PC: When did Reckless Kelly begin their music career?
RK: We've all been in the biz since we were pretty young. Cody and I
played in our father's western swing band (Muzzie Braun) with our two
little brothers (Gary & Micky of Micky and the Motorcars) for years in
Idaho. jay played with his dad and brother in an oldies trio growing up
and jimmy and Dave have been playing since before high school in all
kinds of bands from rock to blues to jazz... Reckless kelly as we know
it got started in Millican, OR sometime in the fall of 1995. We moved
to austin in Oct. of 96'.
PC: Who are your main musical influences?
RK: The Band has a really wide range of influences, including but not
limited to; The Beatles, Dylan, Credence Billy Jo Shaver, Steve Earle,
AC/DC, Tom Petty, Tom Waits, The Stones, Dwight Yolkam, Zeppelin,
Richard Thompson, Robert Earl Keen, Gram Parsons, The Everly Brothers,
and the list goes on.... we try to incorporate all kinds of music in to
our sound. we don't have any rules as to what style we are playing...
if a "The Who" song sounds cool country style, we might just play it.
PC: Let people know how many people are in the band and who you are.
RK: David Abeyta; lead Guitar, Backing Vocals
Cody Braun; Fiddle, mandolin, Harmonica, Backing Vocals
Willy Braun (me); Lead Vocals, Rhythm Guitar
Jimmy McFeeley; Bass
Jay Nazz: Drums; Percussiondc
for those of you keeping score, thats five.
PC: (Texas music artists are like one big family,everyone helps each other out)is this true?
RK: For the most part, yes. We travel around texas so much that you can't
help running in to other bands all the time, and you get to be pretty
good friends after a while. We get to hang out with them in places
where you might not know anyone else too, so that makes traveling more
fun. Ran in to our old buddy Robert Kearns (The Bottle Rockets, Jack
Ingram) in Chicago the other day and had a blast... We have done a lot
of touring with guys like Robert Earle and his band and so now when we
see each other on the road, it's always good for a few laughs. We took
Cross Canadian out on thier first tour of the east Cast a few years ago
and had a blast... and now my little bro's band (The Motorcars) are
opening a lot of shows for them, so when the three bands are in the
same town, (like last month in Kansas City) things get pretty western.
And yes, everyone helps everyone out... if someone breaks a string or
forgets the high hat cymbals at the last gig, the other band will most
generally let them have a loaner for the
night. Sometimes you trade shows with bands as well to increase your
following in certain areas, like if we have a good thing going in say,
New Orleans, we'll have someone open up for us who may not have the
kind of pull we do there, and when we're in a town where they pack em'
in, we'll open for them there.
PC: I've got four songs. If you don't mind, I was wondering if you
could go over how they came about or what was going at the time.
"I Still Do"
RK: I was asleep and my alarm went off a six in the morning... I threw it
across the room and heard it hit my first guitar right on the top,
leaving it with an unsightly scar... i got up and wrote I Still do for
my guitar. I felt bad about banging up my true love...
"It's All Over"
RK: I had a few real inspiring break ups right before I moved to Austin,
so I had material for about two or three records worth of "break up
songs." Thank god we didn't have a deal then, or we would have recorded
them all... this is one of the ones that made it out of the shoe box.
"Nobody’s Girl"
RK: My Little Bro Micky and I sat down and tried to write a song and for 48
hours, came up with nothing... he went home and about an hour after he
left, I sat down to try again, (we were recording a record in less than
two weeks and I was a song short of a full record) and the melody
popped in to my head along with the line, "you're nobody's girl" , and
I called Mick up and said, "get back over here, I got one..." after
two days of frustration, we ended up writing the whole song in about
twenty minutes.
"Come On Over"
RK: Chris Schelske wrote that song, and I ain't even gonna try to figure
out what's going on in his head...
PC: When you guys were in the band with your dad Muzzie Braun and the Boys, what was it like to perform on stage at The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson and Jay Leno?
RK: It was a trip... we were really young and the first time we were on, I
didn't really know who Jay Leno was... we were more impressed with the
chocolate apples the maids left on our pillows at the hotel and the
five dollar orange juice. We were flown in and picked up at the airport
by a limo and that we thought was pretty cool... we went swimming with
Mcaully Caulkin in the pool at the Burbank Hilton... he was in town
filming "Uncle Buck." We didn't know who he was, as "Home Alone" hadn't
come out yet, but later that year, we saw it and we were like, wasn't
that the kid from LA?
Leno was a cool guy and made us feel comfortable by referring to us as
"The Muzzieheads" and joking around with us... I got a great picture of
me in a full on cowboy outfit standing in front of his car. The second
time we were on Johnny showed up about half an hour before taping
started, and we only met him on stage. it was Micky's 8th birthday and
he got a birthday handshake from the king of late night, which we
thought was pretty sweet... we did notice that the crew was far more
uptight and professional when the captain was on deck too.
It's funny to watch the tapes from the two shows now... the first time
we are all comfy like it was just another gig, but after a few months
of people telling us what a "big deal" it was, the second time we were
a little nervous and it shows. I also made sure that I got to sit in
the chair next to Johnny, cause someone had told me that was a "big
deal" too...
PC: Is there anybody that Reckless Kelly would like to perform with or do a duet with?
RK: Emmylou. Nuff' said.
PC: Where does Reckless Kelly want to be in the next few years with
your music career? Any long term goals?
RK: We just want to continue to make records and tour. It sounds like a
stock answer, but that is really all it comes down to. You make a
record, you tour on it and hope that it does better than the last one.
It would be nice to have a bus and a crew at some point, but we're
getting along without one for now. I think the main Idea is to leave a
mark on music. Thats what is great about making records... you get to
leave something behind. I want people to look back and say, "wow, those
guys made some great records and put on a hell of a live show."
Long term... I wish I had a house with a chocolate waterfall.
PC: What are your fondest career memorys so far?
RK: I think some of the jams I have gotten to take part in have been the
most rewarding experience so far. Thats what got us in to this in the
first place, jamming. Cody and I got to jam with John Paul Jones a few
months ago at Merle Fest. it was surreal. Once We had a four in the
morning jam at Rosie Flores' house with Billy Mercer and Lucinda
Williams and did a version of "wild Horses" that I can still hear if I
close my eyes. Today we are backing up Steve Earle on a couple tunes
for tribute records. I think thats my favorite thing about this job-
getting to play with your heros from time to time.
PC: In your CD player right now, what CD would be found?
RK: Jet- get born.
The Waifs- Sink or Swim,
Ron Sexsmith- Blue Boy,
John Dee Graham- The Great Battle,
Cyndi Lauper- She's So Unusual,
Micky And The Motorcars- Ain't in it for the Money,
Pinto Bennett- Pure Quill,
The Supersuckers- Motherfuckers be Trippin',
The Beatles - Rubber Soul,
The Jayhawks- Smile.
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Reckless Kelly
Interviewed June 17,2004