I crossed paths with Tim in the fall of 2006 at the Loading Dock, a then new restaurant/bar in beautiful downtown Georgetown. I was playing the Friday evening happy hour slot and Tim was enjoying the happy hour prices. We took to conversing and found we had some shared musical interests. Although our styles are a little different, we are merging them and think we’re on the right track (no pun intended). 





After working up about 15-20 songs we hit the stage at Duke’s and the Loading Dock in Georgetown in February 2007 to begin working out the kinks. Still working them out. Although still in our infant stages as far as a stage presence is concerned, we’re making progress and growing into the parts. We’ve started to incorporate some of our own material into our sets in our gradual transformation from “cover band” to “whatever band.”

My musical interests and influences have largely been, what was once called “progressive country” although I prefer to simply state that my influences have been good music. I fell into the “back to the country” movement and spent much of my earlier years wondering the woods in Mississippi. I came of age listening to John Sebastan, Gordon Lightfoot, Jackson Browne, The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, Mason Profitt, John Prine, Steve Forbert, Jerry Jeff Walker, Willis Allan Ramsey, and later, my hometown boy, Jimmy Buffett. Not to be easily pigeon-holed, I do have my Pink Floyd and Moody Blues days and occasionally opt for some good ole Led Zeppelin. But, in the end, at heart, I’ll always come back home to music that speaks to my soul and my past.

I began playing guitar in high school and playing in several non-descript bands before abandoning playing music and spent most of my time just listening to it and getting educated.

I bought my sister’s Lyle guitar in 1973 and began to learn how to play “acoustic” music. The next 25 years were cycles of learning and playing, not-playing and forgetting, and then relearning and playing and on and on and on…

Finally, around 1999 or 2000 I got tired or all of the cycling and forced myself to stay with it and to push it as far as it will go. So, I’m enjoying the outlet of playing and hopefully something will come of this. If not, then no biggie. I have no illusions of grandeur.



Our play list at the moment:

Covers:
Rivertown (Hayes Carll/Guy Clark)
Déjà vu All Over Again (John Fogerty)
The Ballad of The Crimson Kings (Ray Wylie Hubbard)
The Front Porch Song (Lyle Lovett/Robert Earl Keene)
Long Year (Todd Snider)
This Land is Your Land (Todd Snider)
Crossing Muddy Waters (John Hiatt)
Loretta (Townes Van Zandt)
Childish Things (James McMurtry)
Willin (Lowell George)
Pancho and Lefty (Townes Van Zandt)
Arkansas Blues (Hayes Carll)
Beauty Way (Eliza Gilkyson)
A Pirate Looks at 40 (Jimmy Buffett)
LA Freeway (Guy Clark)
A Friend of the Devil (Grateful Dead)
Broke Down (Slaid Cleeves)
Foldin' Money (Radney Foster)
Poor Boy (Steve Earle)
If you’re here When I Get Back (John Eddie)
Stars on the Water (Rodney Crowell)
West Texas Highway (Michael Martin Murphey)
You Ain't Goin' Nowhere (Bob Dylan)
No Woman No Cry (Bob Marley)
Spider John (Willis Allen Ramsey)
Pacing the Cage (Bruce Cockburn)
Levelland (James McMurtry)
Easy Money (Todd Snider)
Fort Worth Blues (Steve Earle)
Rex's Blues (Townes Van Zandt)
Worry Too Much (Mark Heard)
I Shall Be Released (Bob Dylan)
Dark Side of Town (Eliza Gilkyson/Nancy Gilkyson)
Don't It Make You Wanna Dance (Rusty Wier)
The Drunken Poet's Dream (Hayes Carll/Ray Wylie Hubbard)
When I Paint My Masterpiece (Bob Dylan)
Ballad of The Devil's Backbone Tavern (Todd Snider)
It's A Shame (Hayes Carll)


Originals:
Colored Water (Michael Hare)
Take Me Home, Eventually (Michael Hare)
Echoes (Michael Hare)
I'll Be Comin' Around (Michael Hare)
Homeless Lament (Michael Hare) 
River's Edge (Michael Hare)
I'll Miss You (Tim Mueting)
Everyday Blues (Tim Mueting)
A Better Place and Time (Tim Mueting)
Drive-In Picture Show (Tim Mueting)
Running Out of Time (Tim Mueting)
One Step at a Time (Tim Mueting)
That's the Day I Stop Loving You (Tim Mueting & Wake Eastman)

so i've procrastinated long enough
mike says i need to post something up here about myself or he was going write something for me
so here it goes

i started playing guitar for real while i was living in fayetteville arkansas
learned from a jimmy buffett song book
i learned every song
the only music i had to go by was his live album recorded in atlanta in 1978
so i learned them that way instead of the way most people were used to hearing them
i'm one of those who believe that most everything buffett recorded from the 80's on wasn't as good as what he recorded before
not "everything", but a bunch of it
afterall he recorded will kimbrough's piece of work just last year which was brilliant
and, he puts on a great party/concert/party every year

it was around that same time that i was introduced to the music of guy clark and townes van zandt
i was immediately hooked to say the least
up to then i was a big fan of jerry jeff walker, the nitty gritty dirt band, buffett of course
willie, waylon, (and the boys), bob dylan, the band, kris kristofferson, john prine, ...
but i didn't really get hooked until i started hearing what these "other guys" were doing
i was fortunate to meet two song writers from fayetteville
sam dodd and bob wist
both graciously put up with me and taught me what they could
they'd even let me sit in with them every once in a while during their gigs
but, where i really learned was at the all night pickin' parties we'd have
a bunch of guitars, beer, a little red wine, a little...well, you know
i still do one of sam's songs called leave them phoney girls alone

after fayetteville i got a job
got married, had two great kids
bought a house, went in debt, traveled, learned to sail
had a heart procedure done to help keep it from jumpin all around
broke my back falling off a ladder, then my wrist snowboarding...
obla di obla da...

i continued to play guitar though, and sing and write a little bit off and on
mostly off, but it was never too far from my mind
i moved to the austin area in 1997
when it comes to music
there is no place like austin in all of the world
for someone like me it's both inspiring and frightening
so many talented singers, song writers and musicians all in one place

we started blue rail back in feb/march of this year
two guitars, a little harmonica, a few harmonies thrown in
we're still learning the harmony part
(hell, were learnig the guitar and harmonica part too but don't tell anybody)
i love the rootsy sound of an acoustic guitar
i like honest, raw lyrics
i firmly believe in the theory that "less is more"
hopefully that's what you'll hear in our music
i'm often amazed at what some people can do with a guitar
(ok, a little envious too)
but, sometimes too much of a good thing can be, well, too much

mike and i have different styles, different influences
but, for whatever reason, we seem to have a connection between us
sometimes it seems like we know what each other is going to do before we do it
i think that's why things clicked for us
we do a lot of covers right now but we try to be very selective
we'll continue to add more and more originals as time goes on

keep coming back to the website
we'll do our best to keep it interesting for you
let us know if you have any suggestions on how improve the site
tell us if you like our songs - tell us if you don't
tell your friends about us
come out and see us when you can
sign up for our mailing list and we'll always let you know where we're going to be

we're always ready to play
private parties, special events - we'll be there
know of a venue that you think we might fit - tell'em about us
we love it and we're gonna keep doing it

see you soon

tim