I grew up in Austin during the late 70s-early 80s. When I was 14, we would bribe the doorman at Antone's, the blues club in Austin, to come in and listen to this skinny guy from Dallas. We knew we were seeing something special. RIP Stevie!!!❤
Oakcliff Texas south Dallas will always be greater than weird Austin. Keep Austin wierd ? Keep Austin 200 miles south of Dallas/ Ft.Worth oakcliff Texas home of SRV
@@michaelmaguire9119 Well every musician ends up in Austin it's just the way it is. Johnny and Edgar Winter are from Beaumont and Janis Joplin from Port Arthur....still had to play Austin, man.
Don’t know if you seen “life without you live at capital theater” by Stevie but the guitar playing is next level, I was fortunate to have seen Stevie in 1985 in Seattle super humble man and he appreciated and loved his fans.
Damn, I was there at Bumbershoot Music Festival 1985 singing 'on the street'/grounds as a duo Raw Sugar my witty feminist originals and belting out others....and had No Idea Stevie Ray Vaughn was on the premises -- and I didn't even hear him until '96 Pride & Joy in a local tavern, annoying the guys by playing it over and over. Was in Istanbul Turkey (teaching ESL to young adults), came across all of his CDs and bought all of them, without hearing any of them till I got back to the States...and gradually discovered him & Double Trouble. Was floored when I found out he had died in 1990. Now, his CDs are the only music I listen to in my car....It is so great to see First Reactions here!
Life Without You Live is the best of SRV: Early guitar swap (if you don't pay attention you may not even notice), having to adjust the amps for the changed guitar, playing behind the back and loosing a tooth BUT the best part is the personal message during the performance (the message references apartheid in South Africa). I was fortunate enough to see him LIVE almost annually, even a few months before the tragic flight. I've witnessed several broken strings yet he never missed a beat, EVER!
BB King said that Stevie could play in paragraphs while BB admitted he could only play in sentences. Clapton said shortly before the helicopter crash that took Stevie and others that he was the best guitar player alive and Stevie was sober and Eric knew he was the greatest. Rip SRV
Stevie Ray Vaughan has a brother named Jimmie Vaughan who is 3 years older than Stevie Ray who started playing guitar at 10 yrs old but an electric guitar, Stevie Ray loved it and got a toy guitar for his 7th birthday with cowboys and Indians on it but still learned to play Wine Wine Wine on a toy guitar amazing. Stevie Ray really wanted an electric guitar and would play Jimmie's when he would leave the house, Stevie Ray ripped 3 strings off his toy guitar and he and Jimmie would play together. Jimmie is an amazing guitarist In his own right and had a band called The Fabulous Thunderbirds, Jimmie bought a Muddy Watters record and when Stevie Ray heard it he said he knew he was going to play the Blues. Jimmie gave Stevie Ray his electric guitar when he got a new one to help Stevie Ray on his way to start playing gigs. Stevie Ray had a hard time breaking into the music industry, he was actually in a band called Krackerjack with Double Troubles basses Tommy Shannon in Stevie Ray's teen but Stevie Ray quit when the singer wanted them to start wearing makeup (I don't blame him) 😂 in 1977 Stevie Ray put a band together called Triple Threat Reuve with Lou Ann Barton vocals, drummer Freddie Walden, Bass Jackie Newhouse, Johnny Reno Saxophone and Stevie Ray on guitar. Lou Ann Barton left the band on Nov 24,1979 and on September 10, 1978 Chris Layton replaced Jack Moore on Drums and Tommy Shannon replaced Jackie Newhouse on bass and Stevie Ray changed the name to Double Trouble and Reese Wynans joined Double Trouble in 1985 playing keys. After Lou Ann Barton left Chris Layton and Tommy Shannon told Stevie Ray that he was going to have to sing but Stevie Ray wasn't confident with his vocals but thank God he agreed. On October 10, 1989 won Stevie Ray a Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Blues. Stevie Ray won Best New Talent, Best Electric Blues Guitar and Best Guitar Album with Texas Flood , Stevie Ray and Jeff Beck are the only Triple Award Guitarist