Born from the Dallas suburb of Denton, TX, in the mid-'80s, Ten Hands brief… Read Full Bio ↴Born from the Dallas suburb of Denton, TX, in the mid-'80s, Ten Hands briefly enjoyed heaps of acclaim and an impressive following in their home state. Their music tended to be high in energy, syncopated and funky. Matched with Paul Slavens]' charismatic vocal stylings and political assertions that denigrated the ruling elite, the complacent middle class, and environmental evils, Ten Hands was one of the more politically oriented Texas bands of the era. They rarely forgot to be fun, however, and their musical playfulness and frequent lyrical absurdism belied any pretensions they may have had.

Sometime in late 1986, Mike Dillon, Gary Muller, and Matt Chamberlain were playing in Dallas-based band Zane Grey, who actually appeared on Star Search. They did not win, but Muller did get to touch Ed McMahon (specifically, his hand). Meanwhile, Steve Brand and Slavens were playing in a Denton band called the Gonemen. Dillon, Muller, and Chamberlain lived in the same Denton house as other members of the Gonemen, and when dissatisfaction with both groups began to appear, the idea for a new band was spawned.

The first Ten Hands rehearsal (documented on videotape) took place late 1986 in Denton. Shortly thereafter, Zane Grey's manager, Tony Johnson, accepted an offer to manage the fledgling band. For the first year, Ten Hands played mostly small venues in Denton and performed a weekly gig at the Prophet Bar, a seminal Deep Ellum club in Dallas. During this time, a studio recording was made and handmade cassettes were sold and distributed in and around the Dallas, Ft. Worth, and Denton area.

Chamberlain and Dillon were already well-known in Denton as top players in the University of North Texas Jazz program, and interest in the band soon grew. It was also during this time that the New Bohemians were becoming a major draw in Dallas. It happened that several members of that band were friends with a few Ten Hands members, and ultimately, New Bohemians finagled some opening slots for Ten Hands at Deep Ellum's celebrated Club Dada. The Club Dada shows helped expose the band to a much wider audience, and the venue would later host many of Ten Hands' most memorable performances.

In late 1988, Earl Harvin joined the band as drummer after the Matt left to play with the New Bohemians. The band went into the studio to record Kung Fu...That's What I Like. As New Bohemians vacated Dallas for bigger and better things, Ten Hands stepped in to fill the void and began what would be a three or four year run as one of the region's most popular draws. The band won numerous Dallas Observer Awards in 1988-1989, and shortly after the release of their first live CD, The Big One Is Coming, and sold over 20,000 copies. Joe Cripps joined the band to replace Dillon on percussion.

Earl left the band to play with Mike Dillon's Billy Goat and "Big" Al Emert became drummer. Ten Hands started to tour heavily and built a large following with college audiences.

At a SXSW performance, the band was offered a record deal by an independent producer in L.A. Desperate to release an album after two years of inactivity, the band agreed and began work on Be My Guru in late 1991. While the album contained some of the band's best songs, the recording itself was a disappointment and the relationship with the label grew stormy. By the time the band left the label, much of their earlier momentum was lost.

As the band's popularity began to wane, a friend of the band, Byron Wilson, offered to produce a CD. Jazz for Jerks was recorded in early 1993 with the assistance of the band's friend and longtime collaborative producer, Dave Castell.

Steve Brand left the band in 1993. New guitarists, Chris Claridy and Chad Rueffer joined and the band wrote some new songs and continued to gig around the area. In the next incarnation, guitarist, Ed McMahon (in a strange twist of fate), and drummer Greg Beck were hired. A demo record was recorded with the brand new lineup, but the album was never mixed or released.

Ten Hands continues to play, with various lineups, several times a year in the Dallas area.

I Was Confused
Ten Hands Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

(Slavens, Muller, Brand)
I watched the news just the other day
And there's just one thing that I must say
It gave me a pain
Right in the middle of my head
The newsman came on with his face
And told me about the big disgrace
Let me know just how many people got dead

And I got down, it brought me down
So I got up
And turned it off
That left me alone with my thoughts
And a great big pain
Right in the middle of my head
And I was confused
I didn't know what to do
I watched a show just the other night
And I must say something was not right
How come people on television's weird in the head
Well they won't show sex but they show a lot of killing

Guess it must be better to show blood spilling
Than to let little junior see two naked people in bed

Overall Meaning

The song "I Was Confused" by Ten Hands talks about the impact of media on an individual and how it can cause confusion and distress. The lyrics start off by describing how watching the news brought a great deal of pain to the singer. The newsman reports on a tragedy, informs the number of casualties, and leaves the singer with a sense of confusion and despair. It brings a great big pain right in the middle of their head is how it is described.

The verse continues by describing how the singer tries to turn off the news but is left alone with their thoughts and a great big pain right in the middle of their head. The next verse goes on to talk about how watching a show on television is not enjoyable either. The show portrays weird people and while it doesn't show sex, it shows blood spilling. The absence of sexual content is a clear indication that violence is more acceptable on television than sex. The song ends on the singer's confusion and inability to know what to do.

Line by Line Meaning

I watched the news just the other day
I paid attention to the news just the other day

And there's just one thing that I must say
And I feel there is one thing I should express

It gave me a pain
It caused me pain

Right in the middle of my head
In the center of my head

The newsman came on with his face
The news anchor appeared on the screen

And told me about the big disgrace
And informed me about the significant scandal

Let me know just how many people got dead
Informed me of the number of people who died

And I got down, it brought me down
This news made me feel upset

So I got up
So, I stood up

And turned it off
And switched it off

That left me alone with my thoughts
This left me with only my thoughts to contemplate