BIOGRAPHY
 Robert Bowlin started at age 1 and a half playing the ukelele, graduated to his dad's guitar at age 5, and has been creating unique and beautiful guitar music ever since. He won the National Fingerpicking Guitar Championship in Winfield, KS in 1979 and got 2nd in the Flatpicking Guitar Contest in 1978. His professional career has included stints with artists such as Maura O' Connell, Kathy Mattea, Tom T. Hall, the Osborne Brothers, Bill Monroe, Ray Price, Bobby Bare, Faron Young, Ricky Van Shelton. He was a session guitarist and fiddler in Nashville for countless recordings. He has played onstage with artists such as BB King and Ricky Skaggs, Tony Rice, Peter Rowan, and Vassar Clements. He has performed his original music on the stage of the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville.
He has a new cd of solo guitar instrumentals entitled "Six String Soliloquy". Here is what experts have to say:
"This recording is wonderful! It's mostly original instrumentals, a few traditional tunes and a Stephen Foster medley.Robert has a real gift for melody. You hear the original tunes and you feel like you've heard them before (but you haven't). When he plays a standard, like "Whisky Before Breakfast," he really makes it his own. His solo style doesn't sound like anyone elses. Robert blends Bluegrass, Jazz and other influences in a way that sounds natural and unforced. I would describe his phrasing as vocal. Many guitarists sound mechanical. He's just the opposite, milking every phrase for maximum feeling. And the tone he gets out of his 1930 Larson is just beautiful. He's not afraid of space and never adds unecessary notes that get in the way of hearing the melody. There are lots of guitarists these days who have great technique and can generate excitement with hot picking. Robert can certainly do the same. But there are few who work with the full range of emotion that is possible in music. These are medium and slow paced solos intended to move the listener. Though they'll appeal to any guitar playing person with an ear, they'll also appeal to others who don't care what kind of guitar he plays or whether or not he uses a custom made bevelled pick. Do you have a spouse who's tired of hearing your flatpicking CDs? Get this one and you'll both enjoy it!This is really one of the finest guitar recordings I've heard in years. It's only fault is that it's too short. I could listen to Roberts picking all day." - Dan Mozell
"His playing is really incredible - tasteful,passionate, and unique. He is a virtuoso flatpicker who is well-versed inmany styles. It's incredible that he's known primarily as a fiddler, havingbeen Monroe's "last" fiddle player.I recently judged him in a contest (Uncle Dave Macon Days in Murfreesboro,TN - www.uncledavemacondays.com), and he played an absolutely jaw-dropping"Waltz for Django" on that old Larson. Tone from now on!" - Boge Quinn
DISCOGRAPHY
CDs
Six String Soliloquy
PURCHASE: Flatpicking Mercantile | iTunes
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Flatpicking Guitar Magazine reviewed a pre-release copy of this CD in Volume 11, Number 4. Since then Robert has gone back in the studio to re-record and add to the project. This CD is an example of solo flatpicking at its finest by a masterful and tasteful flatpicker. When the pre-release version came out last summer there was some buzz on the internet listserv group Flatpick-L.
Here is what list member Dan Mozell had to say: "There are lots of guitarists these days who have great technique and can generate excitement with hot picking. Robert can certainly do the same. But there are few who work with the full range of emotion that is possible in music. These are medium and slow paced solos intended to move the listener. This is really one of the finest guitar recordings I’ve heard in years."
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Track List:
1. Maybelle
2. The Rain in Spain
3. East Tennessee Blues
4. I Dream of Jeannie/Old Kentucky Home
5. Pokeberry Jam
6. On the Border
7. Eastland Dream
8. New Freedom
9. Theme and Improvisation
10. He Leadeth Me
11. Eleven Point Sunset
12. Rose Room
13. Durango Tango
14. Whiskey Before Breakfast
15. Butterflies
16. Marita Del Rey
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Appearances on other FGM Releases:
Click item to purchase and learn more information.
LINKS
Check out Robert Bowlin's website at: http://www.robertbowlin.com
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