Little Texas Interview

We’re very excited for our upcoming show with Little Texas this Friday. If you haven’t purchased tickets yet, you can buy tickets here. We had the opportunity to do an interview with the band to learn a bit more about their lives as musicians.

When did you first play at the Grizzly Rose and what do you think of our venue?

Boy, have we played the Grizzly Rose! Our time there goes all the way back to 1989 when we would go through Denver working our way across the country. We would do 5 sets a night, 4 nights a week. We would ski all day sometimes and play all night. Had a ball. In 1992, The Nashville Network celebrated the release of our first album with their very first live concert broadcast from there as well. That special aired a gazillion times over the course of that year.

Little Texas has been gracing the ears of country music fans for over 25 years. How has the country music scene changed since when you first got into the game in the early 90s?

The easiest answer would be, “How has it not changed?” Everything is different, from the way records are made, to the way people listen to those records, everything. Technology and the internet has changed every aspect of the way the music industry does business.

How did you all meet each other and start playing music together?

Porter and I both grew up in Longview, TX, and started playing together in high school. We both moved to Nashville to attend Belmont College (now Belmont University) and while there did a season at Opryland. We met Dwayne O’Brien and Tim Rushlow there and put a band together to work after the season ended. One of our college buddies was working in A&R at Warner Bros. and showed some interest in doing a project with us. Soon after, we met Del Gray and Brady Seals while out on the road and that fleshed out the band.

Your music has been featured on TV programs, commercials, and other media spots. What’s the most random program that has featured one of your songs and how did that come about?

I honestly have no idea. God Blessed Texas shows up all over the place, and usually there’s a musical director that picks out the songs. We really have no input on the process.

You guys have had a long, successful career as musicians. Looking back, what’s the one thing you are the most proud of accomplishing?

Creating music that still holds up against everything that’s out there today. When we started out, we wanted to create music that was timeless, like the Eagles stuff. We were fortunate to lock on to a handful of those kinds of songs and you can still hear them on mainstream radio even 25 years later. 

You’ve toured with a variety of different artists. Who were some of your favorite artists to tour with and why?

We did a year long tour with Travis Tritt and Trisha Yearwood eons ago, and had an absolute blast. We were all friends before any of us hit, so it was a natural combination. All three acts really enjoyed one another.

What are the top 3 favorite shows you ever played? What was the venue and why was it so special?

One was at the Target Center in Minneapolis where we sold the place out 360 just 3 days after the Eagles were there. Of course Fiddler’s Green was always a favorite – their steaks were absolutely to die for! And playing a sold out Cotton Bowl show with Clint Black during the Texas State Fair was heaven for us Texas boys.

Who is Little Texas listening to at the moment? Do you mostly listen to country music or do you dabble in other genres as well?

Everyone listens to different stuff, so you’d have to ask them. I personally gravitate to classic rock, 70’s & 80’s country and talk radio.

What is your favorite song to play live in front of an audience?

We have a new one that we haven’t even recorded that we’ve put into the show called “Bullet From A Gun” that we’re having a lot of fun with. But “God Blessed Texas” and “Kick A Little” are always great because of the crowd reactions.

Tell us something about you guys as a band that most people would find surprising and would not expect?

Since we’ve never really made any noise about it, most folks don’t know that we were finalists on Star Search ’90. Ed McMahon loved us and came out to see us in Vegas one night. He sang the blues with us for what seemed like 2 hours…