About this Artist
Though originally created as a bluegrass band, NICKEL CREEK expands the traditional sound with Beatles-flavored psychedelia, left-of-center alt rock, pop, folk, and more.
The trio of fiddle player Sara Watkins, guitarist Sean Watkins, and mandolin player Chris Thile met when their parents took them to hear a weekly bluegrass show at "That Pizza Place" in Southern California. They have been a band ever since - for more than 13 years.
Individually, the members of Nickel Creek have performed or recorded with the Dixie Chicks, Dolly Parton, Bela Fleck, Glen Phillips, and others. Both Thile and Watkins have released two solo albums each.
Nickel Creek's self-titled debut (2000) has sold over 800,000 albums and was nominated for two Grammy awards. Their second release, This Side, released in 2002, debuted at number 18 on the Billboard chart; in 2003 the album received two Grammy nominations and won the Grammy for Best Contemporary Folk Album.
Rolling Stone included the band in its "Best of 2002," and Time magazine featured them in the music innovators special issue in May 2000, naming them one of "Five Music Innovators for the Millennium."