- Birth name: Eddie Bayers
- Born: January 28, 1949 Patuxent, MD USA
- Genres: Country
- Occupation: Session musician
- Instruments: Drums
- Years Active: 1968-present
- Labels: Universal South
- Associated Acts: The Players, The Notorious Cherry Bombs
- Influences: Al Jackson Jr., Clyde Stubblefield
- On the Web: EddieBayers.com
Eddie Bayers is an American session drummer who has played on 300 gold and platinum albums. He received the Academy of Country Music‘Drummer of the Year Award’ for fourteen years, and has won the Nashville Music Awards ‘Drummer of the Year’ three times.
Eddie’s early musical training was as a classical pianist. During his college years in Oakland, California he was a member of the Edwin Hawkins Singers and he also jammed with future stars Jerry Garcia, and Tom and John Fogerty and developed an appreciation for the creative aspects of music. After a short stint in a New Jersey show band he decided to move to Nashville.
Session Work
Arriving in Nashville in 1973, Eddie became the house keyboard player at the Carousel Club where he met drummer Larrie Londin who inspired him to take up drumming. Influenced mainly by soul drummers such as Al Jackson, Jr. and Clyde Stubblefield, Eddie became the staff drummer at Audio Media Studios along with guitarist Paul Worley, keyboardist Dennis Burnside, and bassist Jack Jackson. Eddie has played on hundreds of recordings with numerous artists including Tanya Tucker, John Denver, Ricky Skaggs, George Strait, The Beach Boys, Garth Brooks, Glen Campbell, Kenny Chesney, Peter Frampton, Vince Gill, Rebecca Lynn Howard, Lane Brody, Julio Iglesias, Alan Jackson, Elton John, Mark Knopfler, Uncle Kracker, Bob Seger, Sting, Steve Winwood,and Trisha Yearwood. He also co- produced Rosanne Cash’s album Interiors, A Glen Campbell Christmas, and the soundtracks for over half a dozen films including A Thing Called Love, Ferris Buellers Day Off, Bridget Jones Diary, A Few Good Men, and Honeymoon in Vegas.
The Players
In 2002 Eddie formed a band, The Players, with fellow studio musicians Brent Mason, Paul Franklin, John Hobbs, and Michael Rhodes. The group released a live DVD, Live in Nashville, featuring their own performances along with guest appearances by Peter Frampton, Shawn Colvin, Travis Tritt, Vince Gill, and Jim Horn.
The Notorious Cherry Bombs
Eddie replaced his former mentor, drummer Larrie Londin, in a reunited Notorious Cherry Bombs for a 2003 ASCAP Country Awards dinner. The band decided to stay together and released The Notorious Cherry Bombs, which was nominated for Grammies in both the ‘Best Country Performance By A Duo Or Group With Vocal’ and ‘Best Country Song’ categories. In addition to Eddie, the band consists of Vince Gill, Rodney Crowell, Hank DeVito, Richard Bennett, and Michael Rhodes.
The Medallion Band
An all-star lineup was assembled to be the backing band at the 2010 Country Music Hall of Fame induction ceremony dubbed the Medallion Band. Eddie served as drummer and was accompanied by keyboardist and music director John Hobbs, pedal steel player Paul Franklin, electric guitarist Steve Gibson, bassist Michael Rhodes, fiddler Deanie Richardson, tuba player Larry Paxton, background vocalists Dawn Sears and Jeff White, and acoustic guitarist Biff Watson. Later that year Eddie and a slightly revamped Medallion Band accompanied Shawn Camp in honoring Hall of Fame inductee Jimmy Dean. Eddie played the same role for the 2011 Country Music Hall of Fame induction ceremony with the band now dubbed the Medallion All-Stars.
Awards
Eddie received the Academy of Country Music Drummer of the Year Award 14 times, Nashville Music Awards Drummer of the Year three times, and one of the 10 greatest session drummers of all time by Drum! Magazine. He has been nominated for the CMA Musician of the Year 10 times but has yet to win it.
Music Industry
In addition to his work as a musician, Eddie has contributed to the recording industry as a 12-year member of the Board of Governors for NARAS. He is also part-owner of the Money Pit recording studio. The number one singles “What I Really Meant to Say” by Cyndi Thomson and “Blessed” by Martina McBride were both recorded at his studio.https://youtu.be/yEVHIfGlmac
