Biography

Banjoists Alison Brown and Steve Martin tapped Vince Gill for “Wall Guitar (Since You Said Goodbye),” their latest collaboration. What began as a gentle clawhammer banjo melody evolved into a wistful song about unrequited love, shimmering with melodicism and poetic lyrics.

The song took shape organically, with Brown building on Martin’s melodic idea, but the end result was a surprise for both. Brown comments: “Steve has such a great instinct for crafting strong melodies and it’s almost effortless to pick up on his melodic thread and carry the idea forward. What was amazing to me, though, was to see the lyrics come together. I was really struck by the emotional intimacy Steve conjured.”

Martin says: “Alison and I have a highly creative and enjoyable musical 'thang' going on, and to have Vince Gill as well as some of the finest musicians in Nashville join us is the ultimate icing on the bluegrass cake."

With his warm, tenor voice and deep roots in acoustic music, Vince Gill was the obvious vocal pick for the song. Martin, Brown and Gill have long histories with each other and all of them have recorded together on previous projects. He brought the perfect mix of reflection and emotional range to the song.

Gill comments: "I've known Alison since I was 19 years old — what a joy to watch her become the musician she is. And Steve Martin has made me laugh for 50 years. On top of that, he's an amazing banjo player. What a great experience it was to record this song with them."

Performances from some of Music Row’s most respected players round out the track: Stuart Duncan (fiddle), Rob Burger (accordion, piano), Andrea Zonn (harmony vocals), Garry West (bass) and Jordan Perlson (percussion).