Steve Wariner
Steven Noel Wariner (born December 25, 1954 in Noblesville , Indiana ) is an American country musician , songwriter and guitarist. He was represented with more than 50 singles in the Billboard Country Charts , ten of them reached number one. He has received four Grammy Awards and is one of seven guitarists who have been certified as a Certified Guitar Player (CGP) by Chet Atkins .
Beginnings
Wariner gained his first musical experience in his father's band. Strongly influenced by his role model Chet Atkins , he developed into a virtuoso guitar player. At the age of 17 he formed a band with some friends. It lacked a singer, so he took over that part. At a gig at a club near Indianapolis was Dottie West present. After an improvised duet together, she offered him a place as bassist in her backing band. Wariner had to choose between school and music. He chose music and dropped out of high school a year before graduation.
He stayed with Dottie West for three years and then joined Bob Luman . During these years he began to write songs. Luman recorded some of his pieces and achieved a hit parade placement with Labor of Love . RCA Records became aware of the talented young musician and signed him in 1977. Shortly afterwards, his mentor, Bob Luman, died.
Career
His first singles reached the bottom of the top 100. He made it into the top 10 for the first time in 1980 with Your Memory , and a year later he reached number 1 on the country charts with All Roads Lead to You . The singles were released from his debut album Steve Wariner , also released in 1981 . The next singles and albums weren't particularly successful, and so Wariner switched to MCA Records in late 1984 .
With the new label he had three number 1 hits in a row in the first year. In 1986, Life's Highway was the first album to be released, which was mainly based on self-written songs. Other top hits followed, including 1987's That Hand that Rocks the Cradle , sung in a duet with Glen Campbell , which earned them a Grammy nomination. His streak of success continued. By the early nineties it reached number 1 nine times and several top 10 placements in the country charts. In addition to his musical activities, Wariner made regular television appearances.
In 1991 he moved to Arista Records . A joint appearance with Vince Gill , Mark O'Connor and Ricky Skaggs under the name New Nashville Cats earned a CMA Award and a Grammy. In the same year, his former sponsor Dottie West died. Steve Wariner sang Amazing Grace at her funeral .
In the period that followed, his records reached the top several times, but mostly his singles were in the lower half of the top 100. In 1996 he produced a purely instrumental album entitled No More Mr. Nice Guy , which featured numerous friends and colleagues, including Chet Atkins, Vince Gill, Bryan White , Béla Fleck , Leo Kottke and Lee Roy Parnell . In the same year he became a member of the Grand Ole Opry . Wariner also made a name for himself as a songwriter, his Longneck Bottle was a No. 1 hit for colleague Garth Brooks in 1997 .
Another career highlight began for Wariner in the spring of 1998. Now under contract with Capitol Records , his sad ballad Holes in the Floor of Heaven reached number 2 on the charts and was awarded two CMA awards for Single of the Year and Song of the Year . What If I Said , his duet with Anita Cochran even placed at No. 1. In the following years he had more hits, the most successful in 1999 were Two Teardrops (No. 2) and I'm Already Taken , a re-release of a title published in 1978.
In 2003 he founded his own label, Selectone Records. His first album on the label was Steal Another Day , followed in 2005 by The Real Life . In 2008 he was inducted into the Music City Walk of Fame in Nashville and in 2011 into the Kentucky Music Hall of Fame.
