D.C. Musician Reminisces About San Angelo

Beef ribs, Shiner Bock, rodeos, straw hats, and Durango boots - that is what musician JR MacDonald thinks of when he remembers Texas.

"I may have not been born in Texas, but I feel like a Texan," he said.

Growing up a military kid from Washington, JR resided in California, Florida, England, and Germany all before reaching the age of 18. When he enlisted in the United States Air Force himself, his first stop was Goodfellow Air Force Base in San Angelo.

"I spent almost 7 months in extensive training as an Imagery Intelligence Analyst," he explained. "I also wrote a song there; my first song entitled 'The Wedding Song' because I couldn't come up with a good enough name. It was for my buddy Dave's wedding; and I can remember looking out across the hills of the Concho Valley as I played some of the new chords and progressions I had learned from the musicians that I met in Texas. It was here, in San Angelo, back in 2000, that I learned many of the chord progressions that would end up on Get Up Young Phoenix so many years later."

JR then spent some time in Ohio, South Korea, and Georgia before finally making his way back to the great state of Texas.

"In 2004, my folks moved to Dallas, so I took a teaching position at Goodfellow. I stayed there for 5 years," he stated.

It was on his second trip back that JR  saw a show that would inspire him to become the musician he is today.

"I can remember the first time I saw Bugota play at the Oasis; it must have been 2007 or so," said JR. "I was so enamored. I remember thinking, 'I want to play in a band so bad.' I started learning electric guitar because, up until then, all I had was an acoustic. So, in a way, I owe my start in live music to Jerrod [Thomas] and Charles [Reyes] from Bugota."

JR soon got his wish when he started his band, Help Wanted, and played various venues around town including Steel Penny, Oasis, Float 404, and the VFW.

"Help Wanted was amazing, but it was short lived," he noted. "We were all enlisted service members and eventually time split us up. It's something we knew, even when we started, so it was easier to stomach."

Now, currently living in Washington D.C., JR's "post-grunge with a touch of blues" band, Fellowcraft, is doing quite well.

"I feel like I've become sort of a fixture in the local music scene here in D.C. because I like to get out and go to as many shows as I can, and support my friends who are all making great music," he added.

Fellowcraft just released the song "West Texas Blues," which is about San Angelo. JR told the story of how the song actually came about.

"We needed another original for our first show, so it would be about half covers and half originals," he explained. "I had this old riff that I used to play in Help Wanted, so I sat down one night and reminisced about San Angelo and how much I hated it when I first got there, how much I fell in love with the Concho Valley, and how hard it was to leave that place in the end. It was a real blessing and a song that really took off; it's arguably my favorite to play live. We just heard that KMLS 95.5 in San Angelo is playing it on the radio."

Despite missing San Angelo, there are no current plans to come back - yet. Fellowcraft has talked about playing a few shows in Texas with a Dallas group, Dead Flowers.

JR also added, "I hope and pray that we find our way to San Angelo to play some day. I'd love to play the Deadhorse."

"West Texas Blues" and the rest of Fellowcraft's new album, Get Up Young Phoenix, is now available on iTunes and most other popular music outlets.

To learn more about JR MacDonald and Fellowcraft, visit www.fellowcraftband.com or follow them on Facebook.