Gary Ruley and Mule Train is an acoustic bluegrass band based in Lexington, Virginia who also play

New Grass ''New Grass'' is a 1968 album by jazz saxophonist Albert Ayler released on Impulse! Records. The album mixed Ayler's familiar tenor saxophone playing with elements from R&B and other genres, including a soul horn section, backing singers, and r ...

and

Jazz music Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a maj ...

Early

Gary Ruley was born into a musical family in Lexington, Virginia, and first performed publicly at ten. He has performed with his father, Pat Ruley, his brother, Ronald "Rooster" Ruley, and his son, Jeremiah Ruley. "Sisters Sandy, Sue and Kathy . . were strong musicians in their own rights.""'Southern Inn And Out' Offers Musical Magic: Ruley And Mule Train's Latest CD Captures 2009 Christmas Show" by Doug Chase, review
The News-Gazette
online edition; November 24, 2010. The strong musical tradition of his hometown rooted the musical Ruley family in bluegrass and mountain music. The Ruleys were "ahead of the curve that became the explosion of bluegrass popularity commencing in the mid-1970s." Gary's musical journey was launched by many performances at a young age singing and flatpicking in and around Lexington, which was at the time a "hotbed of nightly entertainment of live

acoustic music Acoustic music is music that solely or primarily uses instruments that produce sound through acoustic means, as opposed to electric or electronic means. While all music was once acoustic, the retronym "acoustic music" appeared after the adv ...

. Many nights would feature four or five different bands performing at various venues." He grew up performing with diverse musicians for functions at

Washington and Lee University , mottoeng = "Not Unmindful of the Future" , established = , type = Private liberal arts university , academic_affiliations = , endowment = $2.092 billion (2021) , president = William C. Dudley , provost = Lena Hill , city = Lexington ...

Virginia Military Institute la, Consilio et Animis (on seal) , mottoeng = "In peace a glorious asset, In war a tower of strength""By courage and wisdom" (on seal) , established = , type = Public senior military college , accreditation = SACS , endowment = $696.8 mill ...

The University of Virginia The University of Virginia (UVA) is a public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia. Founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson, the university is ranked among the top academic institutions in the United States, with highly selective adm ...

, and various weddings and socials.

Performance

Gary Ruley's flat picking has earned him honors and awards at numerous festivals, and made him much sought-after regionally. He has played with many of the greats of the bluegrass genre—including those associated with the "first-generation" bluegrass legends, such as

Bill Monroe William Smith "Bill" Monroe (; September 13, 1911 – September 9, 1996) was an American mandolinist, singer, and songwriter, who created the bluegrass music genre. Because of this, he is often called the " Father of Bluegrass". The genre take ...

's fiddle player, Bobby Lester, as well as Buddy Pendleton who performed with Monroe, and

Mac Wiseman Malcolm Bell Wiseman (May 23, 1925 – February 24, 2019) was an American bluegrass and country singer. Early life He was born on May 23, 1925, in Crimora, Virginia. He attended school in New Hope, Virginia, and graduated from high school the ...

who played with both Monroe and Earl Flatt and Lester Scruggs. He's also played with Ricky Lee—Will Lee's father—who played with

Ralph Stanley Ralph Edmund Stanley (February 25, 1927 – June 23, 2016) was an American bluegrass artist, known for his distinctive singing and banjo playing. Stanley began playing music in 1946, originally with his older brother Carter Stanley as part of ...

, as well as

Doc Watson Arthel Lane "Doc" Watson (March 3, 1923 – May 29, 2012) was an American guitarist, songwriter, and singer of bluegrass, folk, country, blues, and gospel music. Watson won seven Grammy awards as well as a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. W ...

's partner Jack Lawrence. He's appeared with John Starling of

Seldom Scene The Seldom Scene is an American bluegrass band that formed in 1971 in Bethesda, Maryland. The band's original line-up comprised John Starling on lead vocals and guitar, Mike Auldridge on Dobro and baritone vocals, Ben Eldridge on banjo, Tom Gr ...

Mike Seeger Mike Seeger (August 15, 1933August 7, 2009) was an American folk musician and folklorist. He was a distinctive singer and an accomplished musician who played autoharp, banjo, fiddle, dulcimer, guitar, mouth harp, mandolin, dobro, jaw harp, a ...

Tony Rice David Anthony Rice (June 8, 1951 – December 25, 2020), known professionally as Tony Rice, was an American guitarist and bluegrass musician. He was an influential acoustic guitar player in bluegrass, progressive bluegrass, newgrass and a ...

