Traveling Red River Songwriters

San Antonio-born Walt Wilkins has been called a genius, more than once, and a writer the caliber of John Steinbeck and his voice as comfortable as a pair of old blue jeans, and he is, and has, all of that. His crafting of story-songs, hard-edged vocals to sing them and a plaintive guitar have made him a fixture of the Texas music scene (and Nashville before that). He's put his magical touch on recordings by new and veteran artists, too many to count.

Is he near done? Hasn't he done it all? Double hell no.

With The Mystiqueros, Wilkins has created something of a "Texas Hill Country super-group" that features five great singers and four great songwriters from the heart of the Lone Star State, all of whom have made their own records and are flush with recording credits.

Onstage and in the studio, Wilkins is joined by Bill Small (bass, percussion, acoustic guitar), John M. Greenberg (electric guitars), Ramon Rodriguez (drums, percussion) and Marcus Eldridge (electric guitars). Live performances around Texas are being likened to both outlaw country and classic rock bands, and they're captured on DIAMONDS IN THE SUN on Tex-centric label Palo Duro Records.

Wilkins says this is the most fun he's ever had playing music in a band in 30 years. He describes the music of The Mystiqueros (nicknamed mq5) as highly reminiscent of '70s country rock from Texas and the West Coast and blues and soul that members grew up listening to and features high-quality songwriting and musicianship, rhythm, and vocal arrangements.

Small, who wrote and sings the new album's title track, "Diamonds in the Sun," was born and raised in New Jersey, and lived and worked in New York City, Boston and Nashville before Austin. He had played with both Eldridge and Greenberg and had done a gig with Wilkins. "So we all knew each other," he says, "and once we all got on stage together, it became obvious that it was the thing to do."

Greenberg, a busy first-call guitarist, singer and producer around the Hill Country with four solo records, was born and raised in Oklahoma. He contributed the song "Red River Blues" to the album and describes The Mystiqueros as "the band every kid wanted to be in" back in the '70s music world of rock 'n' roll, country & R&B: "You were generally partial to one, and I was a rocker. But that's the coolest part of being a Mystiquero! There are all three elements on this record, and that's why it was plausible to put a rockin' song like 'Red River Blues' on the same album next to a great country song about Hank Williams."

Eldridge, a well-respected guitarist in Texas born in Tomball who's made two soulful solo records, put his clear tenor voice to Wilkins' "All These Memories" for DIAMONDS. He believes playing in The Mystiqueros is a rare opportunity. "There are no more bands like this left on the planet. … We all do what we do, bring it and blend it with the other talents in the band," he says. "This kind of a thing is not planned, it just happens."

Rodriguez, who grew up in Brownfield and has worked with several young Texas bands and artists, sang back-up on "Big Shiny Cars" and a small part on "Honky Tonk Road" on the album. He calls the band "a powerhouse" and the record a timeless thing, modern but with a vintage feeling. As the youngest member of the band, he jokes that he can still cut his own meat and that he pushes the others with his grooves and his beat to stay up late. "We have fun on the road," he says. "It shows in our shows."

For Wilkins — from his first musical influences as an Air Force brat, to his first band at age 15 to writing his first song (homesick while studying in the seminary) to playing own songs and writing in Nashville to his first album and producing others' — The Mystiqueros might just be about coming home, at last.


Susan Gibson is a Grammy award winning singer/songwriter from Wimberley, Texas and a respected performer and writer with one of the top-selling country songs of all time under her belt - she wrote "Wide Open Spaces" that the Dixie Chicks cover and has four solo albums released nationally. Susan tours year-round and performs at a variety of festivals, listening rooms, and house concert venues. This past year she has toured the U.S. through the Midwest, northwest, southeast, and eastern Canada as well as regionally all over Texas. She was also inducted into the West Texas Music Hall of Fame as 2009's Entertainer of the Year. She was honored to be asked to perform in Washington, D.C. for the Inauguration festivities in 2013 and released her fifth album, "The Second Hand: Live at the Bugle Boy" in March 2014.

Career Highlights

- CMA Songwriter of the Year for "Wide Open Spaces"
- BMI Writer of the Year 1999
- 2009 West Texas Music Hall of Fame
- Official Folk Alliance Showcase Artist 2010 and 2011
- Touring nationally since 1999


I write songs for a living, and have been doing so since 2004. I have two favorite guitars, one being a 1964 Gibson Country and Western, which (with the help of a fine luthier) I was able to return to a playable condition after finding it in a state of total disrepair. I love the way it sounds, and I think it likes having me around, as well. My second guitar is a 2004 Gibson J45, which held a starring role in the movie Infamous. Unfortunately, Infamous lost the Hollywood Truman Capote Sweepstakes, and Capote beat it out of the gate. Infamous saw limited release and went to DVD pretty quickly. That being said, the guitar is probably still more famous than I am, even in all of it's DVD glory. If The Smoking Gun ever publishes an extravagant concert rider with my name on it, rest assured that the requests for seedless watermelon slices and Caciocavallo cheese came from the guitar, and not from me. I love music. I love hearing songs that are intelligent, thought provoking, and honest. They give me hope, and their songwriters give me inspiration. I recently finished recording my third album, which I plan to release soon. I decided to call it An Audio Guide To Cross Country Travel. I think it's a clever title, but I am often wrong about these types of things. I live in New Braunfels, Texas with my wife, three dogs, a cat, and a generous school of fish that I try not to forget to feed when my wife assigns me the task (the fish, that is… the dogs let me know if I'm forgetting about them in their unmistakable way). We like it here. I travel a lot for my job. There's not much of a point in writing songs if you don't share them with an audience. Besides, the dogs can't clap, I can't hear the fish, and the cat generally doesn't care about what I do… and everyone needs a little positive affirmation in their lives from time to time. So, I hope to see you at a show. If you'd ever like to say hello, you can reach me via email ( info at drewkennedymusic.com ), smoke signal, telegraph, or carrier pigeon. Whichever is easiest for you.


