For close to twenty years, the Texas Crawfish & Music Festival has become a tradition, welcoming over 30,000 visitors each year. The festival, held inside Preservation Park in historic Old Town Spring -- just a few short miles south of Montgomery County -- is all about food, fun, shopping and, of course, music.
The Texas Crawfish & Music Festival, held the last two weekends in April, is a perfect time to see some of the most talented musicians that the Lone Star State has to offer -- plus there’s great regional Zydeco acts and local modern rock and blues favorites.
Come not only with your dancing shoes but with your appetite -- as the festival is loaded with enough food vendors to satisfy even the most finicky of taste buds -- and if you like tasty seafood from South Louisiana, all the better. 50,000 pounds of crawfish is slated for boilin’ at the largest crawfish festival to be found outside Louisiana. And make sure those dancing shoes are comfortable -- as there’s over 150 shops in Old Town Spring ready for your perusal and patronage.
The 2006 Texas Crawfish & Music Festival’s slate of scheduled entertainers is a gathering of exciting new artists from Texas and beyond, representing fresh new talent on the verge of making it into the big-time. The music kicks off on Friday, April 21 with performances on three separate stages: the Texas Stage, the Zydeco Stage, and the Crawfish Stage. Here's a look at some of this year's star performers:
JASON ALLEN: A gifted singer-songscribe, the East Texas native’s first CD, "Something I Dreamed," put him in the spotlight with three top 10 records -- including a number one single on the Texas Music Chart, “Lucky Arms.” Jason Allen, who plays the Texas Stage on Sunday (4/23) at 4:30PM, hit the road at age 18 -- playing lead guitar in a Texas honky-tonk band; over the next few years, he fronted his own bands while making trips to Nashville, living there for months at a time while collaborating with songwriters and learning about the music business. It was there that he had a revelation: “I felt that I was at the end of my road. I kept trying to be discovered and wasn’t getting anywhere. I decided to put it in God’s hands and haven’t looked back since.”
Allen returned home and was soon offered a record deal with the legendary D Records, a local label whose past roster includes country royalty like George Jones, George Strait and Willie Nelson; Allen’s honky-tonk sound doffing its cowboy hat to the roots of traditional country caught the attention of the head of D Records, Wes Daily, who compares Jason Allen to a young Strait. The songs on his sophomore release, "Wouldn’t It Be Nice" are firmly planted in the soul of country; the CD is dedicated to the memory of his late mom.
Despite the rising success of his career, Allen looks humbly upon his calling to be a country artist. “I’m just the same as everyone else,” he says. “Like any other person, I try to be the best at what I do. My profession, though, allows me to reach out to people and hopefully make their day better through music. I am honored to have this life calling. I can’t imagine doing anything else.”
BLEU EDMONDSON BAND: Bleu Edmondson describes his sound as “Country rock with Texas soul” -- music that gives a down home feeling to a country rock beat. The band stays true to Bleu’s description with songs about good ol’ boys, the Hill Country, and the Southland. While Bleu writes and sings the songs, he’s backed by some of the most talented musicians on the Texas Music Scene -- including drummer David Bowen, bassist Richard Avants and guitarist Devin Leigh. Everywhere they go, their fan base continues to grow. See the Bleu Edmondson Band when they country-rock the Texas Stage on Saturday (4/29) at 9:30PM...
BON TON MICKEY & THE ZYDECO HOT STEPPERS: A Houston band that has been together for well over three decades, Bon Ton Mickey & The Zydeco Hot Steppers are a huge hit on the festival and event circuit, as they always manage to get the crowds dancing to music of all flavors -- including Zydeco, blues, and “oldies & goodies.” Bon Ton Mickey & The Zydeco Hot Steppers play the Zydeco Stage on two consecutive Sundays (4/23 and 4/30) at 12 noon...
JARROD BIRMINGHAM: A product of the Texas Gulf Coast, Birmingham’s songs are steeped in realism -- real songs, everyman songs, songs about people you know, places you’ve been, good times you’ve had and loves you’ve known. Whether a hard-driving rebel country rock tune or the solitary crooning that seems to make the words hang in the air, Birmingham renders ideas into the music that creates happy, satisfied fans.
