{"id":156761,"date":"2026-02-09T10:27:10","date_gmt":"2026-02-09T10:27:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/156761\/"},"modified":"2026-02-09T10:27:10","modified_gmt":"2026-02-09T10:27:10","slug":"the-return-of-moses-guest","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/156761\/","title":{"rendered":"The Return of Moses Guest"},"content":{"rendered":"

Let\u2019s step into the Houston Music Scene Wayback Machine. And set the dial for the magical decade of 1995-2005.<\/p>\n

\"\"Rick Thompson on keys from River Revival Fest. Credit: Tetiana Strilets<\/p>\n

A time when H-Town (long before it was called that) was filled with local bands playing original rock music to packed crowds at clubs scattered throughout the city. <\/p>\n

When the Houston Press held an annual Music Awards ceremony and showcase at more than a dozen venues across downtown. When you could join friends for a multi-act show at Fitzgerald\u2019s, the Engine Room, the Meridian, the Fabulous Satellite Lounge, Walter\u2019s on Washington, and the Bon Ton Room.<\/p>\n

All those venues are gone now, as are most of the bands who graced their stages. Their names now lie on the lips of wistful Gen Xers who are currently paying mortgages, watching their kids graduate college, and are in bed by a respectable 10 p.m. (or, uh earlier) on any given weeknight.<\/p>\n

One of the biggest bands on the scene, one who seemed poised to break out nationally, was Moses Guest. Named for the fifth-generation grandfather of singer\/guitarist Graham Guest, the quartet also included Rick Thompson (keyboards\/vocals), Jeremy Horton (bass), and James Edwards (drums\/vocals).<\/p>\n

\"\"Jeremy Horton on bass from River Revival Fest. Credit: Tetiana Strilets<\/p>\n

And it still does, nearly 30 years later. Moses Guest will return to the city for a rare show opening for Sons of Cream on February 15 at the Heights Theater. But as Guest himself says via Zoom from his current home in Durango, Colorado, the band is priming itself for what could be a successful second act.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe played pretty intensively in town and outside it until 2004. And the wheels kind of came off,\u201d he says. \u201cWe weren\u2019t the worst band in the world as far as beer and intake, but we did drink a lot and got sort of exhausted. And we didn\u2019t get that record deal with Dave Matthews\u2019 ATO Records. So, we had to think about the future a little bit but not break up.\u201d<\/p>\n

Guest\u2019s own journey for the past 20+ years found him living in different cities (including two stints in the UK), taking classes at Rice, and finally getting PhDs in English and Philosophy before landing a job teaching the latter at Fort Lewis College in Durango where he lives with his family. The other guys, he said, also got outside jobs while Moses Guest would still gig annually and sometimes release new music.<\/p>\n

\"YouTube<\/p>\n

\u201cWe always kept in touch. Houston was obviously the home base. We\u2019d set up a show and it was kind of tough. We\u2019d practice for four or five days before because we were out of sorts. We relied on ancient history and muscle memory!\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd everyone has cleaned up their act. We would have probably done a little better in the early days if we had focused a bit more on the music and performing. We were pretty happy guys who drank a lot and whooped it up across the country, but we\u2019re all good on that level now. Nobody\u2019s popping a beer at 10 o\u2019clock in the morning anymore.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"James Edwards on drums from River Revival Fest. Credit: Tetiana Strilets<\/p>\n

To that end, Guest said the band, founded in 1995, is \u201cramping it up\u201d in 2026. Not just with the upcoming show but playing an Art Car Parade event at Discovery Green in April, and a possible mini tour out west. He says they are also recording another album in May for release next year.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe said let\u2019s just keep playing, and maybe things will turn around and we can do things with more frequency,\u201d Guest says. \u201cAnd it has.\u201d<\/p>\n

Moses Guest\u2019s discography begins in 1996 with \u201cGeniality of Mortality,\u201d followed the next year by American Trailer Home Blues, Live Stages (1998), double disc (and defining statement) Moses Guest (2002), Guest Motel (2004)\u2014which featured a photo of the lodging place on I-45 with the same name, Best Laid Plans (2008) and Light (2017).<\/p>\n

