Cary Morin | |
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| Born | Cary Lewis Morin Billings, Montana, U.S. |
| Education | Charles M. Russell High School |
| Occupations |
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| Years active | 1978–present |
| Spouse | Celeste Di Iorio [1] |
| Children | 3 |
| Relatives |
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| Musical career | |
| Genres | |
| Formerly of |
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| Website | carymorin |
Cary Lewis Morin is an American singer, songwriter, and musician based in Fort Collins, Colorado. [3] His album Dockside Saints, released in 2021, peaked at #7 on the Roots Music Report's Top 50 Colorado Album Chart. [4] His accolades include an Independent Music Award [5] and two Indigenous Music Awards [6] [7] for Best Blues Album. Morin's songs were featured in Resident Alien and Earl Biss - The Spirit Who Walks Among His People. [8] He has performed at the Lincoln Center, The Kennedy Center, the Vancouver Olympics, and Paris Jazz Festival, and he has toured the US and internationally. [2]
Cary Lewis Morin was born in Billings, Montana. [2] His father, Leslie Morin, was an Air Force officer and his mother, Anita (née Yellowtail) Morin, was an artist. [9] A grandson of Robert Yellowtail, [10] Morin is an enrolled member of the Crow tribe and is also Assiniboine [6] with Black ancestry. [2]
Morin took piano lessons as a child and began playing guitar at age 10. He played in local country, rock, and bluegrass bands as a teenager. [2] He taught pottery workshops as a senior studio student at CMR High School, [11] and graduated from high school in 1981. After graduating he formed a three-piece dance band, The Atoll, who were featured on Denver's KMGH-TV as the "Best of Colorado." [12]
Morin is known for his acoustic picking style. [13] [14] [2] His musical style has been characterized as roots-infused Native Americana with hints of bluegrass, folk, blues, and rock. Morin performs both as a solo artist and as a member of the Cary Morin Duo as well as the band Cary Morin & Ghost Dog; [15] [16] his wife, Celeste Di Iorio, also performs in both groups. [17] He is a former member of the Pura Fé Trio, [18] The Atoll, and the Young Ancients. His musical influences include Neil Young, Bob Marley, and Jimi Hendrix. [19]
Morin received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Fort Collins Music Association [20] and has received fellowship awards from First Peoples Fund [21] and the National Artist Fellowship. [6] NPR Music named his live performance of "Jug In The Water" as one of its best live sessions of 2020. [22]
He has toured the US, Japan, Belgium, France, Germany, the UK, Italy, Spain, and Switzerland. He has performed at the Vancouver Olympics, Paris Jazz Festival, Folk Alliance International, and the Kerrville Folk Festival. [23] [24] On stage, Morin performed in Tribe at the Celebrity Theater and as a guest performer with Kodō. He co-authored Turtle Island, a 50-member stage production that played two consecutive years to sold-out audiences in Northern Colorado. [25]
| Year | Award | Category | Nominee | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | Colorado Blues Society | Best Solo/Duo | Cary Morin | Won | [26] |
| Fort Collins Music Association | Lifetime Achievement Award | Won | [6] | ||
| 2015 | Colorado Blues Society | Favorite Blues Singer Male | Won | [27] | |
| Favorite Songwriter | Won | ||||
| Favorite Acoustic Act | Won | ||||
| 2016 | Favorite Songwriter | Won | [28] | ||
| 2017 | Indigenous Music Awards | Best Blues CD | Cradle to the Grave | Won | [6] |
| 2018 | Independent Music Awards | Best Blues Album | Won | [5] | |
| 2019 | Indigenous Music Awards | Best Blues Album | When I Rise | Won | [7] |
| The Telly Awards | General-Music Bronze Winner | Won | [29] | ||
| Telluride Blues & Brews Festival | Telluride Blues Challenge | Cary Morin | Won | [30] |