Ronnie and Rob McCoury, on mandolin and banjo respectively, got their start as teenagers playing with their father, bluegrass legend Del McCoury, with his band in the eighties. Originally the band played under the name Del McCoury and the Dixie Pals, but that name was dropped in 1988 in favor of the simpler moniker Del McCoury Band. The lineup for the band would solidify with the addition of fiddler Jason Carter and bassist Mike Bub in 1992. Bub would leave in 2005 and be replaced by Alan Bartram.
The Del McCoury Band would become one of the premiere traditional bluegrass bands in the country. They would become recognized for their unparalleled talent garnering many band and individual awards. The International Bluegrass Music Association would name them Entertainer of the Year nine times ('94, '96-00, '02-'04), Instrumental Group of the Year twice ('96 & '97), Song of the Year ('02), and Album of the Year ('04). Individually the band would receive numerous International Bluegrass Music Awards with Ronnie being named mandolin player of the year eight times ('93-'00), Carter fiddler of the year six times ('97, '98, '03, '13, '14, '23), and Rob and Bartram winning once each on banjo ('15) and bass ('17).[1]
Despite the numerous accolades and awards the band received, Del recognized that the band needed to think about their future saying, "If something ever happens to me ... you should think about doing something now, instead of starting out cold. This is a progression." Ronnie says, "We had to figure out something we could do, while still performing with my dad. We don’t want this to be the Del-less McCoury Band."[2] The band was presented with an opportunity at the annual Delfest Music Festival, an annual bluegrass festival in Cumberland, Maryland, held at the Allegany County Fairgrounds that was started by Del McCoury.[3] At Delfest, the band met The Lee Boys, a funk and gospel band, and played together through the weekend, finding an immediate connection. Plans were made for the two bands, minus Del McCoury, to hit the road for brief tour in the Southeast in January 2009.[4] The band took the name the Travelin' McCourys for the brief tour. Since then they have regularly toured across the country, sharing the stage and collaborating with a number of artists including, Jeff Austin, Keller Williams, and Bill Nershi.
Since the first tour with the Lee Boys, the Travelin' McCourys have established themselves as a separate entity from the Del McCoury Band. They still serve as the Del McCoury Band, but now split their time between both bands. While there are many similarities on stage between the two, the Travelin' McCourys have moved slightly away from the more traditional sound of the Del McCoury Band and incorporated a wider range of musical styles creating a more progressive bluegrass sound. Ronnie says, "We like to go in and play traditional bluegrass music the way we do it with Dad, but we also like to be able to step into situations where we can really stretch out. If we need to plug in, we’ll plug in. We’re open to anything.”[5]Rolling Stone Magazine says the band, "has the musical chops to pick fast and with precision, but gives off a looser vibe," and describes their sound as a, "sublime combination of rock and bluegrass, contemporary and classic, old and young."[6]
Travelin' McCourys with Keller Williams at Strings & Sol 2013.
When they first started as the Travelin' McCourys they used a rotating cast of guitar players that included Jeff Autry, Ronnie Bowman, Jeff White, and others. As they became a full-time, touring band, they knew they needed a permanent guitar player. They agreed on Cody Kilby who was playing with Ricky Skaggs & Kentucky Thunder. Ronnie McCoury explains the decision to add Kilby came during DelFest in 2015, “I guess we had our ‘a-ha’ moment at DelFest this year. We were on stage Saturday night and it was like a light bulb went on — with Cody, we really have the perfect combination. Don’t get me wrong, we enjoy featuring guests and still plan to collaborate at times, but from now on, Cody will be involved in all of those shows. He is a great player, and fits perfectly with what we do — straddling the fence between traditional and progressive. No matter what we throw at him, he can handle it.”[7]
The Grateful Ball
The Grateful Ball, is a bluegrassified tribute to the Grateful Dead, created by the Travelin' McCourys. It has its roots in a one-off performance in the summer of 2016 with the Travelin' McCourys and the Jeff Austin Band at Urban Chestnut Brewing in St. Louis. The show was so popular that a tour was scheduled with both bands where each played a set on their own, followed by a joint set of modern bluegrass arrangements of Grateful Dead material.[8] Since then the Travelin's McCourys have combined with a variety of artists on a number of Grateful Ball tours reinterpreting the music of the Grateful Dead every night.
Ronnie McCoury - IBMA mandolin player of the year: 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000
-IBMA Instrumental Recorded Performance of the Year: 1996 (Ronnie & Rob )
Rob McCoury - IBMA banjo player of the year: 2015
-IBMA Instrumental Recorded Performance of the Year: 1996 (Ronnie & Rob )
Jason Carter - IBMA fiddler of the year: 1997, 1998, 2003, 2013, 2014, 2023
Alan Bartram - IBMA bass player of the year: 2017
The Travelin' McCourys - Grammy Award for Best Bluegrass Album, The Travelin' Mccourys, 2018
Discography
The Travelin' McCoury's have released two albums, 2012's Pick, a collaboration with Keller Williams, and 2018's eponymous album, which won the 2019 Grammy Award for Best Bluegrass Album,[9] along with a number of solo releases.
