Award-Winning artist Steve Wariner honoured with Country Radio Broadcasters’ 2018 Artist Career Achievement Award

Award-Winning Artist Steve Wariner Honored with Country Radio Broadcasters’

2018 Artist Career Achievement Award 

Steve Wariner was honoured with the 2018 CRB Artist Career Achievement Award during the Country Radio Hall of Fame awards and induction ceremony held at the Vanderbilt Marriott in Nashville, Tennessee on June 20, 2018. Pictured here: Country Radio Broadcasters’ Board President Kurt Johnson, Steve Wariner, and CRB/CRS Executive Director, Bill Mayne

(Nashville, Tennessee – June 21, 2018) Award-winning artist, highly regarded guitarist, and hit songwriter, Steve Wariner was honored with the 2018 CRB Artist Career Achievement Award during the Country Radio Hall of Fame awards and induction ceremony held at the Vanderbilt Marriott in Nashville, Tennessee on June 20, 2018.

CRB Executive Director Bill Mayne presented Wariner with the award, which is given to an individual artist or act that, through their creativity, vision, performance or leadership has made a significant contribution to the development and promotion of Country music and Country radio.  Country superstars and friends of Wariner’s, Garth Brooks and Trisha Yearwood made a surprise appearance to honor Wariner on his special night. 

Wariner commented, saying “What an honor it was to receive the Career Achievement Award last night.  I’m incredibly grateful to all of Country Radio for supporting me throughout my career, Bill Mayne, R.J. Curtis, and Kurt Johnson for thinking of me for such an honor, and to Garth and Trisha for surprising me with their attendance.  Them being there was truly the cherry on top of a very special evening.”

Pictured here L to R: Bill Anderson and Steve Wariner at the 49th Annual Songwriters Hall of Fame induction and awards dinner held Thursday, June 14th at the Marriot Marquis Hotel in New York City. Photo Credit: Getty Images 

ABOUT: Twenty albums into his five-decade career, Steve Wariner has become a modern-day multi-genre icon earning fourteen #1 hits, over 30 Top 10 hits, three Gold albums, four GRAMMY Awards, three CMA Awards, one ACM Award, a Christian Country Music Association Award, a TNN/Music City News Award, a CMA Triple Play award, and 15 BMI Million-Air Awards. He is a member of the Kentucky Music Hall of Fame, the National Thumbpickers Hall of Fame, the Music City Walk of Fame, and one of only five guitar players in the world to be given the "Certified Guitar Player" (CGP) award by Chet Atkins.

The now Grand Ole Opry member was discovered by the legendary Dottie West at just 17 years old as he played a set in an Indiana club. West hired him on the spot to be her bass player. Upon accepting the offer, Wariner played bass for three years with her before his next gig playing in Grand Ole Opry member, Bob Luman’s band, where he was a featured musician on Luman’s Alive and Well record that was produced by Johnny Cash.  
Working with Luman’s band led to Wariner being commissioned by his idol Chet Atkins to play bass in his band. It was Atkins that eventually signed Wariner to his first recording contract at RCA in 1977 and produced Wariner’s first recording session at the historic RCA Studio B.

The honor follows Wariner’s recent appearance at the 49th Annual Songwriters Hall of Fame induction and awards dinner held Thursday, June 14th at the Marriot Marquis Hotel in New York City. During the event, Wariner performed his rendition of “The Tips Of My Fingers” before Bill Anderson’s induction. The Annual Songwriters Hall of Fame induction and awards celebrates songwriters, educates the public with regard to their achievements, and produces a spectrum of professional programs devoted to the development of new songwriting talent through workshops, showcases, scholarships and more.

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Steve Wariner set to release his 20th Studio album, "All Over the Map," Oct. 28

STEVE WARINER SET TO RELEASE HIS 20th STUDIO ALBUM, 

ALL OVER THE MAP, OCT. 28

GRAMMY Award-winning artist collaborated with critically acclaimed musicians including

Ricky Skaggs, Duane Eddy, Eric Johnson and more

Tuesday, Oct. 4, 2016

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – For his 20th studio album, four-time GRAMMY Award winner Steve Wariner knew he had to do something really special. When All Over The Map began coming together, it became clear just what that would be.

The 12-track album evolved into a remarkable tribute to the Grand Ole Opry member’s influences, both living and deceased, in addition to a celebration of his lineage. While packed with acclaimed guest musicians, the set — to be released Oct. 28 on SelecTone Records — artfully showcases Wariner’s own musical talents. In addition to producing the album, he plays guitar, upright bass, drums and both pedal and lap steel, as well as singing on seven of the songs. (The other five are classic instrumentals.) Wariner also penned 10 of the tracks.

A touching tribute to late mentor Chet Atkins, titled “CGP,” takes its name from the coveted title Atkins bestowed on Wariner: Certified Guitar Player. On the track, Wariner enlisted the talents of the only two other living musicians to have earned the same title from Atkins, Tommy Emmanuel and John Knowles. The album also includes “When I Still Mattered To You,” a song Wariner wrote with Merle Haggard on a cruise ship in 1996 but had never previously recorded.

Close friend Ricky Skaggs, who Wariner won his first GRAMMY with in 1992, is featured playing mandolin on “Down Sawmill Road.” Other celebrated musicians featured on the album include: Musicians’ Hall of Fame and Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Duane Eddy (“Nashville Spy-Line”), GRAMMY Award winner Eric Johnson (“Meanwhile Back In Austin”), Greg Martin of The Kentucky Headhunters (“Way It Goes”) and Jack Pearson (“Drop Top”).

Steve Wariner: 

Credit: David McClister

But it’s Wariner’s own family that provides the bulk of the inspiration for the album, which was 20 months in the making. 
Throughout the creation of the album, Steve relied heavily on his son Ross, who lives in New York, for advice and consultation on the technical production aspects of the album. 

He wrote the Western swing tune “Mr. Roy” as a tribute to his musician father, and “Down Sawmill Road” is named for the Kentucky road where his mother grew up. His GRAMMY-nominated son Ryan Wariner wrote and plays on the track “The Last Word.” Wariner reached back deep into his rich family history for the album’s closing instrumental track, “Augustine’s Dream,” inspired by his maternal four-times great grandfather who served in the Revolutionary War.

“Getting to play and record with these wonderfully creative people means the world to me. I am grateful to all! Some I've collaborated with before, others..well, it's pure bucket list for me! This project is the perfect example of what keeps me going...what keeps me excited,” notes Wariner. “Traveling into territory I've never been to before. And there's lots of that here on this album. It's hard to describe the joy I feel making music with my sons...and family for that matter. Now I know how my father used to feel. I am so very proud of my musical roots and heritage. ”

In his storied career, Wariner has achieved 14 No. 1 songs and more than 30 Top 10 hits, including such classics as “Holes in the Floor of Heaven,” “Life’s Highway,” “The Weekend,” “I’m Already Taken,” “I Got Dreams,” “Small Town Girl,” “Two Teardrops,” “Some Fools Never Learn,” “Lynda” and more. An award-winning songwriter, Wariner has also composed hit songs for Clint Black (“Nothin’ But the Taillights”), Garth Brooks (“Longneck Bottle”), Bryan White (“One Small Miracle”) and Keith Urban (“Where the Blacktop Ends”), as well as artists such as Country Music Hall of Fame members Alabama, Kenny Rogers, The Statler Brothers, Conway Twitty and Don Williams; pop music icon Peter Tork (of The Monkees); R&B singer Ruben Studdard; bluegrass music’s Del McCoury Band and many more. Wariner is a member of the Kentucky Music Hall of Fame. For more information, visit www.stevewariner.com.

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