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Jim the Mule

About Me

JIM THE MULE
A four-piece band based in the Iowa & Illinois Quad Cities, Jim the Mule blends the gritty Rock and Roll textures of the late 60’s and early 70’s with touches of Southern Rock, Pop, Alternative Rock, and Country into something best described as “Midwestern Rock and Roll.”
A testament to the popularity of their sound and live performances, the band has received numerous “Best Local Rock Band” honors in the River Cities’ Reader Best of the Quad Cities Poll. Jim the Mule has played hundreds of shows at over 86 different venues and festivals all across the Midwest, including the inaugural River Roots Live Music Fest, sharing the festival stage with Little Feat, The BoDeans, and Umphreys McGee. In addition to “...earning a reputation around the area as one of the great, original live bands, with a sharp rootsy rock sound and its nasty chops,” as proclaimed by the Quad City Times, Jim the Mule has also been productive in the studio during its first ten years. They have released an extended single, numerous live recordings, the self-titled studio CD “Jim the Mule”, and their latest full-length studio effort “Last Solid Ground”. JTM songs have received radio play on stations across the Midwest and all the way from California to Maine to Europe.
Mark Lush at www.midwestbands.com said it best stating “They draw inspiration from a myriad of styles, and do what good bands are capable of doing - they make fans across genres, and play music that is appealing to all kinds of people.”
JTM's latest release "Last Solid Ground" available now! Featuring 11 new songs, "Last Solid Ground is a smart rock record with country in its veins" proclaims the River Cities Reader. Grab a copy at any live show and find it online at CDBaby and numerous music download sites including iTunes !

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My Interests

Music:

Member Since: 12/11/2005
Band Website: http://www.jimthemule.com
Band Members: Tom Swanson - Guitar, Vocals

Jason Gilliland - Bass, Vocals

Sean Ryan - Guitar, Vocals

Kurt Sullivan - Drums & Percussion
Influences: Jim the Mule blends the gritty Rock and Roll textures of the late 60’s and early 70’s with touches of Southern Rock, Pop, Alternative Rock, and Country.
Sounds Like: The Rolling Stones, The Allman Brothers Band, The Band, Bruce Springsteen, Neil Young, The Who, Wilco, Bob Dylan, The Byrds, The Black Crowes, The Flying Burrito Brothers, BB King, Merle Haggard, Willie Nelson, The Hiders, Led Zeppelin, Cream, Grateful Dead, Magnollia Electric Co., The Black Keys, Jerry Reed, Backyard Tire Fire, The Wood Brothers, Glossary, Johnny Cash, 500 Miles to Memphis, The Brakes, Delbert McClinton, Gov't Mule, Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers, and others that bring the rock, stomp, swamp, and twang or any combination thereof...
Record Label: None
Type of Label: Unsigned

My Blog

Alive and Kicking

Smack dab in the middle of another sweltering summer; the oppressive heat and humidity always come as a surprise, no matter how many years we've endured it.  The years, they do go by - more quickly as...
Posted by on Sun, 01 Aug 2010 10:38:00 GMT

New Songs In the Works

Still winter, but at least we're being relatively productive.  We holed up in a farm house in rural Illinois a couple of weekends back and forced ourselves to write some new material.  Actually, there...
Posted by on Thu, 04 Feb 2010 17:00:00 GMT

It's Winter Again

It's winter again!  Jesus.  Seems like I just wrote that hibernation bit.  Now it's time to do it again; well, figuratively anyway. Actually, things are going great.  It's been a bit of a sleepy year ...
Posted by on Sat, 21 Nov 2009 11:35:00 GMT

Dont Mind Us While We Hibernate

&But Do Visit Yeah, I suppose we ought to admit it: we're officially on hiatus.  "Hiatus"  we're not exactly sure what the dictionary or Wikipedia might say about it (yes, we're that lazy), but ...
Posted by on Wed, 19 Nov 2008 02:56:00 GMT

Big Thanks

A ginormous thanks to all of the crazy cats that showed for the QC CD-Release show.  It was a whirlwind night, and we had a blast.  Our set break went a little too long because people were r...
Posted by on Fri, 15 Aug 2008 15:49:00 GMT

CD-Release Party AUGUST 1st!! Dont Miss It!!

You've been waiting, anticipating, palpitating, salivating, and next you'll be participating - but only if you show up!  THIS FRIDAY, AUGUST 1st, Jim the Mule will be hosting the Official CD-Rele...
Posted by on Mon, 28 Jul 2008 23:13:00 GMT

Last Solid Ground

Holy cow, it's been a LONG time since we've written anything here, and that's most certainly our fault.  We've been busy, yes we have.  Apparently too busy to blog.  Maybe we're just no...
Posted by on Fri, 16 May 2008 17:41:00 GMT

Summer Nights and Northern Lights

      If you've been taking a gander now and then at the JTM show schedule, you may have noticed a string of shows coming together "way up nort, der" in Wisconsin and Minnesota. Well, ...
Posted by on Thu, 28 Jun 2007 14:19:00 GMT

So Damned Good

So, this is fun: Guitars: 2002 Gibson Les Paul Classic, Mid 1990's Gibson Les Paul Studio, 2006 Gibson Les Paul Faded Double Cut Special, 1995 Gibson Faded SG Special, Late 1960's Rickenbacker 12-Stri...
Posted by on Thu, 19 Apr 2007 08:39:00 GMT

Madtown

I forgot to tell you: awesome weekend in Madison, WI area.  We met some great new friends and allies, and we had a killer time.  See y'all next time... T
Posted by on Wed, 18 Apr 2007 23:03:00 GMT