Biography
Ray Wylie Hubbard has maintained a devoted following among enthusiasts of outlaw country and the rawer edges of Americana for decades, working as a singer and songwriter who excels at crafting sharp portraits of individuals along with unvarnished yet empathetic reflections on existence and personal connections. He first gained notice by penning the outlaw standard “Up Against the Wall, Redneck Mother,” though his subsequent recordings frequently incorporated biting humor while his more introspective material solidified his standing as a prominent voice among Texas-based singer-songwriters. After a prolonged period of struggle, he revealed his studio capabilities through the shadowy textures of 1994’s Loco Gringos Lament, and 2001’s Eternal and Lowdown highlighted a stronger blues undercurrent running through his sound. The spare, elemental character of 2006’s Snake Farm and 2017’s Tell the Devil I’m Gettin’ There as Fast as I Can drew equally from blues and rock traditions as from country, while he honored fellow artists on 2020’s Co-Starring and 2022’s Co-Starring Too, with reciprocal contributions appearing in return.
Born on November 13, 1946, in Soper, Oklahoma, Ray Wylie Hubbard moved with his family to Dallas in the middle of the 1950s, where he picked up guitar and eventually started a folk ensemble alongside aspiring musician Michael Martin Murphey. After forming friendships with Jerry Jeff Walker and Ramblin’ Jack Elliott, he assembled the trio Three Faces West, which played regularly at the Outpost club in Red River, New Mexico, a venue also frequented by performers such as Steve Ib and Bill & Bonnie Hearne. Following the trio’s dissolution, Hubbard worked the Southwestern coffeehouse circuit alone before launching another short-lived outfit called Texas Fever and later returning to New Mexico to resume performing at the Outpost.
While based in Red River, he renewed his connection with Walker, who recorded Hubbard’s best-known though least typical song, “Up Against the Wall, Redneck Mother,” for the 1973 album Viva Terlingua. That release conferred immediate cult recognition inside progressive country circles, prompting Hubbard to assemble a new supporting group he named the Cowboy Twinkies. Widely viewed as the earliest cowpunk act, whose sets mixed Merle Haggard numbers with a climactic rendition of Led Zeppelin’s “Communication Breakdown,” the band encountered pushback from both country and rock audiences; undeterred, Hubbard financed a demo that secured a contract with Atlantic. The label stalled the project, leading the group to switch to Warner Bros., which directed them to Nashville to cut their first album, Ray Wylie Hubbard & the Cowboy Twinkies.
Issued in 1975, the record suffered from excessive label-mandated polish and sold poorly, after which Hubbard remained silent until 1978, when he joined Willie Nelson’s brief Lone Star label to record Off the Wall, featuring his own rendition of “Redneck Mother.” The next year he enlisted the Lost Gonzo Band—Walker’s former backing unit of guitarist John Inmon, bassist Bob Livingston, and drummer Paul Pearcy—to produce the live album Caught in the Act. By 1984 he performed with the Bugs Henderson Trio, whose members included guitarist Bugs Henderson, bassist Bobby Chitwood, and drummer Ron Thompson, resulting in another live set, Something About the Night.
Hubbard stayed out of the studio for eight years afterward, steadily cultivating a modest yet dedicated audience via relentless road work. He finally issued Lost Train of Thought on his own Misery Loves Co. imprint in 1992, then released Loco Gringos Lament through Dejadisc in 1995. Dangerous Spirits followed in 1997, and Crusades of the Restless Nights appeared in 1999. Eternal & Lowdown, issued in summer 2001, conveyed haunting meditations on religion, philosophy, and redemption; it preceded the stark and intense Growl in 2003, the relaxed Delirium Tremolos in 2005, and Snake Farm in 2006. His ongoing tours, together with organizing the Grit ’n Groove Festival in 2009 and 2010, occupied much of his time until A. Enlightenment B. Endarkenment (Hint: There Is No C) surfaced in 2011 and The Grifter’s Hymnal arrived in 2012.
In April 2015 he issued the self-produced The Ruffian’s Misfortune on his Bordello Records label, matching the approach of his prior two projects, and that same year he published the autobiography A Life…Well, Lived. August 2017 brought the studio album Tell the Devil I’m Gettin’ There as Fast as I Can, which included appearances by Lucinda Williams, Eric Church, Patty Griffin, and Bright Light Social Hour. Visibility increased when longtime admirer Eric Church enlisted him to co-write the title track for Church’s 2018 album Desperate Man. Big Machine Records then signed him, making 2020’s Co-Starring his first major-label effort since 1978. Structured around collaborations, the opening cut “Bad Trick” featured Ringo Starr, Joe Walsh, Don Was, and Black Crowes frontman Chris Robinson. His follow-up Big Machine album, Co-Starring Too, adopted a comparable collaborative format and showcased guest spots from Willie Nelson, Steve Earle, Charlie Sexton, Hayes Carll, and John 5.
