Audie Blaylock and Redline takes center stage in 2009 with a brand new album on Rural Rhythm Records continuing to wow audiences with the energy of the early days of bluegrass to every show. Blaylock is joined by Redline, a group of exceptional musicians and vocalists that include: Jason Johnson on mandolin and vocals, Matthew Wallace on bass and vocals, Evan Ward on banjo and vocals, and Patrick McAvinue on fiddle.
Audie Blaylock and Redline had the honor of being nominated for the International Bluegrass Music Association's Emerging Artist of the Year award in both 2005 and 2006. Grammy® award winning producer, Carl Jackson says, “Audie Blaylock is one of the most talented folks in bluegrass music today. He’s a top-notch guitarist and vocalist and I’m very pleased to know there’s a new project on the horizon. When Audie is involved, you can bet the music will be bluegrass at its finest.”
Four-time IBMA Guitar Player of the year nominee, Audie Blaylock has performed with some of bluegrass music’s most distinguished acts over the years including the great Jimmy Martin and Rhonda Vincent & The Rage as well as doing session work that earned him a Grammy® nomination for Best Bluegrass Album and an IBMA nomination for Recorded Event of the Year for" A Tribute to Jimmy Martin: The King of Bluegrass." This group project included Audie Blaylock on guitar and vocals along with a stellar lineup of musicians including former Sunny Mountain Boys J.D. Crowe, Paul Williams, and Kenny Ingram. He has also performed with the legendary Red Allen, The Lynn Morris Band and songwriting great Harley Allen.
In October 2007, Rounder recording artist Michael Cleveland and Flamekeeper featuring Audie Blaylock brought home the Instrumental Group of the Year Award at the 18th Annual International Bluegrass Music Awards show held at the Grand Ole Opry House in Nashville, TN. “I’m extremely honored to receive the award that so many prestigious and talented musicians have been nominated for and received in the past. This is a great honor for myself and the entire group,” said Audie Blaylock. “This is particularly humbling when you consider the caliber of the past recipients such as Ricky Skaggs & Kentucky Thunder, Nickel Creek, Del McCoury and others,” he adds.
With the release of his first solo CD, Trains are the Only Way to Fly, Country Standard Time said: "From the opening title cut to the finale, "Pages of Time," there is no mistaking Audie Blaylock's music as anything but hard driving, traditional-style bluegrass."
Born in El Paso, Texas into a family whose roots go back to the hills of Virginia and Tennessee, Audie learned to play guitar and sing with his parents and siblings, and went on to play locally in the Lansing, Michigan area where he grew up. In 1982, at age 19, Audie Blaylock joined Jimmy Martin and The Sunny Mountain Boys and spent nine years on the road learning the craft of bluegrass from one of the music's first-generation legends.
