Can a wheel reinvent itself while it’s still rolling?
Sounds like an impossible task -- but you never want to say “impossible” to Asleep at the Wheel, the famed western-swing, boogie, and roots-music outfit that’s, amazingly, still on the upswing. That’s saying something, too, considering the group’s been around for more than 38 years, turning out an incredible 25+ albums while playing an unrelenting schedule of one-nighters that would make a vaudevillian dizzy.
“In terms of how many people we played for, what we accomplished, and how much money we made – well, we didn’t make any money, but we grossed a lot – ‘06 was absolutely our best year ever,” says Wheel founder and front man Ray Benson with a chuckle.
And even as the Wheel rolled on, the reinvention had begun. You could see and hear it in their live shows, where new vocalist Elizabeth McQueen invited comparison with the classic female vocalists of the band’s earlier era, and fiddler-singer Jason Roberts gave the band a second male lead voice to complement Benson’s immediately identifiable baritone.
These days, the reinvented Wheel is also rolling down a couple of new avenues. One involves to the critically acclaimed musical play, A Ride With Bob, which stars Benson as himself -- encountering the ghost of Bob Wills on a tour bus – Roberts as the young Wills, and McQueen as Minnie Pearl and other famed entertainment figures, with the rest of the band members featured as well. Originally designed as a one-off celebration of Wills’ 100th birthday in ’05, A Ride With Bob quickly took on a life of its own and, notes Benson, “it’s absolutely a part of what we do now.” Another success has been the adaptation of the Wheel’s repertoire for pops symphony. Performances with Dallas, Austin, Fort Worth & Amarillo symphonies have drawn record crowds.
The Wheel’s new look is also spotlighted in a new disc – called, appropriately enough, Reinventing the Wheel. The 12-cut celebration of American – particularly Southwestern – music features guest appearances by gospel’s Blind Boys of Alabama (with a splendid reworking of the old Wills tune “The Devil Ain’t Lazy”) and banjoist Rolf Sieker, along with lead vocals by McQueen and Roberts as well as Benson, whose voice has been synonymous with Asleep at the Wheel for decades. –John Wooley
“In terms of how many people we played for, what we accomplished, and how much money we made – well, we didn’t make any money, but we grossed a lot – ‘06 was absolutely our best year ever,” says Wheel founder and front man Ray Benson with a chuckle.
And even as the Wheel rolled on, the reinvention had begun. You could see and hear it in their live shows, where new vocalist Elizabeth McQueen invited comparison with the classic female vocalists of the band’s earlier era, and fiddler-singer Jason Roberts gave the band a second male lead voice to complement Benson’s immediately identifiable baritone.
These days, the reinvented Wheel is also rolling down a couple of new avenues. One involves to the critically acclaimed musical play, A Ride With Bob, which stars Benson as himself -- encountering the ghost of Bob Wills on a tour bus – Roberts as the young Wills, and McQueen as Minnie Pearl and other famed entertainment figures, with the rest of the band members featured as well. Originally designed as a one-off celebration of Wills’ 100th birthday in ’05, A Ride With Bob quickly took on a life of its own and, notes Benson, “it’s absolutely a part of what we do now.” Another success has been the adaptation of the Wheel’s repertoire for pops symphony. Performances with Dallas, Austin, Fort Worth & Amarillo symphonies have drawn record crowds.
The Wheel’s new look is also spotlighted in a new disc – called, appropriately enough, Reinventing the Wheel. The 12-cut celebration of American – particularly Southwestern – music features guest appearances by gospel’s Blind Boys of Alabama (with a splendid reworking of the old Wills tune “The Devil Ain’t Lazy”) and banjoist Rolf Sieker, along with lead vocals by McQueen and Roberts as well as Benson, whose voice has been synonymous with Asleep at the Wheel for decades. –John Wooley
Leggy spitfire Marcia Ball's ebullient piano-playing evokes the spice and swamp of Louisiana, where she was raised, and the bounce of roadhouse rock from Texas, where she was born. She's in the privileged company of a small number of women who can produce authentic roadhouse blues graced with notable songwriting skills.
