Joel McColl

 JOEL McCOLL has been in Austin, TX over 40 yrs and has been making music for over 50.  He cut his musical teeth in the coffee houses and folk venues of Oklahoma before hitting the road in the early 70’s.  After several years of playing in stage shows and a 7 piece show band, he joined forces with Jim Tracey and the power duo McCOLL & TRACEY was born.  Over the span of a decade, M&T appeared with Bonnie Raitt, Hoyt Axton, David Bromberg, Kenny Rankin, Iain Matthews, Rusty Wier and others.  With 2 albums to their credit, M&T had an American Song Festival semifinalist song with “You Depress Me”.  A 15 yr stint with MIDLIFE CRISIS followed, leaving a trail of humor, satire, cynicism and jocularity in its’ wake.  He's also known for his 20 yr run as producer/emcee/judge of the O HENRY WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP PUN-OFF CONTEST held annually.  Having retired in 2008, he was named the 2007 International Punster of the Year.

His first solo recording, THE RETURN OF BOSCO MARTIN, was released in April, 2013.  The CD is a diverse collection of originals that range from funny to touching, rockin' to melodic with a little bit of quirk thrown in.  The project was inspired by the efforts of a close friend as he battled cancer.  This CD is dedicated to anyone who has fought that bastard named cancer.  Proceeds from this project are going to benefit the COLON CANCER ALLIANCE (www.ccalliance.org).