Wheatfield

McGonigel’s Mucky Duck presents Wheatfield at 7 p.m. Saturday, November 21, 2015.

Wheatfield began in 1972 in Houston with Connie Mims, Ezra Idlet, and Craig Calvert. The three original members met during a talent show at Lamar High School. When they began performing together professionally in 1973, luck was on their side as they almost immediately began to land really cool gigs.

The trio quickly established themselves at the forefront of the then emerging Texas music scene and continued to stretch their musical influences from country, bluegrass and folk into jazz and rock genres as they added bassist Bob Russell in 1974. They played well known local venues such as Liberty Hall, Armadillo World Headquarters, Steamboat Springs, Castle Creek, The Too Bitter, Guaranteed Wholesome and countless others. In 1975 Wheatfield decided that they needed to improve their groove and added drummer Damian Hevia.

Not long after that, before MTV, the band was approached about playing a new live music television show on Austin’s public supported KLRU called Austin City Limits. Then, Wheatfield got a call from the artistic director of the Houston Ballet, who wanted the band to write the music for a ballet.

After a dispute over the band’s name, they disbanded in 1979. Calvert and Mims regrouped with Trout Fishing in America’s Ezra Idlet and Keith Grimwood in 2004 to write, record and tour as Wheatfield.

Wheatfield’s new album, Big Texas Sky, is out now.