Band

Jason "Smoky" Greenwald (guitar): Smoky's start in country music is an improbable story; he began his musical journey as a touring backup singer for Helen Reddy.  He later toured as a backup singer for the heavy metal band "Hell 'n Ready."  After a horrible vocal cord accident involving a canoe, a telephone pole, and a can of Spaghetti-O's, he picked up his first Telecaster in a pawn shop in Lewiston, TX.  After he learned that his new guitar-box makes pretty sounds when you put strings on it and plug it into an amplifier, he dedicated himself to the relentless pursuit of the great American melody.  So far, he's nowhere near.

Peter "Joaquin" Marietta (bass): Joaquin learned at a young age that if you do a good job, they make you do it again next time it needs doing.  Thus, don't ask him to do anything, because he'll do it wrong.  Joaquin is not much of a bass player.  If you want someone who can really hold down the bottom end in a country band, this is not your guy.  Why do the Lariats let him hang around?  Blackmail, mostly.

Andrew "Handy Andy" Waegel (pedal steel): Handy Andy is the soul of the Lariats of Fire.  And by "soul," I mean "guy who cries if we don't let him on the stage."  Andy is passionate and meticulous about his craft, but is continually defensive about the fact that his craft consists mostly of making tambourines out of paper plates and dried beans.  Sometimes he glues macaroni on the outside for decoration.  Andy is the only member of the Lariats that claims to have any friends outside of the band, but we haven't met any of them yet.

"Knuckle" or "Gonzo" (drums):   Knuckle (sometimes known as Gonzo) likes when we take the chains off for shows.  Generally, police are on hand, just in case.  Do not let children near him.