Forget the New Grass Revival connections, the bluegrass and country hooks, and let go of expectations -- John Cowan opens this album up with a defiant roar of a tune driven by electronic drums and batteries of guitars, as well as bass tracks that will make some subwoofers quit under the strain. There are bluegrass and country elements to be had throughout, but Cowan isn't constrained by them -- or constricted by a need to overcome the connections. What has come out of this is a collection of songs steeped in Americana that leaves the listener's head spinning with the changes in direction. It's good work, but not so easy to get used to. ~ Steven E. McDonald, All Music Guide
Sam Bush (Mandolin), Karla Bonoff (Vocals (Background)), Ashley Cleveland (Vocals (Background)), Matt Rollings (Piano), Wendy Waldman (Vocals (Background)), Wendy Waldman (Producer), Wendy Waldman (Liner Notes), Danny Tate (Vocals (Background)), Barbara Lamb (Fiddle), Larry Atamanuik (Drums), Scott Babcock (Percussion), Scott Babcock (Drums), Michael Boshears (Engineer), Michael Boshears (Production Assistant), Michael Boshears (Mixing), John Cowan (Main Performer), Chad Cromwell (Drums), Kenny Edwards (Vocals (Background)), Kenny Greenberg (Guitar (Electric)), Bernie Grundman (Mastering), Byron House (Bass (Acoustic)), Ronnie McCoury (Mandolin), Greg Morrow (Drums), John Randall (Vocals (Background)), Michael Rhodes (Bass), Darrell Scott (Bouzouki), Darrell Scott (Mandolin), Darrell Scott (Vocals (Background)), Harry Stinson (Vocals (Background)), Scott Vestal (Banjo), Scott Vestal (Vocals), Reese Wynans (Organ), Reese Wynans (Keyboards), Senor McGuire (Photography), Randy Kohrs (Dobro), Randy Kohrs (Vocals), Randy Kohrs (Lap Steel Guitar), Jeff Autry (Guitar), Jeff Autry (Vocals), Jim Hurst (Guitar (Acoustic)), Clair Hicks (Photography), T.J. Zark (Art Direction), Michael Kelsh (Vocals (Background))
Representative Albums: "Soul'd Out," "New Tattoo," "John Cowan"
Biography
John Cowan got his start in Louisville, where he played in scrappy rock outfits like Everyday People and Louisville Sound Department. In 1974, he auditioned as a bassist and vocalist for New Grass Revival, and together with Sam Bush and later bandmates Béla Fleck and Pat Flynn, led the charge of the 1980s' bluegrass revival. New Grass Revival disbanded in 1990 when Fleck departed for a solo career, but Cowan didn't slow down. He did distance himself a bit from NGR's acoustic foundation, however, choosing to tour as a solo rock act as well as front the country-rock band Sky Kings (with Poco's Rusty Young). But despite writing an album, arranging the artwork, releasing a single, and setting a release date (March 27, 1997), the Sky Kings' full-length sat on a shelf. Cowan next busied himself with solo work for the Sugar Hill label. His releases there included an ambitious self-titled effort in 2000, as well as the lower-key Always Take Me Back in 2002. 2000 had also seen the final release of the Sky Kings album From Out of the Blue; the set included the entire original LP, as well as demos and songs that were subsequently completed for the project. ~ Johnny Loftus, All Music Guide
This article is missing citations or needs footnotes. Please help add inline citations to guard against copyright violations and factual inaccuracies. (May 2008)
After the breakup of New Grass Revival, Cowan released a soul record of covers, called "Soul'd Out", on the Sugar Hill Records label in 1990.
Cowan appeared as a duo with Sam Bush on the PBS series, Lonesome Pine Special in 1992, and also appeared with other artists on the program.
From 1988 to 1996 Cowan teamed with Rusty Young of Poco, Bill Lloyd of Foster and Lloyd and Pat Simmons of the Doobie Brothers in a band originally called Four Wheel Drive which was later changed to The Sky Kings. Several singles were released but failed to chart well. Two albums were recorded but not released by RCA until 1997 after the group's demise as The Sky Kings, "Out of the Blue".
In addition, throughout the 1990s, Cowan picked up session work singing harmony vocals and/or playing bass on recordings of Travis Tritt, Steve Earle, Garth Brooks, and Wynonna.
From 1996 through 1998, Cowan was the bassist and harmony vocalist in Sam Bush's touring band.
The new century brought a blues record from Cowan. By 2002, his projects on Sugar Hill turned more to his "newgrass" stylings.
In 2006, Cowan left Sugar Hill and went to the independent label Pinecastle Records. In 2008, Cowan was chosen to participate in a movie on the life of Billy Graham, titled, Billy: The Early Years.[1]
