Chris Stapleton on the Overlooked Album That Changed His Life

Chris Stapleton says the 2000 album *Real Time*, by Darrell Scott and Tim O’Brien, introduced him to bluegrass and roots music in his early twenties. The discovery broadened his sense of what music could be and became a lasting influence, despite his growing up in east Kentucky, where bluegrass was not part of his household.

Stapleton recalls hearing the album around 1999 or 2000 while driving an ice truck, after his roommate Jesse Wells played it for him. He was struck by the two musicians’ skill, the album’s full sound and its sense of journey, and says he listened to it daily for months. His account appears in *On the Records*, a forthcoming book featuring essays or conversations with 80 musicians about influential, overlooked albums.