Music

LaFave Rave

Jimmy LaFave’s great new CD might propel him from Austin to the big time—if that were what he wanted.

By Jan Reid

Jan Reid

Jan Reid was a senior editor at Texas Monthly and also contributed to Esquire, GQ, Slate, Men’s Journal, Men’s Health, and the New York Times.

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Magic Fingers

San Antonio accordionist Mingo Saldivar is knocking them dead in northern Mexico.

Hit Picker

Each week, record promoters flock to see Redbeard, the Dallas radio programmer with an ear for the best new music.

Word of Mouth

Never mind the bullocks, here’s Sincola: An Austin band tries to live up to the hype.

Darkness Audible

Shawn Colvin, the latest pop émigré to land in Austin, sets the record straight on her long and difficult road to stardom.

Roky Road

Come Dancing

When country hunk Billy Ray Cyrus his megahit “Achy Breaky Heart” in 1992, country dancing—or at least a modern version of it—returned to vogue. Cyrus’ novelty song was released with a video that showed a line dance specifically created for the song, and—in a flashback to the Urban Cowboy craze of

No Limits

For twenty seasons Austin City Limits has been the elite soundstage of American popular music. And it keeps getting better.

By Jan Reid

Jan Reid

Jan Reid was a senior editor at Texas Monthly and also contributed to Esquire, GQ, Slate, Men’s Journal, Men’s Health, and the New York Times.

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Fast and Loose

Bugs Henderson doesn’t lhave an “act” — he’s simply one of the best blues guitarists around.

Folk Lure

An Austin arts group is exposing the roots of Texas music to a younger audience.

Tour de Folk

Diverse styles and a shared devotion to fold music mark new releases by Nanci Griffith and Robert Earl Keen.

Lonely Song

The troubled imagination that fuels Daniel Johnston's powerful new album could also prove his undoing.

Selena

The sound of assimilation.

Adkins Family Values

The family that plays together stays together. Meet one of the world’s most successful classical music clans.

By Skip Hollandsworth

Skip Hollandsworth

Skip Hollandsworth specializes in long-form narratives.

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The Big Twang

Some of the brightest country music stars—like Mark Chesnutt and Tracy Byrd—are born in the honky-tonks of Beaumont.

The Devil in George Jones

The survivor of a long and torturous journey, George Jones stands alone as the greatest country singer alive.

True Blues

In Houston a handful of juke joints and beer bars offers blues the way they used to be—a soulful, gritty communal rite.

Switch-hitter

Can tejano heartthrob Emilio Navaira survive the crossover to country music?

Axes to Grind

When Stevie Ray Vaughan died, Texas lost its premier guitarist. Can any of these ambitious young players fill his boots?

Nashville City Limits

Once, country acts made art in Austin and money in Nashville. Today each place is a lot like the other, which is why more Texas singers are heading east.

Lucken Back

Twenty years later, Jerry Jeff Walker returns to the town his music put on the map.

By Jan Reid

Jan Reid

Jan Reid was a senior editor at Texas Monthly and also contributed to Esquire, GQ, Slate, Men’s Journal, Men’s Health, and the New York Times.

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Vocal Minority

When top black country artists like powerhouse singer Mary Cutrufello take the stage, people listen.

Long Shot

A new album showcases the smoky vocals and guitar of Long John Hunter—the man who gave West Texas the blues.

The Comeback Kink

After ten low-key years, country singer turned mystery novelist Kinky Friedman is once again poised to hit the big time.

By Evan Smith

Evan Smith

Evan Smith is the cofounder of the Texas Tribune, a senior adviser at Emerson Collective, and the former editor in chief and president of Texas Monthly.

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The Natural

In his new release, Jimmie Dale Gilmore sings country music the way it’s supposed to be sung—pure and easy.

Deconstructing Willie

Carnality, Castration Anxiety, and Jouissance in Willie Nelson’s Taco Bell Commercial.

French Twist

In Texas, singer Calvin Russell can barely fill a club. In France, he’s more popular than Willie—and sells more records.

The Sound of Música

Texas’ tejano radio stations dish out a spicy mix of music and patter in English and Spanish, and the ratings are magnifico.

Out of Sync

Nearly everyone agrees that the nation’s best college jazz program is in Denton, but critics wonder if it isn’t mired in the past.

What a Disc!

From Scott Joplin to ZZ Top, a comprehensive guide to the best Texas music on CD.

O Janis

Janis Joplin’s life was about music, rebellion, and excess—but she was influenced most by her tormented relationship with the people and spirit of Port Arthur.

Lyle’s Style

Nothing about Lyle Lovett suggests he’d ever make it big. That’s precisely why he did.

Roadhouse Warrior

Ely may have a new album, but his best performances have always been live, in person.

Western Exposure

Igor Fedotov and Eugene Cherkasov fiddle around in Midland.

Well Strung

An Austin artist makes a stringed instrument of monumental scale.

Ernest Tubb Goes Electric

The great polka boycott, Willie’s Sunday school status, the cold truth about Vanilla Ice, and other notable moments in Texas Music.

In Tune

Houston’s Young Turk music producers have cut a new groove in the record industry.

Golden Oldies

Seven legendary Texas musicians who won’t ever let the music stop.

Plains Song

When Lubbock-born songwriter Butch Hancock steps onstage, West Texas haunts his music.

Sound and Fury

When a rare disorder damaged his voice, Johnny Bush had to decide between singing and speaking.

Poor Willie

When the IRS seized all that Willie Nelson had, it was a case of the man who can’t say no meeting the men who won’t take no for an answer.

Jump Starter

The music of T-Bone Walker, the Texas guitarist who put the boogie into “jump” blues, is now definitely on record.

Yo, Y’all

Carrollton’s Vanilla Ice is the country’s coolest rapper, and several other Texas acts are hot on his heels.

“I’m Just Me”

When country singer Charley Pride isn’t on the road, chances are he’s puttering around a Dallas golf course—or riding herd on his business holdings.

Fine Tuning

From the Panhandle to the Bayou City, homegrown classical music ensembles are our best-kept secret.

Requiem in Blue

Recollections of guitar great Stevie Ray Vaughan.

Fortune’s Smile

Tevin Campbell, the thirteen-year-old soul sensation, is Texas’ answer to Michael Jackson.

Squeeze Play

Three masters show why conjunto, the accordion music of the Tex-Mex border, is hotter thatn Lajitas in August.

Strike Up The Bands

The bands play on and on and on in Austin.

Black to Basics

Newcomer of the year Clint Black plays tributes to early country music—with an unintentional Texas twist.