When Dierks Bentley arrived in Nashville after making the cross-country drive from Phoenix, the budding musician was overwhelmed. At just 19 years old, he took on a sizable task—trying to get the attention of Music Row executives in a city full of aspiring songwriters. In 1994, Music City was riding high on the success of one of country music’s groundbreaking performers: Garth Brooks. A masterful showman, Brooks managed to bring country music into the mainstream of contemporary music.
Bentley knew he wasn’t going to become the next Garth Brooks; he wanted to make his own mark. Staying true to one’s artistic vision is a noble—yet often lonely—endeavor. While trying to find his footing in the bustling Southern town, Bentley longed to find a musical home away from home.
One day, a friend told him about the intimate Nashville venue—the Station Inn. The quaint venue was nestled in between a sea of raucous country music establishments. When Bentley first walked through the doors, he saw brothers Rob and Ronnie McCoury performing onstage. The two musicians were sons of formidable six-string picker Del McCoury.
Bentley watched in amazement as the mandolin and banjo players tackled everything from Americana music to country hits from artists like George Jones and Merle Haggard. Despite the brothers’ wide range of musical stylings, Bentley observed there was one genre that kept everything tied together.
Artistic Freedom
Over a decade after seeing the McCoury brothers perform for the first time and falling for one of America’s oldest musical genres, he turned his dream into a reality.
By 2010, Bentley recorded multiple certified Gold and Platinum country albums by the Recording Industry Association of America. But musicians often want to push themselves artistically, and that’s exactly what Bentley did. That year, Bentley orchestrated a musical plot twist that is still talked about in country music circles today. He had two objectives in mind: artistic freedom and honoring the genre that welcomed him with open arms all those years ago—bluegrass.
‘The Post-graduate School of Bluegrass’
When he began recording his bluegrass-inspired album “Up on the Ridge,” he called several musicians who became his friends over the years to collaborate on the project. One of those friends was Chris Thile, a talented mandolin player and singer-songwriter whose two bands, Nickel Creek and the Punch Brothers, are critically acclaimed bluegrass acts.
Bentley flew to New York to record with Thile and the Punch Brothers, and the experience has become one of his fondest memories. When talking about the musicians, he said, “It’s like being in the post-graduate school of bluegrass, they are all so talented on their own, not just in bluegrass but Bach and Beethoven and all kinds of music. I remember working on the album in their studio in Brooklyn, singing and looking out the window and I could see the Statue of Liberty. That was pretty cool.”
He brought other established bluegrass and country musicians into the studio to record for the project as well. A few guest appearances include Miranda Lambert, Alison Krauss, Jamey Johnson, and even one of the biggest contemporary bluegrass icons Del McCoury.
When Bentley hit the road to tour the album, The Travelin’ McCourys, a family band featuring brothers Rob and Ronnie, acted as his road band.
“Up on the Ridge” contains plenty of bluegrass-inspired music and lyrics. Its title track is anthemic, celebrating a self-reliant life lived off the grid. Another single from the album, “Draw Me a Map,” is a tender love song featuring two wandering characters trying to find their way back to each other. But because of Bentley’s wide range of influences and the artistic freedom he channeled during the recording process, others influences also made their presence known on the record: country, singer-songwriter, and Americana.
A Voice Solidified
Bentley has long been known as one of country music’s best-selling artists. At the time of the “Up on the Ridge” release in 2010, he had already achieved No. 1 hit status with several singles like “Free and Easy (Down the Road I Go),” “Every Mile a Memory,” and “Come a Little Closer.” Fans of traditional bluegrass wondered if the country star could properly honor the genre. Though even Bentley had some reservations about releasing a bluegrass record, especially in the beginning, the president and CEO of Capitol Records Nashville eventually put his mind at ease.
Although the album’s singles didn’t achieve commercial success like his other contemporary country songs did, the album held its own.
The title track broke into the top 30 on country charts, no easy feat for a bluegrass-laden tune. The album reached the No. 1 spot on Billboard’s Top Bluegrass Albums chart and it even reached the second spot on the Top Country Albums chart. Eventually, “Up on the Ridge” was nominated for Album of the Year at the Country Music Association awards and the Academy of Country Music Awards. It was also nominated for a Grammy in the Best Country Album category.
“I can assure you that he is a true-blue grasser, a serious student of the music, and someone who has used his industry clout to help further the careers of his bluegrass buddies when the opportunities arose.”
When Bentley first released “Up on the Ridge,” he simply hoped one of the singles would break into country radio. Today, as Lawless previously put it, Bentley’s album stands as a monumental “tribute to the bluegrass and acoustic Americana music that transformed his artistic vision when he first encountered it live.”
