The story from the Ranch Girls and their Ragtime Wranglers

Hi, here's Mary Ann. I want to tell you a story to give you an idea of the history of our band as it is today. If you don't like to read a lot, go to this page to get a short story.

Let's go back to how the Ranch Girls got started. We had been friends for a long time and I was playing in a band "The Greyhounds" with Joe Sixpack on guitar and Sietse singing. In Rotterdam they just closed a rock and roll club, so there wasn't much going on in the city. That's why Caroline used to travel along with "The Greyhounds" and if the band wasn't playing Caroline and I would go to see other bands.

At that time there were not any female harmony groups in Holland, maybe not even in the whole of Europe. Well, as opinionated as we were, we decided that we would change this. So we gathered some friends together and started a harmony group called "The Half Pint Pygmies". As the name might suggest, we were not the tallest ones around. We were still looking for a repertoire. The others were interested in 40's jive, but we had the idea of doing hillbilly / western-swing songs. So before we did any gigs we were seeking for a new adventure.

The fact that we hardly could get musicians with "The Pygmies" didn't hold us from doing what we wanted to do. Once a week we got together and rehearsed the songs we wanted to sing. We told everybody who wanted to listen about what we were doing, skipping the fact that we didn't have a band.

And then it happened: one day at a rehearsal we got a phone-call if we wanted to play on a festival. "Sure" we answered, being so thrilled about the phone-call. There was no way back. They even put us on the flyer. Now we were facing our first major problem: where can we find the musicians. It was rush-hour on the phone. We called almost anyone that could hold an instrument, and you know what ....... in one week time we gathered a complete band.

Amsterdam 15 June 1991, at the Cruise-Inn's D-day festival was our very first show! It must have been the worst gig we did. Right before we got on stage a thunderstorm broke loose. It must have been mother nature, warning the audience that we were on next. So you could say we took the place by storm. Joe Sixpack and Sietse have been staying with us from this festival on. They formed the solid center of this brand new band.

At the festival we met 3 guys who wanted to start a hillbilly band as well and so we joined forces; "The Ranch Girls and the Drifting Texans" were born. We played for 2 years before we had our first band change. We were looking for an acoustic guitar-, steel- and bass-player, and, although it took a while, we found them. The name was changed into "The Ranch Girls and the Ragtime Wranglers": Joe Sixpack on guitar, Sietse on drums, Errol on bull-fiddle, Buzz on steel-guitar and Jerome on rhythm guitar (6 or 4 strings depending on how many he had left), backing up Caroline and me. The picture below is our second promo-shot.

With this line-up we had been traveling all over Europe for about two years, until Jerome left the band to play lead guitar in another band. Errol, who had started a tattoo shop in this period, left us one year later. He was replaced by the bass-player of the band "Get Rhythm": Erwin. The Ragtime Wranglers backed up legendary artists like: Sid and Billy King and "unsung hero" Hardrock Gunter. Just in time Erwin joined the band to back up Curtis Gordon on a tour in Germany.

We had never expected that two wayward girls could gather all these fine musicians. And let me tell you: it is a hard task for four guys to be around two demanding Ranch Girls.

At the end of 1996 we recorded our 2^nd CD and we played for the 3^rd time at the major Hemsby festival in the U.K. In November that year Europe was "Ranch-Girl-free" 'cause we went to the U.S.A. to play on the Fairmount-festival in Indianapolis and at radio WDTR in Detroit. Although we've done a lot of festivals, these big ones are nerve-racking, but as soon as we can get a grip on a mike-stand we're all right.

In 1997 we worked hard to promote our second CD which came out in the beginning of that year. We did a European tour in the summer. We played at several big festivals like Mirande in France and the "Rock-it" festival in Munich Germany. At this festival the Ragtime Wranglers backed up the Collins Kids from Reno, Nevada. In December that year we changed bass-players again! Erwin was too busy with his other band, playing weddings, restaurants, parties and funerals. He had been replaced with Patrick.

1998 was a busy year. More or less a lot of happenings from the previous years were repeated, like, playing at Hemsby (4th time), we returned to the U.S.A. and the Ragtime Wranglers backed up the Collins Kids again.

