One of the most recorded guitarists in history, Brent Mason has created distinctive riffs on more than a thousand hit songs. He has been named the Country Music Association’s Musician of the Year twice and the Academy of Country Music’s Guitarist of the Year a record eleven times. Born in northwestern Ohio, in the small town of Van Wert, Mason taught himself to play guitar at age five. After high school, he moved to Nashville and got a job with the Don Kelley Band, playing at the Stagecoach Lounge near Opryland. Chet Atkins invited Mason to appear on his 1985 album, Stay Tuned, which led to invitations to work with Lee Greenwood, Dan Seals, Randy Travis, and Keith Whitley. Throughout the 1990s, Mason was one of the most in-demand session guitarists in Nashville as country music sales soared. He played on hits by Brooks & Dunn, Glen Campbell, Alan Jackson, George Jones, Toby Keith, Martina McBride, Reba McEntire, Tim McGraw, George Strait, Aaron Tippin, Steve Wariner, and Trisha Yearwood. In the 2000s, Mason won a Grammy for Country Instrumental of the Year for his work on Brad Paisley’s “Cluster Pluck,” and more recently he played guitar on Blake Shelton’s “God’s Country,” the CMA Single of the Year in 2019, and has played on hits by Luke Combs, Vince Gill, Darius Rucker, Shania Twain, Carrie Underwood, and Chris Young. Mason also has recorded two albums of his own, and is a songwriter whose compositions have been recorded by Jim Ed Brown & the Browns, Lee Greenwood, Johnny Mathis, Collin Raye, Billie Joe Spears, Conway Twitty, and Keith Whitley. The interview will be illustrated with archival photos and audio and film clips. Following the program, Mason will sign commemorative Hatch Show Print posters. Ford Theater. Included with Museum admission. Program ticket required. Free to Museum members.

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