Joe Mullins is an American banjo player, vocalist, band leader, and radio broadcaster. He plays bluegrass and gospel music.
Biography
Joe Mullins was born and raised in southwestern Ohio. His father Paul "Moon" Mullins was a respected fiddler and broadcaster of a daytime bluegrass show on Classic Country Radio for more than four decades.[1]
Mullins toured and recorded as a member of the Traditional Grass, the band he founded with his father, from 1983 until 1995.[2] The band signed to Rebel Records and recorded four albums for the label between 1992 and 1995[3] following four previous independent projects on cassette.[4]
In 1995, Mullins purchased WBZI Radio in Xenia, Ohio. He later purchased WKFI (Wilmington), WEDI (Eaton), FM 100.3 (Xenia / Dayton / Springfield), and FM 105.5 (Eaton / Dayton), of which he operates all as Real Roots Radio under Town and Country Broadcasting, Inc., having been renamed in March 2018 from My Classic Country.[1][5][6]
In 1995, Mullins released Just A Five String & Fiddle, an album of duets with the late fiddler Gerald Evans, with whom he'd played in Traditional Grass.[7][8]
In 2006, Mullins formed his band The Radio Ramblers to promote his radio stations. Members included Adam McIntosh (guitar), Evan McGregor (fiddle), Mike Terry (mandolin), and Tim Kidd (bass). The band released their first CD in 2007 called Tuned In (independent MULLINS-3272-CD)[10] followed by their first Rebel Records release Rambler’s Call album in 2010.[3]
On July 27, 2013, Joe Mullins and the Radio Ramblers made their Grand Ole Opry debut, and have continued to make regular appearances ever since.[13]
Mullins released the album Another Day From Life in 2014.[14]
In 2015, Mullins and the Radio Ramblers released the album Sacred Memories which featured contributions from Ricky Skaggs, Rhonda Vincent, and the Isaacs and won two IBMA awards for Gospel Recording of the Year in 2016 and 2017.[15][16][17]
In 2015, Mullins began hosting a syndicated radio show called Front Porch Fellowship on Singing News Radio which is aired across much of the U.S. and Canada each week.[18]
Mullins released the album The Story We Tell in 2017. The Radio Ramblers included Mullins (banjo), Mike Terry (mandolin), Jason Barie (fiddle), Duane Sparks (guitar), and Randy Barnes (bass).[1][19]
Joe and the Radio Ramblers changed recording labels with a November 13, 2018 announcement and have released their debut album on Billy Blue Records on March 29, 2019 titled For the Record.[20]
Joe is widely considered one of the world's most accomplished five-string banjo players in the traditional bluegrass style. Although primarily a Scruggs style player, his playing is also influenced by the work of J.D. Crowe, Sonny Osborne, and Don Reno. Vocal influences are apparent from the Osborne Brothers and Paul Williams.
Awards
Mullins has won the following International Bluegrass Music Association (IBMA) awards:[17]
1998: Song of the Year "Lonesome Old Home", Longview (artists), Ed Hamilton (songwriter), Longview (project), Rounder Records
1998: Recorded Event of the Year, Longview, Longview, Rounder Records
2001: Instrumental Recording of the Year award (for his participation on the collaborative album Knee Deep In Bluegrass)
2006: Album of the Year (for his work on Celebration of Life for Skaggs Family Records)
2012: Emerging Artist of the Year - Joe Mullins and the Radio Ramblers
2013: Liner Notes, written by Fred Bartenstein, They're Playing My Song, Joe Mullins & The Radio Ramblers (artist), Rebel Records
2016: Broadcaster of the Year - Joe Mullins
2016: Liner Notes, written by Joe's son Daniel Mullins - The Blues Are Still The Blues, The Traditional Grass (artist), Rebel Records
2016: Gospel Recording of the Year (for the song "All Dressed Up” from his Sacred Memories album for Rebel Records)
2017: Gospel Recording of the Year (for the song "Sacred Memories" with Ricky Skaggs and Sharon White, from the Sacred Memories album for Rebel Records)
2018: Liner Notes, written by Craig Havighurst - The Story We Tell, Joe Mullins and the Radio Ramblers (Rebel Records)
2018: Song of the Year "If I'd Have Wrote That Song", Joe Mullins and the Radio Ramblers (artists), Larry Cordle, Larry Shell, & James Silvers (songwriters) from The Story We Tell album (Rebel Records)
Mullins has also been awarded by the Society for the Preservation of Bluegrass Music of America (SPBGMA)[21]
2011: Broadcaster of the Year - Joe Mullins
2018: Bluegrass Gospel Group of the Year - Joe Mullins and the Radio Ramblers [22]
2023: Banjo Player of the Year
Other projects
Mullins organizes the Southern Ohio Indoor Music Festival each March and November at the Roberts Centre in Wilmington, Ohio.[23][24]
In 2014, Mullins was elected to the IBMA Board of Directors and in 2016, he was elected as Chairperson of the IBMA Board of Directors.[25]
In September 2017, Mullins was re-elected as Chairperson of the IBMA Board of Directors.[26]
Personal life
Mullins lives near Cedarville, Ohio with his wife Tammy, son Daniel, and daughter Sarah. He is the son of the late Paul and Prudence Mullins, and older brother to Christy Mullins Jones.[27]
2014: Joe Mullins & the Radio Ramblers with Special Guests the Centerville Alternative Strings (recorded March 9, 2013 at Centerville (Ohio) High School)[53]
Music Instruction
1996: Joe Mullins AcuTab Transcription Vol 1 (AcuTab)[54]