ever to win these. On November 18, 1984 Stevie Ray won a W.C.Handy National Blues Award, Entertainer Of The Year, Blues Instermentalist Of The Year, he was the first white person to win either. . Stevie Ray Vaughan's career only span 7 years with the release of his album Texas Flood on June 19, 1983 in 1982 he was inducted into The Austin Music Hall Of Fame, in 2000 he was inducted into The Blues Hall Of Fame, he won 6 Grammys, 10 Austin Music Awards, 5 W.C.Handy Awards and in 2015 he was inducted into The Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame, it's so sad that Stevie Ray didn't live to see all the awards he won after his death, Stevie Ray never got to enjoy a #1 hit because his only #1 hit was Crossfire and that was only 2 months after his death so imo he was the most underrated artist ever. On August 26, 1990 Stevie Ray went to EastTroy, Wisconsin to open 2 shows for Eric Clapton along with Robert Clay, Buddy Guy and his brother Jimmie Vaughan. August 27th everyone was sitting around eating and Stevie Ray came down sat down next to Jimmie and told him he had a weird dream that he died and he was looking down at all these people crying. On August 27,1990 after Eric Clapton finish his show they all came out and the last song Stevie Ray ever performed with Buddy Guy, Robert Clay, Eric Clapton and his brother Jimmie was Sweet Home Chicago. Stevie Ray boarded a helicopter that crashed into the side of a mountain right after takeoff and everyone on board were killed. . Stevie Ray's guitar tech is named Rene Martinez, he could switch Stevie Ray's guitar in less than 5 seconds, Rene said Stevie Ray used 13 gage strings (very thick, like cable wire) Stevie Ray would break strings one after another so Rene came up with a technique so Stevie Ray wouldn't break so many strings what a genius. imo STEVIE RAY VAUGHAN WILL ALWAYS BE THE GOAT. sorry I did it again, I try not to keep my comments to long but I've been a huge Stevie Ray Vaughan fan for over 40 years and had to know every single thing about him but I didn't mean to write a book 😂 love all your reactions and just subscribed thanks
That guitar tech is Rene Martinez -- who has gone on to work with many great guitarists, including John Mayer. Rene is an awesome flamenco-style guitarist himself. Stevie was the first musician he went on the road with as a guitar tech and he saved Stevie's fingers when he was playing 13 gauge strings on the high E. He worked out a set of strings that gave Stevie the tone he had to have without the wear and tear on his fingers. Big salute to the legendary Rene Martinez!
Can you hear the crowd cheering while Stevie does his guitar change. He's just a freaking guitar hero. Suave, smooth, swag, sexy and soulful string bender, thy name is Stevie Ray. ☮️
John Mayer actually inducted Stevie Ray Vaughan and Double Trouble into The Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame, John said Stevie Ray was always his hero and when Stevie Ray talked about his sobriety John Mayer said he never touched a drug or a drink of alcohol in his life because he wanted to be like his hero Stevie Ray Vaughan. I'll tell you Stevie Ray and his brother Jimmie Vaughan recorded an album called Family Style and there is a song called Tic-Tock we all need to hear the beautiful message especially today. Stevie Ray died just after the album was finished so Jimmie made a video and dedicated to Stevie Ray, it has old home movies of Jimmie and Stevie Ray at around 5-6 years old and videos of Stevie Ray's performances, Jimmie is wearing Stevie Ray's necklace. Stevie Ray is singing but there are different versions of that song so you would want the on with a pic of Stevie Ray and Jimmie sitting in a studio for an interview. I'm sure you'll love it.
Funny you mentioned John Mayer because you are right, he actually started his brand by ripping off everything SRV did, sounded and looked like. To this day it's hard to watch JM knowing he was nothing but a hack and ridding the coat tails of SRV. SRV was one of a kind and that sequence during his solo and broken string to changing guitars and not missing a beat is proof that no one can even come close to this man's god given talent, focus and showmanship. He is missed while we are stuck with hacks like JM.