Discography
Albums
| year | title |
Top ranking, total weeks, awardChart placementsChart placements (Year, title, rankings, weeks, awards, notes) |
Remarks | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 US
|
Country
|
|||
| 1982 | Steve Wariner | - |
Country35 (15 weeks) Country |
|
| 1983 | Midnight Fire | - |
Country39 (27 weeks) Country |
|
| 1985 | One Good Night Deserves Another | - |
Country20 (42 weeks) Country |
|
| Life's Highway | - |
Country22 (44 weeks) Country |
||
| 1987 | It's a crazy world | - |
Country30 (31 weeks) Country |
|
| 1988 | I should be with you | - |
Country20 (36 weeks) Country |
|
| 1989 | I got dreams | - |
Country32 (46 weeks) Country |
|
| 1990 | Laredo | - |
Country20 (24 weeks) Country |
|
| Christmas memories | - |
Country71 (1 week) Country |
||
| 1991 | I am ready |
US180  (7 weeks)US |
Country28 (55 weeks) Country |
|
| 1993 | Drive | - |
Country51 (10 weeks) Country |
|
| 1998 | Burnin 'the Roadhouse Down |
US41 (15 weeks)US |
Country6 (70 weeks) Country |
|
| 1999 | Two teardrops |
US35 (12 weeks)US |
Country6 (44 weeks) Country |
|
| 2000 | Faith in You | - |
Country31 (21 weeks) Country |
|
| 2003 | Steal Another Day | - |
Country31 (5 weeks) Country |
|
| 2013 | It Ain't All Bad | - |
Country74 (1 week) Country |
|
more publishments
- 1996: No More Mr. Nice Guy
- 2005: This Real Life
- 2009: My Tribute to Chet Atkins
- 2010: Guitar Christmas
- 2011: Guitar Laboratory
- 2016: All Over the Map
Compilations
| year | title |
Top ranking, total weeks, awardChart placementsChart placements (Year, title, rankings, weeks, awards, notes) |
Remarks | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
US
|
Country
|
|||
| 1987 | Greatest hits | - |
Country25 (27 weeks) Country |
|
more publishments
- 1985: Greatest Hits
- 1986: Down in Tennessee
- 1990: Greatest Hits Vol. 2
- 1998: great hits
- 1998: The Hits
- 2000: Ultimate Collection
- 2003: The Hits Collection
Singles
| year | Title album |
Top ranking, total weeks, awardChart placementsChart placements (Year, title, album , rankings, weeks, awards, notes) |
Remarks | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
US
|
Country
|
|||
| 1978 | I'm already taken |
- |
Country63 (7 weeks) Country |
|
| So Sad (To Watch Good Love Go Bad) |
- |
Country76 (3 weeks) Country |
||
| Marie |
- |
Country94 (2 weeks) Country |
||
| 1979 | Beside Me |
- |
Country60 (7 weeks) Country |
|
| Forget me not |
- |
Country49 (10 weeks) Country |
B-side of Beside Me
|
|
| 1980 | The Easy Part's Over |
- |
Country41 (10 weeks) Country |
|
| Your Memory Steve Wariner |
- |
Country7 (17 weeks) Country |
||
| 1981 | By Now Steve Wariner |
- |
Country6 (18 weeks) Country |
|
| All Roads Lead To You Steve Wariner |
- |
Country1 (18 weeks) Country |
||
| 1982 | Kansas City Lights Steve Wariner |
- |
Country15 (18 weeks) Country |
|
| Don't It Break Your Heart Steve Wariner |
- |
Country30 (11 weeks) Country |
||
| Don't Plan On Sleeping Tonight Steve Wariner |
- |
Country27 (17 weeks) Country |
||
| 1983 | Don't Your Mem'ry Ever Sleep at Night Midnight Fire |
- |
Country23 (13 weeks) Country |
|
| Midnight Fire Midnight Fire |
- |
Country5 (18 weeks) Country |
||
| Lonely Women Make Good Lovers Midnight Fire |
- |
Country4 (20 weeks) Country |
||
| 1984 | Why Goodbye Midnight Fire |
- |
Country12 (18 weeks) Country |
|
| Don't You Give Up on Love Midnight Fire |
- |
Country49 (10 weeks) Country |
||
| What I Didn't Do One Good Night Deserves Another |
- |
Country49 (25 weeks) Country |
||
| 1985 | Heart Trouble One Good Night Deserves Another |
- |
Country8 (20 weeks) Country |
|
| Some Fools Never Learn One Good Night Deserves Another |
- |
Country1 (22 weeks) Country |
||
| You Can Dream of Me Life’s Highway |
- |
Country1 (22 weeks) Country |
||
| 1986 | Life's Highway Life's Highway |
- |
Country1 (24 weeks) Country |
|
| Starting Over Again Life’s Highway |
- |
Country4 (19 weeks) Country |
||
| Small Town Girl It's a Crazy World |
- |
Country1 (24 weeks) Country |
||
| 1987 | The Weekend It's a Crazy World |
