Leading Off, the debut solo album by mandolinist Chris Thile, was released by Sugar Hill Records on September 25, 1994 — when Thile was thirteen years old. By that point he had been playing mandolin for eight years and was already established as a child prodigy who would soon co-found Nickel Creek with the Watkins siblings. The album features mostly original Thile compositions and announces the player who would become one of the most consequential acoustic musicians of his generation — leading Nickel Creek through their crossover breakthroughs, founding the Punch Brothers, and eventually winning a MacArthur Fellowship. Leading Off catches him before any of that — already remarkable.
Tracklist
- 1 Shadow Ridge 2:45
- 2 Slime Rock 4:54
- 3 Holdin' Down The Fort 3:01
- 4 Faith River 3:25
- 5 Panhandle Rag Source Recording 3:18
- 6 For All It's Worth 2:04
- 7 Shipwrecked 2:36
- 8 Trail's End 3:38
- 9 Salt Creek alt version 3:48
- 10 Old Dangerfield Source Recording 3:41
- 11 Old Favorite's Medley 4:21
- 12 Chris Cross 3:34
- 13 How Great Thou Art alt version 3:12
