Doyle Lawson

Doyle Lawson
Doyle Lawson (left) and his band harmonize during the 2006 NEA National Heritage Fellows concert.
Background information
Born	(1944-04-20) April 20, 1944 Sullivan County, Tennessee, U.S.
Genres	Bluegrass, gospel
Occupation(s)	Singer
Instruments	Mandolin
Years active	1977–present
Website	www.doylelawson.com

Doyle Lawson (born April 20, 1944) is an American bluegrass and gospel musician. He is best known as an accomplished mandolin player, vocalist, producer, and leader of the 6-man group Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver. Lawson was inducted into the International Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame in 2012.

Biography

Doyle Lawson was born in Fordtown, Sullivan County, Tennessee, the son of Leonard and Minnie Lawson. The Lawson family moved to Sneedville in 1954, around the time that Doyle acted upon his love for music. Lawson grew up listening to the Grand Ole Opry on Saturday nights. This is where he became inspired by Bill Monroe, the "founding father" of bluegrass, and his band the Blue Grass Boys. His own instrumental piece, "Rosine," is a tribute to Monroe's birthplace and features, among other things, strains from the singer's 1967 instrumental "Kentucky Mandolin".^[1]

Lawson became interested in playing the mandolin around the age of eleven so his father borrowed a mandolin from Willis Byrd, a family friend and fellow musician. Doyle taught himself how to play the mandolin by listening to the radio and records, and watching an occasional TV show. His love for music grew and Doyle decided to learn to play the guitar and banjo as well.^[2]

Lawson hosts the annual Doyle Lawson and Quicksilver Festival in Denton, North Carolina. He has one son, Robbie, and two daughters Suzi and Kristi. Kristi gave birth to the Lawson’s first grandchild, Spencer, in July 2007. Doyle rededicated his life to Christianity in May 1985 and is a practicing member of Cold Spring Presbyterian Church.

1960s

In 1963, aged 18 or 19, Lawson went to Nashville to play the banjo with Jimmy Martin and the Sunny Mountain Boys. In 1966, he started playing with J.D. Crowe and the Kentucky Mountain Boys (later called the New South) in Lexington, Kentucky. He went back to play the mandolin and sing tenor with Jimmy Martin in 1969 for six months. After he left the Sunny Mountain Boys, he returned to play with Crowe until August 1971.

1970s

On September 1, 1971, Lawson started playing with the Country Gentlemen and remained part of the band for almost eight years until March 1979 when he left. He stated that at that time in his career he wanted to make his own sound and that he has done. In 1977, he backed up U.S. Senator Robert Byrd on his "Mountain Fiddler" album. In April 1979, Lawson formed his own band and called them Doyle Lawson and Foxfire, which quickly changed to Doyle Lawson and Quicksilver. "No one since the late great Bill Monroe melds bluegrass with gospel music quite like the former Country Gentlemen member Doyle Lawson…" Memphis Commercial Appeal.^[3]

1980s

In 1981, Lawson and Quicksilver released the critically acclaimed "Rock My Soul," an album that would become a landmark bluegrass gospel project. In 1989 they won IBMA song of the year for "Little Mountain Church House."

1990s

In 1996, "There's a Light Guiding Me" was nominated for a Grammy. In 1998, Lawson and Quicksilver became the first bluegrass band to perform at the National Quartet Convention.

2000s

Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver on stage at the 2015 Tottenham Bluegrass Festival in Ontario, Canada

Doyle Lawson and Quicksilver performed in Ontario, Canada at the Tottenham Bluegrass Festival in June 2001^[4] and again in June 2015. Doyle Lawson and Quicksilver provided the background vocals to the song "Dazzling Blue" on Paul Simon's 2011 album "So Beautiful or So What". In 2015, "In Session"was nominated for Best Bluegrass Album at the 58th Annual Grammy Awards.

