Artist Profiles: John Cowan

John Cowan

Bassist and vocalist John Cowan was born on August 24, 1952 in Minerva, Ohio. He has been performing for over 30 years and is known by many as The Voice of Newgrass. As a member of New Grass Revival he helped create a sound which brought a new audience to the bluegrass music and was arguably as important in shaping the direction of modern bluegrass as Flatt and Scruggs was to the genre in the 196s.

After New Grass Revival disbanded in 1990 Cowan went on to record a series of critically acclaimed solo albums and to lend his unique vocals as a session musician to a lengthy discography including albums by Garth Brooks, Glen Campbell, Steve Earle, Janis Ian, Delbert McClinton, Kenny Rogers and Poco. He was also the bass player for The Doobie Brothers from 1993 to 1995.

His album Always Take Me Back (released by Sugar Hill Records) features his versatile musicianship and his excellent band through an array blues, bluegrass, funk, rock and Celtic-flavored selections.

Currently Cowan divides his time on the road between solo tours with the John Cowan Band and as a touring member of the Doobie Brothers with whom he has been performing regularly since 2010.

Discography:

Soul’d Out (Sugar Hill, 1998)

John Cowan (Sugar Hill Records 2000)

Always Take Me Back (Sugar Hill Records)

New Tattoo (Pinecastle 2006)

Live At Telluride 8,745ft (Koch Records 2009)

The Massenburg Sessions (Koch Records 2010)

Sixty (Compass, 2014)

Author: Angel Romero

Angel Romero y Ruiz has dedicated his life to musical exploration. His efforts included the creation of two online portals, worldmusiccentral.org and musicasdelmundo.com. In addition, Angel is the co-founder of the Transglobal World Music Chart, a panel of world music DJs and writers that celebrates global sounds. Furthermore, he delved into the record business, producing world music studio albums and compilations. His works have appeared on Alula Records, Ellipsis Arts, Indígena Records and Music of the World.

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