Been Down This Road - Musik

Railroad Earth Is A Roots And Americana-Based Newgrass Band From Stillwater New Jersey. Their Name Was Borrowed From The Jack Kerouac Short Story "October In The Railroad Earth " To Which The Band Also Has A Song By The Same Name. Railroad Earth's Music Combines Elements Of Bluegrass Rock And Roll Jazz Celtic And More And The Group Is Also Known For Its Extensive Live Improvisation And Lyrical Songwriting Within An Acoustic Base. The Six Band Members First Came Together In January 2001. Originally Composed Of Vocalist/guitarist/songwriter Todd Sheaffer Violinist/vocalist Tim Carbone Mandolinist John Skehan Multi-Instrumentalist Andy Goessling Drummer/vocalist Carey Harmon And Bassist Dave Von Dollen The Group Kicked Off By Rehearsing A Handful Of Original Songs Mostly Written By Sheaffer The Former From Good Homes Songwriter Just To Get Together Hang Out And Play Some Music. But After Just Three Weeks Of Rehearsing They Decided To Go Into A Local Recording Studio To Track A Five Song Demo. Recorded Live With No Overdubs Except Backing Vocals This Untitled Demo Set Railroad Earth's Career In Motion. Within A Week They Had Manager Brian Ross On Board Who Sent Their Demo Out To Several Festival Promoters...Quickly Landing Them A Slot At The Prestigious Telluride Bluegrass Festival. That Appearance Was The New Band's Tenth As Railroad Earth. The Previous Nine Gigs Had Been Little More Than Warm-Ups At Small North Jersey Bars And Elks Lodges. In Early April 2001 The Band Returned To The Same Local Studio And Tracked Another Five Songs To Complete An Album. The Black Bear Sessions Was Released To The Public In June 2001 One Week Before Their Appearance At Telluride. The Album Contains What Are Still Some Of The Most Popular Songs In Railroad Earth's Repertoire Including "Seven Story Mountain " "Head" And Of Course "Railroad Earth." Immediately Following Their Appearance At Telluride Sugar Hill Records Approached The Band And Offered Them A Record Deal. In June 2002 Railroad Earth Released Its Follow-Up Album On Sugar Hill Titled Bird In A House Featuring Songs Such As "Like A Buddha " "Mighty River " And The Album's Title Track. Throughout That Year Railroad Earth's Touring Schedule Increased Dramatically And Their Growing Fanbase Began To Emerge As Something Tangible To Promoters Radio Stations And Other Media. They Were Garnering Raves For Their Unique Sound And Exciting Live Shows And Had Become A Staple Act On The Line-Up Of Any Roots Folk Or Jam-Band Festival. Their Fans Who Were Now Calling Themselves "Hobos " Began To Grow Quickly In Size And The Venues Were Getting Larger Along With Them. In Late March 2003 Dave Von Dollen Was Replaced By Atlanta-Based Bassist Johnny Grubb. The Following Year The Band Released Its Third Studio Effort The Good Life Featuring "Storms " Mourning Flies " And "Goat." The Band Continued To Tour Throughout The Country And Its First Live Album "Elko " Was Issued In Late January 2006. They Performed At The Austin City Limits Music Festival On September 15 2007. The Band's Fourth Studio Album Titled Amen Corner Was Released On June 10 2008. The Album Features Songs Such As "Been Down This Road " "Hard Livin' " "Waggin' The Dog " And "Lovin' You."
On November 11 2009 Grubb Announced His Departure From The Band After Railroad Earth's New Year's Eve Run Of Shows In Portland OR. In February 2010 Andrew Altman Of The Codetalkers And Blueground Undergrass Was Named As His Successor. The Band's Self-Titled Fifth Album Was Released On Oct 12 2010. The Album Featured Andy Goessling For The First Time Playing Electric Guitar And New Songs From Todd Sheaffer Including "Jupiter And The 119" And " Too Much Information" Plus A 11-Minute Instrumental Written By John Skehan "Spring-Heeled Jack." SHJ Is John Skehan's Initials Backwards. It Is The Longest Studio Track To Date For The Band.