Born on November 13, 1946, in Soper, Oklahoma, Ray Wylie Hubbard moved with his family to Dallas in the middle of the 1950s, where he picked up guitar and eventually started a folk ensemble alongside aspiring musician Michael Martin Murphey. After forming friendships with Jerry Jeff Walker and Ramblin’ Jack Elliott, he assembled the trio Three Faces West, which played regularly at the Outpost club in Red River, New Mexico, a venue also frequented by performers such as Steve Ib and Bill & Bonnie Hearne. Following the trio’s dissolution, Hubbard worked the Southwestern coffeehouse circuit alone before launching another short-lived outfit called Texas Fever and later returning to New Mexico to resume performing at the Outpost.
While based in Red River, he renewed his connection with Walker, who recorded Hubbard’s best-known though least typical song, “Up Against the Wall, Redneck Mother,” for the 1973 album Viva Terlingua. That release conferred immediate cult recognition inside progressive country circles, prompting Hubbard to assemble a new supporting group he named the Cowboy Twinkies. Widely viewed as the earliest cowpunk act, whose sets mixed Merle Haggard numbers with a climactic rendition of Led Zeppelin’s “Communication Breakdown,” the band encountered pushback from both country and rock audiences; undeterred, Hubbard financed a demo that secured a contract with Atlantic. The label stalled the project, leading the group to switch to Warner Bros., which directed them to Nashville to cut their first album, Ray Wylie Hubbard & the Cowboy Twinkies.
Issued in 1975, the record suffered from excessive label-mandated polish and sold poorly, after which Hubbard remained silent until 1978, when he joined Willie Nelson’s brief Lone Star label to record Off the Wall, featuring his own rendition of “Redneck Mother.” The next year he enlisted the Lost Gonzo Band—Walker’s former backing unit of guitarist John Inmon, bassist Bob Livingston, and drummer Paul Pearcy—to produce the live album Caught in the Act. By 1984 he performed with the Bugs Henderson Trio, whose members included guitarist Bugs Henderson, bassist Bobby Chitwood, and drummer Ron Thompson, resulting in another live set, Something About the Night.
Hubbard stayed out of the studio for eight years afterward, steadily cultivating a modest yet dedicated audience via relentless road work. He finally issued Lost Train of Thought on his own Misery Loves Co. imprint in 1992, then released Loco Gringos Lament through Dejadisc in 1995. Dangerous Spirits followed in 1997, and Crusades of the Restless Nights appeared in 1999. Eternal & Lowdown, issued in summer 2001, conveyed haunting meditations on religion, philosophy, and redemption; it preceded the stark and intense Growl in 2003, the relaxed Delirium Tremolos in 2005, and Snake Farm in 2006. His ongoing tours, together with organizing the Grit ’n Groove Festival in 2009 and 2010, occupied much of his time until A. Enlightenment B. Endarkenment (Hint: There Is No C) surfaced in 2011 and The Grifter’s Hymnal arrived in 2012.
In April 2015 he issued the self-produced The Ruffian’s Misfortune on his Bordello Records label, matching the approach of his prior two projects, and that same year he published the autobiography A Life…Well, Lived. August 2017 brought the studio album Tell the Devil I’m Gettin’ There as Fast as I Can, which included appearances by Lucinda Williams, Eric Church, Patty Griffin, and Bright Light Social Hour. Visibility increased when longtime admirer Eric Church enlisted him to co-write the title track for Church’s 2018 album Desperate Man. Big Machine Records then signed him, making 2020’s Co-Starring his first major-label effort since 1978. Structured around collaborations, the opening cut “Bad Trick” featured Ringo Starr, Joe Walsh, Don Was, and Black Crowes frontman Chris Robinson. His follow-up Big Machine album, Co-Starring Too, adopted a comparable collaborative format and showcased guest spots from Willie Nelson, Steve Earle, Charlie Sexton, Hayes Carll, and John 5.
Albums
Co-Starring Too
2022
Co-Starring
2020
The Grifter's Hymnal
2012
Delirium Tremolos
2005
Growl
2003
Eternal And Lowdown
2001
Crusades Of The Restless Knights
1999
Dangerous Spirits
1997
Singles