Backed by a five piece band, Birmingham -- who plays the Texas Stage on Sunday (4/30) at 12 noon -- has honed his music in venues across the Deep South, opening shows for a slew of Texas Music and Americana artists and hat acts straight out of Nashville. His music is about as diverse as it can be and still be called country -- the best example of which can be found on his new album, “No Apologies.” “The songs on this album are all about who I am, and one thing that’s certain about me is I have ‘No Apologies.’ What you see is what you get when you deal with me, and that is how I want to come across through my music.”
HAYES CARLL: A Conroe singer-songscribe with an ever-growing audience, Hayes Carll's sophomore release, “Little Rock,” is the first self-released album to make it to number one on the Americana charts -- an accomplishment for which he was honored in 2005. “This has actually been my busiest year,” says Carll, who plays the Texas Stage on Friday (4/28) at 7:30PM. “It’s a long time to wait [to release a second record]. It drove me nuts for a while, because I want people to see my new songs and what I’ve done or where I’ve gone, and it’s just hard to keep handing out the same product. It’s still me, but it’s from a different part of my life and I’m ready for them to see a new part.”
While Carll has been approached by record companies, he likes having control over his own music -- although it can be a tricky situation. “I’m up to my ass in debt,” says Carll, who resides in Conroe, “and it would have been a huge financial relief not to worry about that for the next 10 years, but at the same time, I just couldn’t see spending the next 10 years of my life not controlling what I have. It’s up and down, and it’s not always an easy life, but in the big picture, I can’t complain. I know that most of the people I meet would rather have my job than theirs —- and I’d rather have my job than theirs, too.”
“I’ve kind of been searching this out for a long time,” says Carll. “I’d live wherever I could or do whatever job I could to find the material and find the point of view for the songs, and to be successful at it. And all in all, it’s working out pretty good. I’m a pretty content human being -- with not a whole lot more demons than your average, twisted folk singer.”
CHROME 44: Combining hard-hitting grooves with moving vocal deliveries, Houston’s Chrome 44 have “strived to set themselves apart from their peers to forge a sound as unique as it is raw. They are consistently delivering intoxicating live shows that can only be described as intense and passionate.” Chrome 44 rocks the Crawfish Stage on Friday (4/28) at 7PM...
JESSE DAYTON: Called "one of the best ambassadors of Texas music," Jesse Dayton's high-powered country soul is fueled by a commanding stage presence with a voice smooth and strong and guitar abilities to match. Dayton’s latest album, "Country Soul Brother," essentially picks up where Waylon Jennings and Doug Sahm left off -- understanding Texas music has no boundaries and playing like he is out to prove it.
Among the album’s highlights: the radio-friendly ode to the working woman, “Ain’t Grace Amazing,” and his revisionist honky-tonk take on the Cars’ 1979 classic, “Just What I Needed”. Jesse Dayton is country to the bone -- delivering the goods with all his might. In a perfect world, this is how country music would sound: a tad bolder and wilder, a new direction that seamlessly combines the old with the new, an exploration of classic soul bound by pure Texas honky tonk -- making for a sound that is at once amiable, fresh and, best of all, effortlessly enjoyable. See Jesse Dayton when he plays the Texas Stage on Saturday (4/22) at 5:30PM...
DERYL DODD: After moving to Nashville in the early 90’s, Texas-born neo-country journeyman songsmith Deryl Dodd worked his way through the treacherous ranks of Music Row, playing lead guitarist and singing harmonies with Martina McBride, and was soon writing hits for Tim McGraw. Ironic that the songwriter’s first hit was a cover of Tom T. Hall’s “That's How I Got to Memphis” in 1996. Dodd’s follow-up two years later put him on the fast track -- touring with McGraw and Brooks & Dunn.
The hectic pace, however, took a toll on Dodd’s health; he felt progressively worse until he was unable to play guitar for gig and later couldn’t raise his arms to brush his teeth or comb his hair. Dodd was soon diagnosed with an ear infection, but his condition continued to deteriorate -- leading doctors to believe the musician had a brain tumor, but a spinal tap finally revealed his problem: an acute case of viral encephalitis, a debilitating illness that attacks the central nervous system. Dodd’s burgeoning career was soon stuck in a muddy ditch, as the only sure recovery was 24-7 bed rest for months at a time. In all, Dodd spent nearly two years in rehabilitation, slowly regaining the skills that had been second nature before his illness had robbed him of the motor skills he had once taken for granted.
