Ricky Skaggs

For the punk rock musician, see Ricky Scaggs.
Ricky Skaggs

Ricky Skaggs in 2007
Background information
Birth name Rickie Lee Skaggs[1]
Born (1954-07-18) July 18, 1954
Cordell, Kentucky, United States
Genres Country, bluegrass, gospel, folk
Occupation(s) Singer-songwriter, session musician, bandleader, producer, arranger
Instruments Vocals, mandolin, guitar, banjo, fiddle
Years active 1960s-present
Labels Sugar Hill, Epic, Rounder, DCC, Atlantic, Camden, Rebel, Hollywood, Legacy, Skaggs Family
Associated acts Ralph Stanley and the Clinch Mountain Boys, J. D. Crowe and New South, Emmylou Harris and the Hot Band, The Whites, Kentucky Thunder, Bruce Hornsby
Website http://www.rickyskaggs.com/

Rickie Lee "Ricky" Skaggs (born July 18, 1954), is an American country and bluegrass singer, musician, producer, and composer. He primarily plays mandolin; however, he also plays fiddle, guitar, mandocaster and banjo.

Biography

Early career

Skaggs was born in Cordell, Kentucky.[2] He started playing music at age 5 after he was given a mandolin by his father, Hobert. At age 6, he played mandolin and sang on stage with Bill Monroe. At age 7, he appeared on television's Martha White country music variety show, playing with Lester Flatt and Earl Scruggs. He also wanted to audition for the Grand Ole Opry at that time, but was told he was too young.

In his mid-teens, Skaggs met a fellow teen guitarist, Keith Whitley, and the two started playing together with Whitley's banjoist brother Dwight on radio shows. By 1970, they had earned a spot opening for Ralph Stanley and Skaggs and Keith Whitley were thereafter invited to join Stanley's band, the Clinch Mountain Boys.

Skaggs later joined The Country Gentlemen in Washington, DC, J. D. Crowe's New South. In 1976, Skaggs formed progressive bluegrass band Boone Creek, including members Vince Gill and Jerry Douglas. For a few years, Skaggs was a member of Emmylou Harris's Hot Band. He wrote the arrangements for Harris's 1980 bluegrass-roots album, Roses in the Snow. In addition to arranging for Harris, Skaggs sang harmony and played mandolin and fiddle in the Hot Band.

Neotraditionalism and experimentation

Skaggs launched his own country career in 1980, achieving 12 #1 hits, 8 CMA awards, and 8 ACM awards. In 1982, he became a member of the Grand Ole Opry, the youngest to ever be inducted at that time. Guitarist and producer Chet Atkins credited Skaggs with "single-handedly" saving country music.[3] In the 1990s and 2000s, Skaggs went back to his bluegrass roots, and also experimented with new sounds. With his band, Kentucky Thunder, he is a perennial winner of Grammy Awards and International Bluegrass Music Association for best bluegrass album.

Ricky Skaggs jams with the Old Crow Medicine Show at the Grand Ole Opry on February 23, 2013

In 2000, he shared the stage with Vermont-based jam band, Phish.[4] On March 20, 2007, Skaggs released an album with rock musician Bruce Hornsby.

In 2008, Skaggs released an album he recorded with The Whites on his Skaggs Family Records label.

In 2008, Skaggs recorded a bluegrass version of "Old Enough" by the Raconteurs with Ashley Monroe and the Raconteurs. He played mandolin on the track as well as sharing vocals with Jack White, Brendan Benson, and Ashley Monroe.

In 2011, Skaggs with other Bluegrass musicians featured with Irish band, The Brock McGuire Band on their album 'Green Grass Blue Grass'. An exploration of the connection between Irish Traditional Music and American Bluegrass and Appalachian music.

Ricky Skaggs and Sharon White, McGlohon Theater, Charlotte, NC, August 19, 2015

Also in 2011, Skaggs contributed to Moody Bluegrass TWO...Much Love, a bluegrass tribute album to the British Progressive Rock band The Moody Blues. Skaggs sang lead vocal on the song "You And Me".[5]

In 2012, Skaggs collaborated with Barry Gibb on the song, "Soldier's Son" which was released on Music to My Ears.

In 2015, Skaggs toured with Ry Cooder, Sharon White and other members of The Whites.[6]

Personal life

Skaggs has been married to Sharon White of The Whites since August 1981.[7] They have a daughter, Molly, and a son, Lucas.[7] Skaggs was previously married to Brenda Stanley and has two children, Andy and Mandy, from that relationship.[8]

Discography

Awards

Grammy Awards

CMA (Country Music Association) Awards

ACM (Academy of Country Music) Awards

[10]

IBMA (International Bluegrass Music Association) Awards

BluegrassJournal.com Readers Poll: We Are Family; Jeff & Sheri Easter, The Lewis Family & The Easter Brothers (artists); Jeff & Sheri Easter (producers); Daywind Records

TNN/Music City News Country Awards

Other Awards and Accomplishments

References

  1. ↑ Skaggs, Ricky (2013). Kentucky Traveler: My Life in Music.
  2. ↑ Inc., Active Interest Media, (May–June 2000). American Cowboy. Active Interest Media, Inc. pp. 32–. ISSN 1079-3690.
  3. ↑ "The Story". Ricky Skaggs. 1954-07-18. Retrieved 2016-01-01.
  4. ↑ "June 22, 2000 Setlist :: Phish". The Mockingbird Foundation, Inc. Retrieved 6 September 2012.
  5. ↑ "Moody Bluegrass TWO...Much Love". Moody Bluegrass project website. Archived from the original on July 6, 2015. Retrieved 6 September 2015.
  6. ↑ "Cozy Up To Warm Sounds for Fall with 'Cooder White Skaggs' Tour". Ricky Skaggs website. Retrieved 9 September 2015.
  7. 1 2 "Offstage". Wrightforyou.com. Retrieved 2016-01-01.
  8. ↑ Skaggs, Ricky (2014). Kentucky Traveler: My Life in Music. Dey Street Books. ISBN 978-0061917349.
  9. 1 2 "Ricky Skaggs". Ricky Skaggs. Retrieved 2016-01-01.
  10. ↑ "ACM Winners | Academy of Country Music". Acmcountry.com. Retrieved 2016-01-01.
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