The Band

(By permission www.MarkNewtonBand.com)

The Mark Newton Band is not just Mark but is made up of talented and versatile musicians that bring together top notch instrumentals and vocals. The band’s versatility is often demonstrated through the performances of individual vocal leads and instrumental breaks.  The group singing of the choruses results in a smooth harmony and a blend of voices sounding as one. As Mark said while I was doing the interview, “Hey, don’t forget the band. These guys are great and I believe some of the best in the business.”  I could not agree more, so from the band’s bios here is the The Mark Newton Band.

Guitar

Joining the Mark Newton Band on guitar is Clay Hess from Athens, Ohio. He's recognized as one of the premier flat-pick guitarists in bluegrass music.

Clay was 9 when he first heard live bluegrass at the Lake Snowden Bluegrass Festival in Albany, Ohio. Clay's parents and his older brother played traditional country music, so he originally began learning classic country. Clay credits his older brother as a big influence on his desire to play guitar, though his brother stopped playing around the time Clay started.

 His first professional gig came twelve years later at Dollywood theme park where he spent the summer performing with the group True Blue. In July of '92 Clay left Dollywood to return to Ohio. He was working in construction, when Ricky Skaggs called and asked him to fill the guitar slot for Kentucky Thunder. Oddly enough, Clay had just about quit playing between his time at Dollywood and Ricky's call. He spent the next three years performing with Kentucky Thunder. While Clay was part of the band, the IBMA (International Bluegrass Music Association) awarded Kentucky Thunder their Instrumental Band of the Year Award for both 1999 and 2000. Clay was also awarded a Grammy for his participation in “Soldier of the Cross” by Ricky Skaggs & Kentucky Thunder.

Mark Newton is quick to point out that he's one of the most natural gifted musicians that we have in bluegrass, and inspires me from an artistic standpoint.

Though Clay largely considers himself a bluegrass player, his influence's do range outside of bluegrass and include players such as Stevie Ray Vaughan, Charlie Parker and Leon Rhodes.

 A recent accomplishment for Clay has been the creation of the Clay Hess D-18 signature model guitars by CF Martin.

Vocals/Bass

Beth Lawrence was born and raised in southern Wisconsin town of Kenosha.  Introduced to bluegrass by her father, Beth has been playing bass for over ten years. From early age, she performed with her family's band, "The Lawrence Family." Though bass is her main instrument, Beth studied classical piano and clarinet as a child. Her musical interests lead her to attend the University of Wisconsin, Parkside, pursuing a degree in choir directing and voice. Though Beth grew up geographically far from the South, she lists one of her main influences as J.D. Crowe and the New South, evident in her style of bass playing.

In 1998, Beth's passion for playing bluegrass lead her to relocate to Johnson City, Tenn., where she became a part of the respected bluegrass program at ETSU, performing with the ETSU Senior Band. In the next few years, she spent a lot of time in the East Tennessee area, where she played with many bands, including, The Steven's Sisters, The Jim Hurst Band, The Gena Britt Band, and the house band for Dolly Parton's Dixie Stampede. Beth has been playing with The Mark Newton Band since October of 2003, and currently makes her home in Nashville, Tenn.

Mandolin

Working with the Mark Newton Band on Mandolin is Andy Ball. Andy comes to us from Detroit, Michigan where he was born and raised. Although bluegrass is not necessarily native to that part of the country, Andy is a third generation southern transplant whose roots are in southeastern Kentucky.

Andy grew up working with various bluegrass and country bands in the Detroit area, primarily with his family band “The Richard Ball Family.” He also grew up playing with Pete Goble, one of the premiere songwriters in Bluegrass music and attributes a lot of his musical knowledge to the ‘Pete Goble School of Bluegrass.' Andy has also worked in the past with the Mike O'Reilly/Dick Smith Band, Paul Williams and the Victory Trio, Stanley Brothers legend Bill Napier, and has performed with J.D. Crowe.

Andy is also finishing up his undergraduate degree in Philosophy at the University of Detroit and plans on doing graduate study at Virginia Tech. His long range goals are to finish a law degree and a PhD in political theory.

Banjo, Guitar, Mandolin

Playing banjo, guitar, and mandolin with the Mark Newton Band is John Wheat. Originally from Terre Haute, Indiana, John began playing banjo in his early teens after the discovery of a copy of "The Foggy Mountain Jamboree" Flat and Scruggs LP that his dad had bought in 1958. Shortly after this inspiration, John's Dad traded 50 bales of hay for his first banjo, a plastic rimmed harmony.

John's first professional musical experiences involved playing contests throughout the Midwestern United States. By 24, John had acquired greater than 40 regional, state, and national competition titles. It was through entrance in the National Banjo Contest in Winfield, Kansas that John met Bela Fleck, who shortly thereafter allowed John the opportunity for formal study with him. John has also had the opportunity to perform/record with Pat Cloud, Special Consensus, Alison Krauss, Wild and Blue, Clay Hess, Tilford Hayes, Bobby Helms, Johnny Paycheck, and Element, to name a few. John's banjo influences include Earl Scruggs, J.D. Crowe, Terry Baucom, Pat Cloud, Bela Fleck, and Brent Mason.

John is currently a full-time student pursuing a degree in medicine. His medical interests include rural specialty practices, trauma-neuro surgery, and cardiothoracic surgery.