, and the late

Vassar Clements Vassar Carlton Clements (April 25, 1928 – August 16, 2005) was an American jazz, swing, and bluegrass fiddler. Clements has been dubbed the Father of Hillbilly Jazz, an improvisational style that blends and borrows from swing, hot jazz, and ...

. He has also picked with some of the newer generation bluegrass greats such as

Darol Anger Darol Anger is an American violinist and founding member of The David Grisman Quintet. Career Darol Anger entered popular music at the age of 21 as a founding member of The David Grisman Quintet. Anger played fiddle to David Grisman's mandol ...

, two-time Grammy Winner Curtis Burch of

New Grass Revival New Grass Revival was an American progressive bluegrass band founded in 1971, and composed of Sam Bush, Courtney Johnson, Ebo Walker, Curtis Burch, Butch Robins, John Cowan, Béla Fleck and Pat Flynn. They were active between 1971 and 1989, r ...

, and opened for

Ricky Skaggs Rickie Lee Skaggs (born July 18, 1954), known professionally as Ricky Skaggs, is an American neotraditional country and bluegrass singer, musician, producer, and composer. He primarily plays mandolin; however, he also plays fiddle, guitar, ...

and

Kentucky Thunder Kentucky Thunder, or Ricky Skaggs and Kentucky Thunder, is the band that plays with American country and bluegrass singer Ricky Skaggs. Many members of the band have won numerous awards. Bandleader Ricky Skaggs plays mandolin and is the lea ...

(Skaggs himself joined Ralph Stanley's band as a teenager). Ruley has performed at major regional venues and music festivals, including: Lime Kiln Theater in Lexington, The Homestead in Hot Springs, Garth Newel Music Center in Warm Springs,

The Greenbrier The Greenbrier is a luxury resort located in the Allegheny Mountains near White Sulphur Springs in Greenbrier County, West Virginia, in the United States. Since 1778, visitors have traveled to this part of the state to "take the waters" of th ...

in White Sulphur Springs, and

FloydFest FloydFest is a Music and arts festival held annually near Floyd, Virginia, in the Blue Ridge Mountains History The event began in 2002, and spans five days each year with on-site camping and multiple stages featuring rock, bluegrass, reggae, f ...

in Floyd County. In

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and ...

he's appeared at Black Mountain and Union Grove He has also toured out West with the Keels in California and Utah and performed in

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the capital and most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population of 907,976 within the city proper, 1,558,755 in the urban ar ...

. He has appeared on

PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcaster and non-commercial, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly funded nonprofit organization and the most prominent provider of educat ...

radio.

Mule Train

Gary Ruley and Mule Train serves as a vehicle for bringing together the best musicians in the area for specific shows (or recordings). As Gary states, "There's so many great pickers who live in or near Rockbridge County that it's not difficult to get a bunch of friends together and make music." The musicians who appear with Ruley come with long musical pedigrees and from a number of other groups they've formed themselves. Will Lee's father joined the legendary

Stanley Brothers The Stanley Brothers were an American bluegrass duo of singer-songwriters and musicians, made up of brothers Carter Stanley (August 27, 1925 – December 1, 1966) and Ralph Stanley (February 25, 1927 – June 23, 2016). Ralph and Carter perfo ...

as lead guitarist after playing with Bluegrass Tar Heels, special protegées of

. David and Danny Knicely's grandfather, A. O. Knicely, played old time guitar, mandolin, and fiddle as leader of the Knicely Family Band. Danny and Will perform as a duo.

Larry Keel Larry Dwayne Keel (born November 25, 1968) is an American bluegrass musician from Southwest Virginia who has been performing since 1976. He was a founding member of Magraw Gap in 1990. He also performs with his wife, bassist Jenny Keel, in The L ...

, "arguably one of the greatest flat-picking guitarists in the world", has headed up The Larry Keel Experience—now rename
Larry Keel & Natural Bridge
��and also performs in Keller and the Keels with his wife Jenny. Will Lee, Larry Keel, and Danny Knicely were all founders of legendary Magraw Gap, a band that took first place at the

Telluride Bluegrass Festival Telluride Bluegrass Festival is an annual music festival in Telluride, Colorado hosted by Planet Bluegrass. Although traditionally the festival focuses on bluegrass music, it often features music from a variety of related genres. History The tow ...

in 1995. Brennan Gilmore originated Walker's Run
Kantara
and most recentl
Borden Grant

Ann Marie Calhoun Ann Marie Calhoun ( Simpson; born May 26, 1979) is an American classically trained violinist who has performed as a bluegrass and rock musician in a number of prominent acts, including Jethro Tull, Steve Vai, Widespread Panic, Dave Matthews Ba ...