My first solo project was issued in May. We recorded three songs with an uptempo beat. They were issued on an E.P. on Goofin' records from Finland. Though everyone is asking for CD's, we are still vinyl-minded! In 1998 we issued the bands magazine: Lowdown Hoedown. It was well received but we were too busy to continue to put out our fanzine!

Later in 1998 we had another change in the band. After 9 years of "ranching" Caroline decided that it was enough for her and wanted to explore other territories. She won't be seen on the "ranch-stage" on a regular basis anymore. Friday the 10th of July in Denver U.S.A. was her last show with the band. Caroline was replaced by "Lil' Esther", who stayed with the band just a year.

Mary Lou had already joined the band on stage at some occasions (below, right) and was asked to join the band. "OK!" she said and the 23rd of June 1999 was the first show with "Mary Ann and Mary Lou". Everyone in the band was immediately overwhelmed by her huge enthusiasm. Shows in the U.K., Belgium, Norway, Sweden, Finland and Swiss followed, with increasing fun at each show. On our Scandinavian and U.K. shows the band was reinforced with steel-guitar-picker Jeremy Wakefield from the Los-Angeles based "Lucky Stars".

In May 2000 we returned to the States again. This time we weren't headed for a big festival, but we toured the West-Coast. We started the trip in Seattle, all the way down to San Diego, then Arizona, New Mexico and concluded our trip in Denver Colorado.

Then, summer 2000 my solo CD was released. I wanted to do something different, different type of songs, different bandoutfit etc. Since this date I have been singing solo, besides the harmony singing with the Ranch Girls. So now we are playing regularly, with two totally different bands. You can find more information on my personal site of Miss Mary Ann.

Also in 2000 we toured France, and more international shows in Germany, Belgium and Barcelona, Spain. You can find a small video-clip of the show in Barcelona at our website.

Time flies! We’ve been together for 10 years. To celebrate this we issued a special anniversary CD which contains 4 tracks. One track, Gene and Eunice’s "Kokomo", will not be on the CD "Can You Hear It??", but has also been issued on a 78rpm by Goofin Records.

The Ranch Girls toured the States early July 2001. This time we decided to travel the Mid-West and a part of the East-Coast. We played the Fairmount-festival in Indianapolis for the second time, the American Music Festival in Berwyn close to Chicago, Pittsburg, New York, a hot rod show in Hartford Connecticut, Detroit and Neenah plus Milwaukee in Wisconsin. Life on the road is so exciting; we had a great time.

In between gigs in Europe we worked on the new Ranch Girls CD. And we worked hard; carrying instruments and amps, those old ribbon-mikes and tape-echoes in and out the studio. This time we decided that the major part of the songs should be originals. 11 originals and 4 cover-versions of old standards appeared on the new CD "Can you Hear It??". It was released in September 2001 on our own label "Homebrew Records". Again some exciting guests support us on the new album. What about: Deke Dickerson singing with the girls and dueling guitar with Joe, Jimmy Roy playing steel, Carry Rodrigues on fiddle and Tom van Vliet on accordion?

The CD is very well received in the press…… "Not a weak song to offer" (Now Dig This) and a 5 star review in Country Music People.

Immediately after the release we played some shows in the UK, the last shows we played with Patrick. He is our second bass-player who decides to play weddings, restaurants, parties and funerals. He has been replaced by Huey Moore. Huey is another story .... he is obsessed with bass. Don’t try to talk to him about something else, all he will do is talk back about bass-players, bass brands, bass strings, bass amps, bass cases; he just breaths bass.

Since November 2001 the line-up has been as follows (below, from left to right): Jerome (electric and acoustic mandolin); Joe (guitar and steel-guitar); Ranch Girl Mary Ann (vocals); Sietse (drums); Ranch Girl Mary Lou (vocals) and Huey (bass). The band still hangs its hats in Rotterdam, the Netherlands.

In 2001 my solo act got more exposure. Together with Sietse, Huey and Joe we built a completely different repertoire and image. Early in the year 2002 Miss Mary Ann and the Ragtime Wranglers played the Rockabilly Rave in the UK, currently the most progressive fifties festival. This was the first time we played a big festival with this line-up. I am very happy we were received well.

