Once Upon A Time

Growing up just outside of Houston,TX Steven Ray Will had early aspirations of playing for The Houston Oilers. Soon after hearing his first Rolling Stones record he exchanged his dream for that of being a Rockstar. At age 11, Steven got his first bass guitar and played along with all of his favorite records. Soon he got up the nerve to have a 'jam' in a friends garage and that's all it took. Steven began working regularly as a musician in Houston's exploding Blues scene. He honed his skills with Sheila Marshall and spent 10 years along side of local legend, Hadden Sayers. The time spent with Hadden taught him the ins and outs of the music business. He toured the US as well as Europe and Japan. During a tour stop at an Austin club, Steven was drawn in by the talent and the abundance of live music, 3 months later Steven relocated to Austin, he played with any and everyone he could just to play music. A few years later Steven switched his focus to guitar and began writing material inspired by legends Gram Parsons, Tom Waits, The Rolling Stones, The Replacements as well as contemporaries like Lucinda Williams, Ryan Adams, Daniel Lanois, Son Volt and more. One Sunday night, he took his writings for a test drive at The World Famous Saxon Pub. Soon after that night he was ofered a weekly slot. Not wanting to be a solo artist, he started inviting other musicians to come down and play. After many shows with different musicians and friends, the Leavers began to take shape when Tim McMaster, Alan Durham, and Mark Patterson joined Steven. These seasoned sidemen have played alongside the likes of, Americana pioneers Dumptruck, Alejandro Escovedo, Jon Dee Graham, Robert Earl Keen, Kelly Willis, Billy Joe Shaver and many more. The Leavers first record 'Once Upon A Time' was completed in 2012 By engineer Joe Carroll at Tree House Productions in Austin, and shipped to radio and press outlets world wide. It's been embraced with heavy rotations in Australia, Europe and The US. Within weeks the album charted on The Americana Chart, The Route 66 Chart, 3rd Coast Music Charts, Euro-Americana Charts, The Far Charts, The Texas Music Charts and more. The great radio exposure lead to several radio appearances and a top official showcase at 2013's SXSW. That SXSW appearance landed a European Distribution deal with Blue-Rose Records from Germany. Stay tuned for a follow up record in spring 2014. In the meantime, you can always catch the Leavers at their Monday night residency at The Saxon Pub in Austin, Texas as well as other legendary venues in town.