Stevie Ray Vaughan

John Fry was the founder of Ardent Records and a noted recording engineer with a special talent for sound mixing and studio sound control. The results of his efforts are enough to fill several walls with gold and platinum records from the likes of Stevie Ray Vaughan and Led Zeppelin. John was also a devoted Christian who saw the need to produce quality Christian rock music in an era before it was a large musical category or commercial success. His pioneer recordings using his engineering talents are well noted within the industry. His list of admirers seems to be an ever growing l

Ray Hennig opened Heart of Texas Music in the early 1960s after years of repairing guitars for friends. He built homes in Texas and was happy with that line of work, but his passion was in music –and so he did both. Over the years, he had been awarded many honors from the city of Austin and from the state for his ethics and good business practices. For a generation of blues and rock fans, Ray is also known for his friendship with the late Stevie Ray Vaughan, who bought his “number one” guitar from Ray in the 1980s.

Darrell Leonard really enjoys his role of writing and arranging music. After touring with a band in the late 1960s, Darrell found himself arranging “Put A Little  Love In Your Heart” for Kim Carnes to perform on the Joey Bishop television program. This opened up many opportunities for Darrell who has gone on to work for several iconic performers and for several hit movies. He arranged the song “Keeping Out of Mischief Now” for Taj Mahal to perform in the movie Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood (2002), as well as the background music for several other movies including Tommy Bo

Jimmie Vaughan took time from his 2020 tour schedule for his NAMM Oral History interview during which he spoke about his early days as a musician. Jimmie recounted his Uncles playing music while he was growing up as well as some of his influences including bluesman Freddie King who would later become a personal friend. While speaking about his signature model guitar, he remarked how he sometimes cannot believe all of the incredible things that have happened to him during his career. With that statement and a smile, he headed to sound check.