SlimDaddy

Jason "Slim" Gambill was born in Omaha, Nebraska. His family moved around the southwestern U.S., living all over Oklahoma, Texas, and New Mexico by the time he was five years old, giving him early exposure to life on the road. Eventually, his family would settle, more or less, in Colorado Springs, Colorado. It was here that Jason got his first guitar (a loaner from his Grandma in Omaha) when he was nine. He tinkered around for a few years, but it wasn't until his Dad showed him "Woodstock: The Movie" in 1989 that his life would be changed by the guitar. "There were three guys in that movie who really made a mark on me," reminisces Gambill, "Richie Havens, Alvin Lee (of Ten Years After) and of course, Hendrix." These artists would spark an interest in music that still hasn't gone away. Over the next eight years, Jason would spend every available moment absorbing classic rock, blues, southern rock, jazz, and funk music, eventually fusing it all in his first high school band, The Awkward Stage, an improvisational trio which sounded like "Primus, Parliament, and Cream's wounded stepchild." When he had barely turned eighteen, Gambill made the move to Los Angeles to study at the University of Southern California. It was here that he would live and breathe music. "I really got into Singer-Songwriters, Classic Soul and Funk, and at about the same time really got into playing like Stevie Ray and Skynyrd. You know--all the southern stuff really fascinated me." Gambill formed a band about this time with musical kindred spirit and keyboardist Dave Yaden, with whom he still collaborates constantly. The band was called Deep Fried, and it would prove to be a gateway for both, as it led to their association with a young singer-songwriter named Joe Firstman, with whom they would record an album on Atlantic Records late in 2001. Besides being a link to the major-label music industry, Firstman also endowed Gambill with his nickname--"Slim." "Half of creation doesn't even know my first name at this point--but they always remember Slim.” Slim spent the next few years involved with numerous projects ranging from country-rock to modern pop to Indie rock to straight-up funk and R&B. His collaborators have included independent artists like Tony Lucca, Tim Jones, and Curtis Peoples, on up to legends like Randy Jackson, Desmond Child, and Matt Wallace (Maroon 5), and everything in between. He has also found himself on stage with members of Maroon 5, John Mayer, Macy Gray, Marc Ford (The Black Crowes), and many others. He also did a year-long stint on late-night television, playing guitar in the house band on NBC’s “Last Call with Carson Daly,” while also spending time on the road and in the studio with Josh Kelley (Hollywood), Tyler Hilton (Warner Bros.), Pepe Aguilar (Universal Latin), Will Hoge (Ryko), and numerous other major-label acts. Early in 2007, Slim decided to transition into the Nashville scene, and made the move in April. In the past year, he has done sessions with some of the biggest names in country, including producers Dann Huff (Rascal Flatts, LeAnn Rimes, Keith Urban), Paul Worley (Sara Evans, Martina McBride), Ken Coomer (Wilco, Steve Earle, Will Hoge), and Keith Stegall (Alan Jackson), and has also worked his way into the community as a sought-after songwriter and sideman. Slim tours, writes, and records regularly with pop/rocker Curtis Peoples, and has been writing and recording with Lady Antebellum, who in 2007 signed with Capitol Records. He seamlessly navigates between Guitar, Lap Steel, Mandolin, Dobro, and Banjo (along with pretty much anything with strings and frets). Currently, he tours with Lady Antebellum and Tyler Hilton.