Kelley's strong, beautiful voice is a unique blend of formal musical training and the local flavor of the Memphis music scene. Formal dance and vocal training from the age of eight and summers at a theatre arts conservatory in Memphis provided the basics, but impromptu sit ins led to the formation of Drasco. After graduation from the University of Memphis with a marketing degree, Kelley and Drasco front man, Jed Zimmerman, joined forces for a five year run as Jed and Kelley. The duo toured the country in an RV and cut two full-length records with Keith Sykes in Memphis. Along the way, Kelley taught herself to play the mandolin and developed a solid live-show stage presence. When the Jed and Kelley duo split, Kelley headed for Austin, and ran into a group of singers who would call themselves The Trishas. The voices blended and the magic happened. When she's not on stage with The Trishas, she can be found playing solo/duo shows here and there with a rotating cast of friends. She currently lives in Buda, Texas with her dog Josey and her husband Tim.


Josh Grider knows two things, he loves writing songs, and he loves playing them for people. Across the great southwest, Texas, and beyond, Josh has been delivering the goods non-stop since the release of his first album in 2005. Seven years, four full-length albums, and two EPs later, Josh is still going strong with no signs of slowing down.

While touring in support of his Live At Billy Bob's Texas album, Josh found himself on a radio show with Wade Bowen. After the show, Wade offered to introduce Josh to his management team. That introduction led to Josh meeting and eventually signing with AMP Entertainment, a new publishing/artist management venture launched by industry veteran, Tim Dubois (hit songwriter, founder Arista Nashville, responsible for signing Brooks and Dunn, Alan Jackson, Lee Roy Parnell, Brad Paisley, Diamond Rio). Becoming a member of the AMP Entertainment family has begun a whole new, and very exciting chapter in Josh's music career.

Currently, Josh splits his time between Tennessee and Texas writing songs and/or touring. He has recently finished work on some recordings that are slated for a late 2012 release and will coincide with Josh's appearance on the docu-reality television series Troubadour TX (www.troubadourtx.com). The project was co-produced by Dubois and fellow AMP artist/writer Trent Willmon. Josh will tell you he'd rather be busy than bored, and from the looks of things there will be very few dull moments in the coming months for Mr. Grider.

The road he walks is not for the faint of heart, or the faithless. As well as a musician, Josh is a father, a husband, a brother, and a son. All these roles help keep him grounded and inspired as he travels the highways and byways, chronicling his experiences in the songs he writes, and playing them for any and all who care to hear.

For more information check out www.joshgrider.com.

Releases: Josh Grider Band (2005), Million Miles to Go (2007), Josh Grider Trio JG3-EP (2008), Sweet Road To Ride (2009), Live At Billy Bob's Texas (2012)


The dark, sad song of the White Throated Sparrow can be heard just about everywhere on the Canadian prairie around Winnipeg, the wind-swept hometown of Brandy Zdan (Zuh-dan). And like that bird's melancholy melody, Zdan's voice echos that similar theme, and has guided her on a musical migration across Canada, The States, and Europe.
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Emerging for the first time as a solo artist, Lone Hunter seems an apt description for Zdan's first record. Through each song Zdan picks up her past, looks to her future and explores some of life's harshest yet most beautiful truths. Poetic at times, her fearless desire and experience unfolds into the songs, creating something for the listener that tempers heartache and hope into one stronger emotion.

"This is a very impressive collection of simply recorded, uncluttered, quality songs that are all quite confidently satisfied to have their fragile bruised cores on display, and all the better for it."- Americana UK

?Richly-textured vocals stand foremost in each song and then are tightly bound to rich guitar tones, solid drums and subtle electronic melodies. The simple arrangements add powerful thunder to the beautiful lightning storm of vocals. This is especially evident on tracks like I Remember When You Used To Love Me' , the lap steel/pedal steel duet of 'Does Everything Break' , or the confessional 'Lone Hunter.' A departure from standards and perfect genres, Lone Hunter fits into a space all it's own.

" it's a one-woman tour de force"- Richard Skanse for Lone Star Magazine

?Recorded & Produced by George Reiff (Ray Wylie Hubbard, Band of Heathens) in Austin, TX, Lone Hunter features guest musicians as members of The Trishas & Ricky Ray Jackson on pedal steel guitar (Phosphorescent, Alejandro Escovedo), with Zdan holding it down on all the other instruments. Zdan will be on tour in support of the EP in Europe in the late fall.
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In 2011, Zdan was recruited as a triple-threat side woman by Austin-based female super-group The Trishas for her six string, lap steel, and accordion skills. Zdan also co-founded Twilight Hotel with Dave Quanbury and together they recorded 2 juno-nominated albums (Canada's Grammy equivalent) --2008's Highway Prayer and 2010's When the Wolves Go Blind-- forging a sound that critics likened to "old leather, worn and soft" and earned them the handle "rulers of their own genre."