Dodd returned to Sony Nashville to record a long-overdue third CD, but it just wasn’t the same -- and he soon found himself dropped from the label. Things started looking up, though, when Dodd recorded an album for the regionally renowned “Live at Billy Bob’s” CD series, which led to a recording contract with hip blues & country indie label Dualtone; Dodd, whose new album, “Full Circle,” hits record stores and radio this month, plays the Texas Stage on Friday (4/21) at 9:30PM...
ELI YOUNG BAND: Wanna know a secret? There’s no Eli Young in the Eli Young Band. Actually, there’s two guys -- vocalist Mike Eli and guitarist James Young -- along with drummer Chris Thompson and bassist Jon Jones; and it’s probably not so much a secret as it is you’ve just probably haven’t heard of the Eli Young Band -- but you soon will. Made up mainly of Texas natives, the band is a little bit country and a whole lotta rock n’ roll, a sound called “vintage country rock-style raunch”-- playing clubs around Texas and throughout the South.
Formed five years ago while students at the University of North Texas at Denton, the group decided to stay in the North Texas town after graduation; their persistence paid off when their second release, Level, found an audience with the Americana crowd -- along with comparisons to unique Southern rockers like the Jayhawks, John Mellencamp and the Black Crowes. “I wouldn’t label us as either country or rock,” says James Young “While we’re influenced by different artists, we lean more towards alternative country. Our sound is a blend of all of our influences. For example, I was raised on blues and rock, guitarists like Stevie Ray Vaughan, Joe Perry, Jimmy Page -- all the greats. Mike grew up on singer-songwriters like Rodney Crowell and Paul Simon.”
The Eli Young Band, who play the Texas Stage on Saturday (4/29) at 7:30PM, is a band who likes to get out there on that stage and rock new audiences back on their heels. Says James Young: “There’s a lot of ups and downs being on the road in a working band, but I can’t think of anything I would rather do. We love getting out there and exposing new people to our music. That’s why we play four and five shows a week. We’re in this for the long haul, building up our fan base one audience at a time...and that’s our bottom line.”
RAY WYLIE HUBBARD: Texas music legend Ray Wylie Hubbard keeps on keeping on with his latest album, 2005’s “Delirium Tremolos” -- stuffed with musical cameos from notables like singer-songscribes like Jack Ingram, Slaid Cleaves, James McMurtry Eliza Gilkyson and producer-guitarist-vocalist Gurf Morlix. Hubbard says the record is a turning point: “I was talking to Gurf, and we were just talking about songs we really, really liked.’ Gurf said, ‘Since you have this credibility as a songwriter, if you ever wanted to do some other people’s songs, now would be a good time to do it…we could do ‘em and ask the people who wrote ‘em to come in and be a part of it.’” See Ray Wylie Hubbard when he takes the Texas Stage on Friday (4/28) at 9:30PM...
DAVIN JAMES: A Southeast Texas transplant who shakes up his country with a rock & roll edge, Davin James’ unique sound has been termed as “Southern Country Music” -- echoing the greats of country, blues and rock, making for a rich combination of musical sounds originating from Texas and the Deep South.
A native of Mississippi, Davin James’ passion for making pure American music comes through, a love spurred on by his father, who taught him guitar while listening to the radio while on camping trips; but it is honed by childhood idols like Merle Haggard, George Jones, Bob Wills and Lynyrd Skynyrd. His biggest influence may just be Hank Williams, Jr. “Hank, Jr. put all that stuff together,” recalls James of the music that led him down his life’s true path -- “hardcore honky-tonk, blues, gospel, Southern rock.”
Davin James calls himself an “unconventional traditional country music artist” whose drive is to be “genuine and honest with the music.” He says his live performance is “a spontaneous show that interactively captures and embraces the audience -- putting out powerhouse music casting a web that perfectly captures Gulf Coast blues, electrifying Southern rock and deep-down hard roots country. See Davin James on the Texas Stage on Sunday (4/23) at 2:30PM...
