Outlaw Jones is:

Ray Diffee ~ Lead Vocals, Guitar

One of Ray's favorite songs to sing pretty much sums things up... he probably should be dead from all the crazy sh*t he's done. But, ain't that the life of a true outlaw musician? And, the songs he writes are a reflection of the life he's lead. Though still crazy as a loon, he's settled down just enough that we're pretty sure he'll be at all of our gigs instead of being locked up somewhere for bustin' a beer bottle over someones head.

Prior to getting Outlaw Jones up and running, he was the mastermind behind Ray Diffee & The Gringo Revolution. RDGR built up quite a following and Ray used the opportunity to hone his song writing skills. But as it often goes with bands, RDGR fell by the wayside after several members felt life pulling them in different directions. Ray himself needed some time away from the riggors of band life to focus on family with the birth of his first child.

But, the call to the stage was never far away, and Outlaw Jones was soon born out of the ashes of RDGR. With the new lineup in place, new avenues for writing and expressing his musical ideas emerged. Old songs were revitalized and new songs were crafted in calaberation with his new bandmates. Now, there can be no doubt that Ray Diffee is back in the saddle and his fans are certain to be blown away by the result of the new band's efforts.

 

 

Mike Glanton ~ Lead/Rhythm Guitar, Vocals

Mike has been playing guitar for almost 35 years... he's a little older than he looks! Additionally, he plays a few other instruments such as Pedal Steel (so so), Keys, Drums & Bass. Although well versed in many styles including Rock, Old Country, Alt Country, Blues, Experimental and Electronica, he prefers to dig his heals into driving alt. country. In addition to playing in bands and occasionally writing his own music, he often works with singer/songwriters to help them develop thier songs.

Previous bands include 5 Flights Up, Temper Temper, The Fearless Band Called Popper, Burnt Norton, The Screamin' Presleys, Speedtrucker, Chevy Van, Lance Smith, Super Human, Too Tall Paul, Dr' O's Medicine Show (on upright bass), The late Owen Moore Band and Big Chief & The Boogie Woogie Wig Wam. He's been know to sit in with numerous notable bands and musician such as The Hash Brown Band, Greg Martin (Kentucky Headhunters), Cricket Taylor, Jack Sonni (Dire Straights), Brad Houser (New Bohemians), Zuzu Bolin, Curly "Barefoot" Miller, Bobby Chitwood (Bugs Henderson), The Tejas Brothers and a few others.

While Outlaw Jones is his primary focus, he occasionaly does gigs with Steve Layne (Junior Brown, Larry Joe Taylor, Tejas Brothers), Michael Cox (Speedtrucker) and a few other notable Dallas area musicians.

 

Neal Cowan ~ Rhythm/Lead Guitar, Lap Steel (and Cowbell)

Neal was born in Dublin TX, near the beginning of the first great outlaw country movement in the mid 70’s. It was a time when artist like Willie Nelson, Waylon Jennings, Merle Haggard, The Charlie Daniels Band, and Hank Williams Jr. dominated the airwaves. Gas was cheap, pearl snaps were plentiful, and American country music was working just fine, "until Nashville’s rich and powerful lawyers figured out a way destroy it," says Neal.  Fast forward a few decades and a few common friends... 

“I met Ray Diffee back in 2004 thru my friend, Tracy Neff. Ray was writing a lot of songs for the Wrecking Balls, each one raw and filled with emotion. Never once did Ray change a lyric to make it ‘Nashville friendly.’ That, to me, stood out, it remind me of the Outlaw movement of the past," says Neal. "Ray was a real good guy and invited me to come play a few gigs with the Wrecking Balls which were a blast. If it weren’t for a commitment to another project at the time, I probably would have joined that band.”

In 2005, Neal formed an original band, The Hawkes, with friend Joshua Ward. They played for several years adding some quality players to the mix and ultimately putting out a self-titled CD in 2008. In 2009, several members of the band decided to go in different directions.  Neal took the opportunity to focus on career and family, but the constant urge to play and perform with a group of like minded individuals was always there. So, in June of 2010, Neal joined ranks with Outlaw Jones.

"The Hawkes are still great friends, we had a great run and I got to do a lot of really cool, gigs as a member of that band.  Now, I’m ready to take that same excitement and focus it into Outlaw Jones!”

Josh Woodward ~ Bass, Vocals

With wide and varied musical interests ranging from old country to hard core metal, Josh is a versitile bass player and an accomplished drummer. For whatever musical stylings Ray and Mike happen to be dishing out, Josh is right there with the perfect bass part and he switches fluently between electric and upright bass depending on the needs of the song at hand. Though most of his musical calendar is filled with Outlaw Jones stuff, he does occasionally lay down the beat for Devil Fist.

 

 

Andrew Teer ~ Drums, Crickets

Although Andrew is somewhat new to live performing, don't let that fool you... he's a real monster on the drums. He's also a master of the well placed cricket chirp whenever Ray or Mike tells a stupid jokes. Don't be surprised to hear crickets as Ray attempts to "entertain" the crowd with his brand of "humor" between songs! ;)

 

 

Ted Dilday ~ Pedal Steel, Train Sounds

Ted has strong honky tonk roots loves the old country standards. We're thrilled that he adds that cryin' country steel and soul to the Outlaw Jones band!