The Band Was Announced To Perform The Self-Titled Album In Its Entirity And Video Tape It To Send To The Fans. In February 2013 Railroad Earth Performed At The Jefferson Theatre At The University Of Virginia And At Workplay In Birmingham Alabama. On January 14 2014 Railroad Earth Released Their Seventh Album Last Of The Outlaws To Rave Reviews From Media And Fans Alike. It Featured The 21 Minute Long "suite" Of "All That's Dead May Live Again" And "Face With A Hole" Both Written By Todd Sheaffer And Featured Instrumental Movements Written By John Skehan. In The Tour That Followed Railroad Earth Headlined Red Rocks For The Second Time Selling Out And With The Help Of The Mile High Horns Arranged By Jay Rattman . The Result Can Be Seem On The DVD Live At Red Rocks. Railroad Earth Backed Warren Haynes On February 3 2015 For A Taping Of The PBS Series Front And Center For Airing In May 2015. There Were Also Studio Haynes Tracks Recorded With Railroad Earth. In May 2018 Railroad Earth Released A 7" Vinyl EP In Collaboration With The John Denver Estate Called Railroad Earth The John Denver Letters. The Project Included Lyrics Penned By John Denver With Music Composed By Todd Sheaffer And Performed By Railroad Earth. The Album Was Released On Earth Day And A Portion Of Proceeds Went To Benefit Youth Climate Strike In Honor Of Both Artists Commitment To The Environment. The Band Announced A Full-Length Studio Album Titled All For The Song Is Due To Be Released In 2020. The Members Of Railroad Earth Have Also Released Numerous Solo Albums. In 2009 Skehan Released A Duet Album With Mandolinist Todd Collins Performing The Eighteenth-Century Italian Sonatas Of Emanuele Barbella. In 2010 Carbone Co-Founded The Jamband Supergroup The Contribution With Keith Moseley And Jason Hann Of String Cheese Incident Along With Jeff Miller And Phil Ferlino Of New Monsoon. Carbone Has Also Produced Albums By Many Bands Including Greensky Bluegrass And Great American Taxi. In 2015 Carbone Contributed To Waywords And Meansigns A Collaborative Project Setting James Joyce's Finnegans Wake To Music. Andy Goessling Born Andrew James Goessling On February 5 1959 Died Of Cancer On October 12 2018 At Age 59 As Announced By The Band. After A Succession Of Special Guests Throughout 2019 The Band Has Settled On A New Touring Ensemble Featuring Matthew D. Slocum On Keyboards And Mike Robinson On Pedal Steel Banjo And Guitar. Current Members
•Todd Sheaffer – Guitar Harmonica Vocals 2001–present •Tim Carbone – Violin Accordion Electric Guitar Vocals 2001–present •John Skehan – Mandolin Bouzouki Piano Banjo Vocals 2001–present •Carey Harmon – Drums Hand Percussion Vocals 2001–present •Andrew Altman – Acoustic Bass Electric Bass Vocals 2010–present Touring Members
•Mike Robinson - Acoustic Guitar Steel Pedal Banjo 2019- •Matthew Slocum - Keyboards 2018- Former Members
•Dave Von Dollen – Bass Vocals 2001–2003 •Johnny Grubb – Bass Vocals 2003–2009 •Andy Goessling – Acoustic And Electric Guitars Banjo Dobro Mandolin Flute Pennywhistle Bass Clarinet Percussion Clarinet Lap Steel Soprano Saxophone Alto Saxophone Tenor Saxophone Baritone Saxophone Vocals 2001–2018 His Death Albums 2001The Black Bear SessionsBos Music
2002Bird In A HouseSugar Hill
2004The Good LifeSugar Hill
2006ElkoSCI Fidelity
2008Amen CornerSCI Fidelity
2010Railroad EarthOne Haven Music
2014Last Of The OutlawsBlack Bear
2017Captain Nowhere EP Black Bear
2019The John Denver LettersWindstar Records read less