Merchants of Moonshine

So, I guess this is the part of the website where we tell you a little bit about what sets us apart and why you need to come out to see us. It took us, collectively, about six months to put our finger on the reason why club owners keep booking us and people keep coming back for more! Well it seems that experts have found our success can be broken down into three distinct areas - our set list, playing what we love, and lovin’ what we do.
Set List - the order and selection of tunes a band performs live. Sounds simple, right? Well, believe us, it’s not! Putting together the right set list means choosing songs that keep the two-steppers from kicking the crap out of the line-dancers, keep the local, whiskey shootin’ cowboys from getting bored and pickin’ fights with strangers in “their bar”, and will also keep a certain regular at Cowboy Palace from turning all shades of red and screaming hysterically at the band in a manner they never would’ve taken with their pa even if they hadn’t seen him since he ran away with mom’s sister! See what we mean? Not so simple is it? But, all you really need to know is that when you come out to see the Merchants of Moonshine you’ll hear a great mix.
All of the guys in the band grew up, thankfully, around traditional country and southern rock. Though, it went unappreciated at age six, or when we were first trying to get the attention of the opposite sex, we appreciate it now! Willie, Johnny, Merle, Waylon, Conway, the George’s, Alan, and Hank always accompanied us to backyard BBQ’s, BBQ’s at the lake, and at holiday BBQ’s. MoM was established around our quest for original, traditional, and yes, even some contemporary tunes that we honestly enjoyed creating, and recreating, live. To put it simply; We play what we love! We never play a song we don’t like…ever…for anyone! Well, except for that one time, but they gave us a lot of Cash. At the same time, we spend tons of time trying to find tunes that every club-going, country music lover can relate to. But just like they say about wives, if the band isn’t happy, nobody’s happy. This leads us to the third area experts have been talking about.
We love what we do and the people we do it with…plain and simple! This passion creates energy. If you’ve ever been to a Merchants show, we’re pretty sure you’ve left with some of our energy. We are true country music fans ourselves. We are blessed to be doing music with a family of fantastic musicians and amazing friends that come out to our shows. Why wouldn’t we have a great time? Why shouldn’t we have a great time? Welcome to the Merchants of Moonshine.
Oh wait…one last thing. Setting aside what the experts believe, we believe our most unique and distinct feature is our original songwriting. Our first full-length CD (recently entitled “Yesterday’s Man”), after necessary delay, is to be released early 2006. You may have received a limited preview of this disc called “Just a Swig”. Our music is a combination of our lives and musical experiences. It is based in the spirit of tradition found in early country music, and it comes from the soul.

We write what we feel, what we live, and what we hear.
Welcome to the Merchants of Moonshine!