Gene Watson’s Peers within the country music industry believe in the sheer talent of this unassuming man from east Texas, so much so that Gene is regarded by many of them as ‘the singer’s singer’ – and rightly so!
All of Gene Watson’s Peers, who were contacted by The Gene Watson Fan Site, during 2013, were most gracious with their time and words.
It is here, within this special part of The Gene Watson Fan Site, that you have an opportunity to read a quote from Tim Rushlow, which he submitted to this site on Wednesday 20 November 2013.
Sean Brady would like to take this opportunity to say ‘thank you’ to Tim Rushlow who has made a special contribution to a unique part of this online ‘celebration of a Lone Star Hero’.
Tim Rushlow
This quote was submitted on Wednesday 20 November 2013.
‘Being from Texas and listening to country music, it’s hard not to say that Gene Watson was not a staple in my diet of music.
A great legendary voice and nice man!
My best friend, Jeff Huskins, who later became a member of Little Texas with me, used to play fiddle for Gene, so I was around him a bit and he was always very gracious and funny.
I will always hold that golden voice in the highest regard’
Thank you, Tim Rushlow, for your support of Gene Watson.
About Tim Rushlow…
Tim Rushlow was born Timothy Ray ‘Tim’ Rushlow on Thursday 6 October 1966 in Midwest City, Oklahoma at Tinker Air Force Base to a musical family. Tim Rushlow’s family moved to Arlington, Texas when he was still at a young age, although they would continue to visit Oklahoma in the summertime.
Originally, Tim Rushlow was the lead singer of the country music group Little Texas. Tim Rushlow and Dwayne O’Brien, the group’s rhythm guitarist, met in Arlington, Texas in 1984 when they went to James Martin High School and were in Choir under Mr. Randy Jordan.
Tim Rushlow later moved to Nashville, followed by the other members of Little Texas.
Little Texas was an American country music band, which was founded in Nashville in 1988 by Tim Rushlow (lead vocals, rhythm guitar), Brady Seals (lead vocals, background vocals, keyboards), Del Gray (drums), Porter Howell (lead guitar, background vocals), Dwayne O’Brien (rhythm guitar, background vocals) and Duane Propes (bass guitar, background vocals).
Prior to the formation of Little Texas in 1988, Tim Rushlow and Dwayne O’Brien began playing together in Arlington, Texas in 1984. Porter Howell and Duane Propes got together while they were in high school in 1983 and moved to Nashville to attend Belmont University. Brady Seals and Del Gray played in the backup band of country music recording artist Josh Logan. Tim Rushlow, Dwayne O’Brien, Duane Propes and Porter Howell first started making music at Opryland as a 1950s show band.
Tim Rushlow and Porter Howell, plus two other members, took the show band on the road, naming their act ‘The Varsities’.
When two of the members left to pursue other interests, they contacted Del Gray and Brady Seals, whom they had met while playing in Springfield, Massachusetts, in the hope of forging a more country music / Southern rock sound.
All six members eventually moved to Nashville, where they started playing music together. The band played at venues across the United States (around three hundred dates a year), eventually catching the attention of Nashville’s division of Warner Bros. Records.
Signed to Warner Bros. Records in 1991, Little Texas saw the release, on Tuesday 3 March 1992, of its debut album, ‘First Time For Everything’ (Warner Bros. Records, 1992), which included five tracks, which were hit singles on the Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks Chart:
‘Some Guys Have All The Love’ (written by Porter Howell and Dwayne O’Brien) (No.8, 1991)
‘First Time For Everything’ (written by Porter Howell and Dwayne O’Brien) (No.13, 1992)
‘You & Forever & Me’ (written by Porter Howell and Stewart Harris) (No.5, 1992)
‘What Were You Thinking’ (written by Porter Howell, Dwayne O’Brien, Brady Seals and Christy DiNapoli) (No.17, 1992)
‘I’d Rather Miss You’ (written by Porter Howell and Dwayne O’Brien) (No.16, 1993)
Little Texas’ debut album, ‘First Time For Everything’ (Warner Bros. Records, 1992), earned a ‘Gold’ certification from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for the sale of 500,000 copies in the United States.
