From his early days as a young session guitarist in Los Angeles under the tutelage of Wrecking Crew mainstay Al Casey to his current role as the "other" guitarist in Mark Knopfler's band, Richard Bennett has built a career that has swung wide through pop, rock, and country music history. He spent most of the 1970s and ’80s playing guitar for Neil Diamond before moving to Nashville and becoming a first-call session guitarist for Rodney Crowell and Emmylou Harris. His guitar work can also be heard on albums by the Bellamy Brothers, Rosanne Cash, Vince Gill, George Jones, Miranda Lambert, George Strait, and Travis Tritt, He’s produced hit records for Steve Earle and Marty Stuart and recorded several albums of instrumental music, the latest of which is Contrary Cocktail. The interview will be illustrated with vintage photos, film footage, and recordings, and Bennett will perform briefly.

This program takes place in the Museum's Ford Theater and will also be streamed live at http://countrymusichalloffame.org/streaming. The live stream is powered by NewTek TriCaster.

After the program, Bennett will sign Hatch Show Print posters commemorating the day.

Moderne Shellac, 2015

A hypnotic blend of rhythms, landscapes, tones, colors, styles and moods, with melodies leading the way to certain places that only songs without words can go.

-- Pieta Brown, 2015

Moderne Shellac, 2013

Like the builders who'd etch a design, a gracing touch on the uppermost ledges of those first early 20th century skyscrapers, Richard puts something into his work that no one else may be able to extract or identify or even know exists. But something about its being there makes the end product complete, better, best. Yes, Richard Bennett is one lucky son of a gun but a spin of For The Newly Blue is all you'll need to know he's giving as good as he gets.

-- Rick Allen, Writer for Vintage Guitar Magazine

Moderne Shellac, 2010

...it was a hell of a winter. We piled into a drafty, black, 1954 Cadillac convertible, picked up Route 66 and pointed the Caddy west in search of a new life in Phoenix, Arizona...the Valley of the Sun. These eleven postcards are love letters, distant watery images...mirages of the Valley.

-- Richard Bennett

Moderne Shellac, 2008

"I believe these tracks might reflect the real 'heart and soul' of Richard Bennett. Of course, I think that about everything I hear him play, whether it's jazz, blues, country, pop or rock and roll. And perhaps, as someone once said, he plays that way just because he can!"

- - Duane Eddy

Moderne Shellac, 2004

"For almost ten years now I've felt very lucky having Richard Bennett as a pal and as a member of the band. His quiet, self-effacing manner hides an encyclopaedic knowledge of all kinds of roots and rock music, from Hillbilly to Hawaiian, played effortlessly on a variety of instruments which appear out of a flight case as big as an Airstream trailer.........May his cracking guitar playing find a place in your life as it has in mine."

-- Mark Knopfler