( née Simpson) has toured with Jethro Tull's Ian Anderson and performed with Ringo Starr. Her sister Mary Simpson also plays fiddle and sings with the group when not performing with her ow
Whisky Rebellion
She joined

Yanni Yiannis Chryssomallis ( el, Γιάννης Χρυσομάλλης; born November 14, 1954), known professionally as Yanni ( ), is a Greek-American composer, keyboardist, pianist, and music producer. Yanni continues to use the musical shorthan ...

in September 2010, for his South American tour, also performing with the composer in

Puerto Rico Puerto Rico (; abbreviated PR; tnq, Boriken, ''Borinquen''), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, link=yes, Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, lit=Free Associated State of Puerto Rico), is a Caribbean island and unincorporated ...

. They are known for Thanksgiving and Christmas shows at the Southern Inn in Lexington, Virginia.Gary Ruley & Mule Train Thanksgiving Show at Lexington Golf and Country Club
" in rockbridgeweekly.com & The Alleghany Journal; 2010. Their latest release, ''The Southern Inn and Out'' (2010), is a recording of the 2009 Christmas show there. Since the Southern Inn burned in July 2010 other locations are used. The 2010 Christmas show, on December 30, takes place at the Southern Inn's new temporary location across town, and will feature regulars Danny Knicely, Will Lee, David Knicely, and Brennan Gilmore (with others). They were the 2010 winners of the

Rockbridge County, Virginia Rockbridge County is a county in the Shenandoah Valley on the western edge of the Commonwealth of Virginia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 22,650. Its county seat is the city of Lexington. Rockbridge County completely surrounds the in ...

Chamber of Commerce ''Rockbridge Community People's Choice Awards'' "Group Arts/Entertainer of the Year".Gary Ruley & Mule Train Pull Into VMI Parade Grounds July 3rd
" in ''Rockbridge Weekly'' and ''The Alleghany Journal'' Individual members have won a number of performance awards at music festivals through the years; some as a part of other groups.

Recordings

''Shenandoah Bluegrass'' was the group's first recording. ''Gary Ruley & Muletrain'' was released in 2002 with Ruley on guitar and performing lead vocals, Daniel Knicely on mandolin, Larry Keel on guitar, and Jenny Keel on upright bass (all three providing harmony vocals). It also featured Will Lee on banjo, Ann Marie Simpson-Calhoun on fiddle, Jeremiah Ruley, Brennan Gilmore, Mark Shimmick, and Mitchell Davis. Their next recording was ''Pickin' Tradition'' also features Ruley, Knicely, and the Keels, but brings in Ronald "Rooster" Ruley on banjo, and Steve Hoke on fiddle. Then came ''Live at the Troubadour Vol. 1'' and ''Live at the Troubadour Vol. 2'' in 2005, recordings made from a live performance at the Troubadour Theater in Lexington, "which served

as its campus theater for decades." These recordings feature Ruley, Will Lee, the Keels again, but this time with the Simpson sisters—Ann Marie and Mary—adding fiddle and vocals."Entry: Gary Ruley, Larry Keel & Mule Train"
''Bluegrass Discography'' Most recently they've released a live recording of their 2009 Christmas show titled ''Southern Inn And Out'' in 2010. In addition to Ruley, Keel, Lee, and Knicely, it also features brother David Knicely on bass. It also features fiddle player Nate Leath of Old School Freight Train, and Shannon Wheeler (with The Churchmen and The Blinky Moon Boys).

Musical style

Known as one of the finest acoustic flat pickers, Gary Ruley plays mostly vintage

Martin Martin may refer to: Places * Martin City (disambiguation) * Martin County (disambiguation) * Martin Township (disambiguation) Antarctica * Martin Peninsula, Marie Byrd Land * Port Martin, Adelie Land * Point Martin, South Orkney Islands Austr ...

guitars. He was born in western Virginia and raised on bluegrass and old-time mountain music. Influences include

Flatt & Scruggs Flatt and Scruggs were an American bluegrass duo. Singer and guitarist Lester Flatt and banjo player Earl Scruggs, both of whom had been members of Bill Monroe's band, the Bluegrass Boys, from 1945 to 1948, formed the duo in 1948. Flatt and Sc ...

