Burnet County musician composes quarry protest ballad: ‘It ain’t over til it’s Over’
Singer-songwriter and Burnet County resident Randy Wright performs at Opie’s Barbecue in Spicewood every Sunday afternoon. On July 12, he played an acoustic version of his rock quarry protest song “It ain’t over ‘til it’s over” for the restaurant’s patrons. Staff photo by Dakota Morrissiey
Residents of Burnet County have been battling the progress of a proposed 715-acre rock quarry on Hoover Valley Road since 2024, and one local musician has produced a ballad for that battle. Randy Wright and his band have performed and recorded an original, AI-free protest song.
The 75-year-old Wright told DailyTrib that he wrote his tune after being told that the quarry’s ultimate approval was inevitable, inspiring the title “It ain’t over ‘til it’s over.”
Listen to Wright’s song on Youtube at this link.
“(The water from the quarry site) drains right into the national fish hatchery,” he said. “That’s crazy. I could see that in Chicago or New York, or Dallas, but this is Burnet County for crying out loud. I wouldn’t consider myself an activist or anything, but this is just common sense.”
Wright lives on Peters Creek, just down the street from the site of Asphalt Inc.’s proposed aggregate mining operation, located at 3221 FM 3509, better known as Hoover Valley Road. The project has received considerable pushback from the community due to its close proximity to children’s summer camp Camp Longhorn, Longhorn Cavern State Park, Inks Lake State Park, and Inks Dam National Fish Hatchery, which are all within 5 miles of the proposed site.
“It ain’t over ‘til it’s over” was released on June 23 after weeks of work on Wright’s behalf. He wrote and composed the song, gathered a band and backup singers, sang the lead vocals, played the guitar, and had the whole piece recorded. He gave special credit to his band and producers Larry Nye, Jeff Hazy, Pat Moran, Martin Langford, and backup singers Gina Coursey, Katie Jenkins, Brittany Fries, and Melanie Allison.
“The people I was talking to said it was already over,” Wright said. “I heard that a dozen times from people. But then a bulletin came out from Save Burnet and I thought ‘looks like we’ve got some hope.”
Wright was referring to the regular notices that come from Save Burnet, a group that was formed in 2024 to educate the public on the proposed quarry and provide updates on its progress.
Save Burnet’s mission statement reads:
“(Save Burnet) a Texas-based non-profit organization dedicated to protecting the natural beauty, clean water, and quality of life in Burnet County and the surrounding Hill Country. Our mission is to educate, unite, and empower the community to stand against industrial developments—such as rock quarries and crushing facilities—that threaten our state parks, wildlife, water resources, and local heritage. Through research, public outreach, collaboration with local and state agencies, and active citizen engagement, (Save Burnet) works to ensure responsible environmental stewardship and to preserve the Texas Hill Country for future generations.”
Background
Asphalt Inc.’s rock quarry has been on the public radar since the summer of 2024, when hundreds of local residents gathered for an official protest at the Hill Country Fellowship church in Burnet.
Resistance remained steady as Asphalt Inc. pursued, and eventually acquired, an air quality permit from the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality in February 2025 and a water quality permit from the Lower Colorado River Authority in June 2025.
Now, one of the final steps remaining in the quarry’s path to approval is a groundwater-use permit from the Central Texas Groundwater Conservation District. As of this article’s publication, Asphalt Inc. has not filed its official application to acquire a permit, but they are in discussions with the district.
Local and state representatives have expressed their opposition to the quarry, but met with their own resistance in some cases. HD 19 Rep. Troxclair attempted to pass legislation in May 2025 that would have hindered or stopped the quarry, but she was shot down by an especially tenacious South Texas representative, Terry Canales, who repeatedly challenged Troxclair’s bill and delayed its passage, causing it to miss a crucial deadline.
According to Transparency USA, Canales had received about 17.93 percent of his campaign donations, or $61,000, from the Associated General Contractors of Texas PAC, which is dedicated to advocating for the highway construction industry.