Musician prepares for Plaza

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Richie Owens of Richie Owens and The Farm Bureau poses for a photo in front of the Plaza Theatre. The band will perform Saturday at the theater beginning at 7 p.m. Gina Kinslow

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July 19, 2012

Musician prepares for Plaza

By GINA KINSLOW Glasgow Daily Times The Glasgow Daily Times Thu Jul 19, 2012, 12:40 AM CDT

GLASGOW — Richie Owens is a man whose musical roots run deep and that’s something that makes him very proud.

Owens recently traveled to Glasgow to promote his upcoming concert at the Plaza Theatre.

He took a little time to tell about his family’s musical history.

“My background goes back, … as far as we’ve been able to trace back to where we’ve got pictures and documentation, all the way back to the Civil War era, with musicians in my family,” he said.

His great-great-great grandfather, George Grooms, was a fiddler player, and was depicted in the 2003 movie, “Cold Mountain.”

The fiddle Grooms played was passed down to his grandfather, who wrote music for the late country legend Kitty Wells. His father, Louis, managed country icon Dolly Parton, who also happens to be Owens’ cousin, according to the musician’s website.

Owens has worked for Parton himself over the course of his music career, producing and engineering her albums, as well as performing on them. He has also served as her bandleader and recently completed a world tour with her.

“She did a live DVD in London, called ‘Live in London’ and it just went gold through Cracker Barrel. I received an award for that. I just got that Monday, which was pretty cool,” he said. “I didn’t expect that.”

Owens has been playing music since he was about 6 or 7 years old.

As a teenager he had a bluegrass band that played on the early morning television show, the “Ralph Emery Show.” He went on to land a couple of alternative rock record deals his late teens and 20s.

“But my heart was in my roots music, because that’s what I grew up with and was influenced by — American roots music from blues to bluegrass,” he said.

In the early ‘90s he formed Richie Owens and The Farm Bureau. This summer the band will celebrate its 20th anniversary.

INFORMATION BOX: Richie Owens and The Farm Bureau will perform at the Plaza Theatre Saturday at 7 p.m. Opening act: Angel Mary and The Tennessee Werewolves. Tickets are $10 and can be purchased at the theater’s box office, by phone by calling 361-2101 or online at www.plaza.org.

For the full story, see Thursday's print or e-Edition of the Daily Times.

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