The Lonesome River Band is an American bluegrass band from Meadows of Dan, Virginia. Formed in 1983, the group originally consisted of guitarist and vocalist Tim Austin, bassist and vocalist Jerry McMillan, mandolin and fiddle player Steve Thomas, and banjo player Rick Williams. Since Austin's departure in 1995, the band has featured none of its original members. The group's current lineup includes Sammy Shelor on banjo (since 1990), Mike Hartgrove on fiddle (from 2002 to 2005, and since 2008), Jesse Smathers on guitar and vocals (since 2015), Adam Miller on mandolin and vocals (since 2021), and Kameron Keller on bass (since 2021).
History The Lonesome River Band (LRB) was formed in mid-1983 by guitarist and vocalist Tim Austin, bassist and vocalist Jerry McMillan, mandolin and fiddler player Steve Thomas, and banjo player Rick Williams. Thomas and Williams left early on, replaced by Jeff Midkiff and Mike Jones, respectively. Allen Watkins replaced Jones for "most of 1984", before Billy Wheeler took his place in time for the recording of the band's debut album I Guess Heartaches Are in Style This Year. Just before recording began for a self-titled second album in March 1986, Rick Allred replaced Wheeler, although after just "a few weeks" he was replaced by Randy Driskill. The new lineup released The Lonesome River Band later in the year, before Midkiff left in June 1987 — he was replaced briefly by Ray Legere, followed by Adam Steffey; shortly after the latter's arrival in September, Driskill also departed, with Brian Fesler taking over in November. Fiddle on 1988's Saturday Night, Sunday Morning was performed by Steve Thomas.
During the summer of 1988, the LRB lost both Steffey and Fesler, with Dan Tyminski taking over initially on banjo before switching to mandolin. Tyminski also took over most of Austin's lead vocal duties, while Dale Perry replaced Fesler on banjo — both members debuted on 1989's Looking for Yourself. By September 1990, founding member Jerry McMillan had been replaced by Ronnie Bowman, while Perry had also made way for Sammy Shelor. The lineup of Austin, Tyminski, Bowman and Shelor was the band's first to release two albums without changing personnel — Carrying the Tradition in 1991 and Old Country Town in 1994 — although both Tyminski and Shelor spent a few months away from the band during 1992, before ultimately returning. In 1995, Austin became the last original member of LRB to leave the group, as he chose to "devote more time to working in his home recording studio, Doobie Shea". Following Austin's departure, Shelor and Bowman subsequently took over as bandleaders.
Tyminski left at the same time as Austin, with the pair replaced by guitarist Kenny Smith and mandolin player Don Rigsby for the recording of 1996's One Step Forward (Rigsby joined Bowman on lead vocals). Finding the Way and Talkin' to Myself followed in 1998 and 2000, respectively, the latter of which saw the introduction of the band's first full-time fiddle player, Rickie Simpkins. Talkin' to Myself was also the last LRB album to feature Bowman, Rigsby and Smith, all of whom left (alongside Simpkins) towards the end of 2001. The next year's Window of Time introduced new members Brandon Rickman on guitar and vocals, Jeff Parker on mandolin and vocals, Mike Hartgrove on fiddle, and Irl Hees on bass. Hees was replaced by John Wade and the band released Head On Into Heartache in 2005.
The LRB went through numerous lineup changes during late 2005. In August, Hartgrove left to rejoin Doyle Lawson's group Quicksilver; in September, Wade was replaced by Barry Berrier; and in October, Rickman left to focus on his work as a songwriter — replaced by Shannon Slaughter in January. The new lineup recorded The Road with No End that year, which also introduced Matt Leadbetter as the group's first official dobro player. LRB's lineup changed almost entirely again during 2007. In January, Parker was replaced by Andy Ball; in February, Berrier and Slaughter were replaced by Mike Anglin and a returning Brandon Rickman, respectively; and in December, the band announced the departure of Leadbetter and the return of Mike Hartgrove on fiddle. This lineup remained stable for two years, releasing No Turning Back in 2008 and Still Learning in 2010. Anglin was replaced by Barry Reed in September 2010. Ball also left in January 2011, with Randy Jones taking his place in March.