Ball grew up in a family of piano players, and while at Louisiana State University she started a bluesy rock band called Gum. Famously, on her way to San Francisco in 1970, her car broke down in the music hub of Austin, where she eventually set up shop. Her skills at barroom boogie made her a natural fit for the city's vibrant club scene, where she formed her second band, Freda and the Firedogs (whose one and only storied recording was produced by Jerry Wexler). She released her first solo album, Circuit Queen, in 1978.
Across her 30-year career, with long stints on both Rounder and Alligator, Ball has proven herself to be consistent in the studio and a joy to behold on stage, drawing Grammy and W.C. Handy Blues awards nominations along the way. She's also shown a deft ability to handpick ideal collaborators, and — although she writes the majority of the material she records — she owns fine covers by songwriters including Clifton Chenier, Joe Ely, Delbert McClinton and Allen Toussaint. Her non-solo recordings include the nicely received Dreams Come True (1990) with Lou Ann Barton and Angela Strehli, and Sing It! (1998) with Tracy Nelson and Irma Thomas. Her 2008 album, Peace, Love & BBQ, features a whole backyard of friends including Terrance Simien, Mac "Dr. John" Rebennack, Stephen Bruton (who also produced) and Wayne Toups. © 2008 Nigel Music Media LLC. Used by permission.
Ball grew up in a family of piano players, and while at Louisiana State University she started a bluesy rock band called Gum. Famously, on her way to San Francisco in 1970, her car broke down in the music hub of Austin, where she eventually set up shop. Her skills at barroom boogie made her a natural fit for the city's vibrant club scene, where she formed her second band, Freda and the Firedogs (whose one and only storied recording was produced by Jerry Wexler). She released her first solo album, Circuit Queen, in 1978.
Across her 30-year career, with long stints on both Rounder and Alligator, Ball has proven herself to be consistent in the studio and a joy to behold on stage, drawing Grammy and W.C. Handy Blues awards nominations along the way. She's also shown a deft ability to handpick ideal collaborators, and — although she writes the majority of the material she records — she owns fine covers by songwriters including Clifton Chenier, Joe Ely, Delbert McClinton and Allen Toussaint. Her non-solo recordings include the nicely received Dreams Come True (1990) with Lou Ann Barton and Angela Strehli, and Sing It! (1998) with Tracy Nelson and Irma Thomas. Her 2008 album, Peace, Love & BBQ, features a whole backyard of friends including Terrance Simien, Mac "Dr. John" Rebennack, Stephen Bruton (who also produced) and Wayne Toups. © 2008 Nigel Music Media LLC. Used by permission.
Los Lonely Boys are a family tradition.
The family band is a great rock’n’roll institution - from the Everly Brothers and the Beach Boys to the Black Crowes and Hanson. There's something about the unstudied perfection of sibling vocal harmonies that creates a distinctive, irresistible style. Los Lonely Boys, three brothers, aged 21-25, from a tiny town in West Texas, are about to write a new chapter in this compelling saga of America's musical families. They began as their father’s backing band. Now, Los Lonely Boys will make their own mark.
Los Lonely Boys are the three Garza brothers: Henry on guitar, Jojo on bass, and Ringo on drums. This remarkable trio of brothers has been making music together since they were small children and now has a decade of professional experience under their belts as well. Los Lonely Boys write, sing, and play music drawn from diverse sources, blending their influences into a seamless style. Weaned on Tex-Mex, country, blues, and rock pioneers like Richie Valens, Chuck Berry and Fats Domino, and such pop music giants as The Beatles, Los Lonely Boys augment those solid basics with red-hot guitar playing, percolating rock and Latin rhythms, and dynamic interplay and luscious vocal harmonies -- all three brothers also sing -- to produce songs rife with engaging hooks, expressive lyrics, and melodic sumptuousness.
The family band is a great rock’n’roll institution - from the Everly Brothers and the Beach Boys to the Black Crowes and Hanson. There's something about the unstudied perfection of sibling vocal harmonies that creates a distinctive, irresistible style. Los Lonely Boys, three brothers, aged 21-25, from a tiny town in West Texas, are about to write a new chapter in this compelling saga of America's musical families. They began as their father’s backing band. Now, Los Lonely Boys will make their own mark.
