Molly Tuttle
Molly Tuttle (born 1993) is a vocalist, songwriter, banjo player and guitarist, recording artist and teacher in the bluegrass tradition, noted for her flatpicking, clawhammer,[1] and crosspicking[2] guitar prowess. She has cited Laurie Lewis, Kathy Kallick, and Hazel Dickens as role models.[3] In 2017, Tuttle was the first woman to win the International Bluegrass Music Association's Guitar Player of the Year award.[4] In 2018 she won the award again, along with being named the Americana Music Association's Instrumentalist of the Year.
Molly Tuttle | |
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Background information | |
Birth name | Molly Rose Tuttle |
Born | Santa Clara County, California | January 14, 1993
Genres | Bluegrass, Americana, Country Folk |
Occupation(s) | Musician |
Instruments | Guitar, banjo |
Years active | 2006–present |
Labels | Compass Records |
Associated acts | The Tuttles with AJ Lee, the Goodbye Girls, Billy Strings |
Website | mollytuttlemusic |
Biography
Early career
Raised in the San Francisco Bay Area, Tuttle began playing guitar at age 8,[5] and at age 11 played onstage with her father Jack Tuttle, a bluegrass multi-instrumentalist and instructor. At age 15, she joined her family band The Tuttles with AJ Lee. Her siblings Sullivan (guitar) and Michael (mandolin), and mandolist AJ Lee[6] are also in the band.[7]
In 2006, at age 13, Tuttle recorded The Old Apple Tree with her dad, an album of duets.[8]
In 2011, the Tuttles self-released their Introducing the Tuttles album,[9] and the Endless Ocean album in 2013.[10]
2012 was a breakout year for Tuttle. She –
- was awarded merit scholarships to the Berklee College of Music for music and composition,[11]
- received the Foundation for Bluegrass Music's first Hazel Dickens Memorial Scholarship,[12]
- won the Chris Austin Songwriting Competition at the Merlefest Music Festival,[13]
- was named Best Female Vocalist and Best Guitar Player by the Northern California Bluegrass Society,[14] and
- appeared with her dad on A Prairie Home Companion.[15]
Collaborations
While studying at the Berklee College of Music, in 2014, Tuttle met and joined the all-female bluegrass group the Goodbye Girls.[13] They combine bluegrass, jazz, and Swedish folk music.[16] Other members are Allison de Groot (banjo), Lena Jonsson (fiddle), and Brittany Karlson (bass). They released an EP Going to Boston in 2014, and the album Snowy Side of the Mountain in 2016.[17] The band has also toured Jonsson's home country Sweden several times.[18]
Tuttle also recorded Molly Tuttle & John Mailander, a duet EP with fiddler John Mailander.[19]
In 2018, she joined Alison Brown, Missy Raines, Sierra Hull, and Becky Buller in a supergroup. The quintet performed at the Rockygrass festival in Lyons Colorado on July 27, 2018. Initially known as the Julia Belles, the group later became known as the First Ladies of Bluegrass. Additional gigs were booked at Analog at the Hutton Hotel in Nashville on Sept 18, 2018 and the IBMA Wide Open Bluegrass Festival on September 28, 2018.
The First Ladies of Bluegrass are featured on the first single from a full-length CD by Missy Raines titled Royal Traveler released in 2018 on Compass Records.[20]
Solo career
In 2015, Tuttle moved from Boston to Nashville.[21] Her EP Rise was released in 2017 after a crowdfunding campaign. She wrote all of the songs on the 7-song album, which was produced by Kai Welch.[22] Guests included Darrell Scott, the Milk Carton Kids, Kathy Kallick, and Nathaniel Smith.[23]
She formed The Molly Tuttle Band, which includes Wes Corbett (banjo), Joe K. Walsh (mandolin), and Hasee Ciaccio (bass).[13]
In 2017, Tuttle signed with Alison Brown's Compass Records.[24][25]
Molly was selected by Buddy Miller to join his "Cavalcade of Stars" section of Hardly Strictly Bluegrass on the Rooster Stage on October 6, 2018.
