Lonesome Standard Time

Most widely known as a songwriter, Larry Cordle has had songs recorded by: Ricky Skaggs, Garth Brooks, George Strait, Alan Jackson, Alison Krauss, The Osborne Brothers, Rhonda Vincent, Kenny Chesney, Reba McEntire John Anderson, Trace Adkins, Diamond Rio and many others.  At last count, Cordle’s songs have appeared on projects that total more than 55 million in record sales.

LST Band Members

Jody King

Jody King started his professional career with THE LOST AND FOUND in 1988. He recorded one album with them on Rebel Records with fellow new band mate Ronnie Bowman. He then left to pursue a college degree and during that time formed the band REMINISCE with Ronnie Bowman, Alan Bibe, Mike Hartgrove, Garland Carter, and Kim Gardner. The band played several major festivals but did not last long due to members leaving to join more established bands. Soon after the dispersion of REMINISCE, Jody helped form the band AFTER 5 with James Doncsecz, Greg Luck, Kim Gardner, and Alan Purdue. They recorded one album and were the 1995 SPBGMA Champions. Also in 1995, Jody recorded some banjo on 1995 IBMA Album Of The Year, Cold Virginia Night, by Ronnie Bowman.

In August of 1997 the remaining members of AFTER 5: Jody, James, and Kim decided to join forces with NEW VINTAGE members Russell Johnson and Earl Lewellyn. During their 3 year stay with NEW VINTAGE they recorded NEW VINTAGE’s final studio record for Pinecastle called Changing Times. In 1999, Jody also released his first solo project, Another Day, featuring such award winning artist as Dan Tyminski, Ronnie Bowman, Kenny and Amanda Smith among others.

From 2004-2006 Jody was band leader for Melonie Cannon working closely with the legendary award winning Nashville producer Buddy Cannon. He  was also session leader for her Rural Rhythm Records album, “AND THE WHEELS TURN.”

Jody can now be found playing banjo with LARRY CORDLE AND LONESOME STANDARD TIME. When not on the road, he can be found building custom guitars, mandolins, banjos, etc; a skill he gained as an apprentice to Jimmy Edmonds. Jody keeps a full load of music students on various instruments and can be found on stage with THE JEANETTE WILLIAMS BAND when schedules permit. He also performs as a solo artist with his own band ABOVE THE LINE which includes his daughter Kayla on bass. They are currently in the studio working on their first release. He will soon  be starting work on a follow up to his previous solo release featuring many of the wonderful artist he now  gets to perform with on a regular basis.
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James Doncsecz-bass

James Doncsecz of Pilot Mountain is the bass man for Lonesome Standard Time. James is married to his wife Jenean, and has two boys, Trevor and Luke.  James brings years of experience to the band from playing with several bluegrass and bluegrass gospel acts. Some of James’s most memorable performances were playing on the Grand Ole Opry with Melonie Cannon and the Tennessee Road band, opening up for country music singer Sammy Kershaw and playing a welcome home celebration for our soldiers in Fort Hood, Texas along with legendary rock artist, Joan Jett. James’ solid timing and tasteful runs add the finishing touches to pull together the Lonesome Standard Time sound.  If you hear James playing a little jazzy, it’s because he forgot to take his Ritalin. LOL

Bands James has played in:

-After Five
-New Vintage
-Lou Reid & Carolina
-Melonie Cannon and Tennessee Road
-Larry Cordle and Lonesome Standard Time
-Circle’s Edge

Session work:

-Played bass on Russel Johnson’s solo project.
-Jody King’s solo project
-New Vintage Bluegrass Band
-other local bands
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Kim Gardner

Kim Gardner was born in Raleigh, North Carolina in 1961 and grew up on a tobacco farm, just outside of town.  Much of his early experience in music came from Saturday night jam sessions that were held at old barns and country stores all around rural eastern NC.  He started playing guitar around age 10, but when he was 14, a family friend took him to a festival where the Seldom Scene was playing – when he heard Mike Auldridge playing Dobro he was hooked!  For Christmas that year he was given a Dobro and the rest is history!  His biggest influences musically from that point forward were Mike Auldridge and the new kid on the block (soon to be legendary) named Jerry Douglas.    Being from NC, Kim had a chance to hang out with some great players.  One of his best friends growing up was Steve Dilling of IIIrd Tyme Out.  During their teenage years, Steve and Kim played together for several years in a local group called Stoney Runn.  Eventually the band split up and Steve started playing full time, while Kim went to college.  Kim graduated from UNC-Wilmington in 1983 with a Bachelors Degree in Business Administration/Management.  For the next several years he worked for a computer company in Apex, NC and was in and out of different bands, most notably, Wes Golden & Surefire, as well as Reminisce, which featured Ronnie Bowman as lead vocalist and Alan Bibey on mandolin.     In 1991 he was asked to play Dobro on the CD Carrying the Tradition, by the Lonesome River Band, which won IBMA Album of the Year in 1992.  He also did the Dobro work on Cold Virginia Night by Ronnie Bowman, which won the IBMA Album of the Year in 1995 and Souvenirs, by the Country Gentlemen, which won SBGMA Album of the Year in 1995.  Kim can also be heard on many other projects during this period with other bands, such as Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver and Wyatt Rice & Santa Cruz.  In the mid 1990s, Kim was playing with the NC based band After 5, where he and Booie had the chance to meet.  In 1995, they won the SPBGMA national band championship together.  In April of 2002, Kim moved to Nashville and was a band member for the 2001 SPBGMA Female Vocalist of the Year, Dale Ann Bradley and her band, Coon Creek.  Kim joined Larry Cordle in October of 2002.   Kim plays a custom built Frank Harlow Cherry Resophonic Guitar and endorses Black Diamond Strings and Elmer Bradley capos.
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Josh Pickett