Don Reno Donald Wesley Reno (February 21, 1926Trischka, Tony, "Don Reno", ''Banjo Song Book'', Oak Publications, 1977, – October 16, 1984) was an American bluegrass and country musician, best known as a pioneering banjo and guitar player who pa ...

and

Red Smiley Red is the color at the long wavelength end of the visible spectrum of light, next to orange and opposite violet. It has a dominant wavelength of approximately 625–740 nanometres. It is a primary color in the RGB color model and a secondary ...

, as well as

the Beatles The Beatles were an English rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the most influential band of all time and were integral to the developmen ...

Distinctions, honors, and awards

*2010 winners of the

Chamber of Commerce ''Rockbridge Community People's Choice Awards'' "Group Arts/Entertainer of the Year". *Ann Marie Calhoun was the winner of the "My Grammy Moment" contest at the

50th Grammy Awards The 50th Annual Grammy Awards took place at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, on February 10, 2008. It honored musical achievement of 2007 in which albums were released between October 1, 2006, through September 30, 2007. The primary ceremonies ...

on February 10, 2008, playing live with the Foo Fighters during the broadcast. *In 2006 Brennan Gilmore won the prestigious Secretary of State's Award for Public Outreach from the U.S. State Department for "ground-breaking efforts to engage non-traditional audiences and promote Arab-American cultural understanding through music" after foundin
Kantara
��a musical group that creates an "alchemy of Appalachian old-time and bluegrass and North African melodies and rhythms"—and touring the world with it. *The Pat Ruley Trophy for Best All Around Blue Grass Performer at th
Maury River Fiddler's Convention
��which held its 17th annual event in 2010 in

Buena Vista, Virginia Buena Vista ( ) is an independent city located in the Blue Ridge Mountains region of Virginia in the United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 6,641. The Bureau of Economic Analysis combines the independent cities of Buena Vist ...

—was named for Gary's father and has been won by members of his group: Will Lee won the trophy in 2008 and Mary Simpson in 2005. *In the past half-decade members of Gary Ruley and Mule Train have won numerous performance awards at th
Maury River Fiddler's Convention
including first place finishes for Will Lee on guitar in 2005, 2007, and 2008, and for Mary Simpson on bluegrass fiddle in 2005. Second place awards have gone to Nate Leath for old-time fiddle in 2010, to Danny Knicely for bluegrass fiddle in 2007 and 2009,Maury River Fiddler Convention Results
Rockbridge Weekly & The Alleghany Journal, 2009. and to Will Lee for guitar in 2006. *Will Lee's father joined the legendary

as lead guitarist after playing with Bluegrass Tar Heels, special protegées of

. On his mother's side, Grandpa Clark was a fine ragtime pianist whose two sons both play guitar, while William Penmon Lee, the grandfather he was named after, was a respected clawhammer banjo player in Alabama and Mississippi. *Danny Knicely's grandfather, A. O. Knicely, played old time guitar, mandolin, and fiddle as leader of the Knicely Family Band. His father played bass and banjo in A.O.K.'s band; he also led his own country and bluegrass band, Dominion Express. Danny's mother had two groups: Heartland, a country and gospel band, as well as a large dance troupe, the Massanutten Mountain Cloggers. * Magraw Gap, a band comprising Will Lee, Larry Keel, and Danny Knicely, took first place at the

in 1995.

Personnel

*Gary Ruley—

vocals Singing is the act of creating musical sounds with the voice. A person who sings is called a singer, artist or vocalist (in jazz and/or popular music). Singers perform music (arias, recitatives, songs, etc.) that can be sung with or withou ...

guitar The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected strin ...

*Ronald "Rooster" Ruley— banjo *Jeremiah Ruley— banjo *Daniel Knicely— mandolin/

*David Knicely— bass *Larry Keel

/ mandolin/

*Jenny Keel— bass/

( née Simpson)— fiddle/

*Mary Simpson— fiddle/

*Brennan Gilmore— mandolin/

*Will Lee— banjo/

Image:Danny Knicely plays with Gary Ruley and Mule Train Southern Inn Lexington VA December 2008.jpg, Danny Knicely on violin, playing with Gary Ruley and Mule Train at The Southern Inn in Lexington, Virginia, Christmas 2008 Image:Will Lee David Knicely Gary Ruley and Mule Train Southern Inn Lexington VA December 2008.jpg, Will Lee on banjo, David Knicely on bass, playing with Gary Ruley and Mule Train at The Southern Inn in Lexington, Virginia, Christmas 2008 Image:Brennan Gilmore on mandolin Gary Ruley and Mule Train Southern Inn Lexington VA December 2008.jpg, Brennan Gilmore on mandolin, playing with Gary Ruley and Mule Train at The Southern Inn in Lexington, Virginia, Christmas 2008 Image:Ann Marie Simpson Calhoun with Gary Ruley and Mule Train The Southern Inn Lexington VA Thanksgiving 2008.jpg,