Tuttle released her debut album When You're Ready via Compass Records on April 5, 2019.[26]
Personal life
Tuttle was diagnosed with alopecia areata when she was three years old, which quickly progressed to alopecia universalis, resulting in total body hair loss. [27]
Discography
Solo albums
Title | Album details | Peak chart positions | Sales | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
US Heat [28] |
US Indie [29] |
US Bluegrass [30] | |||
Rise (EP) |
|
18 | 47 | 2 | |
When You're Ready |
|
5 | 11 | — |
|
But I'd Rather Be With You |
|
||||
"—" denotes releases that did not chart |
The Goodbye Girls
- 2014: Going to Boston (self-released)
- 2016: Snowy Side of the Mountain (self-released)
Molly Tuttle and John Mailander
- 2014: Molly Tuttle and John Mailander EP (Back Studio)
The Tuttles With AJ Lee
- 2012: Introducing the Tuttles With AJ Lee (self-released)
- 2013: Endless Ocean (self-released)
Molly and Jack Tuttle
- 2007: The Old Apple Tree (Back Studio)
Also appears on
- 2015: Mile Rocks - Mile Rocks and Friends (Audio & Video Labs)
- 2017: AJ Lee - AJ Lee (self-released)
- 2017: Korby Lenker - Thousand Springs (Relativity)
- 2017: Bobby Osborne - Original (Compass)
- 2017: Billy Strings - Turmoil & Tinfoil (Apostol)
Awards and nominations
Year | Association | Category | Nominated Work | Result | Ref |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
2016 | International Bluegrass Music Awards | Momentum Award | Herself | Won | |
2017 | Guitar Player of the Year | Won | [32][4] | ||
2018 | International Folk Music Awards | Song of the Year | "You Didn't Call My Name" | Won | |
Americana Music Honors & Awards | Instrumentalist of the Year | Herself | Won | [33] | |
International Bluegrass Music Awards | Emerging Artist of the Year | Nominated | [34] | ||
Guitar Player of the Year | Won | ||||
Female Vocalist of the Year | Nominated | ||||
Album of the Year | Rise | Nominated | |||
Song of the Year | "You Didn't Call My Name" | Nominated | |||
Recorded Event of the Year | "Swept Away"[A] | Won |
^ A. with Missy Raines, Alison Brown, Becky Buller and Sierra Hull
References
- Jason Verlinde (September 1, 2016). "Molly Tuttle – "Old Man at the Mill"". Fretboard Journal. Archived from the original on October 9, 2017. Retrieved September 30, 2017.
- Jeffrey Pepper Rodgers (February 16, 2017). "Crosspicking 101: A Private Bluegrass Lesson with Molly Tuttle". Acoustic Guitar. Archived from the original on September 29, 2017. Retrieved September 30, 2017.
- Jewly Hight (August 29, 2017). "World Cafe Nashville: Molly Tuttle". World Cafe. Archived from the original on October 4, 2017. Retrieved September 30, 2017.
- Juli Thanki (September 29, 2017). "Molly Tuttle makes bluegrass history at IMBA Awards in Raleigh". Tennessean. Retrieved September 30, 2017.
- Kat Harding (September 27, 2017). "Molly Tuttle Is IBMA's First Female Nominee for Guitarist of the Year—And She's Not Stopping There". Indy Week. Archived from the original on July 28, 2018. Retrieved September 30, 2017.
- Easy Ed (June 15, 2017). "AJ Lee: A Flower Blooms in the California Bluegrass". No Depression. Archived from the original on July 24, 2017. Retrieved September 1, 2017.
- "Molly Tuttle: From Homegrown Bluegrass to a New Solo Album". No Depression Roland. August 16, 2016. Archived from the original on October 4, 2017.
- Adam Perlmutter (August 24, 2017). "Molly Tuttle: Organic & Acoustic". Premier Guitar. Archived from the original on May 16, 2018. Retrieved September 30, 2017.
- "Northern California Bluegrass Awards Says The Tuttles - Best Bluegrass Band". Prescription Bluegrass. February 3, 2011. Archived from the original on May 16, 2018. Retrieved September 30, 2017.
- John Curtis Goad (July 22, 2013). "Endless Ocean – The Tuttles with A.J. Lee". Bluegrass Today. Archived from the original on September 14, 2015. Retrieved September 30, 2017.