On Tuesday 11 May 1993, Little Texas saw the release of ‘Big Time’ (Warner Bros. Records, 1993), which included four tracks, which were hit singles on the Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks Chart:
‘What Might Have Been’ (written by Porter Howell, Dwayne O’Brien and Brady Seals) (No.2, 1993) / this track also reached No.16 on the Billboard Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks Chart in 1993, and No.1 on the Radio & Records Chart in 1993
‘God Blessed Texas’ (written by Porter Howell and Brady Seals) (No.4, 1993) / this track, which also reached No.1 on the Radio & Records Chart in 1993, was also produced into a popular music video, which was filmed at Southfork Ranch near Dallas, Texas
‘My Love’ (written by Porter Howell, Brady Seals and Tommy Barnes) (No.1, 1994) / this track also reached No.1 on the Radio & Records Chart in 1993
‘Stop On A Dime’ (written by Porter Howell, Dwayne O’Brien and Brady Seals) (No.14, 1994)
On Tuesday 27 September 1994, Little Texas saw the release of ‘Kick A Little’ (Warner Bros. Records, 1994), which included three tracks, which were hit singles on the Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks Chart:
‘Kick A Little’ (written by Porter Howell, Dwayne O’Brien and Brady Seals) (No.5, 1994)
‘Amy’s Back In Austin’, which was written by Brady Seals and Stephen Allen Davis (Tuesday 4 October 1949 – Monday 26 December 2022) (No.4, 1994)
‘Southern Grace’ (written by Stewart Harris, Porter Howell and Brady Seals) (No.27, 1995)
Little Texas’ ‘Kick A Little’ (Warner Bros. Records, 1994), which was certified ‘Platinum’ by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for sales of one million copies, also included ‘Hit Country Song’ (written by Porter Howell, Dwayne O’Brien, Brady Seals, Del Gray, Duane Propes and Tim Rushlow).
In late 1994, Brady Seals departed Little Texas for a solo career on Reprise Records, and was replaced by multi-instrumentalist Jeff Huskins, a former backing musician for Clint Black.
Jeff Huskins made his first appearance on the tracks, ‘Life Goes On’ and ‘Country Crazy’, both of which were two new tracks, which the Little Texas recorded for their ‘Greatest Hits’ (Warner Bros. Records, 1995).
Both of these songs were released as Billboard country music singles; the former became their final Billboard Top 40 country music hit with a peak position of No.5, while ‘Country Crazy’ reached No.44.
On Tuesday 26 September 1995, Little Texas saw the release of their first greatest hits compilation, ‘Greatest Hits’ (Warner Bros. Records, 1995), which included nine tracks from their first three studio albums, ‘First Time For Everything’ (Warner Bros. Records, 1992), ‘Big Time’ (Warner Bros. Records, 1993) and ‘Kick A Little’ (Warner Bros. Records, 1994), as well as two newly recorded tracks, both of which were released as singles on the Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks Chart:
‘Life Goes On’ (written by Del Gray, Thom McHugh and Keith Follesé) (No.5, 1995)
‘Country Crazy’ (written by Porter Howell and Chuck Jones) (No.44, 1995)
Little Texas’ first greatest hits compilation, ‘Greatest Hits’ (Warner Bros. Records, 1995), also included the band’s rendition of The Eagles hit single, ‘Peaceful Easy Feeling’ (written by Jack Tempchin), which was previously included on ‘Common Thread: The Songs of The Eagles’ (Giant Records, 1993); Little Texas’ cover charted at No.73, based on unsolicited airplay.
It was also in 1995 when Little Texas sang on ‘Party All Night’ (written by Scott Rouse), a musical track, which featured snippets from a Jeff Foxworthy sketch and a sung chorus by the band; the track, which was included on Jeff Foxworthy’s ‘Games Rednecks Play’ (Warner Bros. Records, 1995), reached No.53 on the Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks Chart.
On Tuesday 22 April 1997, Little Texas saw the release of ‘Little Texas’ (Warner Bros. Records, 1997), which was their final album for Warner Bros. Records, and included three tracks, which were hit singles on the Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks Chart:
‘Bad For Us’ (written by Porter Howell, Dwayne O’Brien and Tom Shapiro) (No.45, 1997)
‘Your Mama Won’t Let Me’ (written by Del Gray, Thom McHugh and Keith Follesé) (No.64, 1997)
‘The Call’ (written by Walt Aldridge and Tim Rushlow) (No.71, 1997)
Little Texas’ ‘Little Texas’ (Warner Bros. Records, 1997) also included ‘Yesterday’s Gone Forever’ (written by Dwayne O’Brien and Jim Rushing).
Little Texas’ ‘Little Texas’ (Warner Bros. Records, 1997) was also the only album to feature Jeff Huskins on keyboards; Jeff Huskins replaced former keyboardist / vocalist Brady Seals, who had departed for a solo career. In addition, it was the final album to feature Tim Rushlow as lead vocalist.
