Category: Featured

Austin City Limits presents a Season 45 highlight: Steve Earle & The Dukes spotlighting the songwriting legacy of the legendary Guy Clark. Americana stalwart Earle makes his fifth appearance on the ACL stage paying tribute to his mentor, the late Texas singer-songwriter and ACL Hall of Fame legend Guy Clark, in a heartwarming hour filled with choice classics and personal anecdotes.  Performing a collection of gems from his acclaimed Clark tribute album Guy, Earle is accompanied by his five-piece band The Dukes, and special guests including Rodney Crowell, Joe Ely, Terry Allen and Jo Harvey Allen. The episode is capped with vintage clips from Clark’s own ACL appearances, including his 1977 debut.  

Steve Earle kicks off the hour appropriately singing “I wish I was in Austin…,” the infamous opening of Guy Clark’s “Dublin Blues.”  In his signature bandana, the Americana maverick Earle showcases a true Texas icon in this moving hour, filled with entertaining stories and personal tales from Earle’s longtime relationship with one of his main songwriting influences.  Earle explains how he, at 19, first met Guy after hitchhiking from Texas to Tennessee, eventually playing bass in Clark’s band “until Guy needed a better bass player.” Earle shares the stage with special guests: Texas legend Joe Ely joins Earle for the beloved Clark signature “Desperados Waiting For A Train”; and Rodney Crowell collaborates on a rousing duet of “Heartbroke”, an early nugget Crowell first recorded in 1980.  Earle performs a stunning solo acoustic reading of “Randall Knife,” adding his own powerful take on a Clark classic.  “I guess I should play a couple of songs of mine so y’all won’t think Guy didn’t teach me anything,” quips Earle before launching into gorgeous renditions of a pair of his own: “Guitar Town,” the 1986 track that introduced Earle’s talents to the world, and “Copperhead Road”. “That’s what I learned from Guy Clark,” asserts Earle before bringing Ely and Crowell back, joined by Lubbock legends Terry Allen and Jo Harvey Allen, saying “Everyone here loved Guy Clark.” The Texas natives close out the hour together with a poignant rendition of the Clark gem, “Old Friends,” as each artist takes a turn at the mic: “...Old friends they shine like diamonds.”  Earle leads the audience in a final round of the chorus, before calling out directly to his songwriting hero at the close: “Guy Charles Clark—see you when I get there, maestro.” 

“There’s nobody better suited personally, musically, or emotionally to bring new life to the songs of Guy Clark than Steve Earle,” says ACL executive producer Terry Lickona. “Guy’s songs are timeless, but Steve makes sure that nobody will forget why he will always be considered the Dean of Texas songwriters.” 

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. Join us next week for another brand new episode, featuring rising  R&B star H.E.R.

Austin City Limits showcases acclaimed artist Maggie Rogers in a sparkling hour premiering as part of ACL’s milestone Season 45.

Maggie Rogers makes her ACL debut in an irresistible hour showcasing songs from her Capitol Records debut album Heard It In A Past Life.  Raised in rural Easton, Maryland, the 25-year-old phenom delivers a captivating rendition of “Alaska,” the breakout song that became a viral sensation and introduced her talents as a songwriter and producer to the world.  Heard It In  Past Life entered Billboard’s Top Album Sales chart at No. 1 and debuted at No. 2 on the Billboard 200 Chart.  The album sold over 200,000 album adjusted units, amassed over 500 million combined streams and received widespread critical praise from NPR, The New York Times, Rolling Stone, Pitchfork, TIME Magazine, Billboard and many more. 

Her buoyant 11-song set is filled with open-hearted anthems about love and relationships, including chart-topping fan-favorites “Light On” and “Fallingwater.”  Rogers dances ecstatically across the stage, glowing as she moves with her music’s creative beats. With barefaced honesty, she inspires a genuine connection with her audience, and the admiring Austin crowd sings along passionately on the choruses. The magnetic artist closes out the standout hour alone on the stage for a gorgeous a cappella performance of “Color Song,” signaling an enduring new talent has arrived.

“Maggie’s music is 100% emotion,” says ACL executive producer Terry Lickona, “and her live performances are exuberant and unfettered in a way you seldom see on a stage. Her music celebrates life, and Maggie Rogers is a gift to us all.”

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. Join us next week for another brand new episode, featuring veteran singer/songwriter Steve Earle’s tribute to his mentor Guy Clark.

Austin City Limits launches a new broadcast season of spectacular performances with a must-see hour taking a deep-dive with a boundary-pushing artist, Grammy® Award-winning Gary Clark Jr.  

“Feels good up here,” proclaims Gary Clark Jr. during his third headline appearance on the ACL stage. The Austin native opens the hour with a blistering performance of the hit that launched his meteoric rise, “Bright Lights” from his 2012 debut Blak and Blu. The song’s refrain “...you gonna know my name,” couldn’t be more apt for the Texan who has had a whirlwind ascent from the Austin club scene to show-stopping performances on festival stages around the world.  Clark showcases songs from his latest, the critically-acclaimed This Land, his third major label release, which features some of his most powerful songwriting to date, with profound lyrics about life, love, restlessness and racism.  Clark moves in and out of blues, soul, gospel, reggae and punk easily in the nine-song set, dazzling on the reggae-rock swagger of “Feelin’ Like A Million,” and shifting to the falsetto-laden “Feed the Babies.” 

Bringing the crowd to their feet with a scorching rendition of his early classic “When My Train Pulls In,” Clark’s guitar solo is a masterclass in creative improvisation, wandering between different registers, exploring various motifs and bringing it down low to build it back into strobed-out fury.  “I grew up watching ACL,” says the hometown hero who has stated he learned to play guitar watching his own heros, including Stevie Ray Vaughan, on old episodes of the series.  Clark brings it all back to love, a frequent theme, with “Pearl Cadillac,” a gorgeous R&B/pop crooner dedicated to his mother and channeling another guitar hero, Prince.  He closes out the explosive set with a fierce version of “This Land,” the socially-charged anthem and a personal battle cry. “Sometimes people don’t know how to act right, so I got something for them,” says Clark. 

“It has been amazing and inspiring to see Gary grow as an artist since that first time he set foot on the ACL stage,” says longtime executive producer Terry Lickona. “From the first time I saw him play when he was 16, his talents were undeniable, and he has truly become the consummate artist – all the best that Austin represents.”

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. Join us next week for another brand new episode, featuring fast-rising singer, songwriter and producer Maggie Rogers.