JOHN EVANS BAND: Houston singer-songscribe John Evans is kind of a more modern version of Texas punk rock prototype Buddy Holly: both play a raw-boned rockabilly that seeps into your soul, party music with lots of depth. Evans’ latest CD, “Circling the Drain,” is a good mix of finely-crafted rock & roll woven into homegrown roots music -- a sound once called “heavy metal honky-tonk”.
“People say it’s not quite country and it’s not quite rock, but it has all the stuff that country has got and all the stuff that rock has got,” explains Evans, whose band plays the Texas Stage on Saturday (4/29) at 3:30PM. “They’re not quite sure what it is and that’s good, I’m glad we’re not like everyone else.”
ZONA JONES: A honky tonk man from Beaumont, Zona Jones spent a decade gathering experience and fans around Southeast Texas -- and all his hard work shows up on his debut album, "Harleys & Horses." “We’ve worked on this awfully hard and spent a good bit of time trying to get to this point,” says Jones, who takes the Texas Stage on Saturday (4/22) at 9:30PM. “You’d be surprised at how many people in the honky tonks, beer joints and dance halls come up and say, ‘We love the music you play -– nobody else does what you do.'"
“It’s been a real labor of love,” says Jones of his debut CD. “I made a lot of friends along the way. Looking back, I think it was all just meant to be. I got into this because I love to sing and play music. I don’t think I chose country music. It’s almost like it chose me. It just jumped out and grabbed me. I can’t think of anything else I’d rather do or any other music I’d want to sing.”
LEROY THOMAS & THE ZYDECO ROAD RUNNERS: A Louisiana squeeze box specialist fronting a band playing traditional Zydeco hits that “make the party honk”, Leroy Thomas, nicknamed “The Creole Cowboy”, is a throwback to the first generation of Zydeco -- a seasoned musician who knows “when to mix a waltz into the proceedings” with an “encyclopedic repertoire” of Zydeco tunes, Cajun, R & B, blues, and any other form of Louisiana roots music. Currently a resident of Houston, Thomas tours the world with his band, making festival and dance hall crowds rock “from sun up to sun down -- on stage, Leroy swings his accordion in the air, never missing a note.”
No surprise that Thomas favors what he terms “old-school Zydeco. I like keeping the tradition of Louisiana-style Zydeco. It’s what I came up on...it’s the original -- and it always comes back to the real thing.” Leroy Thomas & The Zydeco Road Runners take the Zydeco Stage on Saturday (4/22) at 4:30PM and on Saturday (4/29) at 8PM...
THE MIGHTY ORQ: While the unique moniker might bring to mind a character who might be found in a comic book shop, The Mighty Orq is instead a rockin’ Houston band led by singer-guitarist Orq, who first put together the trio in 2003. "I'd been a side man and really just wanted to have a voice —- creative freedom, maybe," Orq says, who plays the Crawfish Stage on Sunday (4/30) at 3:30PM. "It kind of started out as a straight-ahead blues band. Over the last couple of years it's sort of developed more into a rock n' roll sort of deal."
The Mighty Orq -- along with bassist Westside Johnny Bryant and Matt Johnson on drums -- melds pop, rock and the blues on 2005's "Milk Money" -- an album with a "vibe [that] is cool and casual." "The way that I've kind of learned to play guitar and sing is by emulating first," says Orq, "then trying to develop my own style from there."
While the band is working on an album and has traveled abroad in recent months, the trio is intent on having fun -- while writing "songs with substance, but finding truth in a world of heartless pop." "Playing at a Buffalo Wild Wings on a Friday night or under some stairs on a Tuesday night in Austin is just as much fun as playing at a cool club for 500 people, if you're doing it right," Orq says.
MISS LESLIE & HER JUKE-JOINTERS: While a lot of today’s country music is deeply indebted to Southern rock and 70’s pop and power ballads with more to do with Broadway than boot scootin’, one talented local lady is keeping it pure country, putting the twang in her sound and bringing back the fire to a homegrown musical form known as honky tonk. “I think it’s the music that has the most soul,” says Leslie Lindley, a singer and fiddle player from Oak Ridge North who currently fronts her own band, Miss Leslie & Her Juke-Jointers, scheduled to play the Texas Stage on Saturday (4/22) at 1:30PM. “It’s music that never went anywhere, but it’s still just great stuff that we feel like somebody should hear.”
