Product Description
TEXAS HEADHUNTERS - Johnny Moeller, Ian Moore, and Jesse Dayton
RELEASE DATE AUGUST 22, 2025. ORDER YOUR COPY TODAY!
Ian Moore, Johnny Moeller, and Jesse Dayton—three of Texas’ fiercest fretmen—join forces at last as Texas Headhunters, a band born from deep roots, old friendships, and a shared reverence for the raw, swaggering spirit of Texas blues. Their self-titled debut isn’t a nostalgia trip. It’s a declaration.
Cut over five days at Willie Nelson’s Pedernales Studio, ‘Texas Headhunters’ deals 12 tracks of grit, groove, and gut-level truth. No smoke, no mirrors—just seasoned musicians in a room, plugged in and turned up. The chemistry is real. The result is mind blowing. Clifford Antone looms large in the story of Texas Headhunters—the spiritual godfather of the project, and the man who first recognized the fire in each of its members. All three—Johnny, Jesse, and Ian—were among the last generation of young guns taken under his wing.
Texas Headhunters isn’t just a summit of three badasses with guitars. It’s a reclamation. A statement. A reminder that Texas blues, in all its grit and glory, still matters. It’s not retro—it’s revival. And it’s not a tribute—it’s a shot across the bow.
- 1 Pocket
- 2 Maggie Went Back to Mineola
- 3 Everybody Loves You (When You're Down)
- 4 Kathleen
- 5 Fool Don't Play with Fire
- 6 Headhunters Theme
- 7 Gun Barrel Boogie
- 8 Independence Day
- 9 Seeing Around Corners
- 10 Who Will Your Next Lover Be?
- 11 Gimme Some Love
- 12 Burnin' Daylight
JOHNNY MOELLER, JESSE DAYTON, IAN MOORE
Texas Headhunters
Hardcharger Records
Whoever thought of uniting singer/songwriter/guitarists Johnny Moeller, Jesse Dayton, and Ian Moore as the Texas Headhunters set in motion the honing of blades that sliced off these 12 ragged, dazzling new trophies. Cut live in what must have been five wall rattling days, the songs on this self-titled debut album are soaked in sweat, grime, glory, and no small measure of ear candy expertise. The celebrated trio are backed by the rhythm locomotion of bassist Anthony Farrell and either Jay Moeller or Nico Leophonte on drums. Altogether, they mesh distinct personalities into one well-oiled, cohesive, blues-rocking machine.
Moore tore it up as the lead guitarist in Joe Ely’s tough as leather band in 1992. He cut his own first album the following year featuring a fierce melding of Lone Star blues and Southern rock. Moore’s vision and delivery have expanded greatly since, but an update of that initial formula rocket fuels “Pocket,” the opening salvo to Texas Headhunters. Add sexual innuendo with washes of Stones swagger and drips of garage punk, and a seductive tone is set. On “Maggie Went Back to Mineola,” Dayton commands the spotlight, sawing on guitar and snarling through a sordid tale of a wayward child on a journey to nowhere. The raunchiness of it would not have been out of place on Dayton’s acclaimed The Hard Way Blues album, released last year. Moeller then steps up and gets down on “Everybody Loves You When You’re Down,” a song not far off the mark of the Fabulous Thunderbirds, Moeller’s longtime main gig. In it, he rips a pointed, emotional solo that will prick the ears of anyone deep into players from Freddie King to Jimmie Vaughan.
Such is the M.O. of the Texas Headhunters, reaching back and launching forward, honoring a variety of Texas trailblazers in rousing new style. Take “Kathleen,” in which Moore pleads with clench-fisted soul for his woman not to flaunt her lewd dalliances. Heavy-duty music that calls to mind the Arc Angels underlines his brilliant vocal performance.
Each of the Headhunters contributed striking music and turns of phrase, not to mention cutting guitar playing. Lightening the load, Moeller chimes in with “Fool Don’t Play With Fire,” a rhythmically snappy tune showcasing the band having a natural ball, the three guitarists trading quick, cool, but still fiery licks.
All in their mid to late 50s, Dayton, Moeller, and Moore have been immersed in the Texas blues rocking tradition since their auspicious beginnings in the early 1990s. In combining their vast experiences and talents as the Texas Headhunters, they have churned out a debut album of songs heavily laden with raw, lighthearted fun.
– Tom Clarke