What a weekend of music in Austin, as Denise and I headed to the Asleep At The Wheel 40th Anniversary Concert at The Long Center on Friday night. We were singing and dancing in our chairs to "Miles And Miles Of Texas," "Bump Bounce Boogie," "Choo Choo Ch' Boogie," "Roly Poly," "Route 66," and on and on, for an evening's worth of magnificent Western Swing. What a band! Multiple players for each instrument, as The Wheel brought back past members to share the stage with current ones. Leon Rausch guested, and then Willie Nelson took center stage with Brother Ray and reprised songs from his great American songbook, and then there was Willie and The Wheel stuff. It was an amazing night, and they videoed it, too, so here's hoping we'll see it in the not too distant future. Afterwards, I headed to Emo's for Ha Ha Tonka, and they were FAB! Edgy but tuneful, with really interesting time signatures. Inventive, articulate, and fun.
Saturday night was the dedication of the patio at the Saxon Pub to the late Stephen Bruton, and then a set from Malford Milliigan, who was so obviously touched by Stephen's music. Rockin' and soulful.
Then, last night at Threadgill's, there was a tribute to Gram Parsons, who would have celebrated a birthday last Friday, so Patterson Barrett saluted him with help from members of Stonehoney and The Mother Truckers, Michael Fracasso, Freddie Steady Krc and Cam King, Idgy Vaughn and lots of others.
I feel so lucky that I get to immerse myself in the music. It is such a treasure, and such a motivator for me. I guess the only thing is that I miss having a radio station to play this sumptuous smorgasbord. Wish I could be sticking it all in your ear! Here is another of my most favorites, Paul Thorn. From the sublime to the ridiculous, and this one is from the latter category. He never put this song on an album, but during one of the sessions he did for X Country at XM, with a twinkle in his eye, he played it for us. I had never heard it before, and when he was done singing, he said the phones would go nuts. And they did. He didn't really want to sing it for the Music Fog cameras, because it perpetuates an unfortunate stereotype, but I begged him. So, it seems appropriate to celebrate our 500th video with this exclusive tune, "It's A Great Day To Whup Somebody's Ass." Amen.
- Jessie Scott
