Today we’d like to introduce you to Max Stalling.
Hi Max, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
I grew up in Crystal City and Carrizo Springs, TX…down south of San Antonio. Then I went to Texas A&M and got a couple of degrees in Food Science of all things. I came to Dallas in the early 90’s to work in the food industry. First a large bread company (Campbell Taggart) and then later for snack food giant Frito Lay. I did research and development for both outfits.
I was pretty homesick being a small town boy stuck in the big city. I found a community radio station, KNON 89.3 FM that played a bunch of Texas and alt-country stuff I’d never heard (now it’s mostly called Americana or Red Dirt but those terms weren’t around just yet). That lead me to a beer joint and live music venue on Industrial Blvd in Dallas called The Three Teardrops Tavern. I saw all kinds of great and amazing music there…Guy Clark, Robert Earl Keen, Billy Joe Shaver, Chris Wall, Clay Blaker…the list feels endless. I started meeting some of the local talent that was performing there on a regular basis.
North Texas had a lively and burgeoning “Texas Country” music scene. I made friends with and started hanging out with the likes of Mark David Manders, Tommy Alverson, Larry Joe Taylor, Ed Burleson, Joe Pat Hennen, Houston Marchman etc. That’s where I caught the bug. Everybody wrote their own songs and I just flipped over the whole thing. I got waaaaay into the songwriting thing. I knew then and there that it was what I wanted to do with my life.
From there it’s just been songwriting and releasing records and gigging. I left my day job back in 2002 and and have never looked back. In the last couple of years my wife Heather (who is an amazing fiddle player, songwriter and harmony singer) and I have joined forces and are playing a bunch of shows as a duo in addition to playing regularly with the band. I feel fortunate to have carved out a nice career for the last 25+ years doing something that I really love.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
I guess compared to some people I know it’s been a pretty smooth road all in all. There have definitely been struggles….economic, personnel and personal, technological changes (the move to streaming services) and such…and oh…there was this pandemic thing that happened a few years ago…maybe you heard about it? That was a bit of a challenge.
But now, in hindsight, I feel very fortunate. I’ve worked very hard and I do believe that hard work makes the path a little less bumpy. While it certainly hasn’t all been tea and crumpets my path thus far has been on a pretty gentle grade and not too rocky.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
If I had a business card I suppose it would say “singer/SONGWRITER”….emphasis on the songwriter. It’s what I love doing more than anything else. But I’m also a singer…that is to say I travel around and sing my songs. I think, now after all these years, I’ve finally gotten comfortable saying I’m “not too bad” at it. I’m proudest when people tell me about how one of my songs has helped them through some tough patch in their lives or how it’s brought them together with others or helped them understand something confusing.
Where do you see things going in the next 5-10 years?
When I talk to my singer/songwriter friends we all agree that AI is going to have a very large impact on on the music industry. I worry that, in a world where music is already starting to seem a bit “disposable” people will get a point where they don’t care if it was created by a human or an algorithm. That is disconcerting to say the least.
However, I can see a scenario where it actually drives people to live music venues/performances. I think people will want something real and tangible…real humans playing real music that they have created themselves on real instruments. Just a thought.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.maxstalling.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/max_stalling/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MaxStalling
- Twitter: https://x.com/maxstalling
- Youtube: https://music.youtube.com/channel/UCM44ChDEMayS40zUuFFV9XA?si=2el68jFy3eg1-M19
Image Credits
Allison V. Smith
