Over the past few years, we have written about American troubadour Rusty Reid quite extensively, constantly highlighting his overachieving rock’n’roll flair and traditional songwriting ethos. Scavenging the depths of Americana and Country music, the Seattle-based creative has struck sonic gold, both in terms of traditional melodism and nostalgic, immersive lyrical punch. Recently, Reid has returned with his latest effort, ‘All Through My Days’, a wholesome single taken from the overarching album ‘Lone Stardust (Masterworks of Texas Songwriters)’.
The ethos that propels such a record is rather unique. Reid ventures in search of some of Texas’ most notable songwriters, selecting a long and diverse lineup of artists (both famous and relatively unknown) and recording alternative versions of their songs. The result is a record that’s rooted in tradition, yet one that’s not afraid to scramble the sonic picture when necessary. Some of the notable names include Buddy Holly, Roy Orbison, Johnny Nash, Jimmy Webb, J.D. Souther, Jon Dee Graham, Jimmy LaFave, Townes Van Zandt, Shake Russell, Kacey Musgraves and the boys from ZZ Top.
Intrigued by the project, we caught up with Rusty Reid to learn more about his overall artistry and future goals… Interview below!
Hey Rusty! The last time we chatted about your music on Mesmerized, we fell in love with ‘Piece of the Action’, a track we celebrated as a “raw, euphoric anthem” with classic rock energy. You’ve been very productive in the past few years. I’d love to know more about what motivates you to keep going. Would you define artistic expression as a necessity?
Hey again, Gab. Glad you liked ‘Piece of the Action’ and the last album, actually recorded a long time ago, but only released in 2025. That was my old Houston band, ‘The Unreasonables,’ and we were just monkeying around without much of a clue. But it was fun. This new album, ‘Lone Stardust (Masterworks of Texas Songwriters)’, is a completely different bag… all cover songs, all written by someone with a connection to Texas. I’ve since learned that this is a very rare approach: a single artist honouring a group of different songwriters who share a geographic link.
It’s a project that started as a bit of a lark, and then emerged as an interesting sidetrack for me. Although I didn’t write these songs, I try to bring a creative approach to their new configuration. I still find it a fun challenge. I’m not sure if artistic expression is absolutely necessary. There are other things in the world. But I do think true artists are motivated to create. That’s what they do.
Most of the artists who pass through our publication are in their 20s and 30s. I appreciate seeing wiser and older musicians still boasting a strong creative fire, constantly releasing new material and embarking on new projects. What’s your experience of making music today versus in your younger days?
A lot of difference, mostly for the better. My gosh, the tools we have today are almost like magic. Not having to fiddle with tape recorders, expensive studios, record labels, or even flaky bandmates is incredibly liberating. You can turn your bedroom into a top-notch recording studio, take your time making your songs, enlist musicians from around the world to join in, and then release your music to the world, all with minimal cash. Of course, the downside to this ultra democratic potential is that two million people are releasing their songs… the same day as yours. So there’s a lot of noise. Not that a lot, maybe most, isn’t pretty damn good.
The biggest difference for me, however, is that I kinda know what I’m doing now. I’m trying to write and record meaningful songs. Back in the old days, I was trying to write catchy songs. There’s a difference. Just because it’s catchy doesn’t mean it says anything important. I do think I’ve gained some wisdom over time, and now is the opportunity to share it through my recordings.
Before we jump into your latest album, let’s dive even deeper into the person hiding behind Rusty Reid. Is there anyone or anything that motivated you to pursue music? Is there a record or an artist central to your musical development?
Well, I’m the first to admit I’ve had a privileged life. Our family wasn’t rich or anything; we had to pinch pennies, actually. So my first electric guitar was the cheapest in the Sears catalogue. Oh, how I wish they had bought me one of those used 1959 burst Les Pauls. It would be worth half a million these days. My mom pushed me to try new things. So she is my primary ‘motivator.’ But, to her dismay, I was a quitter. I quit piano lessons. I quit dance lessons. I quit summer acting lessons. I quit the Boy Scouts. I quit baseball. I quit football. I quit religion. I quit college (I did go back and finish, eventually). I quit marriage… twice.
The one thing I didn’t quit was trying to write songs on guitar. I was horrible at first. But for some unknown reason, I just kept at it. All the while, I was listening to pop music, and something inside of me calculated I could write songs like Buddy Holly, the Everly Brothers, Roger Miller, Roy Orbison, the Beatles or John Fogerty. Not sure I ever did, but at long last, I began writing songs that I liked.
‘Lone Stardust (Masterworks of Texas Songwriter)’ is your latest album, a body of work that takes a different direction than any of your previous releases. It is, in fact, an homage to some of Texas’ most prominent troubadours, as well as some of its underground stars. First of all, what’s your connection with Texas? Is there a particular reason behind such a strong thematic choice?
