Dan Tyminski life and biography

Dan Tyminski is a bluegrass composer, vocalist, and instrumentalist. He is a member of the band Alison Krauss and Union Station and has released two solo albums, Carry Me Across the Mountain (2000), on the Doobie Shea Records label, and Wheels (2008), on the Rounder Records label.

Daniel Tyminski, who plays guitar and sings for Alison Krauss + Union Station, remains one of the most dynamic and talented performers on the bluegrass scene. Although he had already earned a strong following, Tyminski found himself in the media spotlight after providing the singing voice for George Clooney in O Brother, Where Art Thou? His performance of "I Am a Man of Constant Sorrow" won single of the year honors at the 2001 CMA Awards and a 2001 Grammy for country collaboration of the year. Including his tally with Union Station, he has won 10 Grammys.

Before becoming a member of Union Station in 1994, Tyminski played mandolin and sang in the Lonesome River Band. Tyminski's love and feel for traditional bluegrass didn't come from growing up in the southern Appalachians but rather in Vermont. He credits his brother Stan with getting him hooked on the guitar and mandolin at the age of 6. While Stan was in the Navy and home on leave, he left his mandolin with his younger brother. Tyminski attributes his love for traditional bluegrass to such musicians and singers as Del McCoury, Ricky Skaggs, Tony Rice, Larry Sparks and Jimmy Martin. In 2003, Rounder reissued Tyminski's solo album, Carry Me Across the Mountain, first released in 2000 by Doobie Shea Records.

With Union Station, Tyminski has participated in a string of highly regarded and commercially successful albums, including So Long So Wrong (1997), New Favorite (2001), Live (2001), and Lonely Runs Both Ways (2004). He also appears on the Krauss solo album Forget About It (1999) and on her multi-platinum 1995 compilation Now That I’ve Found You: A Collection, as well as 2007’s A Hundred Miles or More: A Collection. The band has been showered in Grammy, CMA, and IBMA awards, among others, and Tyminski has been named Male Vocalist of the Year by the IBMA four times and was recognized as 2004’s Male Vocalist of the Year by the Society for the Preservation of Bluegrass Music in America (SPBGMA).

Tyminski has also released two acclaimed solo albums, the soul-stirring Carry Me Across the Mountain (2000) and the Grammy-nominated Wheels (2008), a riveting collection that blends the sophistication of Union Station with the intensity of Dan’s hard-driving approach. Wheels was named the 2009 Album of the Year by the International Bluegrass Music Association.

Dan actively tours with both Union Station and his own Dan Tyminski Band, and has also appeared as part of Vince Gill’s band and has toured with Jerry Douglas and with jazz great Charlie Haden. In 2004, Dan was invited by Eric Clapton to participate in Clapton’s Crossroads Guitar Festival, and then again as a part of Union Station in 2007. He has been featured in Rolling Stone, Country Weekly, CNN.com, and by the Associated Press, and has performed on The Late Show with David Letterman, The Tonight Show, Late Night with Conan O’Brien, the Grammy Awards, Good Morning America, the CMA Awards, the ACM Awards, and even Sesame Street. He is also a highly regarded session musician and vocalist, having contributed to projects for Leann Rimes, Brad Paisley, Joan Osborne, Reba McEntire, Dolly Parton, and Alan Jackson.

Adding one more eclectic achievement to his resume, Dan was recently invited by Martin & Co. Guitars to design his very own signature edition. The new version is modeled after his own beloved 1946 Martin D-28, which was Dan’s first guitar.

When not on the road, Tyminski lives in the Nashville area and works on his golf game. He often participates in charity and celebrity golf tournaments, and was named by Golf Digest as one of the top ten golfers in music.

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