Chris Gage is a consummate musician, singing with strength and conviction and possessing a masterful command of guitar, piano and accordion. Originally from Pierre, South Dakota, Chris was the founding member of the still-beloved 1970s country swing band, Red Willow Band.

 After two albums, "Red Willow Band" and "Note for Note," Chris embarked on a lengthy stint as a sideman, moving to Tulsa, Oklahoma, to play piano with Roy Clark for eight years. He appeared at the Grand Old Opry, on the Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson, and Hee Haw, as well as accompanying Clark on a 1988 tour of the Soviet Union.

 Gage moved to Austin, Texas, in the early ‘90s, and after an 18-month stint as a musical director at Opryland's Fiesta Texas) theme park, he became band leader for Jimmie Dale Gilmore, playing guitar and piano, for three years, with performances on the Tonight Show with Jay Leno, Conan O'Brien, and at such esteemed venues as Carnegie Hall and The Royal Albert Hall.

 Gage teamed up with Austin songbird Christine Alber in 1996, creating the duo Albert and Gage. They have performed in more than a dozen countries and released six CDs. The husband-and-wife duo is active in the folk music scene and works tirelessly for Christine's non-profit Swan Songs, which provides musical last wishes for the terminally ill. They run MoonHouse Records and MoonHouse Studio in Austin.

 In 2011, the Academy of Texas Music proclaimed Gage "Musician of the Year." In 2016 the Red Willow Band was inducted into the South Dakota Rock and Roll Music Association Hall of Fame, and in 2017 Chris was given a lifetime achievement award by the South Dakota Friends of Traditional Music.

 Chris plays keyboards in the house band for the Austin City Limits Hall of Fame specials that air on New Year's Eve, accompanying the like of Bonnie Raitt, Willie Nelson, Rosanne Cash, Chris Isaak, Elvis Costello, and Ry Cooder. He's a regular in Austin studios, recording with Marcia Bell, Gary Nicholson, Eliza Gilkyson, Ray Benson, Aaron Watson, Jerry Jeff Walker, Lloyd Maines and many others.

 Gage engineers and produces the recordings of Albert and Gage as well as other artists. He plays lead guitar with Texas legend Jerry Jeff Walker, and for 24 years has hosted a popular Monday night hang at Donn's Depot in Austin.

Chris Gage is a "... songwriter, singer, dobro player, ace guitarist, keyboard player, mandolin picker, and a generally electrc powerhouse with inspiration to spare:" Sweet Potato/Minneapolis, Minnesota

Awards