Biography

Brent Mason was born on July 13, 1959, in Van Wert, Ohio. At the age of five years, he taught himself to play guitar by ear. He moved to Nashville, Tennessee after graduating from high school, in order to pursue a career in country music. Early Nashville gigs included a stint with the Don Kelly Band, a cover band who performed at the flinty Murfreesboro Road Honky-tonk, The Stagecoach Lounge. Eventually, he was discovered by noted guitarist Chet Atkins, who invited him to play on his Stay Tuned album. From there, Mason has gone on to play on well over a thousand other artists' albums, including those of George Strait, Alan Jackson, Shania Twain, David Gates, Brooks & Dunn, Zac Brown Band, Scotty McCreary, Blake Shelton and Neil Diamond. Mason also co-wrote McBride & the Ride's "Hurry Sundown".

Mason signed to Mercury Records in 1997, releasing an instrumental album entitled Hot Wired the same year. This was his only major-label album. He made a decision to leave Mercury Records soon after to remain in Nashville and work in the recording studio as a session guitarist rather than spend most of his time on the road touring and away from his family. He and his brother Randy released a second album, entitled Smokin' Section, in 2006. At the 51st Grammy Awards, he and several other guitarists won the Grammy Award for Best Country Instrumental, for the track "Cluster Pluck" from Brad Paisley's mostly-instrumental album Play.

Although Brent works mainly as a studio musician he has produced several albums to date for artists like Erin James, Tommy Dalton, Cindy Kvinlaug, Evi Tausen and coproduced an album with Byron Gallimore for Clay Walker. In November 2013, Mason collaborated with online education site JamPlay.com to put together a series of guitar lessons for aspiring guitarists and members of JamPlay.

Other contributions

From 2003-2010 Valley Arts Guitar (a division of Gibson Guitars) joined with Brent to create and manufacture the Valley Arts Brent Mason Signature Model Guitar. In 2013 PRS Guitars launched the Brent Mason Signature Model Guitar. Brian Wampler of Wampler Pedals manufactures and sells the Brent Mason "Hot Wired" guitar effects pedal.

Awards

Country Music Association (CMA) Musician of the Year - 1997 and 1998.

Nashville Music Awards - Guitarist of the Year - 1995.

Academy of Country Music - Guitarist of the Year - 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2004, 2006 and 2009.
MusicRow Session Guitarist of the Year 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2003, 2004 and 2010

In 2011 he was inducted into the National Thumbpickers Hall of Fame.

[ Source: Wikipedia ]