Austin City LimitsAustin City Limits will be taping a performance by The Civil Wars on Wednesday, Feb. 29th, at 8 pm at ACL Live at The Moody Theater. We will be giving away a limited number of space available passes to this taping. Enter your name and email address on this form by 9 am Monday, Feb. 27, for your chance to get passes.
*These passes are for standing only on the stage level and are not transferable or for sale.
It’s always a thrill to introduce the Austin City Limits audience to someone new, and we’re proud to be doing it again with the first ACL taping by the Alabama Shakes on March 13. Of course, the Athens, Alabama-spawned Shakes aren’t really new – the hard-touring band has been blazing a trail across the United States for the past year, spreading its bluesy rock & soul gospel to an ever-growing rabid fanbase. The quartet’s hard work – and fiery frontperson Brittany Howard’s powerful voice and undeniable charisma – has led to a well-received set at CMJ, a session for Seatlle’s public radio tastemaker KEXP, a slot opening for the Drive-By Truckers (at the band’s request), a post on the influential music blog Aquarium Drunkard and an appearance on Conan O’Brien’s TBS talk show. Now, with the debut record Boys & Girls poised for release in April, we’re happy to welcome the Alabama Shakes to the ACL stage on 3/13.
Keep an eye on the blog, our Facebook pageand Twitter feed regularly for news on the public ticket giveaway. This will be a special early show, starting at 6 p.m.
Back in Season 30, we presented an episode with the highly-praised indie pop band the Shins, then riding the wave of acclaim accompanying their Chutes Too Narrow LP. It’s been a while, then, but we’re pleased to welcome the band back on March 18 in anticipation of their new album Port of Morrow (which comes out a couple of days later). Leader James Mercer’s smart songs and well-rounded guitar pop have always sounded good to us, and we’re sure they ring true in The Moody Theater.
Keep an eye on the blog, our Facebook pageand Twitter feed regularly for news on the public ticket giveaway.
Winning two Grammy awards (including Best New Artist and Best Alternative Music Album) and carrying around enough critical acclaim to throw a gorilla’s back out, Bon Iver is on top of the rock world right now. So we’re pleased to invite singer/songwriter Justin Vernon and his crew to The Moody Theater on April 25 to tape their first episode of Austin City Limits. Bon Iver’s atmospheric indie pop has been taking the alt.rock world by storm since his beloved debut For Emma, Forever Ago, and we’re happy that we get to add songs from it and its Grammy-nominated successor Bon Iver, Bon Iver to the annals of ACL.
As always there will be a public giveaway. Check our Facebook and Twitter pages – and, of course, the blog – regularly for information on how you can be a part of the action.
The 54th annual Grammys ceremony has come and gone. While we were particularly excited this year because our own Terry Lickona co-produced the broadcast, we’d be remiss in not congratulating the winners, including upcoming ACL performers the Civil Wars, who took home trophies for Best Country Duo/Group Performance and Best Folk Album, ACL veterans Alison Krauss & Union Station, who won Best Bluegrass Album, Season 32 performer Corinne Bailey Rae, who earned Best R&B Vocal, and Season 34 alumni Foo Fighters, who swept the rock categories in the same way Adele swept the pop headings. Congratulations also to Coldplay, Wilco, the Decemberists, Mumford & Sons and Raphael Saadiq, who may not have won anything, but in a field as crowded as today’s music world, it really is an honor just to be nominated.
Looking for a complete list of winners and nominees? The Grammy website has you covered – go here for the details.
When it comes to reggae, Jimmy Cliff whose episode of Austin City Limits encores this Saturday, 2/11, is indistiputably one of the greats. He first found fame as a teenager, with a string of hit singles in his native Jamaica. By the late 60s, reggae was spreading beyond Jamaica’s borders and Cliff became one of its first international stars with “Wonderful World, Beautiful People” and “Vietnam,” which Bob Dylan called “the best protest song I’ve ever heard.” In 1972 Cliff starred in the acclaimed film The Harder They Come, writing and singing the hit title song. Other Cliff compositions like “Many Rivers to Cross” and “You Can Get It If You Really Want” have also become often-covered, much-loved reggae standards. Cliff continues to record and tour all over the world, collaborating with Sting, the Clash’s Joe Strummer, Kool & the Gang, Wyclef Jean and the Rolling Stones along the way. As popular now as he ever was, Jimmy Cliff is the face of reggae, as you’ll see for yourself this Saturday – check your local PBS listings for the broadcast time and channel.
Jimmy Cliff at ACL: Behind The Scenes from Jonathan Jackson on Vimeo.
Head over to theepisode page for more information and some cool photos. Don’t forget to visit us regularly on Facebook, Twitter and this very blog for the latest and greatest ACL news, and check our excellent Tumblr blog for some cool photographic blasts from the past. Next week: Steve Martin & the Steep Canyon Rangers, followed by hometown heroine Sarah Jarosz.