A Bass Player Commits

A lot of musicians have trouble with commitment.  Just ask their girlfriends -- or their band leaders.  Mules bass player Mark Petrella has been with the band for 9 years now, so we were starting to get the idea that he might actually be planning to stick around.  But you never know -- especially with bass players.  So to remove all doubt, Marko commissioned Vallejo tattoo artist Gio Angeles to inscribe "Mule On" on his right forearm -- and we're talking permanent ink, not the wash-off-able kind.  [Mark asked Gio if he was the oldest customer he'd ever tattooed.  His answer:  "By far!"]  As you may know, it was Mark who coined the band's catch-phrase, "Mule on."  It means to persevere in the face of persistent obstacles, or basically to keep on keeping on.  Our washboard player Brian Dettor suggested that the catch-phrase be turned into a song and keyboardist Dick Bay obliged, penning the band's anthem, "Mule On."  In any case, we're very happy to know that Marko is now officially a fully committed Mule and we can count on him being with us in the mule train for the loooong haul.