BluegrassCountry.org is pleased to present Missy Raines as our Artist of the Month for November. Missy is one of Bluegrass music’s most prominent and well respected bass players. With a sharp mind for business, Missy, who is now based in the Nashville area, serves on the Board of Directors of the International Bluegrass Music Association. Our own Lee Michael Demsey chatted with her a few months back, while attending the IBMA conference in Louisville, Kentucky.

Missy Raines was voted “Bass Player of the Year” by the International Bluegrass Music Association for 1998,1999, 2000, 2001 and 2004. She was also named the 1999 “Bass Fiddle Player of the Year” by the Society for the Preservation of Bluegrass Music in America, and Bluegrass Now magazine readers voted Missy the 1999 “Fans’ Choice” Bass Player. Missy is the only woman to receive this honor. Missy’s solo recording “My Place In The Sun” (MR Records, 1999) was named one of the Top Five Bluegrass recordings of 1998 by the Chicago Tribune. It was also nominated for Instrumental Album of the Year in 1999 by the IBMA.

Born in Cumberland, MD, Missy grew up in Short Gap, West Virginia. She began playing guitar at age ten but switched to bass by age twelve. During the next six years, she played traditional bluegrass, old-time and newgrass with several different regional bands, traveling across West Virginia, Maryland, Washington, DC, Pennsylvania and Virginia. In 1981, she joined the Virginia-based group Cloud Valley. During her tenure with this band, Missy performed in a national tour of Harry Chapin’s Broadway musical Cotton Patch Gospel.

During the 80’s, Missy toured with Eddie and Martha Adcock, as well as The Masters featuring Josh Graves, Kenny Baker, Jesse McReynolds and Eddie Adcock.

In 1994 Missy took a brief departure from the bluegrass scene to play rootsy, rock n roll, new hillbilly music with the east-Tennessee based band the Brother Boys. Together they recorded one album, Preseley’s Grocery on Sugar Hill which received critical acclaim in People magazine.

In 1995, Missy joined Claire Lynch’s Front Porch String Band and toured and recorded with her for the next 6 years appearing on two of Claire’s Rounder release, including the Grammy nominated, Silver and Gold and LoveLight. For the last several years, Missy has been touring full time with award-winning guitarist Jim Hurst performing as a duo and recording 2 CD’s, TWO and SYNERGY available on Pinecastle Records.

2005 will see Missy performing in several different settings. She and Jim Hurst will continue to perform as a duo and the two of them will also be performing with Claire Lynch as she comes out of a musical hibernation and hits the road again with a new recording on Rounder slated for release sometime next year.

Missy is also assembling her own “dream” band and is currently in the studio working on her next solo project which will feature this new sound. She plans to tour with this band next year as well. The sound will be a slight step left of the bluegrass center with percussion and keyboards but will be deeply rooted in the traditional music that Missy grew up with.