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All Country Rick Trevino’s Roots Are In Country Music And That’s Where He Intends To Stay

Michael Capozzoli Entertainment News Wire

‘I’ve had people tell me that I should put some rock songs in my concert playlist,” says country singer Rick Trevino, whose hit single “Bobbie Ann Mason” has lately been burning up the country charts. “They’ve (also) said to put a lot of songs that people already know into the beginning of my set. And I just won’t do it. When I play my set, it’s all country.”

Trevino’s love of country music stems from his Texas upbringing. Born in Houston in 1971, he grew up listening to his father, Rick Sr., playing country music in a local band called The Originals.

“There’s a country music culture that comes with being from Texas,” the singer notes. “It’s indigenous to the region. Country music has never been a musical fad or a specific genre of music there. It’s a way of life.

“It’s the life that I live,” he continues, “and if I have to live the country way of life for the rest of my life - then that’s what I’m going to stick to. Because that’s me. Once the rock ‘n’ roll style of country music goes away, the people who continue to record country music in the traditional fashion will still be around.”

In addition to his country talents, Trevino is a classically trained pianist who began piano lessons at age 5 and had already given his first recital by the time he was 6. Trevino remembers the day his father brought home an old upright piano.

“The day my father brought the piano home,” Trevino recalls, “he told me I had to practice on that thing or he was going to sell it. I had to work my butt off for that piano to stay in our house. Since my father was a self-taught musician, he wanted me to have the best tutors and practice so I wouldn’t waste my talent and the opportunity I’d been given.”

Indeed, Trevino’s father and mother, Linda, strongly emphasized the value of self-discipline to their three children, Rick, Adam and Crystal.

For example, Rick had joined Little League and showed promise as an athlete. But “it wasn’t easy,” he relates. “There were a lot of Saturday mornings I’d have to practice my piano before I could run off to baseball practice. You know, I still carry that same sense of discipline and attitude in my music and songwriting.”

In junior high school, Trevino switched from classical to jazz and rock music. He founded his own band, True Illusion, and landed an opening slot on Gloria Estefan and the Miami Sound Machine’s Austin, Texas show.

But it wasn’t long until the teenager returned to his country roots. “When I discovered George Strait’s music, I really began to focus on playing country music full time,” he says.

Once Trevino graduated high school, he put his musical career on hold while playing college baseball at Texas A&M. Soon, however, he was back playing country on weekends at a club called the Thirsty Turtle.

One day, Columbia Records talent scout Paul Jarosik stopped into the club for dinner and noticed the clippings and pictures of Trevino on the walls throughout the place.

“That really got the ball rolling for me,” the singer says. “Paul called me and asked for a demo tape of my music. It wasn’t long until I received a phone call from Columbia telling me they wanted to sign me to a record contract.”

The song that helped Trevino clinch his deal was “Here’s My San Antonio Rose To You,” which tells how Trevino’s grandfather used to request “San Antonio Rose” every time he saw his grandson play.

“I was always putting him off,” Trevino remembers, “then one day my grandfather passed away and I realized that I’d never played that song for him. So I went home and wrote ‘Here’s My San Antonio Rose To You’ for my granddad.”

Trevino spent most of 1994 touring in support of such country heavyweights as Clint Black, Tanya Tucker and Reba McEntire. The exposure proved beneficial for the singer, as his self-titled debut album went gold and landed him a large following, especially in his home state of Texas.

With Trevino’s second album “Looking for the Light” now in the record stores, the singer isn’t leaving any aspect of his career to chance.

“I don’t feel like I’m better than any other 23-year-old out there,” he notes. “But I’ve been told that I don’t act like a 23-year-old. A lot of it has to do with my values and the way I carry myself on the road. People don’t expect me to act the way I do.

“Most people my age would go, after all I’ve earned, and party hard while they’re out on the road,” he continues. “I don’t do that. My view is, you’ve got to take each day like there’s no tomorrow. Especially with the competition the way it is in country music. I honestly feel that the team I’ve put together, from my fan club president to my business manager, is ready. We’re just waiting for that big record to come along and blow things wide open.”