved to boast about it, 2007
must surely be counted as a good year for Chris
Jones. Named Broadcaster
Of The Year at the International Bluegrass
Music Association’s annual awards for his work
as a DJ on Sirius Satellite Radio’s bluegrass
channel, Jones also took home a co-writer’s Song
Of The Year trophy for “Fork In
The Road,” the title track of an Album Of The
Year winner by the Infamous Stringdusters. The double-barrelled
achievement marked the first time in the organization’s
history that a single person has won honors for both
musical and non-musical accomplishments.
Yet to those who already know him, the dual awards
came as no surprise. For though he’s best known
as a bluegrass artist, Chris Jones has always had a
field of vision too wide to be contained within a single
dimension. Perhaps that's been shaped by his voice --
low and mournful rather than sharp and soaring--or perhaps
by the way he's felt compelled to write so many of the
songs he sings, filling them with a heartfelt intimacy
and contemporary depth that's still rare in the genre.
Even when he's been most firmly planted within the bluegrass
mainstream, these qualities have made him stand out
from his peers - and have garnered him critical notices
for his personal musical style and sound. And when he’s
brought those same qualities into the world of broadcasting,
the results have been no less striking.
Chris Jones is no newcomer to the musical spotlight.
His resume includes appearances and recordings with
some of the world’s most respected musicians including
The Chieftains (he was featured on
their 2003 U.S. tour), Earl Scruggs, Vassar
Clements, Lynn Morris Band, April Verch Band, the McCarters
and the award-winning quartet Weary Hearts,
among others. He has performed as a sideman at the Grand
Ole Opry and has been seen on such television
shows as Conan O’Brien, Emeril
Live, and
The Grand Ole Opry Live. Jones’ collaboration
with legendary country singer/songwriter Tom
T. Hall led to the release of the duet “Man
On The Side Of The Road” from Chris’ “Just
a Drifter” album, which became one of the Top
5 airplay bluegrass songs of 2001. Most recently, he
appeared in the PBS series "The
Appalachians" as a both a performer and
commentator.
On “Too Far Down The Road,” his latest
CD for Little Dog Records, Jones took a leap forward,
combining classic country influences with honky-tonk,
bluegrass, blues, and folk. It marked the first collaboration
between Jones and Grammy Award-winning producer/guitarist
Pete Anderson (Dwight Yoakam, Roy Orbison,
k.d. lang, Michelle Shocked, Sara Evans, Gillian Welch
). Says Anderson, “When I heard Chris’ music,
I was absolutely blown away by the soulfulness of his
voice and the depth of his original songs. I quickly
saw the potential of creating an album that would bring
together a number of different musical styles to showcase
his impressive talent.” Just as Ricky Skaggs did
in the 80s, Jones takes the spirit and soul of a traditional
art form and breaks all the rules with a sound that’s
beautiful and “in-your-face” at the same
time.
Jones and Anderson called on an impressive group of
musicians to add to the flavor of the album. In addition
to Anderson’s own prowess as a multi-instrumentalist,
“Too Far Down The Road” includes musical
contributions from country rock legend Chris Hillman,
Dobro genius Mike Auldridge, bluegrass/country stalwarts
Rhonda and Darrin Vincent, and banjo great Ron Block
as well as Chris’ wife Sally. After you’ve
digested Jones’ honey voice and insightful songwriting,
you realize that this is also a multi-layered instrumental
tour-de-force.
While he often sounds like he comes from generations
of southern pickers, Jones was actually born in Brooklyn
and grew up dividing his time between his mother’s
home in Suffern, New York, and his father’s in
New Mexico. It was in the Land of Enchantment that he
first became acquainted with bluegrass and began to
learn guitar. After graduating high school, he attended
the University of Vermont where he began playing music
with a variety of groups, soon after making the decision
to become a full time musician. He played with the band
Special Consensus for several years
before immersing himself in traditional bluegrass with
Dave Evans & Riverbend. He later
joined Lynn Morris and her husband
Marshall Wilborn in the group Whetstone
Run. He later moved to the Southwest as a member of
Weary Hearts, an award-winning quartet that served as
the training ground for a number of prominent musicians
including Ron Block of Union Station and Mike Bub who
formerly played bass for the Del McCoury Band. Weary
Hearts released the album “By Heart” on
Flying Fish Records to great acclaim.