It was also in 1997 when Little Texas charted with a cover of ‘Kiss The Girl’, a song from the Disney film, ‘The Little Mermaid’, which they recorded on ‘The Best of Country Sing The Best of Disney’ (Walt Disney Records, 1996).
It was also in 1997 when Brady Seals charted his only Billboard Top 40 solo country music hit single, ‘Another You, Another Me’, which reached No.32; Brady Seals would record a total of three albums between 1997 and 2003.
Following the disbandment of Little Texas at the end of 1997, Tim Rushlow departed for a solo career, and signed to Atlantic Records, where he saw the release of a self-titled album, ‘Tim Rushlow’ (Atlantic Records, 2001), which included four tracks, which were hit singles on the Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks Chart:
‘When You Love Me’ (written by David Malloy, Tim Rushlow and Porter Howell) (No.60, 2000)
‘She Misses Him’, which was written by Tim Johnson (Friday 29 January 1960 – Sunday 21 October 2012) (No.8, 2000)
‘Crazy Life’ (written by Kevin Fisher) No.43, 2001)
‘Love, Will (The Package)’ (written by Tim Rushlow) (No.52, 2002)
Tim Rushlow’s self-titled album, ‘Tim Rushlow’ (Atlantic Records, 2001) also included the following tracks:
‘Then There’s Me’ (written by Porter Howell, Tim Rushlow and Noah Gordon)
‘In The Meantime’ (written by Rob Crosby, Sherrié Austin and Will Rambeaux)
‘American Cars’ (written by David Grissom, Jay Booker, Porter Howell and Tim Rushlow)
‘Everything To You’ (written by Robert Ellis Orrall and Joel Feeney)
‘I Live’ (written by Gary Baker, Frank Myers and David Malloy)
‘The World Turns’ (written by Kevin Fisher, Tim James and Fred Wilhelm)
‘The Package’ (written by Tim Rushlow)
‘That’s How It’s Gonna Be’ (written by Noah Gordon, Tim Rushlow and Porter Howell)
‘As Real As Forever’ (written by Tim Rushlow, Porter Howell and David Malloy) / this track was only included on the re-released version of Tim Rushlow’s self-titled album, ‘Tim Rushlow’ (Atlantic Records, 2001), which was re-released in 2002 as ‘Crazy Love’ (Scream Recordings, 2002)
Personnel involved in the recording of Tim Rushlow’s self-titled album, ‘Tim Rushlow’ (Atlantic Records, 2001), included the following:
Ron Block (banjo)
Richard Brannan (bass guitar)
Eric Darken (percussion)
Larry Franklin and Aubrey Haynie (fiddle, mandolin)
Paul Franklin (Dobro, steel guitar)
Tommy Harden and Paul Leim (drums)
Wes Hightower (background vocals)
Jeff King, Brent Mason and Jerry McPherson (electric guitar)
B. James Lowry (acoustic guitar)
Jimmy Nichols (piano, keyboards, background vocals)
Russ Pahl (steel guitar)
Tim Rushlow’s self-titled album, ‘Tim Rushlow’ (Atlantic Records, 2001), reached No.28 on the Billboard Top Country Albums Chart in 2001.
In 2001, Atlantic Records closed its country music division.
Tim Rushlow then founded a new band, Rushlow, whose members included his cousin Doni Harris.
