Let’s face it. Nothing is easy, especially trying to promote original music in a world of shrinking budgets, a stagnant live music scene and the proliferation of free online music sources. If you are trying to make music, record it and get people to listen, it’s clear you have to work a whole bunch of channels (Facebook, Twitter, Youtube, etc…) to make anything happen.

I am in the same boat with my band, Trace Relations ™ and our debut CD release. If you are an independent artist or band, I have a proposition for you that I think is a win-win.
If this sounds good to you, join in. If not, that’s cool too, thanks for dropping by. I hope you’ll take a moment to listen to some Trace Relations ™ music, and tell me what you think of the project.

HERE”S THE DEAL FOR INDIE MUSICIANS AND BANDS: Read more…

June 22, 2011 – Trace Relations Debut – For Immediate Release

In today’s San Antonio Express-News, Music Writer Jim Beal wrote this story about the project > The Music Beat: “Prosperity Street” beckons

A project 12 years in the making, Trace Relations sets to release their debut studio CD “Prosperity Street” on November 2, 2011.

Debut tracks “Prosperity Street” (with music video) plus a Trace Relations original “Open Mind, Open Eye” were released June 15, 2011 and are available now at> Trace Relations official site.

The song “Prosperity Street” and the video feature the band and special guests Augie Meyers and San Antonio’s famed West Side Horns.

SEE VIDEO “Prosperity Street”, READ ON, GROOVE ON… Read more…

Wishing the great Augie Meyers a very happy birthday, today May 31, 2011.

I’ve had the pleasure of knowing Augie since I was fifteen years old (a long time ago…). He’s been a good friend and constant source of inspiration and motivation for me in music. Now, on his birthday (I won’t say which one), with Augie doing well after a kidney transplant last year and a tour with the Texas Tornados in the works, I give you this post; my thanks to legendary Texas musician: Augie Meyers.

Who’s Augie? Performer, songwriter, keyboardist, accordionist, vocalist most notably with Sir Douglas Quintet, Texas Tornados and as a side man to Bob Dylan, John Hammond, Jr. and many more… See Augie Meyers on tour this summer with Texas Tornados

READ on, help us celebrate Augie’s birthday and see the preview of the documentary in progress: South Texas Soul: The San Antonio Sound >>> Read more…

A music memory: Jackson, Mississippi, 1970 or so…

Riding in the back of my parents Ford station wagon I remember hearing Tony Joe White’s swamp boogie stomp “Polk Salad Annie” sliding out of the little am radio speaker. Something about it caught me, made me pay attention.
It was the GROOVE, I realize now but at the time I just knew I liked it. I was just a kid, soaking up all kinds of music.

Years later I heard the song again and it grabbed me again. So I dug deeper.
What I Found Out Read more…

South Texas Soul: The San Antonio Sound – Augie Meyers, Doug Sahm and the history and influence of South Texas on popular music of today. Documentary filmmaker Tracy Ready examines the influence of German, Polish and Irish immigrants in South Texas on popular music styles including Country, Tejano, Blues and Rock and Roll, from a unique perspective.

Read more…

The multi-talented Shawn Sahm has reformed the Tex-Mex supergroup Texas Tornados with original members Augie Meyers and Flaco Jimenez. The band is getting rave reviews for it’s recent performances at Austin’s South By Southwest music festival. A decade after the passing of his famous father, Texas music icon Doug Sahm, Shawn is forging a new path for the group, which also lost original member Freddy Fender in 2006.

Shawn, Augie and Flaco are returning to the charts with “Esta Bueno” a CD bursting with enthusiasm, capturing the best of what the Texas Tornados were in their 1990′s Grammy Award winning heyday combined with a fresh feel for the future that is winning new fans worldwide.

In 2009, I sat down for an in-depth interview with Shawn for the upcoming film: South Texas Soul: The San Antonio Sound. Here are a few excerpts with Shawn discussing his life as Doug’s son, the Augie Meyers – Doug Sahm dynamic and, of course, the music that has made it all click.

Special thanks to Cheryl and Shawn for their hospitality down in “Groover’s Paradise”, to Jason Meyers for running camera and sound during the interview and to Jeff Mack for editing this piece.

Read more…

Great Lineup for Second Texas Music Conference!

The second Texas Music Conference hosted by Dallas Public Library is this Saturday, September 11th. This is an informative series put on for free by the library and is a must for music fans, history buffs, musicians and anyone interested in the diverse musicology of Texas.

Read more…