on violin, playing with Gary Ruley and Mule Train at The Southern Inn in Lexington, Virginia, Thanksgiving 2008 Image:Larry Keel Appalachian Uprising at Eden Valley Farm in Scottown OH June 2007.jpg, Larry Keel June 6, 2007 Image:Jenny Keel Appalachian Uprising Eden Valley Farm Scottown OH June 2009.jpg, Jenny Keel plays bass at Appalachian Uprising in Scottown, Ohio on June 5, 2009. Image:Nate_Leath.jpg, Nate Leath on fiddle with Old School Freight Train at The Festy music festival in Nelson County, Virginia October 9, 2010. Image:Mary Simpson Whiskey Rebellion Fellini's -9 Charlottesville VA April 2009.jpg, Mary Simpson on fiddle wit
Whiskey Rebellion
at Fellini's in Charlottesville, Virginia, April 20, 2009. Image:GaryRuleyAndMuleTrain.JPG, Gary Ruley and Mule Train on January 16, 2005 -- (top) Gary Ruley, Will Lee, Brennan Gilmore mandolin; (bottom) Mary Simpson,

Discography

*''Shenandoah Bluegrass'' *''Gary Ruley & Muletrain'' (2002) *''Pickin' Tradition'' *''Live at the Troubadour Vol. 1'' (2005) *''Live at the Troubadour Vol. 2'' (2005) *''Southern Inn And Out'' (2010)

Video

*
Orange Blossom Special
' published January 31, 2008: Gary Ruley and Mule Train play Orange Blossom Special with twin fiddles. Features Gary Ruley,

, Brennan Gilmore, Danny Knicely, and Will Lee. *
Mule Skinner Blues
' published January 28, 2008: Gary Ruley pickin' and a grinnin' Mule Skinner Blues with his flat-top guitar, playing it in the Virginia bluegrass style. *
East Virginia Blues
' published January 28, 2008: Rockbridge County bluegrass at its best, featuring Gary Ruley, Brennan Gilmore, Will Lee,

, and David Knicely. *
Great Balls of Fire
' published March 14, 2008: New song for the bluegrass repertoire of Gary Ruley and Mule Train, featuring Gary Ruley (guitar), Will Lee (banjo), Brennan Gilmore (mandolin), David Knicely (bass), and Mary Simpson (fiddle) at Queen City Brewery, Staunton, Virginia. *
Ruley's Side Show Circuit with Ann Marie Calhoun
' published March 10, 2008: Gary Ruley plays the Downtown Lexington Festival 2001 with

( fiddle), Rooster Ruley ( banjo), and Brennan Gilmore ( mandolin).

Reviews, interviews, articles

*"'Southern Inn And Out' Offers Musical Magic: Ruley And Mule Train's Latest CD Captures 2009 Christmas Show" by Doug Chase, review
The News-Gazette
online edition; November 24, 2010.
Gary Ruley & Mule Train Thanksgiving Show at Lexington Golf and Country Club
in rockbridgeweekly.com & The Alleghany Journal; 2010.
Live at Troubadour, Volumes One & Two
review in
Bluegrass Unlimited
' October 2006. *
The News-Gazette
' Lexington, Virginia; Section C, Page 2, November 23, 2005 "Live at Troubadour". *
The News-Gazette
' Lexington, Virginia; Wednesday, April 9, 2003 Section C, "Muletrain Sparkles". *
The News-Gazette
' Lexington, Virginia; Wednesday, June 6, 2002, "Three Bands to Play at First Lexington Alive Concert". *
Bluegrass Unlimited
' April 2000, page 92, review "Pickin' Tradition". *
Daily News Leader
' Staunton, Virginia; Friday, March 17, 2000, "Ruley Helps Keep Music Heritage Alive". *
The News-Gazette
' Lexington, Virginia; Wednesday, December 22, 1999; Section C, Page 4 "Bluegrass CD A Delightful Menagerie".

References

External links

Gary Ruley and Mule Train
Official Site.

Maury River Fiddler's Convention.