May your brother rest in peace. So cool that you opened with visiting Stevie's house. To be honest, I sort of slept on the SRV phenomenon when he was alive. Thank God he left us with video of his great gift. RIP SRV.
The way he uses a guitar transcendent. His playing is obviously amazing, but he’s also constantly adjusting tone and volume, pickup selection, pedals, and does it so seamlessly that non guitarists do not notice, which is very difficult to do. Then when the string breaks he manages to keep the song going like nothing happened by playing any notes from the E string on the B string higher up the fretboard, before switching guitars. He’s thinking of like ten things at once and it comes out as a seamless and polished song.
My Dad, before he moved back to my home state, was living in Texas during the 80’s working as a draftsman. This was before I was born and he met my Mom. He told me about how he got off work late one night and went to the bars with his coworkers. I remember his words vividly: “We walked into this hole in the wall and sat and had a beer. There was a guy playing guitar in the corner and I didn’t think much of it until he started really getting into it. My coworker and told me that was Stevie Ray Vaughan. He finished his set and came to the bar and thank everyone for coming out. He sat with us for a few minutes and shook our hands.” My dad isn’t really into music or famous people, but when he told me this story, I almost fell out of my chair. My Dad met with my biggest musical influence. SRV Forever ❤
He went through guitar strings like that all the time. He had freakishly strong hands evidently. They always had a backup guitar ready to swap out if needed.
Mind you, this performance was after Stevie embraced sobriety. He was close to death by 1986, but got checked into rehab. A year later, he came back and played even better than he did before drugs and drinking took over his life. And then, sadly we lost him again in a helicopter crash.
Someone else for you to check out, is Glen Campbell. This is a man that could not read music, but yeah played with bands such as the Beach Boys, he was also a session player on many albums, and one of the few guitarist, that I know of that played a 12-string guitar. Someone else to listen to, is Roy Clark. Again someone that is phenomenal when it comes to hissing ability.
Riviera Paradise and Voodoo Child at this same Austin City Limits show gives a good example of Stevie's range and genius. Enjoy the rabbit hole. We'll be right here with ya. Awesome that you went to see his childhood home. I won't lie, that made the tears flow.
He did this song with Jeff Healy as well - amazing! Jeff is worth checking out - he went blind at the age of 1 and plays a killer guitar too. I would suggest "See the Light" or "As the Years go passing by".
That video of Stevie and Jeff doing Look at Little Sister is astounding. Jeff brought his A Game for sure. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-2HmLFyvFxTc.html
This man was truly gifted & in his short lifetime left us an amazing legacy. Stevie didn't have an easy life, and struggled with a severe addiction to alcohol & drugs that very nearly killed him. After getting clean and sober, he devoted his life and his music to caring for those who were hurting like he had been. He was reaching the pinnacle of both his personal & professional life when he was taken in a helicopter crash at just 35 years old. But he left a very personal message of healing in the form of a masterpiece, Riviera Paradise...which he dedicated to all who are suffering. If you want to know Stevie Ray's heart, listen to his performance of Riviera Paradise live in Austin. We lost not only a guitar legend, but a beautiful human being on that foggy night in Alpine Valley.
I was at Stevie Ray Vaughn's last concert the night his helicopter crashed after the show at Alpine Valley,Wisconsin August 26th 1990. The next morning when I heard the horrible news was one of the saddest days of my. The lineup was SRV, Eric Clapton, Robert Cray, Jimmie Vaughn and the Fabulous Thunderbirds and Buddy Guy. RIP SRV!
This is after he got clean from the addiction where he mixed cocaine and vodka together. He was so much more alert after he quit but he was always a great performer, from the very beginning!
I was 17, playing saxophone and trumpet in high school band, and my junior summer, I heard "THE SKY IS CRYING" by Stevie. I got the album, then I got Texas Flood....Then I got a stratocaster and strung it (to train) like he did with .0012 gauge strings (thick---called "telephone cables" ) and took 6 months of "blues lessons" without learning how to read a note. Nobody comes close to SRV (not even Jimi) but he has inspired hundreds of thousands of people to play.
