It’s easy to identify most of the musicians in James McMurtry’s band — most of them except for the piano player.

On McMurtry’s new album, “Walk Between the Raindrops,” no one knows who plays the “piano” during the third track, “Soda and Salt.”

McMurtry said the piano sound is a product of a unique interplay between the guitars. While mixing the album, the band detected what sounds like a right-hand piano riff.

“It’s something we couldn’t isolate in any of the other songs,” McMurtry said.

That little mystery is just one of the many things that has made McMurtry and his music unique. Pushing off industry titles such as “electric folk” and “country-influenced rock,” the 10-year recording veteran prefers to classify his music as “good ol’ rock ‘n’ roll.”

McMurtry should know by now what he likes.

He first picked up a guitar at age seven and has been writing since his teens.

Playing music is what McMurtry enjoys the most. He said the process of creating music can sometimes be “tedious or torturous,” but after something is written it can feel “pretty good.”

His talent to write may be attributed to his parents. Both are writers; his mother writes scholarly journals and his father is famous novelist Larry McMurtry.

Early in his career, McMurtry’s writing sometimes paralleled his father’s; however, in recent years, McMurtry has developed his own unique style.

McMurtry often starts a song while he’s on the road, but calls writing an “ongoing process.” Sometimes all he has to start with are a couple of lines, a melody or a groove.

“If it all sounds cool, then it works out,” McMurtry said.

McMurtry is starting to gain fame in the musical world, but calls the threat of superstardom “the least of his worries.”

McMurtry’s last album reached the top five on the non-commercial charts and his music has been receiving airplay on AAA stations. A recording at KPAY in California was recently archived on the Internet.

John Mellencamp once said, “James writes like he’s lived a lifetime.” McMurtry said he doesn’t think his writing style is that advanced, though he’s happy Mellencamp complimented him.

James McMurtry will be playing at the Maintenance Shop Sunday at 9 p.m. Tickets are $8 for students and $10 general admission.