Miss Leslie & Her Juke-Jointers has gotten plenty of publicity in Houston publications of late, even before the release of their debut CD, 2005’s “Honky Tonk Revival,” recorded at Fourth Creation Studio in Conroe. They played live at Houston Texans games last season, met up with the honky tonk crowd at this year’s Rodeo Houston and recently made an appearance on Channel 11’s new morning show, “Great Day Houston.”
And although country radio in its present incarnation might very well disagree, there does seem to be a huge audience out there just waiting for authentic old-school country as played by Miss Leslie & Her Juke-Jointers. “It’s a really fine line,” says Lindley, “because you obviously want to entertain your audience, but you also have to be true to yourself and have the confidence that the audience will find you. We’ve been lucky in that respect because that’s really been what got everything jump-started. There’s been times I didn’t know if I can do this, but it’s a challenge -- and it’s been great so far.”
PARIS GREEN: The musicians that make up the band called Paris Green began playing together back in high school in the late 90's in The Woodlands. They have become one of the tightest and most promising original bands in the region with their unique blend of funk, rock, blues, reggae and hip-hop featuring melodic riffs and thought-provoking lyrics.
With the dawn of recording their third album, which is due out at the end of this month, Paris Green elected to stretch into new musical territory and expand their sound by adding a second guitarist. As the CD enters final production stages, Paris Green is very proud of all the work they've accomplished to this point. Rock with Paris Green as they take the Crawfish Stage on Saturday (4/29) at 8:30PM...
STEP RIDEAU & THE ZYDECO OUTLAWS: Although he is based these days in Houston, Stephen Joseph “Step” Rideau is a native of LeBeau, LA. Rideau grew up listening to Creole and Zydeco music, including the music of his late grandfather, Wallace Chambers, a drummer and guitar player. Rideau liked to go to Zydeco dances in area clubs, but as a young man he had no plans to become a musician himself.
After the oil-based economy of his hometown collapsed, Rideau moved to Houston in 1986, finding work in construction. He also began attending Zydeco dances at area Catholic churches and soon learned the accordion. He formed his own band, The Zydeco Outlaws, and gigged at area clubs.
His first CD, 1995’s “Here Comes Step Rideau,” became a bestseller and was followed by releases such as “Steppin' On,“ I'm So Glad, "Don't Ask Why" and "Standing Room Only." More recently, Rideau has moved toward music that incorporates hip-hop and other influences, inviting guest rappers to perform, fusing music from rural Louisiana with the urban sounds of Houston. See Step Rideau & the Zydeco Outlaws on the Zydeco Stage on Friday (4/21) at 8PM...
MAX STALLING: For Max Stalling, rolling the dice was an inevitable choice. Giving up a highly successful day job to follow country music's seductive, unpredictable winding road was, eventually, just another one of his tough decisions proven out. "I have to write songs," says Stalling, who plays the Texas Stage on Friday (4/21) at 7:30PM. "I knew it right after graduate school -- and even if I wasn't in the music business -- I'd still be writing songs."
Stalling's country-folk style is intelligent, simple, even transparent -- allowing listeners to see deeper roots and meanings in his songs. The variety of emotions and characters in the stories seem to set a stage -- giving listeners plenty of room for their own endings and interpretations. "At the level I'm at right now, just like in any small business venture, you get to call all the shots -- make all the decisions, spend all the money, marketing, booking, distribution, all the way down to picking out which color T-shirts to have printed up. At the end of the day, it's your name on your music, done the way you want it."
THE POSSE: Featuring the powerful voice of lead singer Britt Ennis, The Posse is gaining fans and support with their homegrown honky tonk sound. Born in Port Arthur, Ennis makes Houston his home while growing up listening to country greats like George Strait. Ennis took the microphone professionally soon after attending Sam Houston State University in Huntsville, opening shows for Neal McCoy, Ricochet, Johnny Lee and George Jones. The Posse also has local connections, as lead guitarist Glenn Hoagland resides in Cut N' Shoot. The Posse -- which also includes steel guitarist David Weinzapfel, bassist Claude Wooley and guitar picker Randy Meadows -- plays the Texas Stage on Saturday (4/29) at 12 noon...