In 2012, the lineup of Rickman, Jones, Hartgrove, Shelor and Reed released a series of three extended plays titled Chronology, featuring re-recorded versions of songs from previous releases. This was followed by a new studio album, Turn on a Dime, in 2014. This was the last LRB release to feature Jones, who was replaced in June 2015 by Jesse Smathers. The new incarnation persisted for the next six years, releasing Bridging the Tradition in 2016, Mayhayley's House in 2017, Outside Looking In in 2019, and the tribute album Singing Up There: A Tribute to the Easter Brothers in 2021. In June 2021, long-time guitarist and vocalist Brandon Rickman left LRB, with Smathers taking his place on mandolin and Adam Miller joining as the band's new guitarist. The following month, Barry Reed also left the group, to be replaced by new bassist Kameron Keller. With new members Miller and Keller, the LRB released Heyday in 2022 and The Winning Hand in 2024.
Members Current ImageNameYears activeInstrumentsRelease contributionsSammy Shelor1990–presentall Lonesome River Band (LRB) releases from Carrying the Tradition (1991) onwardsMike Hartgrovefiddleall LRB releases from Window of Hope (2002) onwards, except The Road with No End (2006)Jesse Smathers2015–presentall LRB releases from Bridging the Tradition (2016) onwardsAdam Miller2021–presentKameron Keller
Former ImageNameYears activeInstrumentsRelease contributionsTim Austin1983–1995all LRB releases from I Guess Heartaches Are in Style This Year (1985) to Old Country Town (1994)Jerry McMillan1983–1990Steve Thomas1983Rick WilliamsnoneJeff Midkiff1983–1987Mike Jones1983–1984noneAllen Watkins1984Billy Wheeler1984–1986I Guess Heartaches Are in Style This Year (1985)Rick Allred1986noneRandy Driskill1986–1987The Lonesome River Band (1986)Ray Legere1987noneAdam Steffey1987–1988Saturday Night, Sunday Morning (1988)Brian Fesler1987–1988Dan Tyminski1988–1995Dale Perry1988–1990Looking for Yourself (1989)Ronnie Bowman1990–2001all LRB releases from Carrying the Tradition (1991) to Talkin' to Myself (2000)Don Rigsby1995–2001Kenny Smith1995–2001Rickie Simpkins1999–2001Jeff Parker2001–2007Brandon RickmanIrl Hees2001–2003Window of Time (2002)John Wade2003–2005Head On Into Heartache (2005)Barry Berrier2005–2007The Road with No End (2006)Shannon Slaughter2006–2007Matt Leadbetter2006–2007dobroAndy Ball2007–2011Mike Anglin2007–2010Barry Reed2010–2021all LRB releases from Chronology, Volume One (2012) to Singing Up There: A Tribute to the Easter Brothers (2021)Randy Jones2011–2015
Timeline
Lineups PeriodMembersReleases1983Tim Austin — guitar, lead vocals Steve Thomas — mandolin, fiddle, backing vocals Rick Williams — banjo, backing vocals Jerry McMillan — bass, lead vocalsrowspan="3" 1983–1984Tim Austin — guitar, lead vocals Jeff Midkiff — mandolin, fiddle, backing vocals Mike Jones — banjo, backing vocals Jerry McMillan — bass, lead vocals1984Tim Austin — guitar, lead vocals Jeff Midkiff — mandolin, fiddle, backing vocals Allen Watkins — banjo, backing vocals Jerry McMillan — bass, lead vocals1984–March 1986Tim Austin — guitar, lead vocals Jeff Midkiff — mandolin, fiddle, backing vocals Billy Wheeler — banjo, guitar, backing vocals Jerry McMillan — bass, lead vocalsI Guess Heartaches Are in Style This Year (1985)March 1986Tim Austin — guitar, lead vocals Jeff Midkiff — mandolin, fiddle, backing vocals Rick Allred — banjo, backing vocals Jerry McMillan — bass, lead vocalsMarch 1986–June 1987Tim Austin — guitar, lead vocals Jeff Midkiff — mandolin, fiddle, backing vocals Randy Driskill — banjo, backing vocals Jerry McMillan — bass, lead vocalsThe Lonesome River Band (1986)Summer 1987Tim Austin — guitar, lead vocals Ray Legere — mandolin, fiddle, backing vocals Randy Driskill — banjo, backing vocals