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James Reams & The Barnstormers
James Reams sounds "as smoky as his heroes: Lester, Carter, and Red."
~ Banjo Newsletter Coming from a family of traditional singers in southeastern Kentucky, James Reams has played both old-‐time and bluegrass music since he was just a little sprout. There were traditional singers on both sides of his family, and his father played in a string band. James migrated north in his mid-‐teens when his family moved to Appleton, Wisconsin, where he stayed until he moved to Brooklyn, New York in the early 1980s. In 1982 James arrived at New York's Port Authority Bus Terminal, carrying two cardboard boxes and two pairs of work shoes...looking for a better life, having left behind a dead-‐end job in an agricultural supply store in Wisconsin. At first, in his scramble to survive, he didn't play much
music. But when he did, those who heard his authentic Kentucky mountain sound encouraged him to play more. Before long, he started producing albums beginning with his first release "Kentucky Songbird" in 1994, followed by "The Blackest Crow" and "The Mysterious Redbirds" in 2000. He formed the Barnstormers in 1993 and released the first James Reams & The Barmstormers CD "Barnstormin'" in 2001. Teaming up with reknowned banjo player, the late Walter Hensley, resulted in the release of "James Reams, Walter Hensley & the Barons of Bluegrass" in 2002, an album that received an IBMA nomination for Recording Event of the Year and earned James an IBMA nomination as Emerging Artist of the Year. In 2005, James Reams & The Barnstormers cut loose with the CD "Troubled Times" which included a feature length documentary of the band entitled "Rollin On" and a preview of the DVD documentary "Pioneers of Bluegrass" that was released in 2013. When asked by Bluegrass Today (January 4, 2014) what his favorite all time bluegrass project was, Donald Teplyske (international music critic and reviewer) responded, “If I could only listen to one album I guess I would choose James Reams & The Barnstormers ‘Troubled Times’.” Combining talents with Walter Hensley again in 2006 produced the album "Wild Card", that had reviewers singing James' praise. "This new recording features songs old and new, borrowed and definitely bluegrass. James Reams has a deep baritone voice that wraps itself around the emotion of a song and won’t let go." ~ B. Hough of CBA and “… another fine collaboration from James Reams and Walter Hensley. The result is an
album full of spirited, traditional bluegrass music. James Reams’ solid rhythm guitar and strong vocals lend a solid foundation to Hensley’s clean and tasteful banjo picking..." ~ R. Steelman of Bluegrass Music Profiles. The 2011 release of "One Foot in the Honky Tonk" made two Top 10 CDs of 2011 lists and included a single that charted nationally. His latest album, Rhyme & Season, hit the streets in March, 2016 and has taken the bluegrass world by, well, barn storm! This concept album is a rarity for bluegrass listeners. It celebrates the perpetual pilgrim that lives within all of us with songs about the different journeys that life takes us on. He hopes to raise awareness about the homeless and is donating a portion of the album proceeds to a local charity. James is known as an “Ambassador of Bluegrass” for his dedication to and deep involvement in the thriving bluegrass and old-‐time music community. His music features driving rhythm and hard-‐edged harmonies that take you back to a time before bluegrass was smoothed out for the uninitiated, the ill-‐prepared or the faint of heart. His original songs (alone and co-‐written with life partner Tina Aridas who passed away in 2011) are important additions to the bluegrass repertoire, keeping this tradition alive with contemporary issues and new sounds. His guitar playing was highlighted in Flatpicking Guitar Magazine's Masters of Rhythm Guitar column. In addition to leading James Reams & The Barnstormers, he is the organizer of the Park Slope Bluegrass/Old-‐Time Jamboree, an annual music festival he started in 1998 that attracts musicians and fans of traditional music to its workshops, jamming and concerts and is the only event of its kind in or around New York City. James was honored that the Jamboree was nominated by the IBMA for the 2014 Event of the Year. After relocating to the Phoenix area in 2012, James put together a fine group of musicians and now has a presence on both east and west coasts. James celebrated 20 years as a bandleader in 2013 with a Coast-‐to-‐Coast tour and the release of the DVD documentary "Making History with Pioneers of Bluegrass: Tales of the Early Days in Their Own Words.” Take a listen to the musician that Bluegrass Unlimited praised as “There are few vocalists as natural as Reams. He doesn't have to try to sound down-‐home, he's there at each turn in the song.” You'll be glad you did!