Sometimes the best records begin without a plan. On Lost in Austin, Miss Robin Banks turns an impromptu Texas studio session with old friends into a soulful collection of blues, R&B and country soul. Featuring Johnny and Jay Moeller, Drew Allain, Bruce Bears, Steve Marriner, Roly Platt and Dale Rivard, the album captures musicians reconnecting in the room and following the songs wherever they lead.

Album Details

Artist
Miss Robin Banks
Album
Lost in Austin
Label
Dallas Blues Society Records
Recorded
Alnico Recording Studio – Austin, Texas

Miss Robin Banks Gets Lost in Austin

For Miss Robin Banks, Lost in Austin began with something much simpler than an album plan: friends getting together in a room to play.

During a visit to Austin, Texas, Banks entered Alnico Recording Studio with bassist Drew Allain and guitarist Johnny Moeller, musicians with whom she shares a history stretching back decades. Johnny’s brother Jay Moeller joined them on drums, completing the core lineup behind a session that soon developed a life of its own.

There was no elaborate blueprint and, according to Banks, no expectation that she was about to make her next record. Two days later, however, ten songs had been recorded.

Eight came directly from Banks herself. What started as a reunion between friends had unexpectedly become Lost in Austin.

Reuniting With the Moeller Brothers

The connection with the Moeller Brothers gives the album particular significance. Johnny Moeller is well known to blues audiences through his work with The Fabulous Thunderbirds and James Cotton, while drummer Jay Moeller has long been part of the Texas blues scene.

Banks’ own history with Johnny reaches back to her years in Dallas. She recalls first working with the brothers in 1999 and later playing with Johnny for several years around 2003, while also working with artists including James Cotton, Lou Ann Barton and others.

That shared history matters on Lost in Austin. Rather than musicians meeting simply to execute carefully prepared arrangements, the record grew out of familiarity, trust and the instinctive communication that develops between players who know where one another are coming from.

Bassist Drew Allain, whose credits include work with Mike Morgan and Anson Funderburgh, completes the core Austin sessions.

Blues, R&B and Country Soul

Musically, Lost in Austin moves through the territory Banks has explored throughout her career: blues, R&B and country soul, with the emphasis firmly on songs, feel and storytelling.

The material deals with love, loss and resilience, moving between intimate, emotionally driven performances and songs designed to put some movement into the room. It is traditional music in its foundations, but not a record interested in simply recreating the past.

Banks wrote, arranged and produced the material herself with two exceptions: “Some Other Day Some Other Time” and “Cold Cold Feelin’.”

After the initial Austin sessions, Banks recorded her vocals in Canada at Shawn Kellerman’s studio. Kellerman also engineered and mixed the album, connecting the Texas sessions with another strand of Banks’ musical world.

Steve Marriner, Roly Platt and Bruce Bears Join the Sessions

The circle of musicians expanded as the record developed.

Bruce Bears, known for his work with Duke Robillard, contributes piano and keyboards. Canadian multi-instrumentalist and Juno Award winner Steve Marriner adds harmonica, as does Roly Platt, while Dale Rivard brings pedal steel into the mix.

Rather than turning Lost in Austin into an all-star exercise, those additions appear to serve the same principle that started the project: bring in musicians who understand the songs and let their individual voices add color without overwhelming them.

For Banks, the album is ultimately about that human connection. She describes the performances as coming from “pure love and friendship,” and the story of the recording supports that idea. A casual session became ten songs; those songs attracted more friends; and eventually an album appeared where none had originally been planned.

A Tribute to Chuck Nevitt

Lost in Austin also carries a deeper connection to Dallas blues history. The album is released in partnership with Dallas Blues Society Records and is dedicated to the memory of the organization’s late friend and founder, Chuck Nevitt.

Nevitt played an important role in the Dallas blues community, making records and producing shows for area musicians, including the Moeller Brothers. For Banks, releasing the album through Dallas Blues Society Records brings the story back to where many of these musical relationships began.

