Drew Emmitt Band Bios :

Drew Emmitt :
Drew Emmitt, the dynamic lead singer and mandolin player with the popular jamband Leftover Salmon, is a true renaissance man on musical instruments. Playing mandolin, guitar, fiddle, banjo, harmonica, flute and electric guitar, he's a string man to be reckoned with. He excels in unique energy driven mandolin licks and his influences include a pantheon of musical heroes including Lowell George, Steve Morse, Duane Allman, John Cowan, Bill Monroe, Sam Bush, Hot Rize and New Grass Revival.

"I started playing when I lived in Nashville , TN where everybody played music. Then we moved to Boulder and there were a lot of really influential musicians floating in and out. I started going out to see bands like Hot Rize and really getting into bluegrass."

In 1984, Drew Emmitt founded the progressive bluegrass ensemble, The Left Hand String Band. Six years later, Vince Herman's serendipitous scramble for musicians to fill in a gig with his band, SalmonHeads, yielded a glorious amalgam: Leftover Salmon. Jambands.com said, "Emmitt's mandolin prowess and songwriting gifts are two particular sources of the group's success." Emmitt is an extremely gifted musician and songwriter and one can't help but being swept away by his incredibly pure voice. On his debut solo release, Freedom Ride, Emmitt reveals once again his amazing picking abilities and songwriting talents. He recruited some of the hottest acoustic musicians around to join him. The result is the most exciting newgrass album to come down the pike since the original New Grass Revival.

On Freedom Ride, Emmitt showcases a disc full of newgrass and bluegrass gems like Paving Eisenhower, which features a dazzling mandolin duet with Ronnie McCoury and Sam Bush on fiddle. Freedom Ride, the albums lead track, features a hot duet vocal with former New Grass Revival lead singer John Cowan, a long time hero of Emmitt's.

"John Cowan is my all time singing hero, for sure!" he says. John Cowan former New Grass Revival lead vocalist will be appearing at the Willow Creek Lounge on Sunday Feb. 19 th at 8 PM.

Emmitt is joined by bluegrass mainstay Peter Rowan on the Rowan penned Rainmaker with infectious melodies, great singing and masterful playing. The project delivers light-hearted foot-tappers such as the Cajun flavored Emmitt original Bend in the River, and a bluegrassy cover of the Dylan favorite Tangled Up in Blue. Emmitt has composed innumerable tunes, many of which have worked their way into the wild and diverse Leftover Salmon repertoire. His pure voice and heartfelt lyrics have become a signature of the band. He has also pioneered techniques for taking the mandolin into new territory by using combinations of overdrive, slides and foot pedals to emulate the sound of steel drums and electric slide guitar.

Emmitt's dedication and love for music have helped him become one of our nation's top mandolin players. Beyond his own success, Emmitt has remained a fan as well. On joining his biggest influences on stage he said, "It's amazing. It's like walking in a dream. For years I had this dream of standing on stage next to them and having a good time. And it's happened. Standing on stage next to Sam (Bush) is pretty indescribable. And David (Grisman) as well. When Neil Young walked on stage, that was outrageous. I turned around, and there he was standing 6 inches away from me. I looked right at his eyes. Then having him actually sing on a song that I wrote? Pretty amazing."

The Boulder based quintet of Leftover Salmon has been a force in the Colorado music scene for over a decade. Drew Emmitt is becoming a force to be reckoned with.

Jeff Sipe :
Jeff Sipe is one of the most accomplished and versatile drummers in the musical universe. Jeff Sipe has performed with numerous ensembles that have encompassed all musical genres. He seems to have a naturally organic control over his drum kit. His career blossomed when he founded the band Aquarium Rescue Unit with Col. Bruce Hampton and Jimmy Herring in the early nineties. The music was extremely dynamic fusion, which made good use of the players' skills.

Over the past five years, Jeff has spent time on many projects. One of those was a vast touring period with the bluegrass super jam band Leftover Salmon. Jeff brought a world feel and professionalism that all the members could learn from. During this period he also had the opportunity to work with musicians like Bryon Lopes, Neil Fountain, Chief Jim Billy, Jonathan Townes and John Medeski. Jeff even took on on his own creation known as the Zambiland Orchastra. This experimental big band featured members of Phish, Widespread Panic, Michael Ray and the Cosmic Crew, the Derek Trucks Band, the Fiji Mariners and many others.

Even more recently Jeff teamed up with long time friend and guitar maniac Jimmy Herring on a project known as Z, thats Project Z to most. Together with fellow Atlantian producer/musician Ricky Keller and mega organ/keyboardist Oliver Wells, Project Z recorded a self-titled debut album filled with juicy fusionisk tunes that gathered praise from all realms. This band formed out of Jeff's Atlanta based jam sessions known as the Apartment Projects. The results have created heartfelt, free-formed music that Jeff and his fellow musicians can be proud of.

Lately, Jeff tries to find as much time as possible to spend with his wife of many years, Rainbow, and their two children. Musically he is again mixing it up with Hellborg and Lane creating from beyond this planet. He is also sitting in on sessions with Gary Gazaway, better known as El Buho. Jeff continues to play and explore with all that is out there, learning and sharing with whomever will teach and whoever will listen. His dedication and incredible feel for music and the drum kit will make him one of the most requested drummers of all time, we are sure of it.

Greg Garrison :
Going into the 5th grade, Greg Garrison saw a family friend in his neighborhood playing bass and thought "it was really cool." He switched from piano and cello, and the bass became his instrument of choice.

Greg spent his formative years in Illinois , growing up in Chicago and going to college in Champaign-Urbana. He moved to Colorado in 1997 to pursue a Masters Degree in Bass Performance at UNC, and to see what the "High Country" had to offer. Greg joined Leftover Salmon in the fall of 2000. He has toured with The Motet, the Matt Flinner Quartet, Drew Emmitt and Freedom Ride, and Speaking in Tounges.

Greg has also worked extensively as a freelance artist in the Denver-Boulder area. Greg currently lives outside of Denver with his wife Laura, son Haden, and two insane dogs, Kudra and Lucky.

Tyler Grant :
Tyler Grant is a young guitarist with high aspirations. A versatile musician, Tyler is an active and experienced performer and teacher of musical styles including classical, bluegrass, rock and roll, country, jazz, reggae, and traditional Bulgarian, Macedonian, and American folk.

Tyler became interested in guitar during his freshman year of high school. He quickly became proficient in classic rock and blues styles, and would spend a decade playing and singing professionally around his hometown of San Diego , CA . He started teaching guitar lessons at the age of nineteen.

After graduating CalArts in 2000, Tyler spent a few more years playing and teaching in Southern California before moving to Nashville in 2003. He was an original member of Adrienne Young and Little Sadie. He played and sang on Adrienne's album, Plow to the End of the Row, and spent over a year on the road, performing all over the US and Europe .

Tyler won first place in the Colorado State Flatpicking Championship at Rockygrass in 2003 and the Wayne Henderson Guitar Contest in 2005. In 2005 he was runner up in the National Flatpicking Championship in Winfield , Kansas . He placed first in the mandolin contest at Uncle Dave Macon Days in 2005. During the summer and fall of 2005 Tyler toured with Rounder Records recording artist April Verch as well as the Two Stringers, a bluegrass band. He can also be seen at festivals and around Nashville backing up all kinds of singer-songwriters. Tyler got in touch with Drew Emmitt over the summer and is totally psyched about joining the band!