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Three Time IBMA Female Vocalist of the Year
Many folks ask how Lynn Morris is doing. In short, quite well. For those of you who don't know, Lynn suffered a stroke in March of 2003. She continues to make daily progress and we were all encouraged to see her start to perform during the summer of 2004. She and the band have a number of dates confirmed for 2005, and Lynn very much looks forward to getting back out and performing. She is able to play some banjo and guitar, and sing during portions of their show. Marshall sings more, and they get vocal assistance from the band as well. So, if you are a fan, be sure to catch Lynn at one of her performances in the coming months. If you are a promoter, you might consider hiring the LMB at your next event. Thanks for everyone's support.
-Mike Drudge
Multi-award winning Rounder recording artist Lynn Morris is one of only a handful of female band leaders in bluegrass today. Since founding the group in Winchester, Virginia in 1988, Lynn and her husband, bassist Marshall Wilborn have earned international acclaim for their straightforward soulful singing, genuine warmth onstage, and one of the hottest bands in the business. The band's overall approach sparkles with directness and simplicity, reflecting the unmistakable influence of bluegrass legends Lester Flatt and Earl Scruggs, The Stanley Brothers and Hazel Dickens. Still, their sound remains completely original while capturing the drive and passion of real country music. Their remarkably varied repertoire includes the work of both traditional and contemporary songsmiths, but the real standout attraction is the group's own original material and terrific chemistry onstage.
LYNN MORRIS grew up in the small West Texas farming community of Lamesa, and began her professional life in music after graduating with a degree in art from Colorado College. She began playing the banjo within the next year, and became the first person to twice win the coveted National Banjo Championship in Winfield, Kansas. From there she proceeded to build a remarkably varied and exciting career, performing full time throughout the United States, Canada, and Europe, as well as touring military outposts in the Pacific and Indian Ocean regions for U.S.O. Noteworthy highlights include performances on the steps of The Library of Congress, Nashville's legendary Grand Old Opry, The Aladdin Hotel in Las Vegas, Leavenworth Federal Penitentiary, and some of the most prestigious folk and bluegrass festivals in the world.
Lynn was the first woman elected to the Board of Directors of the International Bluegrass Music Association, and has also served on the board of Winchester's local S.P.C.A. (the launching point for Lynn's involvement with animal welfare on the national level). PETSMART CHARITIES and SPAY USA jointly sponsor Lynn's efforts, and the band's self-penned P.S.A. jingle, 'Spay Your Pet', is receiving airplay on hundreds of radio stations across the U.S. and Canada, even as far away as Australia! The band hosted its first annual 'Pickin For Pets' bluegrass benefit concert at the Birchmere in Alexandria, Va earlier this year.
Lynn's four CDs have earned the highest awards in the bluegrass industry. The title track of her 1996 release, 'Mama's Hand', held the number one spot on the National Bluegrass Survey chart for an amazing six months, and won IBMA Song of the Year, while the album enjoyed a remarkable 14 months on the charts. Lynn has been voted IBMA Female Vocalist of the Year three times, and is seven times Traditional Female Vocalist for The Society for Preservation of Bluegrass Music in America. Her recorded work appears on two IBMA Album of the Year compilation projects, and the group's latest CD, 'You'll Never Be the Sun', won the Washington Area Music Association's Best Bluegrass Album. A new album featuring Lynn's former U.S.O. bandmate turned alternative-country-icon, Junior Brown, is scheduled for release in early 2003.
MARSHALL WILBORN, Lynn's husband, singing partner, and dynamic bassist for the group, was born and raised in Austin, Texas. His bluegrass credentials include membership in some of the music's most respected and influential traditional bands... Jimmy Martin, The Johnson Mountain Boys and Longview. Marshall's vocals, energetic and soulful with a primitive edge, are spotlighted in every show, along with many of his fine original works. Other artists have recorded his songs as well...folks like Alison Krauss, Rhonda Vincent, Doyle Lawson, The Johnson Mountain Boys, and most recently, Jeannie Kendall. Marshall produced and recorded his own instrumental album on the Pinecastle label, 'Root Five', a tribute to the banjo and bass playing that has inspired him throughout the years. The album was nominated for Instrumental Recording of the Year by the IBMA, and features some of the finest banjoists in bluegrass, along with Marshall's powerful and tasty bass work.
Mandolinist JESSE BROCK makes his home in Bowling Green, Kentucky, and has been a professional musician since the age of nine. He grew up in the revered bluegrass tradition of the family band, and is one of the music's hottest young players today. His own solo project, 'Kickin Grass', was released in the summer of 2002 on the Pinecastle label, and features his singing along with inspired performances from members of the Lynn Morris Band and other notable guest artists. Jesse radiates fun and energy onstage, and adds spark, drive and elegance to the show with every note.
RON STEWART, fast becoming a bluegrass legend in his own right, is arguably the most respected multi-instrumentalist in bluegrass today. Like Jesse, he grew up playing with his family band in Paoli, Indiana, and had already been invited to play fiddle on a live album with his legendary hero, Lester Flatt, by the time he was nine years old. He is five string banjo player extraordinaire for the Lynn Morris Band, and also performs lead guitar and fiddle onstage. His gutsy and soulful fiddle playing has earned him the Indiana State Fiddle Championship twice, and the IBMA Fiddle Player of the Year in 2000 as well. He makes his home in rural Paoli, IN, and maintains a blistering schedule as a recording session player in addition to his steady gig with The Lynn Morris Band.
His new solo CD on Rounder, 'Time Stands Still', features Ron's fiery instrumental drive on all the bluegrass instruments, along with an impressive array of guest artists, and several of his own brilliantly self-penned vocals and instrumentals.
Together this foursome captures what every musical group aspires to... that indescribable magic / synergy that only happens for the luckiest few. Alternately sparse and lonesome, or hard driving as it gets, the music features both masculine and feminine sensibilities right up front all night long, with all members of the band taking a well deserved turn in the spotlight.
Radiating a degree of class that never goes out of style, the Lynn Morris Band is undoubtedly one of the most inspired, gifted, and entertaining groups in any style of music.
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