Alison Krauss & Union Station

Alison Krauss & Union Station won American hearts and restored bluegrass music to the mainstream with their exciting contributions to the hit movie and albums O Brother Where Art Thou and Cold Mountain, resulting in a slew of awards. It also led the band - comprising some of America's greatest modern country musicians, like lap steel icon Jerry Douglas and guitarist/mandolin hero Dan Tyminski - acquiring the appeal and commercial weight of a major rock band, helping to bring country music back into vogue. Krauss, who began as a classical violinist, actually had her own band at the age of 10 and was winning fiddle championships in her early teens, first meeting Dan Tyminski and other members of Union Station around the same time. Two Highways, her first album with Union Station, was released in 1989, followed in 1992 by Everytime You Say Goodbye, which went on to win a Grammy Award. They continued to win admirers with various other tours and albums, but it was their contribution to hit movie O Brother Where Art Thou in 2000 that propelled them into mammoth sales, with Tyminski's vocals on I Am A Man Of Constant Sorrow famously used for George Clooney's character. While all the members have been in great demand for other projects - including Krauss's hugely successful Raising Sand album with Robert Plant in 2007 - the Union Station brand remains a hallmark of outstanding quality for country music.