Rick Faris was born to play music.
Most kids learn to fish or hunt from their dad. Rick learned G-runs, fiddle tunes and musical insights from his.
Rick’s dad was a touring musician that rendered Bluegrass in the Ozarks, swung wide in western swing bands in dance halls and even played with legends like Reba McIntyre on Hee Haw, Nashville Now and the Grand Ole Opry. Rick’s love for music is one that can only be carefully cultivated when conditions are right and the stars just align. Rick says, “I didn’t know anyone who didn’t play or at least have an instrument in their house until I was 5.” The family of a humble musician’s means didn’t have a radio in the car so the 4 Faris boys spent the 9-hour trips up to grandma’s house singing and entertaining each other.
The four brother plus mom and dad made up the award winning Faris Family Bluegrass Band. They played festivals, taught Bluegrass in the Schools programs and shared real connections for the 12 years they toured professionally. After the family decided to stop touring, Rick was looking for a new full-time gig. He got his first break when the Bluegrass stalwart, Greg Cahill, called and asked him to audition for Special Consensus. The job was to be transformative for Faris because Greg hired him to play mandolin rather than the guitar he had been honing since he was a child. With 5 weeks to learn the mandolin and win the audition, Rick Faris stepped into the next stage of his career. After 6 years, 1 Grammy-Nomination and 2 IBMA Awards he switched back home to guitar and the band picked up another 3 IBMA Awards and a 2nd Grammy-Nomination. Rick spent a total of 11 years with the globetrotting Special Consensus. Under Greg Cahill he learned the meaning of professionalism and giving back to the Bluegrass community .
Rick’s strong desire to shine out with a genuine connection to the fans and players on stage caught Stephen Mougin’s attention. His label, Dark Shadow Recording, signed Rick Faris on as a solo artist in September of 2018. Rick started writing songs and selecting the right personnel that could handle anything. With watertight harmony singers and mind-blowing pickers, Rick set out to show the world what his brand of Bluegrass sounds like.
The first single, the blazing-fast title track written by Rick, “Breaking In Lonesome”, was released in March of 2019. It debuted at #2 on the Bluegrass Today Charts only to climb to #1 the next week. The album and its tracks are still appearing on the charts. Rick’s album, “Breaking In Lonesome”, was ranked #6 in the Top 12 Albums of 2019 by Bluegrass Today only a month after the albums official release in November.
“Rick Faris has constantly wowed me with his powerful vocals and virtuoso mandolin and guitar playing…I immediately noticed he is a great singer live…In short, I thought of the guy as the vanguard of younger musicians who are carrying Bluegrass forward…Bluegrass music might be entering its 9th decade, but Breaking in Lonesome proves it’s more vital than ever, and this project is a perfect showcase for one of its truly bright lights. ” – Tim Stafford of Blue Highway
Rick’s latest release on Dark Shadow Recording “The Next Mountain” that released in November of 2021 has been on the charts since the release of the first single of Deep River which debuted at #2 on the Bluegrass Today charts and then went to #1 the following week! A year and a half later it’s still on the charts and going into IBMA week 2022 the Roots Music Report album chart had TNM at #1 for their Contemporary Bluegrass Chart.
Rick was also just awarded the “New Artist of the Year” award at the 2022 International Bluegrass Music Association’s Awards ceremony in September.
