"He sits along side Michael McGoldrick and Flook just as easily as with bluegrass masters Stuart Duncan and David Grier - and believe you me , these people don't throw their lot in for just anybody"
-Nick Barraclough, BBC Radio 2.

Leon Hunt is deservedly the UK's best-known 5-string banjo player. A former student of American banjo virtuoso, Bela Fleck, his exploits with Daily Planet and Southern Exposure have been making waves on both sides of the Atlantic.
His trademark has always been a healthy disregard for the banjo's traditional boundaries, experimenting with techniques, sounds and technology and using his earlier musical influences (both of Leon's parents are jazz musicians) to ultimately make it a more versatile instrument.

In 1999 Leon decided to take a three-year sabbatical from touring to take advantage of an invitation to do a degree in music and music technology in his home town of Bath, since graduating he has returned to his career as a professional musician with refreshed enthusiasm. Seasons playing with the Royal Shakespeare Company and at The New Vic as well as composing the soundtrack for a production of 'To Kill a Mocking Bird', also at The New Vic have kept Leon very busy, however he still managed to find the time to record his first solo album, "Miles Apart".

"Miles Apart" is a true 'transatlantic session' with as much of the recording taking place in Nashville, TN as in Leon's home town of Bath, England. 'Miles Apart' features some of the best acoustic musicians from both the US and the UK and effortlessly spans several musical disciplines. Most noticeable are Bluegrass, Jazz and Celtic music, styles that Leon describes as being; "natural bed partners…whilst Bill Monroe was embracing his Scottish heritage Earl Scruggs was busy re-working New Orleans jazz tunes - bluegrass music has always provided a strong connection between traditional music and more improvisational forms of music like jazz". [reviews]