Hailing originally from Birmingham, AL, Monte never picked up a guitar until he moved to the Texas Hill Country in 1979 at the age of 12. His mother, Maggie taught him his first chords on the guitar at the age of 13.

Monte first gained notoriety in 1999 in Austin, TX when as a relatively unknown talent he delivered a jaw-dropping live performance on an episode of the PBS series Austin City Limits. He has been named on the “Top 50 All-Time Greatest Guitar Players” by Guitar Player Magazine, and has won the “Best Acoustic Guitar Player” award at the Austin Chronicles’ Austin Music Awards seven years in a row. For nine seasons, Monte was the composer/creator of music for the FOX TV series Last Man Standing, starring Tim Allen and has appeared on Live from Daryl’s House with Hall and Oates front-man, Daryl Hall. As a songwriter, Monte pulls from a litany of genres to craft original songs that span 12 CDs from 1993 – present.