Wesley Hanna is a Texas country singer-songwriter living in Fort Worth, TX. When he’s not hard at work in his role as a petroleum engineer, he moonlights as a showman and barroom poet. His honky tonk repertoire has made him and his bandmates, Stacie Hanna (bass) and Michael Durkan (fiddle), a hit in the dancehalls and dives in the great state of Texas. The group brings a neo-traditional Texas swagger to their sets like none other, that pays homage to the roots of the Lone Star State and its unique culture.
The album Brand New Love Potion was recorded in 2022 at the Zone Recording Studio in Dripping Springs, TX. Produced by veteran engineer Pat Manske, the 10-song LP is filled with original honky tonk hits that provide the listener with a pure lone-star experience. The album consists of mostly traditional country tracks that take the listener back to a time when country music was played on country radio. Kyle “Trigger” Coroneos of Saving Country Music writes, “This is one of those albums where some of the songs are so good, you would swear they must be covers. The opening title track sells you on Wesley Hanna within the first 15 seconds. “Back to the Honky Tonks” is an idea that’s been done in a dozen country songs before, but perhaps nobody has done it better than Hanna does here. “Texas Road Trip” and “Concho Pearl” are perfect examples of how to use geography in songwriting to favorable results. And “The Waltz” is just a stellar country song, plain and simple.”
Featured on the record are some of the best musicians Texas has to offer, with none other than “the pride of Lubbock, Texas,” Mr. Lloyd Maines, on the pedal steel. On lead guitar and bass is Scrappy Jud Newcomb, a producer and well-known stage musician himself, who lends his talents to Slaid Cleaves, Ray Wylie Hubbard, Adam Carroll, and several other Americana legends. Brian Beken, who currently plays in Robert Earl Keen’s band, can be heard on the fiddle, which is a prominent fixture on several of the very traditional country tracks. Bukka Allen is featured on the keys and Pauline Reese on harmony vocals for a handful of songs, providing the finishing touch.
The stars that shine on this album prove they really are big and bright, deep in the heart of Texas. The record also features Pat on the drums. Pat says of the project, “Wes Hanna has a heart of gold and sings the truth. His lyrics make you feel his characters’ pain, and hope. His voice is pure, powerful, and vulnerable. He’s put in his time at the writer’s desk, these songs prove it.”
About Wesley-
Wesley picked up a guitar on his 17th birthday and played religiously every day before leaving his hometown of Magnolia, TX for Texas A&M University. His freshman year of college was the beginning of his songwriting career when he penned the “Texas Aggie Blues” during an all-night study session in his dorm room. After playing parties throughout his first semester, he decided to follow in the footsteps of some of his fellow Aggie songwriting heroes, like Robert Earl Keen, Lyle Lovett, and Roger Creager by taking his music to the stage. Wesley Hanna and classmate Jonathan Wheat began picking songs at open mic nights at the 3rd Floor Cantina in Bryan, TX. After writing several more songs and recording a two-song demo featuring “Who Needs Money,” the two decided to start up a band in 2005.
The Wesley Hanna Band was formed by a group of fellow Aggies in late 2005. It evolved into a five-piece Texas country/rock group, playing mostly around the Bryan-College Station area. After a few years of performing, the band headed to the Zone Recording Studio in Dripping Springs, TX to record the album Born to Honky Tonk in 2007. Shortly after the album was completed, the band dispersed in 2009 after graduation. It was finally released to streaming platforms in 2014 after Wes resumed playing occasional acoustic shows around the Midland-Odessa area. His career brought him and his family to Fort Worth in 2018, where shortly afterwards his youngest son was born. It was during the pandemic that Wesley began playing shows for his neighbors and broadcast them via livestream as a way to help bring the community together in a time of extreme isolation. It was then he decided life was too damn short to not do what you love. That is what brought him back to the stage, and it just so happens his pen started to work again.
About Stacie-
Stacie plays upright bass with Wesley. She also happens to be his wife and the mother of their two children. Wesley and Stacie met at Texas A&M and married in 2009. She graduated with her bachelor’s in business marketing and is responsible for this damn fine website you’re currently reading. Stacie grew up in San Angelo and Abilene, where she learned how to play bass in orchestra. She put the instrument down after junior high and decided to start playing it again when Wesley resumed his music career. She is a woman of many talents who does all of these things while making the boys look good. To say her husband is blessed would be an understatement. She is a true Renaissance woman.
About Michael-
Bio coming soon!