Jerry McMillan — bass, lead vocalsrowspan="2" September 1987Tim Austin — guitar, lead vocals Adam Steffey — mandolin, backing vocals Randy Driskill — banjo, backing vocals Jerry McMillan — bass, lead vocalsNovember 1987–summer 1988Tim Austin — guitar, lead vocals Adam Steffey — mandolin, backing vocals Brian Fesler — banjo, backing vocals Jerry McMillan — bass, lead vocalsSaturday Night, Sunday Morning (1988)Fall 1988–summer 1990Tim Austin — guitar, backing vocals Dan Tyminski — mandolin, lead vocals Dale Perry — banjo, backing vocals Jerry McMillan — bass, lead vocalsLooking for Yourself (1989)September 1990–1995Tim Austin — guitar, backing vocals Dan Tyminski — mandolin, lead vocals Sammy Shelor — banjo, guitar, backing vocals Ronnie Bowman — bass, lead vocalsCarrying the Tradition (1991) Old Country Town (1994)1995–1999Kenny Smith — guitar, backing vocals Don Rigsby — mandolin, lead vocals Sammy Shelor — banjo, guitar, backing vocals Ronnie Bowman — bass, lead vocalsOne Step Forward (1996) Finding the Way (1998)1999–2001Kenny Smith — guitar, backing vocals Don Rigsby — mandolin, lead vocals Rickie Simpkins — fiddle, backing vocals Sammy Shelor — banjo, guitar, backing vocals Ronnie Bowman — bass, lead vocalsTalkin' to Myself (2000)2001–2003Brandon Rickman — guitar, lead vocals Jeff Parker — mandolin, lead vocals Mike Hartgrove — fiddle Sammy Shelor — banjo, guitar, backing vocals Irl Hees — bass, backing vocalsWindow of Time (2002)2003–August 2005Brandon Rickman — guitar, lead vocals Jeff Parker — mandolin, lead vocals Mike Hartgrove — fiddle Sammy Shelor — banjo, guitar, backing vocals John Wade — bass, backing vocalsHead On Into Heartache (2005)August–September 2005Brandon Rickman — guitar, lead vocals Jeff Parker — mandolin, lead vocals Sammy Shelor — banjo, guitar, backing vocals John Wade — bass, backing vocalsrowspan="3" September–October 2005Brandon Rickman — guitar, lead vocals Jeff Parker — mandolin, lead vocals Sammy Shelor — banjo, guitar, backing vocals Barry Berrier — bass, backing vocalsJanuary–June 2006Shannon Slaughter — guitar, lead vocals Jeff Parker — mandolin, lead vocals Sammy Shelor — banjo, guitar, backing vocals Barry Berrier — bass, backing vocalsJune 2006–January 2007Shannon Slaughter — guitar, lead vocals Jeff Parker — mandolin, lead vocals Sammy Shelor — banjo, guitar, backing vocals Barry Berrier — bass, backing vocals Matt Leadbetter — dobroThe Road with No End (2006)January–February 2007Shannon Slaughter — guitar, lead vocals Andy Ball — mandolin, lead vocals Sammy Shelor — banjo, guitar, backing vocals Barry Berrier — bass, backing vocals Matt Leadbetter — dobrorowspan="2" February–December 2007Brandon Rickman — guitar, lead vocals Andy Ball — mandolin, lead vocals Sammy Shelor — banjo, guitar, backing vocals Mike Anglin — bass, backing vocals Matt Leadbetter — dobroJanuary 2008–September 2010Brandon Rickman — guitar, lead vocals Andy Ball — mandolin, lead vocals Mike Hartgrove — fiddle Sammy Shelor — banjo, guitar, backing vocals Mike Anglin — bass, backing vocalsNo Turning Back (2008) Still Learning (2010)September 2010–January 2011Brandon Rickman — guitar, lead vocals Andy Ball — mandolin, lead vocals Mike Hartgrove — fiddle Sammy Shelor — banjo, guitar, backing vocals Barry Reed — bass, backing vocalsMarch 2011–June 2015Brandon Rickman — guitar, lead vocals Randy Jones — mandolin, lead vocals Mike Hartgrove — fiddle Sammy Shelor — banjo, guitar, backing vocals Barry Reed — bass, backing vocalsChronology, Volume One (2012) Chronology, Volume Two (2012) Chronology, Volume Three (2012) Turn on a Dime (2014)June 2015–June 2021Brandon Rickman — guitar, lead vocals Jesse Smathers — mandolin, lead vocals Mike Hartgrove — fiddle Sammy Shelor — banjo, guitar, backing vocals