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Encore Broadcast Episode Recap Featured News

Encore: Bonnie Raitt and Mavis Staples

This weekend, ACL brings you Mavis Staples and Bonnie Raitt, two legends and soul sisters with the perfect combination of soul, R&B, blues, and gospel. “We come this evening to bring you some joy, some happiness, inspiration and some positive vibrations,” declared Miss Staples back in June 2012 during the taping, and boy, did they deliver! This was a night full of smoky voices, sassy guitar playing, audience hooplah and ardent exhibition.

This episode marks Bonnie Raitt’s third appearance on Austin City Limits. The audience greets the nine-time Grammy Award-winner and bestselling artist with much love and admiration. She predominantly plays off of her 2012 album Slipstream, including “Down to You,” “Used to Rule the World” and a bluesy take on the Bob Dylan song “One Million Miles.” She finally exclaims, “Awww man! I love John Hiatt!” before ending with her Nick of Time hit “Thing Called Love.”

photo by Scott Newton

Mavis Staples is a clearly a legend. This lady has seen it all from singing songs on the forefront of the Civil Rights movement to being inducted in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Joined onstage with three backup singers and a backing band, Mavis’ energy and famous low register voice charm the audience like we’ve never seen on classics like “Creep Along Moses” and “Freedom Highway.” At the end of the set, Mavis invites her lovingly coined “baby sister” Bonnie Raitt onstage for a couple of songs. On the emotional duet “Losing You,” dedicated to their fathers, Mavis and Bonnie share a moment where they hold hands and look at each other – it’s one of the incredibly touching moments of the evening. They end the night with a rendition of “Will the Circle Be Unbroken” that had the entire audience clapping and dancing.

photo by Scott Newton

Don’t miss this inspiring and heartfelt episode – you won’t regret it. To find out when and where you can catch this episode check here for local listings. Also, don’t forget to “Like” us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter, or sign up for our newsletter, for more ACL news and info. Next week: Bon Iver.

 

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Taping Recap

Shakey Graves wows hometown crowd

Shakey Graves has worked hard in the last few years. The Austin musician known as Alejandro Rose-Garcia to his parents has been a road dog of the first degree, taking first his one-man-band act then his band on the road to any club, festival and living room that would have him. The work has paid off with a pair of highly acclaimed albums and a growing national fanbase. For last night’s livestreamed taping, the young singer/songwriter was welcomed by a loving hometown crowd.

“I’m just gonna take a minute and soak all this in,” Graves said before launching into “Roll the Bones,” the title track of his debut album. Thumping a suitcase bass drum and tambourine combo and fingerpicking a noisy hollowbody guitar, the raspy-voiced Austin native made his case immediately: passionate, funny, mindful of folk and blues tradition without being dragged down by it. Graves was joined by his stalwart drummer Boo for the cowpunkabilly “If Not For You” and then by guitarist Patrick O’Connor for the more folky “Family and Genus,” with the trio then taking “The Perfect Parts” to the swamp. Boo and O’Connor took a break to let Graves go back to singing solo, digging into his folk bag for “Tomorrow,” the vaudeville-tinged “Chinatown” (a request from his mom, who was present) and “ Proper Fence,” which ended with playful call and response with the crowd. Following the fingerpicked electric blues of “Buil to Roam,” Graves’ band then retook the stage, swaying into the grungy “Pansy Waltz” and blazing into the surfing cowpunk of “Where a Boy Once Stood.” Inviting his friend Carson McHone to duet, Graves and co. ended the main set with his triple-A radio hit “Dearly Departed,” which brought the audience to its feet.

Graves came back alone for the encore, showing off both sides of his personality: the sensitive troubadour of “Hard Wired” and the sardonic storyteller behind the crime story “Late July.” With that one-two punch, the show concluded to rapturous applause, as the hometown hero left the stage. It was an excellent show, and we can’t wait for you to see it when it airs during Season 41 on PBS.

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Featured News

Austin City Limits Announces Performers for 2015 ACL Hall of Fame

Austin City Limits announces guest performers for the 2015 ACL Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony on Thursday, June 18th: country legend Vince Gill, acclaimed singer-songwriter Jason Isbell, multi-platinum country artist Patty Loveless, British singer-songwriter Laura Marling, Los Lobos frontman David Hidalgo, Grammy-winning conjunto band Los Texmaniacs and Texas singer-songwriter JT Van Zandt.

