Merrol Ray

Small towns and blue collars have given rise to more aspiring
songwriters than space or time allows most of us to explore. But
when it comes to sifting through the various offerings, what
speaks to most fans is music that is honest, gut-wrenching,
born of highs and lows revealing a real-world understanding.

Merrol Ray is one of those Texas voices and personalities so
flavored by his past that most folks have at least heard of him
before they hear him sing. His name is synonymous with
northeast Texas music - so much so that most everyone refers
to him by both his first and last moniker. It's not just "Merrol" -
it's Merrol Ray.

As Texas clichés go about those born and bred here, Merrol is
larger than life with a voice that bellows a soothing but
captivating tone. "I used to go in where Merrol Ray used to work,
and you could always hear him from anywhere in the store,"
says friend and fellow musician Wendy McNeal. His voice is
unmistakable.

That voice finds its inspiration in mainly rock and southern
rock, a little punk and metal from his "awareness" teen years in
the early-to-mid 1980s, plus honest (did I use that word again?)
Americana country. Merrol's "desert island" CD list includes
Zeppelin, Skynyrd, and Chris Knight.

"I used to sit and listen to my mother's records, like Buddy Holly
and the Buck Owens Christmas albums. I distinctly remember
studying Creedence Clearwater Revival's 'Cosmos Factory'
album cover dreamin' of those guitars and amps and how cool it
all was. I couldn't have been more than five-years-old," Merrol
says.

Of his influences (dead or alive), Merrol Ray would most like to
play with Hendrix and write with David Gilmour. " 'Time' by
Pink Floyd is probably the greatest song ever written. The way it
builds is genius and the meaning of the song hits home, I don't
care who you are."

Having recorded or shared the stage with Dan Baird (Georgia
Satellites), Shooter Jennings and Pure Prairie League to name a
few, Merrol said the band he played with that rubbed off on him
the most was Back Porch Mary. "They're just bad, man. You
gotta see 'em live!"

Blossom, Texas, in the late 1970s to mid 80s was little more
than a stoplight, hardware store, open-air produce market and a
school. But his experiences growing up there, son and
descendant of a "long line of feedmill workers" (as he recounts
on "Bloodline") made him who he is today.

"There wasn't much else to do except during sports season. And
if somebody was a musician or even had a guitar, Blossom was
so small you knew about it. Even though I did like most kids
and couldn't wait to leave, it's such a part of who I am I can't
deny it," he said. "I don't want to."

No doubt the neighbors had fodder to talk about across the
backyard fence as Merrol Ray grew up, as the autobiographical
song "Dancin' Hard" illustrates:

"I made a lot of trouble when I was young. Momma didn't know
all the things I'd done. All the townfolk said that boy he's a
card. But my momma knew I was dancin' hard."

As founding member of the band "Miles from Nowhere" - winner
of the 2006 Shiner (Beer) Records Rising Star Contest - Merrol
Ray toured and found regional and state-wide recognition for
his music. With Merrol, the band recorded in Nashville for Palo
Duro Records and the song "Bloodline" saw elevation on the
Texas Music Charts and was featured on a Stubb's BBQ
compilation. The album made it to number 5 on the now
defunct XM X-Country chart where "When I Get Mean" got lots
of airtime.

But like lots of stories from the road, creative differences within
the band and a personal battle with illegal substances collided
to force Merrol Ray to play a hand he didn't want to. Battling
addiction most of his adult life and struggling to stay sober
meant a hard choice, so he left the band for a solo effort and
some time to write and create his way.

"I mainly just grew tired of the hard work and dedication to
getting high all the time, losing everything I owned, everyone I
loved, and not having a thing to show for it all," Merrol said.
"It'll get you in the end, especially if you're a full blown addict,
like me. It's like playing Russian roulette with a fully loaded
revolver just hoping the round you squeeze off is a dud."

The scales of justice tattoo on his arm, with the intitials "N.A."
for Narcotics Anonymous, are a constant reminder of his battle.
But these days, Merrol's battle includes partners on his side:
God, family and recovery.

He says the creative freedom on his current solo project is great,
and together with co-producer Chris Lancaster, (Treehouse
Records in Paris, Texas), Merrol is expecting "heart and soul,
blood, sweat and tears" to emanate from the upcoming "Stanley"
release. "It's raw and exposed," Merrol said.

The long road of creativity and recovery has taken some twists
and turns, some unexpected, but Merrol Ray is upbeat about
the current mileage.

"I like me now and I figure maybe others will, too."

~ Allan Hubbard