To anyone following the bluegrass scene, Josh is certainly no stranger. His tasteful lead work and hard-driving rhythm playing, and tasteful session work make him one of the top guitarists in the genre.

Josh started his musical career at age eleven. A cousin that played at family gatherings sparked his interest in music. His parents got him a guitar for Christmas, and from that point on it seemed that a guitar was always in his hands. Josh started playing with local band Fast Forward. They played mostly on week-ends and at various festivals around the state. The band also released an album called “1420 Broken Heart Avenue.” So by the time high school graduation came, Josh had several major accomplishments under his musical belt.

In 2001 Josh won the International Guitar Championship at Merle-Fest, being the youngest ever to hold this title at age 17. From there things only got better. Josh went on to play music full-time with Valerie Smith & Liberty Pike, They toured though out the US at major festivals and various venues.

In 2005 Josh was one of the founding members of the group “No Speed Limit”. They were a favorite Bluegrass band of Virginia’s governor, Tim Kaine, and they performed at his 2006 inaugural celebration along with the legendary Beach Boys. Then, had the privilege of playing American’s Cup of Polo and sharing the stage with Journey. In 2007, they also had the honor of being chosen to play at the welcome ceremonies for Queen Elizabeth in Williamsburg, Virginia as part of America’s 400th Anniversary celebration.

Having taken his career to an all new level, Josh owns his own recording studio and does session work as well as studio rentals and producing. Josh also teaches music at the Studio as well as Online through SKYPE. Josh can be reached on Facebook for available lesson times.
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Back to Larry

Equally as impressive, is Cord’s performing career. Founded in 1990 at the urging of friend and later manager Lance Leroy, born out of their live performances at local nightspot “The Bell Cove Club”, Lonesome Standard Time began as a joint venture between old friends Larry Cordle and Glen Duncan. The original line up for the band was, Larry Cordle, guitar & lead vocals, Glen Duncan, fiddle & tenor vocals, Mandolin great (now late) Butch Baldassari, surprise wiz banjo picker, Mike Bub and Wayne Southards, bass & baritone vocals.

Signed in 1991 by North Carolina giant, Sugar Hill Records, success came quickly for the band, yielding a Grammy nomination for the group’s debut album. Nominations from the International Bluegrass Music Association as well as the Society For Preservation of Bluegrass Music soon followed with nods for vocal group and instrumental group and a song of the year trophy from IBMA for the CD’s title track, “Lonesome Standard Time”.

1993 brought band changes and a new CD release for Sugar Hill. Gone were Mike Bub (who left to play bass with bluegrass greats The Del McCoury Band) and Wayne Southards. Armed with their replacements, banjo hoss Larry Perkins and talented bass man Billy Rose, the band’s offering that year, “Mighty Lonesome”, spawned the #1 hit “The Bigger The Fool” and was again nominated in several categories at the IBMA’s awards show in the fall. Glen won the trophy for SPBGMA’s fiddle player of the year. Touring was brisk but challenging during this period and the band lost Perky in mid- season.

As 1995 rolled around more band changes awaited the boys. Keith Little (formerly of Ricky Skaggs band) came on board to play banjo replacing Steve Huber who had replaced Larry Perkins and Robin Smith was hired to replace Billy Rose on bass.
Nonplussed the new band recorded what was to become their last project together and released “As Lonesome as it Gets” to their eagerly awaiting fans that spring. By now, touring was becoming increasingly harder and harder for Glen and Larry and sadly, later in the fall, and after much soul searching the end of an era came for Lonesome Standard Time.
Ever increasing demand for Glen’s great fiddle playing as an a-team Nashville session man, coupled with Larry’s desire to spend more time at home with his 3 year old daughter and the pressure of his songwriting commitments led to the partners to ultimately decide to stop touring and focus on these other fleeting aspects of their lives and careers.

While on hiatus from the road, Larry did make two albums with long time friends and co-writing buddies Carl Jackson and Jerry Salley. 1997’s “Lonesome Café” and 1998’s “Against the Grain”, although never commercially released, soon became favorites of Cord, Carl & Jerry fans, that came to see them play at their not-so-frequent songwriter shows in Nashville & the occasional out of town gig.

