Marty Party Hit Pack At Hanford Fox October 21

The Marty Party is a state of mind and music built around Stuart's wide-ranging talents as a singer, writer and musician. Five short years ago, Marty Stuart was the 'Hillbilly Crusader,' embarking on a one-man mission to re-install elements of classic country, including fingerpickin' and generally expert musicianship into a metamorphosis of modern style. Today, is he widely recognized as one of the leading-edge indicators for country music.

Stuart is no new arrival to this musical party. The Mississippi native began absorbing country music from its primary sources at the age of 13 when he hit the road playing mandolin in Lester Flatt's bluegrass band. When Flatt died in 1979, Marty expanded his music, playing a sort of bluegrass-fusion with fiddler Vassar Clements and working with acoustic guitar great Doc Watson. He then played guitar for six years with country legend Johnny Cash. Marty's virtuosity and dexterity prompted Cash to call Stuart his favorite guitar player.

Stuart graduated to his own solo album in 1982 with Busy Bee Cafe on the independent Sugar Hill label. The session band on the half-vocal/half-instrumental album attested to the respect he garnered from peers: Doc Watson, Merle Watson and Johnny Cash on guitars, Jerry Douglas on dobro, Carl Jackson on banjo. He made his debut with CBS in 1986 with Marty Stuart, all the while in high demand for session work, playing on albums for Willie Nelson, Emmylou Harris, Neil Young, Bob Dylan and many country artists. As he moves forward, Marty carries with him inspiration of past country greats. His onstage guitar is country-rock pioneer Clarence White's 1954 Fender Telecaster. He also plays a Martin D-45 first owned by Hank Williams Sr. and Lester Flatt's D-28.

When Marty debuted on MCA in 1989, he paid his tributes to the masters of country music as he set about mastering a musical direction of his own and nudging a new direction for country music with Hillbilly Rock. His music came from somewhere out on the dangerous edges of country music from bluegrass, rockabilly and honky tonk styles and places where emotions, whether rowdy fun or painful, are just barely kept under control.

His second album, Tempted, yielded four hits: the title cut, "Little Things," "Till I Found You" and "Burn Me Down." In the meantime, he dueted with Travis Tritt on "The Whiskey Ain't Workin'." They teamed up to co-headline the "No Hats" tour, winning Vocal Event of the Year from the Country Music Association in 1992 and a Grammy in 1993. Marty also became a member of the Grand Ole Opry in 1992, 20 years after his first appearance there.

This One's Gonna Hurt You, Marty's third album, was highlighted by another duet with friend Travis Tritt on the title cut. The result was Marty's first gold album. Stuart then spent the better part of two years writing and recording the music for his fourth album, Love And Luck. He received another Grammy in 1994 for his work on "Red Wing" from the Bob Wills tribute album.

Stuart worked long and hard to bring all these elements together in a pure and natural way and to blend in his own talents as a songwriter and accomplished musician. The results, as showcased on The Marty Party Hit Pack, are an honest and engaging body. "This music rings true to me," Marty says. "It rocks. It'll make you feel good and it can cause you to dance. It will help you in tough times and inspire you to keep going....I know."

Writer unknown