Their most recent effort is 2020\u2019s Live, which featured concert recordings from across the years. Most are available for purchase or streaming on the band\u2019s website, and there was also a live performance DVD, Edit.<\/p>\n

\"\"Record cover Credit: Ron Fontenot<\/p>\n

\u201cI sat in my studio room in California when I was living there and went through all of this stuff over many years. But it needed to sound frickin\u2019 good\u2014we\u2019ve got a lot of bad live recordings out there. And it had to be a good performance.\u201d<\/p>\n

The record did have one new studio tune, one that meant something deeper to the group. \u201cAll Night Brother\u201d was their tribute to Jon Sporl (aka \u201cSquid\u201d), who was their tour van driver, merch guy, and\u2014along with his own brother, Jeff\u2014intense supporters of Moses Guest.<\/p>\n

\u201cTime to go\u2013nothing\u2019s forever\/Hit the road\u2013all things sever\/You can drive\u2013there is no other\/You can drive\u2013all night brother,\u201d Guest sings.<\/p>\n

\"YouTube<\/p>\n

\u201cWe did that at Stormy Cooper\u2019s studio in West Houston. He was a kooky guy who could drive the van endlessly! Plus, he was very genial. Unfortunately, it was alcohol that got to him, and he died [in 2021]. We\u2019ll see how we do now. We\u2019ve never toured without him! He was a fifth member.\u201d<\/p>\n

Guest says it\u2019s \u201ccrazy\u201d that the current four bandmembers have managed to stay together without a lineup change since 1997 despite the challenges of geography, life plans, and hiatuses.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe were really close and have a lot of love and respect for one another. We talked to each other a lot and are mutually supportive,\u201d he adds. \u201cIt\u2019s a pretty brotherly, fraternal thing.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"YouTube<\/p>\n

For better or worse (and in Guest\u2019s mind, it\u2019s worse), Moses Guest have often been labeled a \u201cjam band,\u201d which he feels is not accurate. But it was something laid on them by former Houston Press Music Editor Hobart Rowland in the group\u2019s early days.<\/p>\n

It was a perception likely highlighted by an onstage of tendency of Edwards and Thompson (both graduates of Houston\u2019s High School for the Performing and Visual Arts) to lean into jazz and improvisation onstage.<\/p>\n

\"YouTube<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s been on my mind recently,\u201d Guest says. \u201cWe started out as more of a grunge band. I was never a massive Deadhead, but we just wanted to explore instrumentally. And Hobart picked up on that, but he didn\u2019t really like jam bands.\u201d<\/p>\n

Slowly but surely, Guest feels, Moses Guest has morphed into more of what he calls a Southern Rock band. \u201cThat\u2019 what we are at heart,\u201d he says. \u201cAnd I am more into Steely Dan, Little Feat, and the Band. And, of course, Skynyrd. I really loved those guys as an eighth grader and you kind of grow out of their music a bit. But man, they could tear that shit up!\u201d And he says that he wants to add in more acoustic songs to the set.<\/p>\n

\"YouTube<\/p>\n

As for the upcoming gig opening for Sons of Cream, Guest lets out a little secret. They\u2019ll be joined onstage by Houston guitarist James Wilhite. With a possible eye to adding him as a fifth member to give the band some extra firepower.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf we all like it, and if he likes it, we\u2019ll just continue. We want to increase the guitar attack,\u201d he says. \u201cWe\u2019ll be practicing this coming week. But we only have a 40-minute set with six tunes!\u201d<\/p>\n

Moses Guest opens for Sons of Cream at 8 p.m. on Sunday, February 15, at the Heights Theater, 339 W. 19th. For more information, call 214-272-8346 or visit\u00a0TheHeightsTheater.com<\/a>. $38 or $51.<\/p>\n

For more on Moses Guest, visit MosesGuest.com<\/a><\/p>\n

This article appears in Private: Jan 1 \u2013 Dec 31, 2026<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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