Central Texas singing star remains true to her art

By MANDY SPIKES | Central Texas Edition

Pauline Reese, performing at George's Bar in Waco, is proud of her many accomplishments including having a single that reached number ten on the Shane Media Texas Music Charts last summer. The song was also named one of the top 50 songs of 2002. - Photo by Mandy Spikes

July 7, 2003 -- Pauline Reese, of Briggs, is not one to take all the credit for where she is today. The 25-year-old lead singer of the Pauline Reese band says that the band and their friends have allowed her to achieve such accomplishments as having a single that reached number ten on the Shane Media Texas Music Charts last summer. The song still remained on the charts in January and was named one of Shane Media's top 50 songs of 2002.

The band has also shared the stage with Willie Nelson, Freddy Powers, Mark Chestnut, and Pat Green. But Reese is very humble about her beginning career.

Reese's family moved to Austin when she was 12 years old. While there, she started taking guitar and vocal lessons at a local music store.

"When I turned fourteen I became a backup singer and guitarist for a band called Sierra. The owner of the store I took lessons from, Bobby Pounds, was the drummer and manger for the band. After listening to me, he asked me if I would like to practice with them. I also knew the guitarist of the group, he was a friend of my sister, and so that is how I came into the band."

When she was sixteen, the lead singer left the group and so the band started auditioning women to become their new lead singer. "We looked for a long time, but we never did find what we were looking for during the auditioning. Either the lady that was auditioning didn't know how to perform on stage or they had an attitude of being better than the band. What we were looking for was someone who could be a part of the band, but could stand out and and perform well."

After the band looked for a long time, Reese got a huge shock. "I was totally surprised when the band asked me to be the lead singer. I wanted to be a lead singer and I loved playing with this band, but I never wanted to step on anyone's toes. I guess you could say I just got lucky and they asked me to be the band's new lead singer." The band then changed their name to the Pauline Reese band.

"We have played all over the state and it's been great. I have sung the national anthem all over Texas. I even sang for 83,000 people at the University of Texas and Iowa State game this past year. We have also played for Farm Aid and Pat Green's Fourth of July Celebration."

Reese has been in the band for ten years and says she wouldn't trade it for anything. "What I love the most is a combination of everything. It can get frustrating at times, but when I look back and see how much fun we are having, it's worth it. I like singing and entertaining in front of an audience. I also like traveling all over and meeting different people at the places we play.

The band is comprised of six musical instruments to complement Reese's voice. "We have a steel guitar player, fiddler, guitar player, drummer, base player, and every once in a while a harmonica player. We also have a sound man who helps bring it all together.

"We also have friends who do our record promotions, sell our merchandise, and maintain our Website. We are so grateful to everyone who is helping us get noticed out there in the country music world. We will never forget what they have done for us so far."

"We also appreciate our sponsors Elixir Strings and Michelob Ultra."

Reese's husband, John Burris, started helping manage the band in 1998 and took over as manager the following year. "It's so great to have John as the manager because it allows us to spend a lot of time together. I think we make a good team. A lot of people ask how we can stay married and work this way, but to us it's not an issue. We spend all of our money and time together and we just work through it.

"We got married in 1999 and hopefully in the future we want to start having kids. If Loretta Lynn can do it, then so can I."

Not only does Reese sing and play in the band, she also writes her own songs. "I am so excited to say that I have written songs with such great artists as Freddie Powers and Steven Fromholz. It's the best feeling in the world when you are able to write songs with so many famous writers. It's so amazing and I feel it's a great achievement for me."

This summer the band will start touring in Europe. "We are going to perform in France and Sweden. We also just got booked to play in Italy and Switzerland.

"There are not many Texas women who are singing the traditional country western style music. We are cutting a new CD this month. The title track song is a song that both John and I wrote called The Good, Bad, and the Ugly." To purchase Pauline Reese merchandise or to find out where the band will be performing, go to www.paulinereese.com.