At the risk of bragging, we’ve had a lot of legends on Austin City Limits: Johnny Cash, Neil Young, Loretta Lynn, Jerry Lee Lewis, B.B. King. This weekend we present songwriting legend Allen Toussaint. The veteran writer/musician has been the master of modern New Orleans music since the 50s, penning or producing hits for Ernie K-Doe (“Mother in Law”), Lee Dorsey (“Working in the Coal Mine”), Glen Campbell (“Southern Nights”), the Pointer Sisters (“Yes We Can Can”) and LaBelle (“Lady Marmalade”), among many, many others. He’s also cut a series of acclaimed solo records, from Life, Love & Faith and Southern Nights in the 1970s to The River in Reverse, his 2006 collaboration with Elvis Costello. Toussaint came to the ACL stage in support of his 2009 LP The Bright Mississippi, a showcase for both his love of jazz and his formidable piano chops. Tune in this weekend for an impeccable set of jazz standards, R&B chestnuts and possibly the best-dressed artist we’ve ever had in Studio 6A.
Go here for more details on this episode, and don’t forget to check in with our Facebook, Twitter and Tumblr pages. Next week: Florence + the Machine and Lykke Li.
When Alejandro Escovedo returned to the ACL stage for his third showcase (or fourth, if you count his appearance as a member of Rank & File way back in Season 8), he brought a stripped-down band and sound. Rather than the expansive sonics of his Orchestra, the mission of the Sensitive Boys is to rock the heck out. Having showcased his love of early 70s glam/proto-punk rockers like Mott the Hoople and Lou Reed on recent LPs Real Animal and Street Songs of Love, Escovedo brings that aesthetic to our stage for a blazing rock & roll set full of great tunes like “Anchor,” “Faith” and “Always a Friend.” If you’re not jumping around the room, you might need to check your pulse.
photo by Scott Newton
And as long as you’re on your feet, you want to stay there for Trombone Shorty & Orleans Avenue. From his days as a pre-teen jazz prodigy, Troy Andrews has been absorbing every musical sound that comes out of his native New Orleans, with an emphasis on his town’s particularly groovy brand of funk. Andrews and his crack band showed their mastery on their first major label Backatown, and hit the same second line grooves hard on our stage. “Hurricane Season” and “Where Y’at?’ are greasy enough, but when the band launches into their James Brown medley, it’s time to tear the roof off the sucker.
You can check out the episode page for more details, as well as our video page for some behind-the-scenes action. Don’t forget to stop by our Facebook, Twitter and Tumblr pages for regular updates on the ACL universe. Next week: a beloved classic featuring the one and only Roy Orbison.
Austin City Limits presents a special encore featuring musical highlights and tributes from the 2015 Austin City Limits Hall of Fame. Hosted by Dwight Yoakam on June 18, 2015, this unique special showcases one-of-a-kind performances and collaborations from the ACL Hall of Fame celebration, honoring the artists who’ve helped make the award-winning tv series an American music institution. An all-star line-up including Lyle Lovett, Jason Isbell, Vince Gill, Patty Loveless, Dwight Yoakam, Gillian Welch and more come together for one night to perform in honor of the newest class of inductees: Asleep at the Wheel, Guy Clark, Flaco Jiménez, Loretta Lynn and Townes Van Zandt.
ACL reaches back to its roots with a show-opening tribute to country trailblazer Loretta Lynn, who first appeared on the series in 1983. Country singer Patty Loveless, also a coal miner’s daughter, pays tribute to the living legend, and is joined by Vince Gill for a spirited duet of the Conway Twitty/Loretta Lynn classic “After the Fire Is Gone.” Lynn accepts her honor saying “Texas has always been so good to me. They fed me when my kids was hungry. They fed me when I was hungry.” Lyle Lovett takes the stage to honor Texas songwriting legend Guy Clark, saying “He is my friend. He is my hero,” with a stunning reading of the first song Clark ever wrote: “Step Inside This House.” Acclaimed singer-songwriter Jason Isbell performs a moving solo rendition of a Clark classic, “Desperados Waiting For A Train.”
Superstar Tex-Mex accordionist Flaco Jiménez makes a joyous show-stopping cameo during his own tribute, joining Dwight Yoakam, Los Lobos’ David Hidalgo and conjunto masters Los Texmaniacs to show off his nimble accordion style. The late, great Texas troubadour Townes Van Zandt, who first appeared in ACL’s debut season in 1975, is honored beautifully in acoustic performances by roots outfit Gillian Welch and British singer-songwriter Laura Marling. Austin’s own Asleep at the Wheel, who performed on the very first episode of ACL in 1975, are inducted by longtime fan Vince Gill, who joins the Western swing institution for a lively take on their early recording “Take Me Back to Tulsa.”
The special comes to a perfect close with the night’s entire cast returning to the ACL stage for a grand finale, trading verses on a Townes Van Zandt classic, “White Freightliner Blues.”
photo by Gary Miller
“We created our own Hall of Fame as part of our 40th anniversary last year to recognize and celebrate those artists who were there in the beginning and helped make Austin City Limits what it is today,” says ACL executive producer Terry Lickona. “The annual event is a unique showcase for some amazing performances and emotional moments, and we’re thrilled to be able to capture it all to bring to our fans at home.”