There was actually a whole concert produced and released on video, "Live at El Mocambo". You wanna be impressed? He actually restrings during a song without stopping. Apparently, he was rather practiced at that particular 'art form'! Happy hunting & enjoy the rabbit hole!!!
He was amazing...I am 69 and remember him so well. His younger brother is a great guitar player too. He is a band called THE FABULOUS THUNDERBIRDS..Stevie Ray performed with Jeff Healey sometimes who was blind since birth from cancer. He eventually died of cancer. He was an amzing guitarist too. He played it laying across his lap
Agreed. I have paid my respects on several occasions. I was lucky enough to see him 3 times. Once at a private venue with maybe 50 people tops. I still weep every once in a while when I hear his music. He grabbed a large part of my soul and with a string from my heart, he helps me through this life. Thanks Stevie.
Thanks, Sebs - I love this - first of all, give it up for Reese Wynans on keys - as Stevie does.. and then that broken string/guitar switch - if you didn't SEE it, you'd never HEAR it, right? Love it! (p.s. Stevie was totally used to breaking strings... )
check out the video of him playing Tin Pan Alley with blues legend Johnny Copeland. Stevie saw him in the audience and pulled him up on stage to sit in on their set. dude ad-libbed lyrics and traded solos back and forth.
NO you will NOT be disappointed. I say both. Little Wing is my fave, then Voodoo Child. I'm talking 1968-9, by Jimi. Stevie made Little Wing complete. (Can't speak for anyone else.) I've always wondered what magic they may have created together. Both legends, each thru their own uniqueness.
By this time in his career {1989} .. Stevie had been out of rehab and clean 'n' sober for 3 years now. With a new outlook on life and reestablishing his relationship w/God, SRV showed people that life's realities we're never just about him. He committed himself into helping others get clean 'n' sober. A year later .. 1990 .. SRV told his band mates about a dream he had the night before the Alpine performance. He dreamed that he was attending his own funeral. As SRV boarded the helicopter that fateful night,..he turned, waved and told Chris @ Tommy that he 'loved them'. In just a matter of minutes after take off ... SRV was gone. RIP
Stevie Ray’s guitar tech was a guy named Rene Martinez. SRV broke a lot of strings so that guitar swap was like another Saturday night for them. They’d done it so many times. Rene knew to wait for the breakdown and had four bars to do it. It’s still the smoothest thing ever caught on tape.
He was one of a kind and did some amazing things with his raw talent. Jimi Hendrix was another master, who played with guitar with his teeth, set his guitar on fire and did some incredible work. Our generation was lucky enough to grow up listening to top of the line artist, before 'autotune' and all the tech today's artists rely on to get the job done. Thanks for sharing.
Your comments : "mega metaphysical metaphorical --- about rolling with the the punches, dealing with the unexpected, with grace, and because of that you just stay calm and the outcome will be like nothing's ever happened." I'm softly grinning, again good to hear/see SRV with your Reactions. :-)
You should check out Stevie and his brother Jimmie playing together at the same time on a double neck guitar. It's called "Pipeline". Stevie always thought his brother Jimmie was better. They finally did an album together before Stevie died. And for some great footage of Stevie and Jimmie when they were young take a look at "Tick Tock" by The Vaughn Brothers.
life without you live capitol theater 1985.technical issues,plays behind back,with his teeth looses a tooth n never missed a beat the whole song.its a must watch
"Life Without You", live at Capitol theater has all the wild things he does. You have to pay attention or you'll miss something. Amazing message in the middle, too.
Love it man as a Texan I hope you have enjoyed some of the sights and some of the great food! Hopefully you found the people and east TX as beautiful as I do! Have a blessed one and rip Stevie
I think one his finest performances is "Life Without You." Not only is it a beautiful and touching song, but he does some guitarwork that is even more impressive than this. The man plays behind his back!
Live at Rockpalast Lorelei 1984. Stevie Ray fully unleashed. Love the Austin City Limits gig, but he does refrain himself a little bit to keep the show within the time constraints (its a tv show).