Yearning to tour more extensively again, Larry decided to reform the band in 1999. He first called on close friend Terry Eldredge for the bass & tenor vocal duties. Explosive mandolinist, David Harvey signed on and he suggested a new banjo player in town, David Talbot, for the banjo spot & baritone duties. Booie Beach who had already jammed with an earlier lineup was hired for the lead guitar job & Fred Carpenter was brought on board for the fiddle duties.
It was with this lineup that the band released in 2000, what became their signature CD, “Murder on Music Row”.

The CD was immediately hailed everywhere as ‘classic’. Its title track by the same name was #1 in both the Americana & Bluegrass Unlimited charts. The record was nominated for a Grammy, won honors at the International Bluegrass Music Associations awards show for song of the year and garnered similar awards at SPBGMA’s award’s show that winter and Larry was recognized as songwriter of the year for the organization.

Cord, his co-writer Larry Shell and the band enjoyed much major media attention during this time with accolades and reviews from the Associated Press, USA Today, People and US magazines, along with many other highly respected bluegrass and country music publications.

With 2002’s “Songs from the Workbench” Larry stretched a little, adding ‘Railroad Man’ from southern rock band “Blackfoot” to the repertoire, but mostly sticking to what had been a successful formula; recording heartfelt songs featuring his trademark singing, while spotlighting the impressive contributions of his rock-solid band, which now included, 18 year old fiddle phenom Jenee Keener, replacing Fred Carpenter.

“Anything Southbound” shot to #1 on Bluegrass Unlimited’s top 30 chart and was nominated at IBMA for song of the year in 2003. Later toward the end of ’03 Larry’s partner Randy Harrell decided to leave the music business and thus ended Shell Point Records.

At an IBMA showcase in Louisville, Kentucky, the owner of California based CMH records, David Haerly, approached Larry saying he would like for the band to record for his record label.
2004’s Lonesome Skynyrd Time, offered a unique opportunity to pay tribute to rock ‘n’ roll giant, Lynyrd Skynyrd. Cordle, being a long-time fan of the southern rock band, approached the project with a sense of duty to respectfully represent this legendary material in a bluegrass context, while making sure of maintaining the integrity of the original recordings. The result is a powerful homage to the endurance and influence of Lynyrd Skynyrd’s music.

Larry and Lonesome Standard Time’s last effort 2007’s “Took Down, Put Up” released on Kentucky indie label Lonesome Day Records, featured Sirius/XM chart toppers “The 1st Train Robbery”, & miner’s tribute “Hole in the Ground. It also saw the duet pairing of Cord with country great Travis Tritt on their hit song,” Rough Around the Edges”, co-written by Cord with J.P.Pennington & Les Taylor from country rock super group Exile. This Lonesome Standard Time lineup was also one of Cord’s favorites and included Booie Beach on hot lead guitar, banjo wizard Kristin Scott Benson, bass ace, Mike Anglin, Chris Davis on stunning mandolin & tenor vocals and tone meister, Kim Gardner on resonator guitar.

2011 finds Larry with another new release “Pud Marcum’s Hangin’” on his very own newly formed label, MightyCord Records. It is a departure from his previous records in that it is not a Lonesome Standard Time record. Rather, it is more of a singer/songwriter CD, with many of the songs appearing that Cord says, “are new in that I have never recorded any of them before. Some were written since our last project & some are just songs that fans had heard me do live and asked if I was ever going to record them, seems like some of these were always getting knocked out for tempo or feel or whatever, so now here they are”.

The CD features guest performances from Bluegrass great Del McCoury, who sings tenor with Cord on the title track, singer/songwriters extraordinaire and friends, Ronnie Bowman, Carl Jackson and Jerry Salley, resonator guitar master Randy Khors, multi-instrumentalist Steve Thomas, Richard Sterban from The Oak Ridge Boys, guitar hero, Clay Hess and new duet partner, co-writing buddy & still phenomenal fiddlist Jenee Keener Fleenor. (she got married).

The CD is already receiving great reviews from sources like the9513 and various Airplay Direct users.

Lonesome Standard Time’s lineup for the 2011 season is:
Cord-guitar & lead vocals
Chris Harris-mandolin and tenor vocals
Kim Gardner-dobro & baritone vocals
Jody King-banjo
James Doncsecz-bass
And the occasional surprise mystery picker!

Larry and the band are planning a vigorous summer & fall tour in support of the new CD. Cord states, “these boys can really mash down on it”. They offer a sense of professionalism that is easily recognized on an off stage. The music, that’s what it’s always about and a band of this caliber makes the possibilities limitless and Cord is eager to explore them.

Cordle’s exceptional body of original material and passion for performing, combined with the unparalleled talent of Lonesome Standard Time, results in an explosive stage show that wows crowds everywhere… come see them this season, you won’t be disappointed.