Tim "Mit" Schuller (né Fredric Thomas Schuller; died 29 February 2012) was an American, Dallas–Fort Worth-based music critic, who chronicled living blues and jazz musicians, mostly from Texas (particularly from the Dallas–Fort Worth area and the Southwest).
Early years Schuller was born in Salem, Ohio, to Frederick Kane Schuller and Mary Louise Layden. Tim's father, who had been a newspaper journalist, died when he was seven. Schuller attended Salem High School, graduating in 1967. During his senior year, he was the feature editor of the Salem Quaker, his high school newspaper. He studied at Kent State University at Salem, but did not graduate. In Ohio, Schuller had worked as a musician (playing guitar), a factory worker, and a stringer reporter.
Schuller moved to Chicago with his childhood friend from Salem, Tom "Mot" Dutko, a blues drummer. In Chicago, Schuller played with Robert Lockwood Jr. and John Brim.
Career Schuller moved to Dallas around 1977 and briefly embarked in the record business. In 1977, he was worked at Peaches Records & Tapes at Cole and Fitzhugh Avenues, Dallas. In 1980, Schuller was assistant manager at Sound Town at the Valley View Mall in Dallas.The Texas Record Town chain called itself Sound Town in Dallas. Record Town was founded in San Antonio, around 1968, had, in 1980, three Dallas locations: Red Bird Mall in Dallas, Town East Mall in Mesquite, and Valley View Mall in Dallas. On December 18, 1980, Amarillo-based Western Distributors, parent of Hastings Books and Hastings Records, acquired the 26 Record Town, Sound Town, and Sundown stores in Texas. The deal also included the acquisition of the parent, Galaxy Distributing (formerly called Galaxy Sales when it was in San Antonio), a Dallas-based rack jobber that distributed to the Record Town chain. Valley View was torn down in 2016 to make way for a new mall, Dallas Midtown. ("Western Merchandisers Acquires Western Chain," Cash Box, January 12, 1980, pps. 9, 24)
Some of Schullers writings – notably those about Freddie King, Buster Smith, and Lightnin' Hopkins – have been cited in academic and encyclopedic publications. According to a Buddy magazine staff editor, Schuller provided blues pianist Boston Smith (Buster Smith's brother) with an epitaph worthy of his achievements.
He also was an update editor of the 2002 revised edition of MusicHound Blues: The Essential Album Guide (Schirmer Trade Books / Omnibus Press).
Schuller contributed to the following newspapers, periodicals, and records: Periodicals and newspapers
Guitar Player, Living Blues, Blues Access The Met (Dallas' arts & entertainment weekly) Southwest Blues DownBeat Buddy magazine Texas Jazz Juke Blues Coda Crazy Music (the journal of the Australian Blues Society) D Magazine Dallas Morning News, Dallas Observer Texas Observer Contemporary Keyboard Texas Highways Akron Beacon Journal
Discography
Lucky Seven Records Black Top Trix Wolf Records (de) (Vienna, Austria) Bullseye Blues Fedora Records Blind Pig TKO Magnum Music Blue Moon Continental Blue Heaven (distributed by Harmonia Mundi) Cannonball Records (nl) 29110 AudioQuest Music TopCat Records Mayhem Records JSP
Affiliations In 1987, Schuller – with Chuck Nevitt and Brian "Hash Brown" Calway (blues musician) – founded the Dallas Blues Society.
Death Tim Schuller died February 29, 2012, in Dallas. He is buried in Salem, Ohio, at Grandview Cemetery.
References