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Like the Hanson brothers before them, three  Tejano brothers who like to play the rock "n" roll music, as David Letterman  used to say, are capturing the attention of music fans around the country.  This includes the legendary Willie Nelson who has had them perform at Farm Aid and record in his famous Pedernales Studio in Austin, Texas.   

I'm referring to the Garza  brothers – guitarist Henryy, 25; bassist JoJo, 23; and drummer Ringo, 21 (no  kidding!) – who all hail from the west Texas city of Saan Angelo and call their group Los Lonely Boys. 

These energetic hermanos  know how to play great rock 'n' roll and sing while giving it an  unmistakable Tex-Mex flair. Listening to Henry's bold and bluesy guitar  playing brings to mind superstar guitarist Carlos Santana. Just listen to the Latin-flavored jam "Onda" on their self-titled major label debut and tell me I'm  wrong. 

Other obvious  influences would be the late Texas guitarist Stevie Ray Vaughan, Jeff Healey  and guitarist Chris Perez, widower of the late Tejano pop diva Selena  Quintanilla Perez. And their style is, as they put it, a "musical burrito" of  influences – Beatles, B.B. King, Los Lobos, Ritchie  Vallens, Elvis, and aspects of the Texas Outlaw music movement. It should also  be noted that the lyrics are sung both in Spanish and English.   

In a recent interview in their  hometown paper, the _San Angelo Standard-Times_, the Boys said they got their musical start several years earlier after going to Nashville to start a career backing their  country/conjunto singing father. 

When it became clear Music City wasn't ready for  an Hispanic country act, the brothers forged ahead on their own, with help  from their father, forming their tight trio in 1998. These guys are clearly a musical force to be reckoned with -- and they've worked hard to get where they  are. 

"You never rest  working out on the road," Ringo told the _Standard-Times_. "We're constantly  working." 

And listening to  the album, all that work has paid off. 

The anthemic blues-rock of "Heaven," their first  single, is getting some serious airplay not only in Texas and the Southwest,  but in places like Minneapolis and Chicago. 

"Senorita," a mid-tempo pop-rocker,  features a nice guitar solo from Henry, while JoJ's thumping bass comes  through well. 

"Hollywood,"  with its easygoing melodies, nice Spanish guitar flavorings, and percussion  provided by Vallejo's Diego Simmons, is a great song about trying to make it  big in Tinseltown. 

"More  than Love" is a straight-up soulful ballad that will have the senoritas  swooning in the aisles. 

"Onda" is the one I keep coming back to. Henry absolutely smokes  on this one, while baby bro Ringo keeps a beat and gets a nice little drum  solo going late in the song. This is one I'd love to see performed  live. 

The final track, a  Spanish-language ballad called "La Contestacion," features Willie on  acoustic guitar and shows the bands versatility. 

It's safe to say that Los Lonely Boys have a bright future ahead of them. 

Andrew West Griffin 12/16/2003