Ron Block profile picture

Ron Block

Ron Block of Alison Krauss & Union Station (AKUS)

About Me

DoorWay has received much critical acclaim in the past few months, with reviews by Billboard, Christianity Today, Barnes & Noble, Dallas Morning News, and many more. The full reviews are on RonBlock.com A few short review excerpts:Barnes & Noble: “His Union Station mates Jerry Douglas and Dan Tyminski may be better known, but Ron Block levels the playing field with his second solo album, an assertive exploration of his Christian faith...Making every word and every lick count, Ron Block has fashioned a most compelling testimony here.”Christian Music Today: “DoorWay is an impressively varied effort with strong musicianship, thoughtful songwriting, and a fine example of a Christian artist using his music to reach out to seekers without beating them over the heads with it.”Billboard Magazine, All Music Guide: “Ron Block is...an excellent singer, songwriter, and guitarist, and on his second solo album he expands his stylistic parameters to very winning effect...it's hard to imagine that anyone with a relatively open mind in musical terms and an appreciation for the real challenges and conflicts inherent in the process of choosing a life of faith will be able to listen to DoorWay and remain unmoved. Very highly recommended.”Dallas Morning News: “Impeccably performed and beautifully recorded, Ron Block's crystalline DoorWay marries the folk/bluegrass sound he perfected on his regular gig with Alison Krauss and Union Station with lyrics depicting real-life struggles of faith...DoorWay will certainly appeal to bluegrass and folk fans. But anyone who gives it a listen will find much to like.”Infuze Magazine: “...a powerfully performed acoustic album, oozing bluegrass and Americana sounds...The title track, “DoorWay”, is an evangelical masterpiece, complete with harmony vocals from Alison Krauss....DoorWay is a beautiful album, one that demands careful listening. Those that take the time will be well rewarded.”UMC.org: “Block’s latest album, Doorway, opens into a roomful of rootsy and harmony-rich songs featuring strong Christian themes and top-shelf musicianship from Block and guests, including Union Station.”CD Insight: “Sturdy and self-confident, Ron Block carefully cultivates his music with a strong personal belief in its depth and meaning. “DoorWay” shows that his inner fire burns with the conviction of his soul. Block has discovered what he stands for in life and what he has to do with his music.”

"A Living Prayer" (words and music by Ron Block)
"Cluck Old Hen"
"Road to NashVegas" - Dan Tyminski and Ron at the Clapton Crossroads Festival

My Interests

Music:

Member Since: 12/2/2006
Band Website: ronblock.com
Band Members: www.alisonkrauss.com

AVAILABLE CDs

DoorWay (new!)

Faraway Land
Also available at
Influences: Some major influences (a complete list is unavailable, even in my mind). J.D. Crowe, Eric Clapton, Flatt & Scruggs, Pat Metheny, Tony Rice, Jimmy Martin, James Taylor, Ricky Skaggs, B.B. King, Bonnie Raitt, The Stanley Brothers, Bryan Adams, Bill Monroe, Fernando Ortega, Joni Mitchell, Sonny Landreth, Larry Carlton, and of course the musicians I've played with for the past 15 years have influenced me greatly: Alison Krauss, Dan Tyminski, Barry Bales, Jerry Douglas.Andrew Peterson and Kate Rusby are two of my relatively newer favorites. If you've never heard Andrew, Kate, or Fernando Ortega, I'd suggest picking up their cds immediately - for Andrew, his Far Country cd; Christian music with an acoustic basis, not overproduced, with the soulful vocals of Sir Andrew. For Kate Rusby, get The Girl Who Couldn't Fly; sparse, emotion-laden, acoustic Celtic music with one of the best female voices I've ever heard. For Fernando, get his latest, The Shadow of Your Wings, if you're interested in spontaneously moving into a state of reverence and worship the minute you put the cd in the player. Trusting God becomes a non-issue in that state of heart.
Sounds Like: The guy I see in the mirror.
Record Label: Rounder
Type of Label: Indie

My Blog

Harry Potter, Dumbledore, and CS Lewis

To clarify for anyone else who reads this, though you know this, my point in the last blog was that if we are going to pass judgment on the reading of Harry Potter as a "cut and dried issue" then we'd...
Posted by Ron Block on Mon, 29 Oct 2007 08:09:00 PST

Media, Pop Culture, Dumbledore, and Ellens Dog

So - ok, I finally went and read some of the media slop about Rowling's Great Carnegie Hall revelation. And what strikes me, as someone who no longer consumes mass quantities of modern pop culture, is...
Posted by Ron Block on Mon, 29 Oct 2007 10:01:00 PST

X Can Be X and Non-X at the Same Time

Election is one of those things I don't think we can fully understand here in this time-space frame. The logic of Heaven is paradox here. We live by dying. We get righteousness by not trying to get it...
Posted by Ron Block on Tue, 25 Sep 2007 07:00:00 PST

Current Listening: Three of My Favorite Contemporary Artists

Kate RusbyOne of the best artists whose music I've encountered in the past few years is Kate Rusby. Her voice is unique, and her understated use of it in conveying emotion is top-notch. AKUS played in...
Posted by Ron Block on Tue, 18 Sep 2007 09:29:00 PST

Face to Face with Jesus: Facing the Facts

As time goes on we get closer to either the Lord's return or our own deaths; the time is coming where every one of Christ's Blood-bought people will look him in the face. This is a non-negotiable happ...
Posted by Ron Block on Tue, 18 Sep 2007 09:06:00 PST

Deck the Halls with Regulations, Fa-Law-Law-Law-Law, Law-Law-Law-Law

I went through a powerful identity crash in the mid-nineties, as all my old ways of getting self-worth, acceptance, security, and meaning took the straight track to hell. In that identity crash I foun...
Posted by Ron Block on Tue, 18 Sep 2007 09:02:00 PST

An Addition to the "I Saw Jesus" Email

I saw Jesus last Friday. He was hanging out with the worst sorts of people. Several prominent Christian leaders were giving Him angry words about His choice of friends and His behavior. He kept breaki...
Posted by Ron Block on Tue, 18 Sep 2007 09:01:00 PST

Human Control and Neo’s "Fate Crap"

We like to think we are in control of our own lives. It's a comfortable illusion. In The Matrix, the Oracle says to Neo on his first visit, "You don't believe in any of this Fate crap. You're in contr...
Posted by Ron Block on Tue, 18 Sep 2007 09:04:00 PST

Jesus Christ: The Human Dilemma (Part 2)

Many churches teach a modified form of Old Testament Law based in the whole "Do this and don't do that" dilemma of perfection in part 1. They take "Trying to be good" and then add "Jesus forgives us w...
Posted by Ron Block on Wed, 11 Apr 2007 06:46:00 PST

Imperfection: The Human Dilemma (Part 1)

Every one of us has been created with a desire for security, purpose, worth, meaning. That's what the entire world is looking for. We hope to find it by our performance, by being good, by being respon...
Posted by Ron Block on Wed, 11 Apr 2007 05:20:00 PST