- Dave Stewart (January 27, 2015). "Dave Stewart Entertainment Announces Artist Shows in Nashville". The Daily Country. Archived from the original on May 16, 2018. Retrieved September 30, 2017.
- Michael Hall (October 5, 2011). "Molly Tuttle Awarded First Hazel Dickens Memorial Scholarship, Will Celebrate At Brown Barn Saturday". Northern California Bluegrass Society. Archived from the original on May 16, 2018. Retrieved September 30, 2017.
- Haylie Ellison (May 4, 2017). "The Molly Tuttle Band is coming to Roseburg on May 7". News-Review. Archived from the original on July 9, 2017. Retrieved September 30, 2017.
- John Lawless (February 9, 2012). "Tuttles kill in Northern California". Bluegrass Today. Archived from the original on May 16, 2018. Retrieved September 30, 2017.
- Darry Madden (October 24, 2012). "Student Molly Tuttle Performs on Prairie Home Companion". Berklee College of Music. Archived from the original on May 16, 2018. Retrieved September 30, 2017.
- Cat Johnson (July 18, 2017). "Preview: Goodbye Girls to Play Don Quixote's". GoodTimes Santa Cruz. Archived from the original on October 1, 2017. Retrieved September 30, 2017.
- Red Line Roots (May 27, 2015). "9 Questions to Newport: Molly Tuttle (of The Goodbye Girls)". No Depression. Archived from the original on October 1, 2017. Retrieved September 30, 2017.
- Alison Richter (September 20, 2017). "Emerging Bluegrass Artist Molly Tuttle on Influences, Music and Gear". Guitar Girl. Archived from the original on October 1, 2017. Retrieved September 30, 2017.
- Paul Hormick (May 1, 2014). "Molly Tuttle & John Mailander". San Diego Troubadour. Archived from the original on May 16, 2018. Retrieved September 30, 2017.
- "Royal Traveller - Missy Raines". bluegrasstoday.com. 11 December 2018. Retrieved 6 May 2019.
- Brian Carroll (July 14, 2017). "Rising Up, Pickin' The Balance: An Interview With Molly Tuttle". Red Line Roots. Archived from the original on September 18, 2017. Retrieved September 30, 2017.
- Kristin Brown (May 10, 2017). "Molly Tuttle Talks About Her New EP 'Rise'". Cowboys and Indians. Archived from the original on June 30, 2017. Retrieved September 30, 2017.
- Brittney McKenna (June 30, 2017). "AS Discovery: Molly Tuttle". American Songwriter. Archived from the original on October 26, 2017. Retrieved September 30, 2017.
- Lisa Snedeker (September 28, 2017). "Molly Tuttle makes history at IBMA 2017". Huffington Post. Retrieved September 30, 2017.
- John Curtis Goad (September 26, 2017). "Molly Tuttle to Compass Records". Bluegrass Today. Archived from the original on May 16, 2018. Retrieved September 30, 2017.
- Trigger (1 March 2019). "Be On The Lookout for Molly Tuttle and "When You're Ready"". Saving Country Music. Archived from the original on 6 March 2019. Retrieved 6 May 2019.
- "My journey with Alopecia Areata".
- "Molly Tuttle Chart History > Independent Albums". Billboard.
- "Molly Tuttle Chart History > Independent Albums". Billboard.
- "Molly Tuttle Chart History > Bluegrass Albums". Billboard.
- Bjorke, Matt (September 4, 2019). "Top 10 Country Album Sales Chart: September 4, 2019". Roughstock. Retrieved September 13, 2019.
- Stephen L. Betts (September 29, 2017). "2017 Bluegrass Awards: Earls of Leicester Named Entertainer of the Year". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on September 30, 2017. Retrieved September 30, 2017.
- "The 2018 Americana Music Award Winners". KOKE FM. Archived from the original on September 19, 2018. Retrieved September 19, 2018.
- Betts, Stephen L. (25 July 2018). "Molly Tuttle, Becky Buller Lead 2018 Bluegrass Award Nominations". rollingstone.com. Archived from the original on 28 July 2018. Retrieved 6 May 2019.