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 encore episode with Ed Sheeran and Valerie June.
“It’s great to be back at the world’s greatest and longest-running music show,” enthused Emmylou Harris tonight during her latest ACL taping. To say that she and Rodney Crowell aren’t strangers to our stage seems inadequate. Both Texas native Crowell and his current partner and former employer Harris have been on seven times apiece. The pair even shared an episode in 1983, though they didn’t share the stage. Tonight, however, these two old friends celebrated their shared history, their new collaborative album Old Yellow Moon and the continuing power of the song.
The pair opened with “Return of the Grievous Angel,” from Emmylou’s time with her mentor Gram Parsons. The GP connection continued with “Wheels,” a Flying Burrito Brothers-era Parsons tune Emmylou recorded on Elite Hotel, her first major label album and the beginning of her reign over the country music charts. That began the roll of hits, as the pair essayed “Pancho & Lefty,” ‘Til I Gain Control Again,” “I’ll Be Your San Antone Rose” (dedicated to its author, the late Susannah Clark) and “Luxury Liner,” another GP tune set aflame by lead guitarist Jedd Hughes’ turbo-powered chicken-pickin’. The duo fast-forwarded to a more recent era for “Red Dirt Girl” (from Harris’ LP of the same name) and “Rock of My Soul” (from Crowell’s career revitalization The Houston Kid), their voices wrapped the songs in the kind of harmonies only two old friends can generate.
An Old Yellow Moon rose for the next segment of the show, as the pair drew heavily from that LP. The pleasure these two old pals obviously took from singing some of their favorite songs – from Roger Miller’s honky-tonkin’ “Invitation to the Blues” and Matraca Berg’s melancholy “Back When We Were Beautiful” to Allen Reynolds’ elegant “Dreaming My Dreams” and Kris Kristofferson’s cautionary but rocking “Chase the Feeling” – was palpable. Then it was back to the hits, as the pair broke out Emmylou’s lovely take on Townes Van Zandt’s “If I Needed You,” blazed through Crowell’s “Leaving Louisiana in the Broad Daylight” (recorded by both of them at different points) and ended with the peaceful waltz of “Old Yellow Moon.”
Of course, the show wasn’t over. The duo and band returned, Harris and special guest Shawn Colvin dancing their way through Crowell’s “Stars On the Water.” The musicians rocked a blazing “I Ain’t Livin’ Long Like This,” a song not on the original setlist but an addition that drove the crowd wild. After a visit from Harris’ rescue dogs (brought onstage in tribute to Austin’s status as a no-kill city), the pair ended with “Tulsa Queen,” a co-write from Harris’ classic LP Luxury Liner that was a most appropriate way to end this tandem performance.
It was a magnificent show that reminded us that veterans get to that point for good reason. We’re eager for everybody to see it when it broadcasts on PBS in the fall – stay tuned.
Music legends Emmylou Harris and Rodney Crowell return to Austin City Limits and share the stage for the first time. The pair celebrate their shared history, their recent collaborative album Old Yellow Moon and the continuing power of the song in a new episode that premieres November 2nd. Check with your local station for showtimes.
Friends for forty years, Harris and Crowell have an entwined four-decade history of music-making. ACL veterans, both artists have each appeared on the program seven times, although this episode marks the first time the pair have performed together on the ACL stage. The Americana icons perform favorites and songs from their acclaimed duets album Old Yellow Moon. The collaboration was chosen as album of the year at this year’s Americana Music Awards and the pair was honored as duo of the year. American Songwriter says of the album, “On Old Yellow Moon, Harris and Crowell embrace the entire range of life and music they’ve experienced, from the reckless passions of youth to the reflectiveness of age, from loose-limbed hillbilly boogies to graceful balladry.”
“It’s great to be back at the world’s greatest and longest-running music show,” says Harris as she takes the ACL stage with Crowell. The breathtaking performance includes the two longtime kindred spirits joining their voices on Crowell originals as well as revivals of songs by Roger Miller, Matraca Berg and Kris Kristofferson. Harris opens with some of her earlier Gram Parsons-era hits, and the duo fast-forwards to a more recent era for Harris’ “Red Dirt Girl” and Crowell’s “Rock of My Soul,” their voices wrapping the songs in the kind of harmonies only old friends can generate. Special guest Shawn Colvin joins in the finale for a spirited take on Crowell’s “Stars On the Water.” The episode celebrates a longtime friendship and collaboration, and the pleasure the two music legends take from singing some of their favorite songs is palpable.
photo by Scott Newton
“Emmylou and Rodney are an important part of the history of ACL – going all the way back practically to the beginning,” says executive producer Terry Lickona. “But it goes deeper than that – they reflect the heart and soul of what ACL is all about. And the two of them together is a perfect example of the whole being greater than the sum of its parts!”