Delano Floyd McCoury is an American bluegrass musician. As leader of the Del McCoury Band, he plays guitar and sings lead vocals along with his two sons, Ronnie McCoury and Rob McCoury, who play mandolin and banjo respectively. In June 2010, he received a National Heritage Fellowship lifetime achievement award from the National Endowment for the Arts and in 2011 he was elected into the International Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame.
The Del McCoury Band is a Grammy award-winning American bluegrass band.
Ronald Delano McCoury, known as Ronnie McCoury, is an American mandolin player, singer, and songwriter. He is the son of bluegrass musician Del McCoury, and is best known for his work with the Del McCoury Band and the Travelin' McCourys.
The International Bluegrass Music Association, or IBMA, is a trade association to promote bluegrass music.
James Bryan Sutton is an American musician. Primarily known as a flatpicking acoustic guitar player, Sutton also plays mandolin, banjo, ukulele, and electric guitar. He also sings and writes songs.
Steep Canyon Rangers is an American bluegrass band based in Asheville and Brevard, North Carolina.
Down the Old Plank Road: The Nashville Sessions is a 2002 album by The Chieftains. It is a collaboration between the Irish band and many top country music musicians including Ricky Skaggs, Vince Gill, Lyle Lovett, Martina McBride and Alison Krauss.
Life of Sorrow is an album by American mandolinist David Grisman. He offers a collection of bluegrass songs by Lester Flatt, Ralph Stanley, and others.
Deuces is an album by the Charlie Daniels Band. Released on October 9, 2007, it consists of duets with prominent rock, country and bluegrass artists, including covers of songs by Ray Charles and Bob Dylan. Guests on the album include Dolly Parton, Darius Rucker, Brenda Lee, Vince Gill, the Del McCoury Band, Brad Paisley, Brooks & Dunn and Gretchen Wilson. An expanded edition, entitled Duets was released on July 16, 2021, which includes 6 additional tracks, including a duet with Garth Brooks.
The International Bluegrass Music Awards is an award show for bluegrass music presented by the International Bluegrass Music Association (IBMA). Awards are voted based on professional membership in the IBMA.
Ron Stewart is an American multi-instrumentalist in the bluegrass tradition. He plays fiddle, guitar, banjo, and mandolin, and has won the International Bluegrass Music Association (IBMA) award for Fiddle Player of the Year in 2000 and Banjo Player of the Year in 2011.
David L. Parmley is a bluegrass vocalist, guitarist, and award-winning bandleader. He is best known for being a co-founder of both the Bluegrass Cardinals and Continental Divide.
Joe Mullins is an American banjo player, vocalist, band leader, and radio broadcaster. He plays bluegrass and gospel music.
Billy Strings is an American guitarist and bluegrass musician. His album Home won the Grammy Award for Best Bluegrass Album in 2021.
Rob McCoury is an American bluegrass musician who plays banjo. He is the son of bluegrass musician Del McCoury, and is best known for his work with the Del McCoury Band and the Travelin' McCourys.
Jason Carter is an American bluegrass musician who plays fiddle. He is best known for his work with the Del McCoury Band and the Travelin' McCourys.
Alan Bartram is an American bluegrass musician who plays bass. He is best known for his work with the Del McCoury Band and the Travelin' McCourys.
Cody Kilby is an American bluegrass musician who plays guitar. He is best known for his work with the Ricky Skaggs & Kentucky Thunder and the Travelin' McCourys.
Jeff White is an American bluegrass guitarist/mandolinist, songwriter, record producer and sound mixer. Jeff White has performed and produced albums with many artists including: Alison Krauss, Vince Gill, The Chieftains, Lyle Lovett, Tim O'Brien, The Travelin' McCourys, Michael Cleveland and The Earls Of Leicester. White won the 57th Annual Grammy Awards, for Best Bluegrass Album with The Earls of Leicester. One of Jeff's key mentors is award-winning fiddler Michael Cleveland. Jeff and Michael have earned four International Bluegrass Music Awards for Instrumental Recorded Performance of the Year. Jeff produced several of Michael Cleveland's albums. Jeff has toured with banjo picking Earl Scruggs and Louise Scruggs. Jeff White has produced and released three solo albums: in 1996 The White Album, in 1999 The Broken Road and in 2016 Right Beside You.
Becky Buller is an American bluegrass and roots singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist most known for her songwriting and fiddling.
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