AILSA CHANG, HOST:
All right. There is nothing formulaic about this band. Los Lonely Boys is a trio of brothers who grew up in Texas - Henry, Jojo and Ringo Garza. Their sound is a little bit country, a little bit rock, a little bit soul, all mixed together and blended with their own family history and Texas culture. Some have even dubbed them the Mexican Beatles. And, you know, as a huge Beatles fan, I immediately launched into that topic when all three brothers joined me for an interview about their new album called "Resurrection."
Can I just ask, though - Ringo, your dad's name is also Ringo. Were both of you named after The Beatles drummer?
RINGO GARZA: Well, this is Ringo. And no, my father's name is not Ringo.
CHANG: Oh.
R GARZA: It's Enrique Garza. And - but he...
CHANG: But he goes by Ringo, doesn't he?
R GARZA: He started calling himself Ringo because, you know, it's just so cool, you know?
CHANG: It is cool.
R GARZA: But I am - I'm Ringo Garza Sr., and I have a son who is Ringo Garza Jr.
CHANG: Oh, my God. There's three generations of Ringo in the Garza family now.
HENRY GARZA: Yeah, basically.
CHANG: That's incredible.
Their music has earned them a Grammy, several huge hits and a really loyal fan base, who are, no doubt, excited to hear that Los Lonely Boys is out with their first album in 11 years.
(SOUNDBITE OF LOS LONELY BOYS SONG, "WISH YOU WOULD")
CHANG: Can I say, though, I hear so much Beatles in the track "Wish You Would"?
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "WISH YOU WOULD")
LOS LONELY BOYS: (Singing) Oh, you're going to wish you would.
CHANG: Like, I found myself humming to "Hey Jude" while I was listening to that track. You know, like, the part with (singing) nah, nah nah, nah nah, nah nah, nah nah, hey Jude.
R GARZA: (Singing) Oh, you're going to wish you would.
CHANG: Yes. It's in there.
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "WISH YOU WOULD")
LOS LONELY BOYS: (Singing) You're never going to make a change living your life that way. Oh, you're going to wish you would. I said you're never going to make a change living your life that way. Oh, you're going to wish you would.
CHANG: I'm just curious, like, what kind of influence did The Beatles have on your family, on your music, on your sound? Like, what presence did The Beatles have on all of you growing up?
H GARZA: Yeah. This is Henry. Yeah, we have to give - credit our dad for everything. He's our biggest inspiration. He's the man behind the music. We were just trying to be like our dad. So every song he played us, even The Beatles songs, we would hear him on the radio and say, Daddy, they're playing your song. And he wouldn't deny it. And as - it was him who said, (non-English language spoken), I want you guys to be as big as The Beatles.
CHANG: Is Ringo III a drummer, too?
R GARZA: The second Ringo is a guitar player.
CHANG: Oh (laughter).
R GARZA: He is a traitor to the drumming world, and he has turned over to the dark side. And...
CHANG: The dark side - how did the guitarist in this group feel about that?
R GARZA: My son just took it from, you know, watching his father and his uncles. And my brother Henry's got three sons that - they have a band. And they're bass, drums and guitar just like me, Henry and Jojo. It's something else to see and hear them writing songs. Oh, my goodness. It's like Texican rock 'n' roll 2.0.
CHANG: Texican rock 'n' roll 2.0 - I love that. Well, let me ask you guys. You know, this year is also the 20th anniversary of your band's first hit song, "Heaven." I love this song. I still dance to it. It was a song that really put you guys on the map...
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "HEAVEN")
LOS LONELY BOYS: (Singing) I've been lost in my own place, and I'm getting weary. How far is heaven?
CHANG: ...Twenty years ago. How do you feel about that song now, like, all these years later? Are you sick of it? Do you want to move on with your lives? Or is it like an old friend when you're playing it again?
H GARZA: This is Henry. And that song has become - it's, like, almost anthemic for us because it wasn't meant to be a song. It was an actual prayer, to begin with, that turned into song.
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "HEAVEN")
LOS LONELY BOYS: (Singing in Spanish).
H GARZA: So to be able to shout out and sing out, like, one of the world's loudest prayers is - it's an amazing, amazing honor. And it's as much as part of us, I think, today as it was the day that it was written. And it's a very special song. It has a very special place.
CHANG: Yeah.
H GARZA: And I think it - not only with us, but it ripples across the water to the rest of the globe that hears it.
R GARZA: This is Ringo. And I'm going to say about, you know, the song "Heaven" - I remember driving down Highway 71 coming into Austin, and my brothers were in a van in front of me. I was driving in my own car, and it came on the radio. And we pulled over on the side of the road, and, I mean, we hugged each other. Excuse me. See? It makes me emotional talking about it. But we pulled over, and we hugged each other, and we were just real excited to hear something that came from us, our hearts and our minds, our soul.
CHANG: Well, given that it's been so long since your last album, is that why it's called "Resurrection," because it sort of feels like you're coming back? Like, what's the word resurrection about there?
JOJO GARZA: I think - this is Jojo again. I really think that some people find that there's a religious connection. But for Los Lonely Boys, I think - and I know I could speak for myself easily here, but I think my brothers also agree. One of the main things that - the reason we called it this is because we were actually off the road for right around three years. And for Los Lonely Boys, not only is it our first album in about 11 years, which is its own resurrection, the idea that Los Lonely Boys may never have even played again after those three years we took off. But the fact that Los Lonely Boys decided, you know, as a group, not just a band, but as brothers, that we were going to do this because we feel that as long as we've got life in our bones, you know, and breath in our lungs and, you know, our beating hearts, we're going to do our best to represent what the creator has gifted us with, which is the ability to feed. It is actual food for the soul.
CHANG: Absolutely.
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "SEE YOUR FACE")
LOS LONELY BOYS: (Singing) Hey there, it's been a while since I've seen your smile. Yeah. And you fill my cup with joy.
CHANG: That is Henry, Jojo and Ringo Garza - brothers and members of the band Los Lonely Boys. Their new album, "Resurrection," is out now.
Thank you so, so much for spending this time with me.
H GARZA: Thank you, Ailsa.
J GARZA: Thank you.
R GARZA: Thank you so much, Ailsa.
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "SEE YOUR FACE")
LOS LONELY BOYS: (Singing) 'Cause I got to see your face. Take me, take me back home. Take me where I'm not alone.
CHANG: Los Lonely Boys are not the only ones out with new music tomorrow. R&B soul singer Khalid is back with his first album in three years.
ARI SHAPIRO, HOST:
The masked country star Orville Peck is out with another album of duets.
CHANG: And on her new album, Maren Morris insists she never wants to fall in love again.
SHAPIRO: Tune in tomorrow for New Music Friday with our friends from NPR Music.
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "SEE YOUR FACE")
LOS LONELY BOYS: (Singing) And it pains me in my heart when you start, oh, to fade away. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by an NPR contractor. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Accuracy and availability may vary. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record.
