Billy Cardine

Billy Cardine has a way with his listeners.  His distinctive voice powers through any instrument he plays, song that he composes, and album that he produces.  Cardine has been recognized as a slide guitar pioneer, taking the dobro with him into unchartered genres. You can sense that he takes great pleasure in bringing the audience along for the ride: setting you off on a gentle float down a river before throwing you into the middle of a raging storm, only to drop you off on the other side, wondering what just happened.  

Cardine’s patchwork of diverse musical influences contributes to his chameleonesque ability to fit in with whatever collaboration he joins on the stage, or in the studio.   He has performed at Carnegie Hall, The Kennedy Center, the Ryman Auditorium and major festivals, such as Bonnaroo, Merlefest and Rockygrass.  As an internationally featured artist, he has toured in India, Japan, Europe and Canada.  

Billy’s distinct voice on all things slide has lead him to collaborations with Led Zeppelin's own, John Paul Jones, world renowned, Edgar Meyer in his Porous Borders of Music, and alongside dobro king, Jerry Douglas, who said,  “Billy Cardine is an amazing Dobro player...He is fluent in everything that I do, and Josh Graves, and everybody that has come before. I got to be with him for a little while at Carnegie Hall for Edgar Meyer’s “Porous Borders”... I couldn’t have picked a better example for them of where the Dobro is now or what the possibilities are with the instrument.”

As an engineer and producer, his works have won national and international awards and recognition including Indie Acoustic Music Project’s Roots Album of the Year, Chicago Tribune’s Best Bluegrass records of the year and an Apple iPod Playlist Hot Pick.  His memorable compositions and emotive playing have been featured on The History Channel's "Our Generation", BBC World's "Destination Music", and PBS' "RoadTrip Nation".  

As an educator, Cardine is known for his gentle yet thorough approach to shining light on musical mysteries, creating lots of “ahaaa” moments for his students.  He has taught throughout the country, including: Resosummit, Rockygrass Academy, and the University of North Carolina Asheville, as well as internationally, in France, Canada and India.

As an innovator, he was recognized by music mogul, Moog Music, to help design their first electric slide guitar, which he debuted at Moogfest.

From a founding member of the internationally acclaimed, The Biscuit Burners, Cardine launched a prolific and sundry solo career alongside his dynamic collaborations, including:  The Billy Sea, Acoustic Syndicate, North of Too Far Downs, Mary and William, Road Less Traveled Octet, The Bhattacharya Family, and RapidGrass.