Category: Episode Recap

Austin City Limits presents a captivating hour with two of contemporary country music’s brightest: Margo Price in her ACL debut and Hayes Carll making a return appearance.

Rising star Margo Price had a banner 2016 with the release of her acclaimed solo debut Midwest Farmer’s Daughter. Recorded at Memphis’ fabled Sun Studios and released by Jack White’s Third Man Records, the album topped critics’ year-end-best lists with Rolling Stone raving, “It’s the kind of record that hits you in the gut: staggeringly honest, as devastating as it is joyful and whip-smart.” Opening her stellar ACL debut with the honky tonk comeuppance “About To Find Out,” Price puts a fresh spin on classic Nashville with her sharp songwriting, steely vocals and dynamic road-tested live persona. “Hands of Time,” about a heartbreaking run of bad luck, leads into the crowd-pleasing set-closer “Hurtin’ (On the Bottle),” as Price ventures into the audience surrounded by newfound fans.

“A wry Texas troubadour with a knack for crooked grace and a clever turn of phrase” (New York Times), Hayes Carll returns for his first appearance since his ACL debut in 2010. The native Texan recalls his troubadour roots with his first album in five years, the critically acclaimed Lovers and Leavers, after having garnered a 2016 Grammy nomination for Best Country Song. Carll dedicates the artful set-opener “Sake of the Song” to a creative influence, the late, great Guy Clark, calling him the “lion of the songwriting world.” His natural gift for storytelling is evident in his startlingly personal six-song set, with its highlight “The Magic Kid,” a song about his son’s determination to be a magician, stealing the show and demonstrating Carll’s own brand of magic. He reaches back to his 2005 breakthrough Little Rock to close out the set, showcasing the fascinating and fearless evolution of a songwriting giant.

“If you’re not a fan of Nashville’s pop country trends, this show will be a breath of fresh air,” says longtime ACL executive producer Terry Lickona. “Margo writes and sings with a classic country touch, but what she writes about totally speaks to today. Hayes carries on the proud tradition of Texas songwriters, and this is his best work to date.”

Tune in this weekend for this episode, and, as always, check your local PBS listings for the broadcast time in your area. Go to the episode page for more info, and don’t forget to click over to our Facebook, Twitter and newsletter pages for more ACL info. Tune in next week for a brand new episode, featuring the return of Band of Horses and the debut of Parker Millsap.

Austin City Limits presents an irresistible hour with the ever-entertaining Cyndi Lauper, as she performs her mega-hits alongside classic country covers from her recently released Detour, her acclaimed eleventh studio album.

The pink-haired Lauper charms one and all in a sparkling hour featuring some of her best-known songs and the story behind her current country-flavored Detour. “I know a lot of you are thinking: what does Queens, New York have to do with anything country?” says the native East Coaster as she explores her love of vintage country & western, putting her unique spin on Wanda Jackson’s “Funnel of Love,” Skeeter Davis’ “The End of the World,” Patsy Montana’s “I Want To Be A Cowboy’s Sweetheart,” and Bob Montgomery’s “Misty Blue”.  Lauper knocks out numbers from her own back catalog including a fevered version of “Money Changes Everything,” from her 1983 breakthrough She’s So Unusual, with the energetic hitmaker bopping across the stage, fueled by the enthusiastic Austin crowd. She delivers a gorgeous take on the 1984 ballad “Time After Time,” her first No. 1 hit.  Her signature anthem, the buoyant “Girls Just Want to Have Fun,” turns into a riotous audience sing-a-long as the dancing Lauper proclaims from the stage, “We’re all entitled to a joyful life!”  The colorful star closes out the masterful set with a breathtaking a cappella version of her enduring—and timely—anthem, “True Colors,” extolling the virtues of diversity, with Lauper imploring the crowd to “be brave and kind—we need each other.”

“With Cyndi Lauper, what you see is what you get,” said longtime ACL executive producer Terry Lickona. “And what you get is a totally unabashed, uninhibited, full-throated performance by one of the most unique artists in show business. Who knew she had such a perfect voice for such great country music classics? My only regret is there wasn’t time to include more of her side-splitting sense of humor.”

Tune in this weekend for this episode, and, as always, check your local PBS listings for the broadcast time in your area. Go to the episode page for more info, and don’t forget to click over to our Facebook, Twitter and newsletter pages for more ACL info. Tune in next week for a brand new episode featuring the ACL debut of rising star Margo Price and the return of Texas favorite Hayes Carll.

Austin City Limits showcases two of modern rock’s best live acts: My Morning Jacket and Ben Harper.  The longtime fan favorites make return appearances armed with new material in a must-see installment as part of ACL’s Season 42.

My Morning Jacket return for the first time in nearly a decade for their third Austin City Limits appearance, highlighting songs from their last two studio albums, The Waterfall and Circuital.  The Kentucky indie-rockers, five-time Grammy Award-winners, kick off a blissed-out 4-song set with the title track to 2011’s Circuital.  Charismatic leader Jim James dazzles in a colorful kimono and big sunglasses as the band builds their signature soundscapes, including a tune from The Waterfall, a 2016 Grammy nominee for Best Alternative Album.  Their psychedelic textures expand into a glorious wall of sound for the set-closer “Victory Dance,” as the shape-shifting James prowls the stage with a towel on his head and an electronic sampler around his neck for an epic close.

Ben Harper reunites with his longtime backing band the Innocent Criminals after a seven-year hiatus for his first ACL appearance since Season 35.  Harper and crew deliver a powerful, six-song set featuring classics and new songs from 2016’s acclaimed Call It What It Is.  Opening with the ever-catchy “Steal My Kisses,” the frontman gets the crowd on its feet, then segues into soulful new gems, showcasing his trademark lap steel guitar bona fides.  The socially-charged title track from his latest release has Harper reciting the names of gone-too-soon young black men.  Harper’s show-stopping performance of the take-us-to-church gospel burner “Where Could I Go” leaves both singer and audience overcome from the power of the moment, exposing the painfully honest and self-reflective lyrics that have made Harper a fan-favorite for 20-plus years.

“Jim James has appeared on the ACL stage in many musical guises, as befits his wildly eclectic virtuosity,” says ACL executive producer Terry Lickona.  “But My Morning Jacket brings him back to ground zero where he is most at home. He’s one of the best at engaging a live audience, and it shows.  Ben Harper is another perennial favorite, always in tune with the times, his fans and his musical muse.  It’s very much like a homecoming for both of them, but more akin to two old friends coming home from long musical journeys to show us what they’ve learned.”

Tune in this weekend for this episode, and, as always, check your local PBS listings for the broadcast time in your area. Go to the episode page for more info, and don’t forget to click over to our Facebook, Twitter and newsletter pages for more ACL info. Tune in next week for an ACL Presents special, featuring the Americana Music Festival 2016.