- |
Country1 (23 weeks) Country |
|
| Lynda It's a Crazy World |
- |
Country1 (23 weeks) Country |
||
| 1988 | Baby I'm Yours I Should Be with You |
- |
Country4 (18 weeks) Country |
|
| I should be with you I should be with you |
- |
Country2 (21 weeks) Country |
||
| Hold On (A Little Stronger) I Should Be with You |
- |
Country6 (24 weeks) Country |
||
| 1989 | Where Did I Go Wrong I Got Dreams |
- |
Country1 (22 weeks) Country |
|
| I Got Dreams I Got Dreams |
- |
Country1 (21 weeks) Country |
||
| When I Could Come Home To You I Got Dreams |
- |
Country5 (26 weeks) Country |
||
| 1990 | The Domino Theory Laredo |
- |
Country7 (24 weeks) Country |
|
| Precious Thing Laredo |
- |
Country8 (20 weeks) Country |
||
| There For Awhile Laredo |
- |
Country17 (20 weeks) Country |
||
| 1991 | Leave Him Out of This I Am Ready |
- |
Country6 (20 weeks) Country |
|
| 1992 | The Tips of My Fingers I Am Ready |
- |
Country3 (20 weeks) Country |
|
| A Woman Loves I Am Ready |
- |
Country9 (20 weeks) Country |
||
| Crash Course in the Blues I Am Ready |
- |
Country32 (15 weeks) Country |
||
| 1993 | Like a River to the Sea I Am Ready |
- |
Country30 (14 weeks) Country |
|
| If I Didn't Love You Drive |
- |
Country8 (20 weeks) Country |
||
| Drivin 'and Cryin' Drive |
- |
Country8 (18 weeks) Country |
||
| 1994 | It won't be over you drive |
- |
Country18 (20 weeks) Country |
|
| Drive Drive |
- |
Country63 (4 weeks) Country |
||
| 1995 | Get Back Come Together: America Salutes The Beatles |
- |
Country72 (3 weeks) Country |
|
| 1998 | Holes in the Floor of Heaven Burnin 'the Roadhouse Down |
- |
Country2 (21 weeks) Country |
|
| Road tripping ' Burnin' the Roadhouse Down |
- |
Country55 (4 weeks) Country |
||
| Burnin 'the Roadhouse Down Burnin' the Roadhouse Down |
- |
Country26 (20 weeks) Country |
with Garth Brooks
|
|
| Every Little Whisper Burnin 'the Roadhouse Down |
- |
Country36 (20 weeks) Country |
||
| 1999 | Two teardrops Two teardrops |
US30 (20 weeks) US |
Country2 (24 weeks) Country |
|
| I'm Already Taken Two Teardrops |
US42 (14 weeks) US |
Country3 (25 weeks) Country |
Re-release
|
|
| 2000 | Faith in You Faith in You |
- |
Country30 (19 weeks) Country |
|
| Katie Wants a Fast One Faith in You |
- |
Country22 (20 weeks) Country |
with Garth Brooks
|
|
| Christmas in Your Arms Shimmy Down the Chimney: A Country Christmas |
- |
Country65 (3 weeks) Country |
||
| 2003 | Snowfall on the Sand Steal Another Day |
- |
Country52 (6 weeks) Country |
|
| I'm Your Man Steal Another Day |
- |
Country58 (1 week) Country |
||
Guest Posts
| year | Title album |
Top ranking, total weeks, awardChart placementsChart placements (Year, title, album , rankings, weeks, awards, notes) |
Remarks | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
US
|
Country
|
|||
| 1986 | That's How You Know When Love's Right Rose of My Heart |
- |
Country9 (23 weeks) Country |
with Nicolette Larson
|
| 1987 | The Hand That Rocks the Cradle Still Within the Sound of My Voice |
- |
Country6 (28 weeks) Country |
with Glen Campbell
|
| 1991 | Restless The New Nashville Cats |
- |
Country25 (20 weeks) Country |
|
| Now It Belongs to You The New Nashville Cats |
- |
Country25 (3 weeks) Country |
with Mark O'Connor, Ricky Skaggs & Vince Gill
|
|
| 1994 | Workin 'Man's Blues Mama’s Hungry Eyes: A Tribute to Merle Haggard |
- |
Country48 (... weeks) Country |
with Jed Zeppelin
|
| 1997 | What If I Said Back to You |
US59 (15 weeks) US |
Country1 (23 weeks) Country |
with Anita Cochran
|
| 2000 | Been There D'lectrified |
US44 (20 weeks) US |
Country5 (22 weeks) Country |
with Clint Black
|
Web links
Individual evidence
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Wariner, Steve |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Wariner, Steven Noel (full name) |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | American country musician, songwriter, and guitarist |
| DATE OF BIRTH | December 25, 1954 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Noblesville , Indiana |