Bobby Pinson

Singer, songwriter, and guitarist Bobby Pinson was born in Tulsa, but raised in a string of small towns in the Texas Panhandle, the son of a high-school football coach and an elementary school teacher. Early in high school he began listening to gritty songwriters like Bruce Springsteen and Steve Earle, as well as country standouts like Willie Nelson, Johnny Cash, and Kris Kristofferson, but his biggest influence turned out to be songwriter, poet, and children's author Shel Silverstein, whose work prompted Pinson to begin entering storytelling and writing contests. Following high school, Pinson began writing songs in earnest and, after a three-year stint in the U.S. Army, started playing the bar and club circuit. He moved to Nashville in 1996 hoping to break into the music scene, but ended up taking whatever odd jobs he could find to survive. Sony/ATV Music took him on as a staff songwriter in 1999, and a year later he signed to Stage Three Music. His songs began making inroads in Nashville, showing up on albums by Marty Stuart, Blake Shelton, LeAnn Rimes, Tracy Lawrence, and other country acts. Pinson began playing the various artist/writer showcases around the city, and was spotted by producer Joe Scaife, who brought Pinson to RCA. Pinson's debut album, Man Like Me, was released by RCA in the spring of 2005.