Your Country's Right Here: Vince Gill Returns to his Bluegrass Roots

posted in: Country • Features

So just where do you go after you’ve won nineteen GRAMMY Awards and grabbed international chart success?

For Vince Gill, the musical answer is to go home to bluegrass. Although he started his career in the genre and still truly loves it, he moved to mainstream country years ago. Now that he’s arguably starting a new chapter in his career, with the release of the album Guitar Slinger later this year, he’s taking pains to insure he doesn’t lose sight of his musical roots.

“Anybody who is thinking of a bluegrass career, I really wouldn’t recommend it,” said Gill with a laugh to a near-capacity concert audience at the Birchmere Music Hall in Alexandria, Virginia last month. “I stopped playing it because I had hoped to own my own home someday.”

It’s a good bet, though, that Gill’s comment was really more tongue-in-cheek than anything. Although the line brought a great amount of laughter from the audience, Gill said by telephone from the Nashville home that he shares with his wife, singer Amy Grant, that a healthy bank account is really only one of the reasons he loves his career.

“It has never been to a point where it was a drag or I didn’t feel it was a complete success even just factoring in the people I have played with,” said Gill. “Gosh, it has provided me with a better life than I could have ever dreamed for myself…and it has nothing to do with [money]… I truly love the music.”

Any doubters need only have sat in on this four-hour plus concert during which Gill played a host of classic bluegrass hits”including “My Rose of Old Kentucky,” and “My Walking Shoes”” and talked about career highlights including playing with bluegrass legends Ricky Skaggs and Del McCoury.

With such a background, it’s likely no surprise that the eleven songs on his newest album are richly textured, moving from contemporary to traditional and from somewhat light hearted to dark.

That’s especially true on the album’s first single “Threaten Me With Heaven,” that Gill co-wrote with Grant, Dillon O’Brian and Will Owsley. Since the song was written, Owsley committed suicide.

“The the song has a profound impact on me now,” said Gill, adding that the loss of Owsley and other close friends in the past few years has truly made him take stock of his life. “It’s a powerful, powerful song. I feel like it’s the crown jewel of the new record.”

Bright spots in the recording of the record were the duet he did with Grant and the guest appearances of three of the couple’s daughters”Jenny, Sarah and Corrina.

“It was really cool,” said Gill of having his family work with him in the studio he recently built at his home. “They all can’t help it. Music has a [very strong] place in their lives. Having them on this was very sweet.”

Find out more about Vince Gill and his upcoming album on his Web site.