TEXAS COOKIN' Austin, Texas wears its self-anointed "Live Music Capital of the World" title proudly, and rest assured that pride does not stem from the likes of such buzz-worthy SXSW showcases as Built to Spill, Asian Dub Foundation, Robbie Williams or even Tom Waits. At its heart, Austin is country, Outlaw style -- and SXSW '99 was a veritable who's who of all-star Texas-centric songwriters. Full Story at: http://www.rollingstone.com/sections/news/text/newsarticle.asp?afl=mail2&NewsID=7368&ArtistID=3061&origin=news Texas Cookin' Lone Star songwriters make strong showing at SXSW showcases Austin, Texas wears its self-anointed "Live Music Capital of the World" title proudly, and rest assured that pride does not stem from the likes of such buzz-worthy SXSW showcases as Built to Spill, Asian Dub Foundation, Robbie Williams or even Tom Waits. At its heart, Austin is country, Outlaw style -- and SXSW '99 was a veritable who's who of all-star Texas-centric songwriters. Willie Nelson's much-hyped guest appearance with Leon Russell was rained out Thursday (March 18) night, but there was still no shortage of Americana talent to go around. Waits may have been the week's most talked-about show, but it was former Austin resident Lucinda Williams who delivered the keynote address, received the key to the city *and* packed the 3,000 capacity Austin Music Hall for Friday's (March 19) centerpiece show. Earlier Friday evening, an estimated 10,000 people (mostly Austinites) gathered in Waterloo Park next to the State capital to see local-pop-band-done-good Fastball open for honky-tonk rocker Joe Ely, who responded to the massive crowd with a fervid, two-hour performance befitting his reputation as the Lone Star Springsteen. Another 10,000 returned to the park Saturday for two more local roots-rock acts, the Damnations TX and the Gourds. That bill lost its Texan cred when Dayton, Ohio's indie-rock posterboys Guided By Voices closed the show, though it's a safe bet any and all Texas music fans in the crowd left early to get in line for Kelly Willis' showcase at Antone's or the Los Super Seven/Jimmie Vaughan birthday-bash at Austin Music Hall. And that's just the tip of the burrito. Other noteworthy Texan showcases throughout the week included Friday's preview of Alejandro Escovedo's latest work in progress, a musical/spoken-word/multimedia homage to early twentieth century Mexican-American men titled By the Hand of the Father. Later that evening, songwriting legend Guy Clark kicked off a Sugar Hill Records showcase that also featured a criminally short set by enigmatic Lubbock native Terry Allen (who was joined onstage by buddies Clark and David Byrne for a rousing "Gimme a Ride to Heaven," in which a hitch-hiking Jesus carjacks a would-be Samaritan.) Shaver and Jon Dee Graham turned in riveting, blues-spiked performances Thursday at the New West Records showcase, and Ray Wylie Hubbard's grizzled, poetic charm and incomparable songwriting lit up Sixth St.'s Iron Cactus Saturday night. Also of note: the strictly unplugged (as no amps *or* mics) old-time hootenanigans of the Asylum Street Spankers; the endearing, high-energy pop-folk of Austin Music Awards darling Terri Hendrix, and Terry Allen's son Bukka Allen, who nearly outshined every other Texas act playing all week with a haunting set drawn for his stunning self-released debut, Sweet Valentine. How good was this guy? Good enough to make missing half of a Lucinda Williams show worthwhile -- that's what David Byrne did. Even the late, great Townes Van Zandt got a showcase, when an invite-only crowd gathered Friday afternoon at the Cactus Cafe on the University of Texas campus to preview A Far Cry From Dead, a June-scheduled Arista Nashville release featuring unearthed Van Zandt vocals and acoustic guitar takes backed up by Nashville studio pros. Purists may scoff at the studio foolery, but the results do the songs justice in a Johnny Cash meets Rick Rubin kind of way. A mic, stool and guitar were set up on stage next to Van Zandt's photo, and the small crowd applauded enthusiastically after every song, as well they should have. It's bittersweet to see Van Zandt's first bit of major label recognition (and promotional push) come post-mortem, but hell -- better late than never. RICHARD SKANSE (March 22, 1999) BEAUTIFUL MELODIES For the six hundred fans that rose at dawn for tickets to Tom Waits' free, live performance, the wait was worth it. As they single-filed into Austin, Texas' ornate Paramount Theater at midnight on Saturday (March 20), the excitement was palpable, even amongst a bunch of haggard industry folk who had already soaked in four days of music and as much rain. As soon as the fedora-ed, quintessentially cool Waits swaggered onstage, the room boomed with uproarious applause. For a guy with a three-decade-long career, scant few have seen his live show, and for this group, his was the most anticipated concert of the South by Southwest Music Convention. Full Review at: http://www.rollingstone.com/sections/news/text/newsarticle.asp?afl=mail2&NewsID=7369&ArtistID=2552&origin=news
