Free Rein Bluegrass Band
Updated: Oct 2
There’s a special relationship between people who grew up together. They went through rites of passage at the same time, and they have the same frame of reference from a similar upbringing. In the Appalachian Mountains of East Tennessee, Damon Seal, Daniel Oxendine, and Randall Woods grew up together did just that.
“We all grew up together, and we played music together,” says Damon, “but as time went on, we all
joined different bands.” In 2002, Damon and Daniel got together to jam with Randall Woods. They
reconnected instantly and knew there was something special with the harmony vocals they had.
Their musical journeys are similar as they all played in church. Damon joined a bluegrass Gospel band named MasterPeace. He toured the Southeast for 23 years as the band’s lead vocalist, guitar player, and banjo player before co-founding Free Rein in 2024. Damon now serves as the lead guitar player and does most of the lead vocal work and harmony vocals as well.
Daniel was a founding member of a local Gospel group named Spiritual Strings (later renamed Shadow Ridge), formed in 1998. He stayed in the band through 2009, then went on the road with Jerry Butler and the Blu J’s for a year and a half before playing upright bass for Crosspoint, (Rural Rhythm Records). In 2021, he went back to Shadow Ridge and remained there until co-founding Free Rein with Damon in 2024. Daniel is the banjo player and contributes baritone and lead vocals to the band. Randall played with his family band, The Woods Family, as a child. He later joined a well-known local band, Union Grass, where local legend Wade Hill played banjo. Randall is the bass man of the group and can sing any part you throw his way.
David Combs rounds out the band on mandolin. His introduction to bluegrass came while listening to records with a friend. It was a 45 of Tony Rice playing “Me and My Guitar” that hooked David. His love of mandolin came during Sunday rides to church with his mom, listening to Paul Williams and the Victory Trio. As he got older, David played with local bluegrass bands until he had an opportunity to fill in on mandolin when Paul Williams fell and broke his wrist at the Bean Blossom Festival. He filled that spot for a couple of months while Williams healed, and now says that was the most influential time of his musical career. “My playing style changed, and I learned that melody is key,” David said.
Cleve May, no longer with the band, played with Free Rein for a year and a half and provided tenor vocals and dobro. “Cleve was on every track of our first album,” says David.
Free Rein is a high-energy band with dynamic musical arrangements. “We are all involved in the
arrangements,” says Damon. “We collaborate a lot, playing off each other’s ideas.” The band prides itself with its tight harmonies.
With a strong foundation of growing up in church, Damon says he and Daniel’s first love is Gospel music. “There is a heavy focus on bluegrass Gospel in the band,” he says. “A song on our first album, Jesus Can Do Anything, was written by the well-known banjo player and friend Stuart Wyrick. But the band also covers classic bluegrass and country. The band members are influenced by a wide range of artists, from George Jones, Waylon Jennings, Tony Rice, J.D. Crowe, Larry Sparks, Earl Scruggs, and even Eric Clapton. “We actually did a cover of Clapton’s ‘Wonderful Tonight for fun.’ Stuart Wyrick wrote ‘Jesus Can Do Anything,’ and we asked if we could re-cut and put our spin on it. He agreed, and we did.”
In the end, Damon says the band members are all old school traditionalists.
Their newest single, “One Sunday Morning,” was released last April. Daniel wrote the song when he was 19 years old about his salvation experience. The single was recorded at NoraBelle Studios in Sevierville, Tennessee and was produced and engineered by Darrell Webb. “Darrell has been a true mentor to us and we can’t say thank you enough for believing in us,” Damon says.
Each member of the band has a job in keeping things running smoothly. They also have day jobs outside of their music life. They have been playing local shows and a few festivals in Virginia, West Virginia, and Kentucky. “Our goal is to play twenty to thirty shows a year at great festivals and venues,” says Damon. “We love traveling together, and we are like brothers. We may bicker, but we always get along.”
Katie Penn (The Katie Penn Agency) is the band’s booking agent. “And we have to give a shoutout to Vivian Pennington Hopkins with the IBMA. She took a liking to us, and she’s been so helpful.” Free Rein Bluegrass Band will play in an IBMA showcase on October 21in Chattanooga. “We look forward to seeing everyone there.
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