Red Dirt Music is a sub-genre of regular country music, but it has the traditional root sound with lyrics talking about views and opinions of outlaw country. Several Texas country bands have succeeded to become national, but there are still a few that are played on the local Texas country station, 95.9 The Ranch. Texas country bands are more commonly seen with an acoustic guitar instead of an electric guitar, or both. These groups also consist of either a banjo,a fiddle, a harmonica and/or a piano. [www.lonestarmusic.com]
National Red Dirt Musicians
The legendary outlaw Texas musicians are Willie Nelson, Waylon Jennings, David Allan Coe and Hank Williams. There are others, too, but these gentleman are the most well-known legends of the bunch. There are also several other Texas country bands that have made it on national radio and tours. Cross Canadian Ragweed and Stoney LaRue are originally from Oklahoma, but the honesty and outlaw sound put them in the category of Texas country.
- Randy Rogers Band
- Eli Young Band
- Stoney LaRue
- Cross Canadian Ragweed
- Pat Green
- George Strait
- Ray Wylie Hubbard
- Jack Ingram
- Tanya Tucker
All of these musicians started out in the same spot that current Texas country bands are doing now. They played at local venues and bars hoping to catch their big break. For example, the Eli Young Band played gigs at Lone Star Park, the horse racing track; a Lewisville festival and local bars around their hometown in Denton, Texas. The Eli Young band just recently sold their first huge album that put them in the national country spotlight. This happened two years ago, and they continue to tour with larger acts on a national tour.
Local Texas Country Bands
Even though there are still several Texas musicians that have not made it to the edge of a national tour, residents of Texas and Oklahoma gather at local dive bars and venues to hear these bands play. In actuality, these groups have great chemistry with their audience because of the smaller places where the gigs are held.
- Josh Abbott
- Casey Donahew
- Jason Boland and the Stragglers
- Cory Morrow
- Deryl Dodd
- Aaron Watson
These groups are well-known in the state of Texas and possibly Oklahoma, but their music is more commonly played on the local country station, 95.9 The Ranch. They are not usually heard on Texas stations such as 99.5 The Wolf, or 96.3 KSCS. Each show that these Texas musicians perform at grows a larger crowd than the last.
The great Willie Nelson was the inspiration for his good friend, Waylon Jennings. Several Texas musicians look to these two for their inspiration. Jennings once said, "Your melody goes where the words take you." [Waylon Jennings Biography.www.biography.com] The backbone of Texas country music is the lyrical content, along with all of the shows being held in Texas venues. It is very uncommon for a Texas country band to put on a show that lacks excitement, energy and a memorable time!
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