Jones eventually moved to Nashville with Weary Hearts.
When the band dissolved, he did stints with a number
of other groups before making his solo recording debut
with the album “Blinded By The Rose.” The
recording featured strong performances by Jones and
an outstanding group of musicians and included his original
song “Dark Wind of Missouri,” which spent
more than a year on the Bluegrass Unlimited chart and
introduced him to national audiences.
Following the success of his first album, Jones signed
with Rebel Records, where he released three albums,
“No One But You,” “Follow Your Heart,”
and “Just a Drifter.” Each has won critical
reviews, enhancing his reputation as a soulful singer/guitarist
and an insightful songwriter.
Click here for "Too
Far Down The Road"
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|
"Chris
Jones, with his band, The Night Drivers is one of the
most respected forces in the bluegrass business."
--David Royko, Chicago Tribune
Ned Luberecki's
banjo playing combines crisp, hard-driving timing with
a fluid melodic sense to stand out in a crowded field.
Born in Baltimore, Maryland, he joined Paul Adkins’
Borderline Band in 1987, recording more than a half-dozen
albums with the group, including three for Rebel Records
After a brief stint with Missouri's Radio Flyer, Ned rejoined
several Borderline Band colleagues in the Gary Ferguson
Band. In 1998, Ned became part of the Rarely Herd, frequent
winners of SPBGMA’s Entertaining Band of the Year
award, and appeared on the group’s "A Part
Of Growing Up" (Pinecastle, 2000). In addition, he
has appeared on recent recordings like The Stelling Banjo
Anthology, and numerous editions of the Pickin On... series,
as well as CDs by Jim Hurst, Bull Harman and others. Ned
moved to Nashville in 2003, where he is now a sought after
studio musician and banjo instructor. When not working
with the Night Drivers, Ned can often be heard playing
with Jerry Salley, Jim Hurst, The Lonesome Heirs and others.
Like Chris, Ned hosts a daily show on Sirius Satellite
Radio's Bluegrass channel.
 A
member of the Night Drivers since the beginning of 2003,
Jon Weisberger
is a quadruple bluegrass threat as bass player, songwriter,
radio producer and journalist. He first drew attention
as a member of Cincinnati-based Union Springs, which
released three well-received CDs in the 1990s, following
that with a stint in the Wildwood Valley Boys before
moving to Nashville at the end of 2002. In addition
to his regular gig as a Nightdriver, he has also appeared
with artists ranging from Hazel Dickens, Jimmy Martin
and Roland White to Tony Trischka, Harley Allen, Melonie
Cannon, 3 Fox Drive and Canadian fiddler April Verch.
As a bluegrass journalist, he has written features and
reviews for multiple publications and liner notes for
more than 80 albums, earning him the IBMA’s Print
Media Person of the Year award in 2000 and Best Liner
Notes in 2001. His “Losing Again,” recorded
by the Chapmans, was among the most popular songs of
2001, and his songs have subsequently been recorded
by Del McCoury, Blue Highway, Jim Van Cleve, Dwight
McCall and others. Since 2006, Jon has produced Into
The Blue, the most widely syndicated bluegrass radio
show in North America, and Sirius satellite radio’s
Hand-Picked with Del McCoury.
 For
more than 20 years, Tim
Strong has been recognized as one of
the top musicians in the core bluegrass territory of
southwest Ohio and northern Kentucky. Beginning with
long service as mandolin player in regional favorite
Gary Strong & Hard Times, he went on to work with
Jon Weisberger and Dwight McCall as the guitarist for
Union Springs in the mid-1990s. Since then, he has anchored
leading area acts such as the Comet Bluegrass All-Stars
and the Ohio Valley Rounders, contributing strong harmony
vocals while dishing up muscular rhythms and elegant
solos with equal facility on both guitar and mandolin.
Helping to maintain Chris Jones & The Night Drivers’
reputation as “the broadcasting band in bluegrass,”
Tim also serves as host of a weekly bluegrass show on
Cincinnati’s WAIF-FM.
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