A diverse musician that has played fiddle since the age of 3, Jeremy Garrett is also an accomplished guitar and mandolin player, vocalist, and songwriter. He is widely regarded as one of the top fiddle players on the scene right now. But if you don’t recognize his name, maybe you’ve heard of his band, the Infamous Stringdusters.
In 2007, The Infamous Stringdusters won 3 International Bluegrass Music Association awards, including Album and Song of the Year. Jeremy has also been nominated for multiple Grammy Awards, winning in 2018 for Best Bluegrass Album for the band's album Laws of Gravity.
Jeremy's solo music is a mix of traditional bluegrass and modern influences, which is evident on his latest release, River Wild. The album features four instrumentals and eight tracks with vocals, seven of which are originals written or co-written by Jeremy. The album is a great example of Jeremy's musical talent and his ability to put his own spin on the classic bluegrass sound.
Garrett's unique voice and style are on full display on this album, and it is a must-listen for any fan of the Infamous Stringdusters.
Steve Dawson has always been hard to pin down. A guitarist, a composer, a sought-after musical enabler, and sideman? Of course, he’s all of those things and more, but none of those descriptions really do the seven-time Juno Award-winning musician justice. One thing that has remained constant throughout Steve's career is his love for ragtime, blues, and early jazz – styles that have recently seen a resurgence in popularity.
His solo work showcases his songwriting skills and abilities that have seen him capture the hearts (and ears) of many fans across North America. His new album, Gone Long Gone, reflects just how talented this singer-songwriter really is. It also demonstrates why so many artists, like Allison Russell, Maritime powerhouse Matt Andersen, and multi-instrumentalist sensation known for playing with Jack White, Fats Kaplin, want nothing more than to work alongside such an accomplished musician.
With his new album, Gone Long Gone, Steve combines his passion for these classic sounds with his own modern sensibilities, creating a unique blend of blues-infused roots music. It features nine original cuts (mostly co-written with Alberta songwriter Matt Patershuk) and a fantastic cover of The Faces’ ‘Ooh La La’.
In this new series of songs, Steve collaborated with another artist for the very first time. He had always felt that co-writing was pretty uncomfortable for him. But when Patershuk started firing off ideas while they were working on a song together, soon enough there was a flow in which both parties contributed greatly to each others' work.
The end result? An amazing batch of songs.
Tune in at 12 PM CST to hear live performances of some of these new songs from Jeremy Garrett and Steve Dawson on this week's Finally Friday from Home on WMOT 89.5 or stream it live on WMOT.org.