In 2003, Rushlow signed a recording contract with Lyric Street Records, and saw the release, on Tuesday 9 December 2003, of ‘Right Now’ (Lyric Street Records, 2003), which included two tracks, which were hit singles on the Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks Chart:
‘I Can’t Be Your Friend’ (written by Brad Crisler and Rodney Clawson) (No.16, 2003)
‘Sweet Summer Rain’ (written by Jim Collins and Danny Orton) (No.42, 2003)
Rushlow’s ‘Right Now’ (Lyric Street Records, 2003) also included the following tracks:
‘Right Now’ (written by Dean Miller and Danny Orton)
‘However’ (written by Steve Wariner and John Wilson)
‘God Only Knows’ (written by Tim Rushlow)
‘Still’ (written by John Bettis and Danny Orton)
‘Texas Is My Kind of Town’ (written by Tim Rushlow and Brett Warren)
‘Since When’ (written by Connie Harrington and John Paul White)
‘When You Dance With Me’ (written by Brett James and Brad Crisler)’
‘She’s Out There’ (written by Troy Johnson and James LeBlanc)
‘Speechless’ (written by Tim Rushlow)
Personnel involved in the recording of Rushlow’s ‘Right Now’ (Lyric Street Records, 2003) included the following:
Rushlow
Kurt Allison (acoustic guitar, electric guitar, background vocals)
Doni Harris (acoustic guitar, banjo, background vocals)
Tully Kennedy (bass guitar, background vocals)
Rich Redmond (drums)
Tim Rushlow (lead vocals, acoustic guitar, electric guitar)
Billy Welch (keyboards)
Additional musicians
Bruce C. Bouton (steel guitar)
Eric Darken (percussion)
Stuart Duncan (fiddle, mandolin)
Carl Gorodetzky (string arrangements)
Dann Huff and Brent Mason (electric guitar)
B. James Lowry (acoustic guitar)
Rob Mathes (string arrangements)
Nashville String Machine (strings)
Steve Nathan (keyboards)
Jimmy Nichols (keyboards, background vocals)
John Willis (acoustic guitar, banjo)
In 2003, the members of Rushlow parted ways, although Tim Rushlow and acoustic guitarist / banjoist, Doni Harris (Tim Rushlow’s cousin) reunited in 2006 to form a duo called Rushlow Harris; the duo saw the release of two singles for Show Dog Nashville Records, a record label which was founded by Toby Keith (Saturday 8 July 1961 – Monday 5 February 2024) in 2006, and parted ways in 2007.
Duane Propes, Del Gray, Porter Howell and Dwayne O’Brien decided to reunite Little Texas in 2004. When Little Texas reunited, Tim Rushlow and Jeff Huskins made a legal attempt to keep their ex-bandmates from using the Little Texas name. Also included in the new lineup was lead singer Steven Troy.
Following Steven Troy’s departure, Porter Howell took over as lead singer. In 2007, Little Texas signed to an independent record label, Montage Music Group, and saw the release of a live album, ‘The Very Best of Little Texas: Live & Loud’ (Montage Music Group, 2007). The album line-up also included Mark Sutton, a supporting member who occasionally played guitar for the band.
‘The Very Best of Little Texas: Live & Loud’ (Montage Music Group, 2007) was followed by the release, on Tuesday 12 June 2007, of a studio album, ‘Missing Years’ (Montage Music Group, 2003), which included three tracks, which were released as singles, although only one, ‘Missing Years’ (written by Del Gray, Porter Howell and Dwayne O’Brien), made the Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks Charts, peaking at No.45 in 2007.
Little Texas’ ‘Missing Years’ (Montage Music Group, 2003) also included ‘So Long’ (written by Anthony Smith, Liz Hengber and James Dean Hicks).
At the time of the acquisition of this Gene Watson ‘Peer’s Quote’ from Tim Rushlow, in November 2013, the members of Little Texas included the following:
Del Gray (drums) (1988 – 1997, 2004 – present)
Porter Howell (lead guitar, background vocals) (1988 – 1997, 2004 – 2006); (lead vocals, lead guitar) (2007 – present)
Dwayne O’Brien (rhythm guitar, background vocals) (1988 – 1997, 2004 – present)
Duane Propes (bass guitar, background vocals) (1988 – 1997, 2004 – present)
Former members of Little Texas included the following:
Tim Rushlow (lead and background vocals, rhythm guitar) (1988 – 1997)
Jeff Huskins (background vocals, keyboards, fiddle, mandolin) (1994 – 1997)
Brady Seals (lead and background vocals, keyboards, rhythm guitar) (1988 – 1994)
Steven Troy (lead vocals, rhythm guitar) (2004 – 2006)
On Monday 29 August 2011, Tim Rushlow announced that he had signed a recording contract with Liquid Spins Records, where he saw the release of his first Christian album, ‘Unfinished Symphony’ (Liquid Spins Records, 2011), which was produced by Ian Eskelin.
In 2014, Tim Rushlow saw the release of ‘Classic Christmas’ (Row Entertainment Records, 2014), which included the following tracks:
‘Santa Claus Is Coming To Town’
‘Sleigh Ride’
‘A Soldier’s Gift’
‘Rudolph, The Red-Nosed Reindeer’
‘Jingle Bells’
‘I’ll Be Home For Christmas’
‘It’s The Most Wonderful Time of The Year’
‘O, Holy Night’
‘What Do I Do With The Blue’
‘The Christmas Song’
‘Home For The Holidays’
‘Edelweiss’
• Visit Tim Rushlow’s official site at timrushlow.com
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