Bourgeois Guitar endorsers, Bryan Sutton named "Guitar Player of the Year" and Ricky Skaggs & Kentucky Thunder win "Instrumental Group of the Year" at the 2004 IBMA Awards! 

I started to write about the 2004 International Bluegrass Music Awards winners and  realized that Bryan Sutton and Ricky Skaggs & Kentucky Thunder took the SAME honors as last year!! Bryan has in fact won the IBMA award for "Guitar Player of the Year" in 2000, 2003 and 2004! Ricky & Kentucky Thunder has taken the award for "Instrumental Group of the Year" for 1998, 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003 and now 2004!! 

 

In addition to his award for "Guitar Player of the Year", Bryan's CD, "Bluegrass Guitar" was a runner up for "Instrumental Album of the Year". If you haven't heard that recording, go now and get it from Sugar Hill Records. Bryan is holding his Bourgeois Country Boy Deluxe on the cover! 


Not to toot our own horn, but it feels pretty good to be able to count such guitar greats among our many fine Bourgeois endorsers. We would also like to thank  Cody Kilby of Kentucky Thunder.  He is pretty incredible too and he recently told Dana that his Brazilian Vintage D was the best guitar he'd ever owned. Anyone that has seen Kentucky Thunder has witnessed the veritable plethora of Bourgeois guitars that grace their stage. And to quote Ricky "I can't tell them what to play, they play what they love". So many thanks to the whole band including Paul Brewster  and Darrin Vincent. 

We also were pleased to see to bands in the "Emerging Artist" category that feature Bourgeois guitar pickers. Congratulations to Ted Pitney and King Wilkie for winning the "2004 Emerging Artist" award and also to  Bourgeois picker, John Osborne who tours with Rounder Records artist,  Alecia Nugent for being nominated. Watch out for these young hot-shots.  

 
John Osborne (right) with his Slope D onstage with Alecia Nugent and band.  


Brad Keller 		 Someone else worth watching at IBMA this year was Bourgeois Player Brad Keller of   the creaking tree string quartet.  These young folks from Canada played the Roots and Branches stage.   Check out their website to hear the swell music they are putting out.    

Congratulations to all the many fine artists at IBMA this year, both nominees and winners. 

For more information go to www.ibma.org          

        

Page last updated:  October 15, 2004