Brandon Rummel has encyclopedic knowledge of the Beatles and loves jamming with his band during their weekly rehearsals. That alone may not seem remarkable, but Brandon, 31, is disabled and non-verbal.
“If he could tell you, he’d probably say his favorite Beatles song is ‘All You Need Is Love,’” says his mom Leah Rummel, who founded the Dripping Springs Friendship Club six years ago to help Brandon find a community of his peers. Members, ages 18 to 55, and their families get together most Fridays for bowling, movies, art at The Art Garage and, of course, music.
Fourteen members of the DS Friendship Club now belong to The Eddie Ray Band, a musical group for musicians with disabilities. The band began organically when Leah hired local musician Phil Montfort as Brandon’s caregiver. “Leah was looking for someone musically inclined, who would have a connection with Brandon,” says Phil.
The band, which includes four local, volunteer musicians, have performed at the Founder’s Day Festival, Red Arena, and most recently their ‘Jingle All Our Ways’ benefit at Hudson’s on Mercer, where they were joined by other local artists to raise funds for the DS Friendship Club, band equipment and their latest goal — recording a professional album of their original songs.