Right. I’ve only released two cover songs previously. This is a whole double-album filled with them. I was born and raised in West Texas, near the homes of Buddy Holly and Roy Orbison and many other successful Texas songwriters. Growing up, I was aware that such creatures exist… it was possible to come from the scrub boonies and make it big in music. After high school, I moved to Houston and inherited a whole different range of musical influences.
It was only in Houston that I met with fellow songwriters and began more seriously evaluating the nuances of the craft. A few of the songs on this new album, including the first two, come directly from that early period of musical awakening. Though I left Texas decades ago, I still see the world through Texas eyes, hear with Texas ears, and feel with Texas heart. Texas is a world of its own, for better and worse. Recording those first two songs as a learning project, the idea dawned on me: wouldn’t it be fun to record a whole album of just Texas songwriters’ songs? And so it came to pass.
I’d love to know what criteria you used to curate the covers for the album. Do the songs you pick hold a special value to you? Do you have any particular favourite among them?
That was an interesting process. I thought it would be super easy to snatch an album’s worth of such songs. But as I began the search in earnest, an avalanche of potentials fell upon me. That’s when I knew this project was demanding to be a double-album. Which was fine; all my albums are essentially double-albums. Even with a larger project in view now, I knew I had to get very picky. So old faves and new discoveries had to jump some high bars. They had to be melodic; they had to have lyrical gravitas; they had to be unique creations in themselves; a potent message was a plus; and they had to fit my voice and style.
This last criterion automatically excludes a host of genres at which Texas songwriters have long excelled: blues, soul, funk, jazz, classical, honkytonk, Western Swing, metal, glam rock, punk, hip hop, you name it… not to mention Tejano or TexMex music. What’s left is the not-so-small patch of folky-country-rock. So this album is certainly not a comprehensive survey of Texas music or songwriters.
All of the fifty or so songs seriously considered hold special value to me; these nineteen were just the ones that cleared the most bars for this particular project. A favourite? As they say, it’s like picking between your children. After listening to them a jillion times through the recording and mixing phases, I do find myself coming back to ‘Alchemist’ and still finding it fresh. I’m considering it as an upcoming single.
Whether All Through My Days is or isn’t your favourite, it certainly takes the cake as the first single to emerge from ‘Lone Stardust’. The piece has been written by Vince Bell and Connie Mims Pinkerton, who are part of the relatively unknown talents you have selected for the album. Because the song itself is quite obscure, I wonder if you have a particular connection to them? Perhaps there’s some shared history there?
Yes, both Vince and Connie were part of that Houston scene. Vince was good friends with a good friend of mine, Steven Beasley, who also got a song on this album, ‘Cool Wind’. Vince and Steve and a couple of other guys formed a sort of Houston supergroup for a short while, and it was that phase that brought me more familiar with Vince’s songwriting. Some of us regarded Vince as the closest songwriter in Houston to Bob Dylan.
I know, high praise, though, as always, with Dylan comparisons, unfair to both writers. Vince is definitely just Vince. We’ve had other interactions through the years. During the COVID shutdown, I did a video covering his song ‘Sun and Moon and Stars.’ It’s on my YouTube channel. If I hadn’t done that, ‘Sun and Moon and Stars’ would have likely been on this album. It’s probably my favourite song of his, but ‘All Through My Days’ is nipping at its heels. So it was fab to do it, too.
From a musical standpoint, I sense that you have retracted from the fierce rock’n’roll allure of some of your previous offerings, instead embracing a more introspective and laidback character. Have you enjoyed such a deep dive into Country and Americana?
Well, I suppose we do tend to mellow as we get older. There are a few rockers on this new album, ‘Balinese’ by ZZ Top, for one. But you are right, not a sustained vibe like The Unreasonables. But, actually, that project was a bit of an anomaly even for its time. If you check out my album ‘Bayou Line’, those songs were written before and during the Unreasonables heyday, and they trend toward more sensitive singer-songwriter and country-rock fare. In high school, the kids called me ‘Glen’ as in Glen Campbell… go figure. I played one song of his, and now I’m Glen Campbell. These labels are kinda janky. To me, this album seems very Americana-coded, seeing as it’s written by some of the best in the business at describing American life. Yet, for too many of the gatekeepers of that genre, my style is far too poppy, if you can believe that!
Lastly, what should the listeners take away from the album? Is there a particular message you’d like to share with them?
Hopefully, they’ll find it an enjoyable ride. It covers a lot of ground. About half of these songs they’ll probably recognise, and half they may well be hearing for the first time. I don’t think Texas songwriters get quite the notice they deserve. So it could be an eye-opening experience. There’s a lot of wisdom in these songs, as well. I think the shared message is just to feel honestly and deeply. The little things, the big things, the ups and downs and all-around are not just stuff that happen; they are life itself. The sooner you realise, ‘Oh, What a World!’, the better off you’ll be.