Album Notes

Pine Mountain Railroad
Knoxville, Tennessee

Re-formed in October 2006, this 8-year old band now includes some of bluegrass music's premier instrumentalists and vocalists. The band focuses on presenting a varying array of lead and harmony singers that entertain audiences with a wide variety of bluegrass and gospel bluegrass sounds.

Their latest album, the band's seventh, showcases the tremendous vocal talent they possess along with sterling original material, all from within the band. The album also features a classic from the world of Southern Gospel music, Two Shoes, a former number one for The Inspiration Quartet. It also features the PMRR-arranged Jim & Jesse McReynolds favorite, I Heard the Bluebirds Sing.

Hear this band every Saturday night as they introduce and close the Tennessee Pride portion of WSM's Grand Ole Opry.


Cody Shuler
Knoxville, TN

Born in Bryson City, North Carolina, Cody started playing the mandolin at age thirteen. At fifteen, he started playing for legendary banjo picker
Raymond Fairchild, where he played nightly at Raymond’s Maggie Valley Opry House for four years. At age nineteen, he took over the mandolin with Pine Mountain Railroad.

Cody sings lead, tenor, and baritone and is a very talented songwriter. He can also play guitar.

In April 2006, Cody married Marianne and moved to Knoxville, Tennessee. In September 2006, Cody took over the management of Pine Mountain Railroad and is in the midst of readying the band’s first national release under his tenure, Alone with Forever.

Cody has appeared on WSM’s Grand Ole Opry with Raymond Fairchild and has been an overnight guest in the home of Jimmy Martin. He owns the publishing rights to one of the all time favorites, Hit Parade of Love.



Bill McBee
Halls Crossroads, TN

Growing up, bill developed a love for southern gospel music and the harmonies of shaped-note singing at church. At home, it was bluegrass, learned from the music of his family, who picked and sang in Claiborne County, TN.

Bill joined Pine Mountain Railroad in early 2001 and has performed all over the USA and eastern Canada. He has appeared on five of their records. Bill currently plays a 1939 Kay Orchestra model bass. In addition to playing bass and contributing bass vocals, Bill handles media and marketing issues for the band.

A graduate of the University of Tennessee, Bill is a retired federal agent, with almost 30-years’ service. He currently owns a private investigations firm and is a certified fraud expert. Bill & Katherine have five children, four grandchildren, and a fifth on the way. He enjoys motorcycling and kayaking. He is a Viet-Nam Veteran of the US Army (‘69-’70).



Matt Flake
Leitchfield, KY

Matt has been a member of Pine Mountain Railroad since October 2004. “Scooter”, as he is known, began playing the mandolin when he was nine. About a year later, he began taking fiddle lessons from Jesse Haycraft.

Matt previously played music with Blue Tradition, a Kentucky bluegrass band that won championships in both Kentucky and Indiana. Individually, Matt has won state championships in Alabama, Kentucky, Tennessee, and Indiana on three different instruments: Mandolin, Fiddle, and Guitar. Currently, Matt plays a custom-made John silakowski five-string fiddle. He also contributes baritone and bass vocals.

In his free time, Matt enjoys playing guitar and bass. He is also a good shot with a pool cue, according to sources, and enjoys a friendly game every now and then with his buddies.




Eli Johnston
Knoxville, TN

Eli was born and raised in Treece, Kansas, a small town near Columbus, Kansas. In his high school days, Eli played baseball, football, and wrestled. In his junior year, Eli’s family moved to Branson, Missouri. Eli was taught the guitar by his Grandpa Joe and improved his skills by attending jam sessions, pickin parties, and festivals with his dad.

At about age fifteen, Eli began playing bass and banjo. Soon his pickin opportunities began occurring all over Missouri and Arkansas as he and his dad traveled to more and more festivals. Eli’s first musical gig was at the Shepherd of the Hills Theater in Branson, Missouri. Before long, he got an audition with the Nothin’ Fancy Band, where he became their bass player for most of 2006.

In October 2006, Eli joined Pine Mountain Railroad as the lead guitarist. He also contributes baritone, lead, and tenor vocals.



Elmer C. Burchett, Jr.
Berea, KY.

Elmer joined Pine Mountain Railroad in late-2006 and brought with him one of the most sought-after tone and taste combinations in bluegrass banjo. He also sings baritone, lead, and tenor vocals. A prolific writer, Elmer has been inspired by many great songwriters.

He has been in several outstanding bands such as Rambler’s Choice, Wyatt Rice &Santa Cruz, Dale AnnBradley, and David Parmley & Continental Divide. Elmer has shared the stage with many performers including Lou Reid, Ronnie Bowman, Ricky Skaggs, Tony Rice, Clyde & Marie Denny, and Gary Brewer.

Elmer has two daughters, Haley and Molly. Elmer has yet another Mollie – this one his fiancé. They are presently planning a wedding in 2008. Mollie is set to graduate from Eastern Kentucky University soon.



Mark Cable
Tuskeegee, NC

A member of Pine Mountain Railroad since October 2006, Mark grew up listening to bluegrass music. Mark plays rhythm guitar and sings lead, tenor, and high baritone. Mark and Sabrina have two children, Destinee and Samuel.

Mark is an avid deer hunter; his passion is bow hunting. When not hunting, Mark loves to be with his family, attending church, and hanging out with friends. Mark has sung with several bands and southern gospel groups, among them the Smoky Mountain Boys, based in North Carolina. An unbelievably gifted vocalist, Mark is a true Christian gives God the credit for his accomplishments.

Mark is currently in the process to obtain his electrician’s license and will continue building houses with his dad whenever he’s not on the road with PMRR.