MERLE MONROE / THE TIM RAYBON BAND
- From Nashville.
- Formed in 2018 by Tim Raybon (guitar) and Daniel Grindstaff (banjo). Band members include: Jayd Raines (bass), Stephen Burwell (fiddle), Eli Johnston (bass), Nick Chandler (mandolin), Gary Hultman (Dobro), Derek Deakins (fiddle), Jason Burleson (mandolin) and Josh Dosh (guitar).
- Their band name is a blend of Merle Haggard and Bill Monroe.
- Raybon is the brother of Marty Raybon (Shenandoah) and performed with him as the Raybon Brothers. They had a hit record in 1997 with “Butterfly Kisses.”
- Grindstaff has worked with Jim and Jesse as well as the Osborne Brothers on the Grand Ole Opry. He has also worked with Marty Raybon’s band Full Circle.
- Besides music, Raybon and Grindstaff are both businessmen. Tim has a real estate agency in Nashville, and Daniel owns an insurance agency in Elizabethton, TN.
- 2019, released Back to the Country album (Pinecastle).
- 2021, changed the name of the band to The Tim Raybon Band.