Los Lonely Boys are the three Garza brothers: Henry on guitar, Jojo on bass, and Ringo on drums. This remarkable trio of brothers has been making music together since they were small children and now has a decade of professional experience under their belts as well. Los Lonely Boys write, sing, and play music drawn from diverse sources, blending their influences into a seamless style. Weaned on Tex-Mex, country, blues, and rock pioneers like Richie Valens, Chuck Berry and Fats Domino, and such pop music giants as The Beatles, Los Lonely Boys augment those solid basics with red-hot guitar playing, percolating rock and Latin rhythms, and dynamic interplay and luscious vocal harmonies -- all three brothers also sing -- to produce songs rife with engaging hooks, expressive lyrics, and melodic sumptuousness.
Carolyn Wonderland has the goods. A triple threat with her diverse songwriting, soulful vocals, and guitar goddess status - all featured on over twenty CDs, six of which are her releases - she has a pedigree in this business that's hard to match. A bit of a renegade, she likes to incorporate elements of Blues, Country, Swing, Zydeco, Surf, Gospel, Soul, and some nights, maybe even a Cumbia into the musical mix. Recent years have seen her stretching out musically working some expert whistling and scat singing into her shows. In addition to her trusty guitar, "Patty," Carolyn has been regularly playing her trumpet, and even occasionally the accordion, mandolin, or keys...she is threatening to take up nose flute if someone doesn’t stop her...
In addition to leading her band, Carolyn is also in a few other notable groups. She's the primary singer on the Jerry Lightfoot's Band of Wonder "Texistentialism" CD with Jerry and Vince Welnick (Grateful Dead, Tubes.) She's a founding member of the Loose Affiliation of Saints and Sinners (with Papa Mali, Eldridge Goins, Guy Forsyth, and others), with several of her songs being featured on their "Sessions from the Hotel San Jose Rm. 50" CD. Carolyn is also the guitarist in the all-girl, southern rock band Sis DeVille, and a founding member of the Austin Volunteer Orchestra. When she's not playing music or driving around the country, she volunteers for the non-profit charity, Instruments for Orphans, serving on the board of directors. Frequently, you can also catch her doing Gospel Brunch at Maria's Taco X-Press with the Imperial Golden Crown Harmonizers on Sundays, raising money for local charities.
Her first love is her band, and with good reason. Years of touring are evident in both the maturity of the songs and the tightness of the grooves on 2003's "Bloodless Revolution." Not one to rest on her laurels, Carolyn is back in the studio working with Ray Benson on lucky CD number 7. You can preview some of the new songs at one of the many live shows on her perpetual tour.
In addition to leading her band, Carolyn is also in a few other notable groups. She's the primary singer on the Jerry Lightfoot's Band of Wonder "Texistentialism" CD with Jerry and Vince Welnick (Grateful Dead, Tubes.) She's a founding member of the Loose Affiliation of Saints and Sinners (with Papa Mali, Eldridge Goins, Guy Forsyth, and others), with several of her songs being featured on their "Sessions from the Hotel San Jose Rm. 50" CD. Carolyn is also the guitarist in the all-girl, southern rock band Sis DeVille, and a founding member of the Austin Volunteer Orchestra. When she's not playing music or driving around the country, she volunteers for the non-profit charity, Instruments for Orphans, serving on the board of directors. Frequently, you can also catch her doing Gospel Brunch at Maria's Taco X-Press with the Imperial Golden Crown Harmonizers on Sundays, raising money for local charities.
Her first love is her band, and with good reason. Years of touring are evident in both the maturity of the songs and the tightness of the grooves on 2003's "Bloodless Revolution." Not one to rest on her laurels, Carolyn is back in the studio working with Ray Benson on lucky CD number 7. You can preview some of the new songs at one of the many live shows on her perpetual tour.
“From the Reach,” Sonny Landreth’s ninth album, is the first to be released on his own Landfall label. On it, the Louisiana-based slide guitar wizard does something unprecedented in his body of work, as he collaborates with five of the greatest guitar players on the planet – Eric Clapton, Mark Knopfler, Robben Ford, Eric Johnson and Vince Gill – for some jaw-dropping performances. Also making a house call is legendary New Orleans pianist and singer Dr. John and iconic Gulf Coast troubadour Jimmy Buffett.
