Dierks Bentley life and biography

Dierks Bentley is an American country music artist who has been signed to Capitol Records Nashville since 2003. That year, he released his self-titled debut album. Both it and its follow-up, 2005's Modern Day Drifter, are certified platinum in the United States. A third album, 2006's Long Trip Alone, is certified gold. It was followed in mid 2008 by a greatest hits package. His fourth album, Feel That Fire was released in February 2009.

Growing up in a nonmusical family in Phoenix, AZ, country singer Dierks Bentley got his country music education on his own, listening to recordings. A love of the music inspired him to move to Nashville at the age of 19, but he quickly grew discouraged by the lack of public and professional interest coming his way. It all changed when he walked into the Station Inn, a bar where the bluegrass faithful hang out. An all-night jam session recharged his batteries and he restarted pursuing gigs. He landed a job at the TNN television network doing research on classic country music and by night he worked on his demos. Capitol Records heard the artist, signed him, and released his self-titled debut, Dierks Bentley, in 2003, which yielded the impossibly catchy single "What Was I Thinkin'".

Bringing his love of Merle Haggard and Waylon Jennings more to the forefront, Modern Day Drifter followed two years later and became a Top Ten hit. In 2006 he returned with Long Trip Alone, a more polished effort that was commercial but not crass. Greatest Hits: Every Mile a Memory arrived in 2008, a bit early in his career for that, perhaps, but it did contain his key charting singles and added in fan-selected live tracks as a bonus, making it a nice summation of Bentley's work to date. A new album, Feel That Fire, was released in early 2009, followed by Up on the Ridge in 2010 .

Albums

* Don't Leave Me in Love (2001)
* Dierks Bentley (2003)
* Modern Day Drifter (2005)
* Long Trip Alone (2006)
* Greatest Hits/Every Mile a Memory 2003-2008 (2008)
* Feel That Fire (2009)
* Up on the Ridge (2010)

Read more