Asleep at the Wheel brings folksy roots rock to Birchmere

Elizabeth McQueen is sitting on top of the world thanks to her folksy blues duo with Willie Nelson. Their rendition of “Sitting on Top of the World” is one of a dozen tracks on “Willie and the Wheel,” the latest CD by Ray Benson’s Asleep at the Wheel, a surefire guarantee of Western swing longevity.

When McQueen came to town in 2006 as a member of the Grammy award-winning ensemble, she was newly married to Wheel drummer David Sanger. The occasion was “A Ride With Bob,” Benson’s 2006 tribute to his idol, Bob Wills, performed in the Kennedy Center’s Eisenhower Theater. The musical play, boasting a large cast and 18 scene changes, was well received, but the tour was limited by economics. Now minus the props, the Wheel tour stopping by the Birchmere overflows in rhythm and melodies to keep fans reveling.

There’s no sleeping at the wheel during the tour for McQueen. She covers it in a “baby bus,” the sometimes rebellious vehicle that transports her, Sanger and their 7-month-old daughter. For the first six months, McQueen’s parents racked up miles cross country, but now that the new addition has taken to travel, strange hotels and irresistible rhythms, their services are no longer required.

Little did McQueen envision the fun-filled future she was destined to lead when she was manning the Prince George’s County Suicide Prevention Hotline. After earning degrees in English and anthropology from Columbia University and the University of Maryland, the former resident of Columbia, Md., became involved in social work. No matter how hard she tried, the music she had loved her entire life kept interfering.

“I finally decided to try my luck at singing while I was still young enough, so I pulled up stakes and headed to Austin,” she says. “It was an adventure for better or worse. The music scene in Austin is not closed off like it is in some other cities, so I soon started out singing with bands. One day I struck up a conversation with a guitar player in the Carousel Lounge, told him I was making a demo and asked if he’d play on it. He agreed and he turned out to be a fabulous guitarist. Through him I met other musicians.”

McQueen founded the Firebrands, a country roots rock band that quickly became popular around town. Since being tapped as an Asleep at the Wheel vocalist in 2005, she has been astounded daily by the joy and perks her quest for music and adventure has brought.

“This is an amazing band filled with high energy,” she says. “I’m surrounded by really good musicians who bring out crowds wherever we perform. We do lots of touring up and down the East Coast, and I always see friends from Columbia U. in the audience when we play in Boston and New York. I love coming back to Washington and playing at Birchmere because my friends from the area always stop by. I’m sure we’ll perform some of the numbers in the new CD. Even though Willie Nelson isn’t with us on this tour, members of the Wheel will share his singing duties.”