“I’ve wanted to make this kind of record for a long time – to do an entire album that would feature some of my favorite players as special guests,” says Landreth, who’s as articulate as he is virtuosic. “And after all these years, I’ve gotten to become friends with them, so that addressed the question of, who do you ask? Every one of them wanted to do it, so that really fired me up.”
“I’ve wanted to make this kind of record for a long time – to do an entire album that would feature some of my favorite players as special guests,” says Landreth, who’s as articulate as he is virtuosic. “And after all these years, I’ve gotten to become friends with them, so that addressed the question of, who do you ask? Every one of them wanted to do it, so that really fired me up.”
LISTEN TO DOYLE'S MEDIA KIT: CLICK HERE
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It’s apropos that DOYLE BRAMHALL’s new Yep Roc CD is titled Is It Newsbecause, although
they’re absolutely true to his deep roots in the blues, its dozen original tunes mark a turning point
that is both ambitious and the logical summation of his artistic evolution. The answer to the forward-
thinking, envelope-pushing CD’s title is a resounding yes—and the news is all good!
“I wanted to make an all-original record that was big, energetic, intimate, and unpredictable,” Doyle states. “We got a lot of the sounds by pushing everything to the limit and then pulling it back from there.”
Fans already accustomed to Doyle’s high standards and willingness to chart new territory will nonetheless be pleased and surprised at just how high he raises the bar. This instant classic is the benchmark of Bramhall’s storied career—which is saying a lot! Continuing the tradition he started with the songs he co-wrote with Stevie Ray Vaughan, which struck a chord with the biggest audience the blues has ever enjoyed, he deftly expands the idiom’s vocabulary and texture.
Any discussion of Texas blues, be it T-Bone Walker or Stevie Ray, is incomplete without mention of Doyle Bramhall. As singer, songwriter, and drummer, he has been an integral part of that rich state’s music for almost 40 years and, indeed, one of the founding fathers of the blues/roots resurgence synonymous with the Lone Star state and the migration from Dallas to its musical epicenter, Austin. Considering the impact Texas, the state and the state of mind, has had on music around the globe, Bramhall’s importance cannot be overstated.
“I wanted to make an all-original record that was big, energetic, intimate, and unpredictable,” Doyle states. “We got a lot of the sounds by pushing everything to the limit and then pulling it back from there.”
Fans already accustomed to Doyle’s high standards and willingness to chart new territory will nonetheless be pleased and surprised at just how high he raises the bar. This instant classic is the benchmark of Bramhall’s storied career—which is saying a lot! Continuing the tradition he started with the songs he co-wrote with Stevie Ray Vaughan, which struck a chord with the biggest audience the blues has ever enjoyed, he deftly expands the idiom’s vocabulary and texture.
Any discussion of Texas blues, be it T-Bone Walker or Stevie Ray, is incomplete without mention of Doyle Bramhall. As singer, songwriter, and drummer, he has been an integral part of that rich state’s music for almost 40 years and, indeed, one of the founding fathers of the blues/roots resurgence synonymous with the Lone Star state and the migration from Dallas to its musical epicenter, Austin. Considering the impact Texas, the state and the state of mind, has had on music around the globe, Bramhall’s importance cannot be overstated.
A multifaceted performer, Gary plays guitar, harmonica, bass and drums. Originally labeled a blues musician, Gary has always had an appreciation for all genres of music. His performances are a unique blend of R&B, reggae, blues, and soul.
In addition to being a performer, Gary is a singer/songwriter and wrote all of the lyrics and music for his "Worry No More" and "110" CDs. He also wrote the score for the Jason Wiles movie Lenexa 1 Mile.
Gary is also pursuing acting and is currently starring with Danny Glover in the John Sayles movie titled Honeydripper
A 4th CD project is in the works and is scheduled to be released in 2008.
In addition to being a performer, Gary is a singer/songwriter and wrote all of the lyrics and music for his "Worry No More" and "110" CDs. He also wrote the score for the Jason Wiles movie Lenexa 1 Mile.
Gary is also pursuing acting and is currently starring with Danny Glover in the John Sayles movie titled Honeydripper
A 4th CD project is in the works and is scheduled to be released in 2008.