THREE FANTASTIC: Three Fantastic is a fusion of some of Conroe's most creative and talented musicians: Charles Peters, Kelly Doyle, David Taschery and Evan Groeschel. The different influences and direction of these four individuals has created an unlikely combination of vision and energy forming one of the most original acts to ever come out of Texas.
Dedicated to creating memorable and unique music, featuring elements of everything from punk, pop, jazz, soul roadhouse blues, metal and psychedelia, combined with lyrics that can sweetly lull you and then slap you in the face, Three Fantastic offers music fans something to truly get excited about, while seeming to walk the thin line between genius and madness. The band’s new self-titled album -- including tracks like "20,000 Worlds Away," "Prison" and "Etude de Pop" is available now. See Three Fantastic on the Crawfish Stage on Saturday (4/29) at 7PM...
RICK TREVINO: Trevino has gone through many a change as a hat act caught in the switches of the Young Country movement of the early 90’s, riding a wave of top 40 radio hits -- but not enough to keep him buoyed to a record deal. Nowadays, Trevino is trading on the sound of his Latin heritage while keeping it pure country; he made his latest album, “In My Dreams,” with Raul Malo, the creative force behind The Mavericks. Trevino found he didn't have much trouble communicating his vision to Malo. “It’s almost like we read each other right away,” says Trevino, who plays the Texas Stage on Saturday (4/29) at 5:30PM.
DJANGO WALKER: The son of Lone Star legend Jerry Jeff Walker, Django Walker is busy these days stepping out of his father's shadow and into his own musical identity, one whose tastes and tempos evoke a kinship with a younger generation. Citing Coldplay and Tom Petty, along with fellow Texans Guy Clark and Pat Green, Walker epitomizes the mix of eclectic musical influences that have always characterized Texas music. “We want to progress to the rockier side of country," Walker says about his band. "The only way to grow is to push myself outside my original comfort zone. We want to be country, but more country-rock."
“I cannot stand country music today,” admits Walker, who plays the Texas Stage on Sunday (4/30) at 4:30PM. “I don't like what they talk about. Their writing is childish. I just don't believe in it, and I don't want people to go around saying we're country. It's Merle Haggard, Waylon Jennings, Willie Nelson -- that kind of songwriting, with a classic rock feel to it. I grew up with that kind of country but I listened to rock n' roll, The Rolling Stones, Credence Clearwater, and that's kind of what our style is.”
During the recording of Walker and his band’s sophomore release, “Six Trips Around the World,” the musicians moved into a house together on the ocean on South Carolina and each morning would walk downstairs and record music. “Everybody's mind is on making music. I wanted to do it that way. Most people do records in their hometown and as soon as they leave, their minds are not on making the music. A record is a representation of your music for the rest of your life, and if you don't take it seriously, you're not going to be happy with it. We're super proud of this album.”
JON WOLFE: Houston transplant Jon Wolfe had a hankerin’ for country music at an early age while watching his stepfather performing at the Grand Lake Opry in rural Oklahoma and listening to George Strait, Garth Brooks and the late Chris Ledoux. While spending a couple years in Chicago pursuing a career in oil trading it became apparent that Jon was missing home. The south was calling his name again and so was country music.
In 2003, Wolfe moved to The Woodlands where he has flourished in the Texas music scene. With the encouragement of those around him, Wolfe has made the decision to pursue his music career with the same level of intensity that has driven him throughout his life; Wolfe’s debut album, “Almost Gone,” the disc features hard-core country tunes penned by Wolfe, John Evans and Houston singer-songscribe Clay Farmer. Jon Wolfe takes the Texas Stage on Sunday (4/30) at 2:30PM...
TICKETS: $10 admission on Fridays for persons 13 years and over; on Saturdays and Sundays, it’s $5 for ages 13 and up from 12 noon until 4PM; free admissions for youngsters age 12 and under. No re-entry after 8PM.
HOURS: Friday, 6PM until 12 midnight; Saturday, 12 noon ‘till 12 midnight; Sunday, 12 noon until 6PM...