Hosted by multiple GRAMMY Award-winning country star Dwight Yoakam, who will also perform, the celebration honors the second class of inductees with one-of-a-kind music performances and tributes, as five trailblazing artists are inducted: Asleep at the Wheel, Loretta Lynn, Guy Clark, Flaco Jiménez and Townes Van Zandt. The event is open to the public this year and will take place at ACL’s studio home, Austin’s ACL Live at The Moody Theater. A limited number of tickets are available at acltv.com/hall-of-fame. Musical highlights and inductions from the ceremony will be broadcast in a special episode as part of ACL’s Season 41 which premieres in the fall on PBS.

More information about performances and additional guest stars will be announced prior to the event. Inductees Asleep at the Wheel and Flaco Jiménez will also perform at the ceremony and country icon Loretta Lynn will accept her honor in a special video for the occasion. Renowned steel guitarist and producer Lloyd Maines, inducted last year into the ACL Hall of Fame, returns as Music Director, leading an Austin all-star house band.

The newest class of inductees also recognizes—in the non-performer category—the original ACL crew, who will be honored at the event, and who played an important role in the launch and continuing success of the influential series and some of whom are still part of the crew today. The Austin City Limits Hall of Fame celebrates the legacy of legendary artists and key individuals who have been instrumental in the pioneering music series remarkable 40+ years as an American music institution. The inaugural induction ceremony took place April 26, 2014 and honored Willie Nelson, Stevie Ray Vaughan & Double Trouble, Bill Arhos, Darrell Royal and Lloyd Maines. The Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony is an annual event, honoring a new class of inductees each year.

Austin City Limits and the Austin City Limits Hall of Fame are produced by KLRU-TV, Austin PBS. KLRU is a non-profit organization providing public television and educational resources to Central Texas as well as producing quality national programming. Net proceeds from this event benefit KLRU.

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Encore Broadcast Episode Recap News

Encore: Beck

This weekend, Beck rocks ACL with an epic, career-spanning full-hour performance. One of the most creative artists of his generation, Beck shines in an exceptionally entertaining hour, showcasing a mix of vintage fan favorites and more recent gems. Promoting his mightily acclaimed LP Morning Phase, Beck and his crack band of longtime friends and collaborators shift from quiet contemplation to rousing party jams with chameleonic skill and unabashed enthusiasm. The L.A. native goes into troubadour mode for the beautiful, emotional “Blue Moon,” “Waking Light” and “Let It Go,” showcasing his depth as a songwriter. But he also blows the doors off with the dynamic, houseshaking hits “Loser” and an epic blast through his anthem “Where It’s At.”

Tune in this Saturday for this soon to be classic episode, and, as always, check your local PBS listings for the broadcast time in your area. Click over to the episode page for more info, and don’t forget to click over to our Facebook, Twitter and newsletter pages for more ACL goodies. Next week: Bonnie Raitt and Mavis Staples.

photo by Scott Newton

 

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Featured Live Stream News

Shakey Graves taping livestreams on May 6

Austin City Limits is pleased to announce that we will be streaming our taping with Shakey Graves live on Wednesday, May 6, 8pm CT/9pm ET. The taping will webcast in its entirety via our YouTube channel.

Austin-based singer/songwriter Shakey Graves will be playing songs from his acclaimed 2014 LP And the War Came. An actor who had a recurring role on Friday Night Lights and appeared in several Robert Rodriguez films, the erstwhile Alejandro Rose-Garcia started making music as part of New York City’s “anti-folk” scene. Since returning to Austin, Shakey Graves has become so closely associated with his hometown that for the last three years, Austin has celebrated “Shakey Graves Day” by mayoral proclamation. With And the War Came, he extends the ground emotionally and sonically broken by his 2011 self-released debut Roll the Bones, which still ranks near the top of Bandcamp’s digital best-seller charts. As noted by Exclaim, And the War Came “displays remarkable growth as a songwriter, guitar player and arranger without entirely leaving behind the one-man-band, lo-fi aesthetic that made his debut such a captivating listen.”

The broadcast version of this show will air this fall on PBS.  Join us for this live webcast of the Austin City Limits debut of Shakey Graves.

 

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News

Giveaway: Shakey Graves 5/6

UPDATE: Giveaway is now over. If you did not receive an email with passes to the taping, you can watch the live stream on our Youtube Channel.

Austin City Limits will be taping a performance by Shakey Graves on Wednesday, May 6th, at 8 pm at ACL Live at The Moody Theater (310 W. 2nd Street, Willie Nelson Blvd).  We will be giving away a limited number of space available passes to this taping. Enter your name and email address on the below form by 9 am on May 4th. Winners will be chosen at random and a photo ID will be required to pickup tickets. Winners will be notified by email. Passes are not transferable and cannot be sold. Standing may be required.

No photography, recording or cell phone use in the studio. No cameras allowed in venue.