Chris Warner is Back Again
Banjo players – and fans of Jimmy Martin – know Chris Warner for his driving style and hard hitting approach to the five string. Chris worked twice for Martin as a member of his Sunny Mountain Boys, from 1967-69, and again in the late 1980s.
During that second stint with Martin, Chris recorded two albums for Webco, All Original and Chris Warner & Friends, released as LPs and now out of print. He has recently compiled them both as a CD, Back Again, with 24 tracks featuring Warner as both banjoist and vocalist.
The tracks from All Original have Chris singing all lead vocals, with Del McCoury on tenor, and those from Chris Warner & Friends, have singing duties shared among Warner, Dudley Connell and Audie Blaylock.
But don’t think that banjo tunes get short shrift here. Chris knocks out 11 instrumentals mixed with 13 vocal tracks.
Newly minted bluegrass fans may not be aware of Warner’s top flight picking – and even long time listeners may not know him as a vocalist. Kudos to Chris for making this material available again, and to Pinecastle Records for their assistance in making it happen.
Audio samples for each track and online ordering are enabled on the Tom Adams web site, where Tom addresses the rumor that he and Chris are starting a band.
“With no official band name, no dates booked, and a disagreement over whether or not to wear matching shoes, I’d have to say yes, I believe there is a rumor that Chris and I are starting a band.”
I guess that settles that.


Doyle Lawson commented yesterday afternoon on his bulletin board that he is hiring fiddle player and bass singer Alan Johnson (formerly with BlueRidge) to take Mike Hartgrove's place, and banjo player Chris Warner (formerly with Jimmy Martin) in place of the departing Terry Baucom. Warner will be singing...
When we posted last week about Chris Warner's CD reissue of two previous LP releases, we included a passing reference to Tom Adams' non-denial of the rumor that he and Chris were starting a band.
Tom's coyness aside, Chris has verified that they have indeed begun rehearsals and expect to launch Diamond...
Guitarist and vocalist, Audie Blaylock (former member of Jimmy Martin's Sunny Mountain Boys and more recently Rhonda Vincent & The Rage), has signed with Lonesome Day Records to record and release the debut CD for Blaylock and his band, Redline.
Joining Audie in Redline is another Jimmy Martin alumnus,...
And the bluegrass band scramble continues...
Joey Cox will be the newest member of Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver, replacing Chris Warner who stepped in briefly when Terry Baucom left the band in March. Just 24 years old, Joey has already had a stellar bluegrass career. He has toured and recorded...
Singer, picker and songwriter Chris Burton has released his debut CD, The Way I See It. The material is a mix of Chris' original songs with some less familiar covers. He plays banjo, mandolin, guitar and bass on most tracks, and sings the bulk of the songs, with guest vocalists including Amanda Smith...
Fireheart Records has just released their second CD from banjo player and songwriter, Chris Cairns. The new project, Hello Blue, contains both bluegrass favorites and original songs, with plenty of banjo instrumentals amidst the vocal offerings.
Audio samples from each track can be found on Chris'...
Kym Warner, hot shot mandolinist with The Greencards, was interviewed recently on Saturday Night Country, broadcast from his native Australia. He is interviewed by show host John Nutting, and speaks about the group's success of late, including finding their newest CD, Viridian, atop the Billboard bluegrass...
Geoff Stelling tells me that while his new Stelling Banjo Anthology CD isn't set to be released until November 8 on Rebel Records, he will have copies available at IBMA this week, and that they can be ordered from the Stelling web site.
This is an anthology CD - as the title proclaims - using nine...




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