The record is also dedicated to Banks’ late friend Debbie Dvoracek.

That makes the title Lost in Austin particularly fitting. The album may have been created almost accidentally in Austin, but the musical road behind it stretches through Dallas, Canada and decades of friendships formed through the blues.

Lost in Austin Track List

Not Today
Supersonic Rocket Ship
It’s My Time
Modern Man
These Days
It’s Too Late
Never 51/Maple Leave It Alone
Some Other Day Some Other Time
Cold Cold Feelin’
Talk Dirty To Ya

All songs written, arranged and produced by Beverly Robin Banks except “Some Other Day Some Other Time” and “Cold Cold Feelin’.”

Album Credits

Miss Robin Banks – vocals, percussion
Johnny Moeller – electric guitar
Jay Moeller – drums
Drew Allain – electric bass
Bruce Bears – keyboards
Steve Marriner – harmonica on “Supersonic Rocket Ship”
Roly Platt – harmonica on “These Days”
Dale Rivard – pedal steel on “It’s Too Late”

Johnny and Jay Moeller bring a particularly strong Texas blues connection to the record. Johnny is known for his work with The Fabulous Thunderbirds and James Cotton, while Banks’ friendship and musical history with the Moeller family reaches back to her years on the Dallas scene.

Drew Allain has worked with artists including Mike Morgan and Anson Funderburgh, while Bruce Bears is familiar to blues listeners through his extensive work with Duke Robillard. Canadian musicians Steve Marriner and Roly Platt add harmonica, with Rivard’s pedal steel extending the album further into country soul and roots territory.

Recording & Production

Recorded at: Alnico Recording Studio – Austin, Texas
Engineer: Nico Leophonte
Additional recording: Shawn Kellerman Studio – Kitchener, Ontario, Canada
Engineer: Shawn Kellerman
Mixing & mastering: Shawn Kellerman
Written, arranged & produced by: Beverly Robin Banks, except tracks 8 and 9
Catalog number: RB2026

Recording and Production

The original sessions for Lost in Austin took place at Alnico Recording Studio in Austin, Texas, where Banks, Johnny Moeller, Jay Moeller and Drew Allain recorded the foundation of the album.

Banks later recorded her vocal parts in Canada at Shawn Kellerman’s studio. Kellerman also engineered and mixed the sessions.

All songs were written, arranged and produced by Miss Robin Banks except “Some Other Day Some Other Time” and “Cold Cold Feelin’.”

The finished record is released in partnership with Dallas Blues Society Records, bringing an album born unexpectedly in Austin back into the Texas blues community that connects so many of the musicians involved.

Where to Get Lost in Austin

In an era when almost every new release arrives instantly on the major streaming services, Lost in Austin is taking a different route.

The album is not available on streaming platforms. Instead, Lost in Austin is available exclusively through Miss Robin Banks’ official website via Dallas Blues Society Records.

Order Lost in Austin from Miss Robin Banks

For listeners who still value owning a record and supporting artists directly, that approach feels particularly appropriate for an album built around friendship, community and musicians making music together in the room.

Three Decades of Music Leading Back to Texas

Miss Robin Banks describes Lost in Austin as representing more than three decades of musical evolution and artistic growth. Yet there is something refreshingly uncomplicated about how it came together.

There was no carefully mapped-out album project when she entered the Austin studio. There were friends, instruments, songs and an opportunity. Two days later, there was the foundation of a record.

That spontaneity is at the heart of Lost in Austin. Blues, R&B and country soul meet musicians with long histories of their own, but the album’s real thread is the connection between them. It is music created by people who know the value of listening to each other.

Or, as Banks herself puts it: “Friends in a room. That’s how it starts.”

Lost in Austin is available now through Dallas Blues Society Records and can be ordered exclusively via the official Miss Robin Banks website.