ABBA

Jim Ryan was playing high school dances when his old band mate Jim Carsten invited him to an audition for The Outcasts. In the next few years, they would release five singles, culminating with “1523 Blair” in 1967, and open for a variety of artists and bands, including The Animals, Lou Christie, Herman’s Hermits, and The Rolling Stones. The band split and Jim joined The Swiss Movement and eventually made the great egress to L.A. in 1969.

He had had enough after the 1971 earthquake, and moved back to San Antonio, Texas, joining the band Kickin’ Can with Skip Maxfield. They played together for a couple of years, forming Ryan’s Express in 1973.

Jim then decided to go back to school, majoring in Voice at Incarnate Word. This vastly changed the direction of his musical life, forgoing rock and roll for gigs with the San Antonio Master Singers and the San Antonio Grand Opera. He graduated in 1976 and became a music teacher, a career he enjoyed for almost three decades.

In 1988, Jim founded Brain Dance Ink, a publishing company that specializes in dance and folk songs. Much of the focus is on bi-lingual educational tools, incorporating dance, games, songs, and theatre.

His success as an entrepreneur has allowed him the luxury of pursuing his first love, playing music live, with the band that bears his name. If you are attending a dance, party, or wedding in Texas, you have an outside chance of catching The Jim Ryan Band in action.

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