Ok, this is a vanity project and more importantly, a celebration of those who I have worked with. I've been lucky to work with and be associated with very talented and accomplished musicians and music professionals, I've played bluegrass, country, rock, gospel and more. I play electric & acoustic guitar, electric & upright bass, steel guitar, lap steel, banjo and dobro. The bands that I have primarily been associated with include Jeff Stevens & the Bullets / Stevens Brothers Band, Cross Country and the Hickory Hills Bluegrass Band.
Shared stages with:
- Alabama
- Barbara Mandrell
- Bellamy Brothers
- Bernie Leadon (Eagles, Rock n Roll Hall of Fame)
- Bill Haley's New Comets
- Billy Joe Royal
- Bobby Bare
- Boxcar Willie
- Charlie McCoy
- Charly McClain
- Dan Seals
- Dickey Betts (Allman Brothers Band)
- Duane Eddy
- Earl Thomas Conley
- Emmylou Harris
- Exile
- Frankie Valli & the Four Seasons
- Gary Morris
- Hank Williams, Jr. (Jeff Stevens & the Bullets, summer tour)
- Highway 101
- Jerry Reed
- John Beland (The Flying Burrito Brothers, guitar for Linda Ronstadt)
- John Conley
- John Hartford ('Gentle On My Mind')
- John Schneider
- Kathy Mattea
- Kentucky Headhunters
- Lee Greenwood
- Marty Stuart
- Mel McDaniel
- Mel Tillis
- Minnie Pearl
- New Grass Revival
- Osborne Brothers ('Rocky Top')
- Pam Tillis
- Patty Lovelace
- Ricky Skaggs
- Shelly West
- Statler Brothers
- T. Graham Brown
- Tanya Tucker
- The Dirt Band (Nitty Gritty Dirt Band) ('Mr. Bojangles', 'Fishin' in the Dark')
- The Whites
Some key music friends / influences over the years:
- Jeff Stevens (guitar, vocals, producer Luke Bryan and mega-hit songwriter) [https://jeffstevensmusic.com/ Jeff at the Country Music Hall of Fame - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hWLfj-X8fpU&feature=youtu.be ]
- Jeff will be inducted into the WV Music Hall of Fame April 2025 https://www.wvmusichalloffame.com/
- Warren Stevens (bass)
- Terry Dotson (drums, hit songwriter)
- Eddie Blount (guitar, producer, recording engineer- my recording engineer & producing mentor)
- Dwain Rowe (keyboards, vocals) (Brooks & Dunn and Clint Black) Dwain with George Strait at 2:20 mins https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FiWp7XUTO4s , with Brooks & Dunn ('Neon Moon' - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j3sDGzx9y9I) with Clint Black - introduces Dwain around 1 hour 20 minutes https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2t2DLWX0Ydc
- Donnie Knapp (sound engineer)
- David Dodd (management and production)
- Fred Miller (sound engineer)
- John Holland (drums, production, management)
- Todd 'Sluggo' Byrne (bass)
- Jimmy Henson (bass, sound engineer) (FOH engineer for Billy Bob Thornton, Joe Diffie, Restless Heart, Travis Tritt)
- Yvonne Jordan (vocals, Tammy Wynette) - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCPOQlSymkRC1OTzM1F-u84Q
- Alice Williams (guitar, vocals)
- Frank Adams (guitar, vocals) (https://frankadamsmusic.com/home)
- Ben Brookes (guitar, vocals)
- Paul Flaherty (engineer, production & stage manager)
- Joe Elliott (bass)
- David Sutherland (banjo, guitar, vocals)
- Don Jones (mandolin, fiddle, vocals) Thanks for the harmony vocal lessons.
- Alan Wright (guitar, vocals) My first musical partner.
- Alan Maki (fiddle)
- Will Carter (guitar, bass, vocals)
- Robert Shafer (champion guitar player)
- Jim and Valerie Gabehart (banjo, guitar, vocals) (https://jimandvaleriegabehart.com/home)
Played with:
- Alabama (banjo and guitar as warm-up act twice and on-stage encore)
- Bill Haley's New Comets (bass guitar) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_Haley%27s_New_Comets
- Boxcar Willie (steel guitar) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boxcar_Willie
- Cross Country (electric & accoustic guitar, steel guitar, banjo, occasional lap steel & dobro)
- Hickory Hills Bluegrass Band (banjo and upright bass)
- High Street Hillbillies (steel guitar for the Morgantown song played at WVU games) (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zyw4520E26Q)
- Jeff Stevens and the Bullets (Atlantic-America Records - Nashville, TN) (guitar, steel guitar, banjo)
- Jim and Valerie Gabehart (bass) (https://jimandvaleriegabehart.com/home)
- The Stevens Brothers Band (guitar, steel guitar, banjo)
- SoundTracs Sound Studio (musician, engineer, producer)
Studied with:
- Gary Boggs (steel guitar for George Jones, Connie Smith, Hank Williams Jr.) - role model http://www.cmt.com/news/1476817/steel-player-for-country-legends-dies/
- Gary Young (banjo)
- Jeffran Steel Guitar College, Nashville, TN (with Jeff Newman)
- Paul Franklin Steel Guitar Method (Modern Music Masters)
- Rusty Danmyer - Lee Ann Rimes, Lee Ann Womack & Martina McBride (steel guitar & dobro) (https://www.rustydanmyer.com/) https://www.rustydanmyer.com/video-clips
- Steve Bryant (Bass guitar) (Brooks & Dunn, Taylor Swift, Waylon Jennings) (https://www.stevebryantbassguitar.com/)
- Studied with monster player Robert Shafer (two-time winner of the National Flat picking Championship, held annually at the Walnut Valley Festival in Winfield, Kansas.) https://www.flatpik.com/instructors/robert-shafer and https://www.blueyonderhonkytonk.com/bio/
- Goal to study with another monster player, David White (Saint Albans, WV)
- Nashville Acoustic Camps -Dobro (June 2022) - https://www.nashvilleacousticcamps.com/dobro-camp.php
Traditional education:
- Bachelor of Science - Business Administration (Marketing)
- Master of Business Administration (MBA)
- Ph.D. Business Administration - Dissertation title: The Amalgamation of Capabilities and Strategies as Determinants of Firm Performance: U.S. Telecommunications Industry