In the beginning of 2002 the CD "Can You Hear It??" is also released on an American label: "Hayden’s Ferry Records" from Tempe Arizona. We are very proud with this US-release. For promotion we went back to the USA last July. We returned to the fantastic American Music Festival in Berwyn, played in a few small clubs and played the biggest rock-a-billy festival in the world ever: the Rockin’ Fifties Fest at the Oneida casino in Greenbay Wisconsin.

This festival is absolutely one of the highlights in the bands existence. One week long, about 20 bands each day, a rockabilly dream. The Ragtime Wranglers played 4 concerts: a set with the Ranch Girls, one with me, Miss Mary Ann, accompanying Sid and Billy King and also Marvin Rainwater. Besides playing a lot it’s great to see so many exciting new bands. We are happy to announce it's going to happen again in 2005!

In 2002 I moved to London, but still 2003 has been an exiting year with big festivals like Americana with the Ranch Girls. Miss Mary Ann and the Ragtime Wranglers went on a US-mid-West-tour in the summer, played the Hi-Rockabilly festival in Barcelona and at the wonderful Rhythm Riot in Camber UK. Also: at this festival Joe Sixpack had his steel-guitar debut: playing with Frankie "True Blue" Miller.

Mary Lou decided to slow down and since March 2004 the band occasionally plays with the original line-up: Mary Ann (above, left) and Caroline (above, right) supported by the Ragtime Wranglers; below from left to right: Sietse (drums), Huey (bass) and Joe (guitar and steel-guitar). The band still hangs its hats in Rotterdam, the Netherlands.

Since the band’s founding in 1991 the Ragtime Wranglers have been playing many instrumentals. In 2004 the Ragtime Wranglers decided to play extra shows, without the girls. Playing mostly instrumentals, but the Ragtime Wranglers will sing a few songs as well. They released their own CD "Groove a Tune" in 2005. You can find more information on the site of the Ragtime Wranglers. One year later Miss Mary Ann released her second solo CD "Rock it on Down to my House", another Sonic Rendezvous release which also has been received very well.

What’s more to do when you have two bands on the road, playing the greatest festivals with the best audiences? Well ..... we’ll just keep on going ..... recording, playing and HAVING FUN! For sure there'll be new releases and interesting tours. We'll just keep on going!

If you want to get the latest news you can go to our news page or our page about the upcoming shows. In the years we collected plenty of pictures, go to our albums or take a look at the picture of the month. Please take a look what the press wrote about us. Also: we like to hear from you, please respond to us by e-mail at: info@missmaryann.com .

Whoa, look at how long this letter turned out. We're sorry. It was great talking to you, but we have to go!!! We have some singing to do. Take care, so long and see you soon!

Miss Mary Ann & the Ragtime Wranglers are influenced by the recordings and shows from countless artists. However, they found big inspiration from most of the musicians they worked with: Sid and Billy King, Curtis Gordon, Hardrock Gunter, the Collins Kids, Larry Donn, Jack Earls, Marvin Rainwater, Frankie Miller, the Lucky Stars, Janis Martin and Barbara Pittman. At the links below you can find more information on some of these artists, or a movie clip of one our shows.

Please drop us a line:
P.O. BOX 21685 - 3001 AR ROTTERDAM - NETHERLANDS - PHONE / FAX: +31.10.4123398


Pages of ALL 3 BANDS:	picture of the month - sale - news - shows - music - movies - related - bookings - reviews
MISS MARY ANN pages:	biography - pictures
RAGTIME WRANGLERS pages:	biography
RANCH GIRLS pages:	biography - pictures


This site contains links to other Internet sites. These links are not endorsements of any products or services in such sites, and no information in such site has been endorsed or approved by this site.

Sid King and The Five Strings	story
Curtis Gordon	story	movie	movie
Hardrock Gunter	story
The Collins Kids	story	movie	movie
Barbara Pittman		movie
Jack Earls		movie
Larry Donn
Frankie Miller
Marvin Rainwater		movie
Janis Martin		movie