Texas Band 'Dolly Shine' Plays Blaine's, Releases 3rd CD

Mark your calendars San Angelo; Friday, June 17, the band Dolly Shine will be playing Blaine's Pub and taking the stage at 10 p.m. As an added bonus, the event will be the official release celebration of their latest and 3rd CD "Walkabout," which includes nine tracks. Avid fans know them well from their 2013 first full-length album “Room To Breathe.” The cut “Spinning My Wheels” hit the Top 40 on the Texas Music Chart, and “Should've Known” charted in the high 20s. In 2014 came their 5-song EP “All In,” where two of its singles, “Her Name Was Trouble” and “Dangerous Love,” also made their way onto the charts.

Zach McGinn's acoustic version of "Should've Known" from a Cluttered Corner Concert/Best in Texas Music Magazine

[[{"fid":"21704","view_mode":"default","type":"media","attributes":{"alt":"Dolly Shine \"Should've Known\"","height":"562","width":"750","class":"media-element file-default"}}]]
Lead singer Zack McGinn, from the Sterling City area, said, "It's a collection of songs that can be visualized as a 'concept album.' I rodeoed for many years before I started making music, and it's kind of the same lifestyle as a 'drifter.' It's pretty much the same as with our music, traveling all the time."

Dolly Shine was started in 2010 by McGinn, lead guitar and vocals, and fiddle player Wesley Hall. In regards to the band members' locations, McGinn said, "The other band members reside in the Dallas Ft. Worth area, and we meet somewhere in between to practice, so I travel a lot."

On the band's Facebook page, the members note, "We like to drink the Rock and ride around in Astro Van's before shows..."McGinn, laughing, said, "We do travel in a van, but that was a joke from a former member, and hasn't been updated yet."

Lightheartedly, he answered the million dollar question everyone wants to know; how did they come up with the band's name?  

"It started when I was in college," McGinn said. "I had a buddy on the college rodeo team who named his horse 'Dolly Shine.' Dolly is basically the Americanized term for the Spanish word 'Dale,' meaning 'give it the gas' but stay steady. He was always joking with us, trying to get us to name the band that, and I wouldn't do it for forever. Then finally one night, he said, 'Tell you what. I'll make you a deal. If you guys will name the band Dolly Shine on the night of your first CD release party, I'll get it tattooed on my rear end.' A year later, we both kept up our ends of the deal."

As for the band's specific genre of music, McGinn said, "It's probably more along the lines of Americana, a little bit of Rock 'n' Roll, as well as a little bit of Country."

With this latest release, and songs entitled “Rattlesnake," "Hitch Hiking," "Blackbird," "Snakeskin Boots," "Twist The Knife," and “Come Out Swingin," “Walkabout” is an honest, uncensored telling of the human condition. It's tinged with angst and injustice, and the setting of the Americana landscape: desolate, dried up and as lonely as his broken soul.  

 [[{"fid":"21707","view_mode":"default","type":"media","attributes":{"alt":"Rattlesnake","height":"562","width":"750","class":"media-element file-default"}}]]
As far as who has been an influence to McGinn personally, he said, "If there was one person I could've met, it would have been Chris LeDoux as he has greatly inspired my own musical style." LeDoux was a singer-songwriter and former rodeo champion who died in 2005 in Casper, Wyoming, following a lengthy battle with liver ailments.

In true Texas gentleman form, McGinn said, "Music isn't just about being on the stage; it's a way to reach people. I believe that our fans are the ones who have given us the opportunity to have a career. It's important to visit with whoever wants to hear more, and talk about the music and what it means to them. Even back when I attended shows as a fan, it meant a lot to me if someone I admired would take a couple of minutes to thank me for coming out to see their show, so I do the same."

One of McGinn's most memorable encounters was they got to play a show with Robert Earl Keen about 5 or 6 years ago, and Keen took the time to chat with him. 

McGinn added that at Friday's show, the band will have a "merch table" with t-shirts, caps, koozies, stickers and all that good stuff, and of course their newest release "Walkabout." Also,"at midnight, once the 17th hits, fans can get their new music on most retail sites such as iTunes and Spotify."

McGinn concluded, "San Angelo has always been really good to us; we have a great following there and we expect a good crowd." To the fans, he said, "Keep continuing to support live music; come out and see us and all these other great live bands who are traveling. Buy a record when you come out to see us and meet everybody.

For more information on the band, go to www.dollyshinemusic.com and www.facebook.com/DollyShineMusic. You can access the album here. Additionally, for a list of upcoming live music at Blaine's, check out their Facebook, and of course http://blainespub.com.