Original and current lineup of Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver

Original:

• Doyle Lawson-mandolin,vocal
• Jimmy Haley-guitar, vocal
• Lou Reid-bass, vocal
• Terry Baucom-banjo, vocal

Current:

• Doyle Lawson-mandolin, vocal
• Josh Swift-dobro, vocal
• Joe Dean-banjo
• Dustin Pyrtle-guitar, vocal
• Eli Johnston-bass, vocal
• Stephen Burwell-fiddle

Discography

Studio albums

Compilation albums

Awards

International Bluegrass Music Association

• 1990 Song of the Year: Doyle Lawson and Quicksilver for "Little Mountain Church"
• 1996 Gospel Recorded Performance of the Year: Doyle Lawson and Quicksilver for "There's a Light Guiding Me"
• 2000 Gospel Recorded Performance of the Year: Doyle Lawson and Quicksilver for "Winding Through Life"
• 2001 Vocal Group of the Year: Doyle Lawson and Quicksilver
• 2002 Vocal Group of the Year: Doyle Lawson and Quicksilver
• 2003 Vocal Group of the Year: Doyle Lawson and Quicksilver
• 2003 Song of the Year: Doyle Lawson and Quicksilver for "Blue Train"
• 2003 Gospel Recorded Performance of the Year: Doyle Lawson and Quicksilver for "Hand Made Cross"
• 2004 Vocal Group of the Year: Doyle Lawson and Quicksilver
• 2005 Vocal Group of the Year: Doyle Lawson and Quicksilver
• 2005 Gospel Recorded Performance of the Year: Doyle Lawson and Quicksilver for "Praise His Name"
• 2006 Vocal Group of the Year: Doyle Lawson and Quicksilver
• 2006 Album of the Year: Celebration of Life: Musicians Against Childhood Cancer, featuring various bluegrass bands and musicians
• 2006 Gospel Recorded Performance of the Year: Doyle Lawson and Quicksilver for "He Lives in Me"
• 2007 Vocal Group of the Year: Doyle Lawson and Quicksilver
• 2007 Gospel Recorded Performance of the Year: Doyle Lawson and Quicksilver for "He Lives in Me"
• 2011 Recorded Event of the Year: Doyle Lawson, J. D. Crowe, Paul Williams for "Prayer Bells of Heaven"
• 2011 Gospel Recorded Performance of the Year: Doyle Lawson, J. D. Crowe, Paul Williams for "Prayer Bells of Heaven"
• 2012 Hall of Fame: Doyle Lawson ^[6][7]

References

1. ↑ Profile, ibmaawards.org; accessed October 30, 2015.
2. ↑ Liner notes by Dave Freeman on Tennessee Dream. CD. Rebel REB-CD-1778
3. ↑ Liner notes by Tim Stafford on The Original Band. CD. Sugar Hill SHCD-2210
4. ↑ Strings, newsletter of the Pineridge Bluegrass Folklore Society, May/June 2001
5. ↑ "Open Carefully. Message Inside. from Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver". Cybergrass Bluegrass Music News Network, 07/09/2014
6. 1 2 "Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver In Session". Pop Matters, Jonathan Frahm 20 February 2015.
7. ↑ Profile, ibma.org; accessed August 16, 2016.

External links

• Doyle Lawson Official Website
• Rounder Records
• CMT Artist
• Commotion Public Relations
• Musician Guide

Bluegrass music
Typical instruments	Acoustic guitar Banjo Dobro Fiddle technique Mandolin technique Upright bass
Stylistic origins	Blues Country music Folk music Old-time music
Sub- and fusion genres	Traditional bluegrass Progressive bluegrass Bluegrass gospel Czech bluegrass
Notable festivals	High Sierra Music Festival Festival of the Bluegrass Merlefest Podunk Bluegrass Festival Telluride Bluegrass Festival Tottenham Bluegrass Festival List of bluegrass music festivals
Notable performers	List of bluegrass musicians List of bluegrass bands List of bluegrass mandolinists
Other	International Bluegrass Music Museum International Bluegrass Music Association International Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame Bluegrass Unlimited magazine Central Canadian Bluegrass Awards International Bluegrass Music Awards
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