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Encore Broadcast News

Encore: Lyle Lovett and Bob Schneider

This weekend it’s a Texas singer/songwriter bonanza, as we encore the 2010 season-ending episode featuring Lyle Lovett and Bob Schneider.

Lyle Lovett is no stranger to ACL audiences – this episode is his eleventh appearance (counting his stint as Nanci Griffith’s backing singer in 1984, prior to his proper debut in 1987). An iconic Texas artist with strong country-western roots, the scope of Lyle’s musical appetites – harvesting elements from gospel, jazz, pop, and folk – has lent itself to a body of work that truly reflects the spirit of ACL. This performance, which hightlights the album Natural Forces, was the final taping in the show’s original home of Studio 6A on the UT campus – the next season saw ACL in the fabulous ACL Live at the Moody Theater. Come relive (or re-relive, if you’ve seen this show before) the memories with us.

Bob Schneider has also been on ACL before, back in 2000, and has been a mainstay of the Austin music scene since his late 80s days with the band Joe Rockhead. His muse has tripped down the aisles of nearly every genre you’d care to name, from funk metal to bluegrass, and he and a small army of musicians touch on everything in this performance. “My favorite songwriters never wrote songs that sounded the same or had the same general feel,” Schneider says, explaining the show’s eclectic nature. “How could I expect to keep myself, let alone anyone else, interested if each song didn’t do its own thing or follow its own path?” Tune in to see what he means.

photo by Scott Newton

You can find more information on this episode here. Check with your local PBS station for showtimes and tune in this weekend. Join us on Facebook, Twitter and Tumblr for general ACL news. Next week we re-present the visit of another great singer/songwrter: Randy Newman.

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Encore Broadcast Featured News

Encore: Rosanne Cash & Brandi Carlile

There’s nothing like the combination of a great song and a great voice. This weekend on Austin City Limits we’ve got a pair of singer/songwriters who’ve mastered that blend: Rosanne Cash and Brandi Carlile.

The daughter of American icon Johnny Cash, Rosanne Cash is no stranger to the ACL stage – this is her seventh appearance on the show. For this episode, Cash showcases her album The List, which contains her interpretations of classic folk and country tunes drawn from a list of essential songs compiled by her father before his passing. She essays powerful takes on standards like “Bury Me Under the Weeping Willow,” “500 Miles” and “Sea of Heartbreak,” as well as some of her own tunes, including “The World Unseen” and “Dreams Are Not My Home.” Longtime fans will gain new insight into Cash’s creative process, while new arrivals on her musical planet will discover a new favorite.

photo by Scott Newton

Speaking of new favorites, we’re proud to re-present the ACL debut of Brandi Carlile. The Washington-born singer and tunesmith has been making music since she was in her teens, and by the time she released Give Up the Ghost, the album she highlights in this episode, she’d made fans of Elton John, Sheryl Crow and other well-known acts. Joined by her trusty sidekicks the Hanseroth twins, Carlile shows off her literate folk rock with “Pride and Joy” and “The Story,” proves her (and her band’s) vocal chops with the a cappella “Oh Dear” and rocks the house down with a sizzling cover of Johnny Cash’s “Folsom Prison Blues.” This episode shows neophytes what diehards already know – Brandi Carlile is a contender.

Check your local listings and tune in! You can find more info on this episode here. More ACL info in general can be had on our Facebook, Twitter and Tumblr pages. Next week: our singer/songwriter fest continues with Lyle Lovett and Bob Schneider.
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Encore Broadcast News

Encore: Steve Miller Band and the Preservation Hall Jazz Band

We love to present new music and show off current artists hitting their prime. But we’re happy to honor the veterans and the lifers – the folks whose work has stood the test of time. In that light, we welcome Steve Miller Band and Preservation Hall Jazz Band to the ACL stage this weekend.

Steve Miller Band need no introduction – lauded rock guitarist Steve Miller and his various partners-in-crime have been knocking around since the late 60s, leaving a string of indelible hits in their wake. Remember “Abracadabra?” “Fly Like An Eagle?” “Space Cowboy?” Of course you do, and you’ll hear them all on Saturday in front of an enthusiastic crowd in what was the very first taping of ACL at the Moody Theater.

The Preservation Hall Jazz Band has been around even longer than Miller – the group’s genesis coincides with the founding of the Hall itself back in 1961, and the style of New Orleans jazz the band plays goes back even further than that. History lives on in PHJB’s performances. But don’t think that means that the group is preserved in amber. Joining the band onstage are Yim Yames from My Morning Jacket, James Petralli from White Denim and the ever-elegant Del McCoury Band to add their inimitable contemporary mojo. Once you hear “St. James Infirmary” sung by a high-voiced indie rock frontdude, you’ll realize it’s what you’ve always wanted.

photo by Scott Newton

Tune in this Saturday for your classic rock ‘n’ jazz fix – as always, check your local PBS listings for the broadcast time in your area. Toggle over to the episode page for more info, and don’t forget to click over to our Facebook, Twitter and Tumblr pages for more ACL goodies. Next week: Rosanne Cash and Brandi Carlile.

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Encore Broadcast News

Encore: The National & Band of Horses

This Saturday’s encore episode of Austin City Limits features two of indie rock’s best and brightest: the National and Band of Horses.

The National’s brooding bombast is at a peak when they hit the ACL stage in support of their acclaimed record High Violet. Few bands come equipped with songs like “Bloodbuzz Ohio” and “Terrible Love” that can bring you down and to your feet at the same time. But the National prove its mastery of that mystical balancing act in this powerful performance.

By contrast Band of Horses revels in its folk-rocking nice guyitude. The outfit’s mix of easygoing melodies and classic rock hooks is in full effect on “Ode to LRC,” “Marry Song” and “The Funeral.” With this show there’s no wonder as to why this particular group of equines are festival and radio favorites.

photo by Scott Newton

Tune in this Saturday to see and hear for yourself. Go here for info, and don’t forget to keep on keepin’ up with ACL TV on Facebook, Twitter and Tumblr. Next week: the Steve Miller Band and Preservation Hall Jazz Band.

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Encore Broadcast News

Encore: Mumford & Sons/Flogging Molly

Folk rock has a long and glorious history and this weekend, we present a pair of contemporary music’s best folk rock practitioners, as we present an encore broadcast of Mumford & Sons and Flogging Molly.

Riding high on its wave of success from the bestselling Sigh No More, Mumford & Sons dazzles with fan favorites “The Cave” and “Roll Away Your Stone” and, poignant ballads “Timshel” and “Awake My Soul.” Iif you’re a super fan, you’re in for a special treat with “Lover of Light,” a previously unrecorded track. The energy on the night of the taping vibrated the walls, and it translates directly to the screen.

Speaking of energy, Flogging Molly comes next. The band storms the stage with tuneful melodies and puts on a magnificent show with their unique brand of Celtic folk/punk. We hope you tune in to enjoy lively renditions of “Requiem For A Dying Song,” “Tobacco Island,” “Devil’s Dance Floor,” and “Likes of You Again.” Bandleader Dave King called their ACL taping “the most important live performance they’ve ever done” – hard to say if that’s true, but this show makes a strong case.

photo by Scott Newton

You can find more details on the episode page. Don’t forget that you can hit up our Facebook, Twitter and Tumblr pages for more ACL TV information. Next week: The National and Band of Horses.

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Encore Broadcast News

Encore: The Decemberists and Gillian Welch

Most music aficionados categorize themselves as lyrics versus music types. Both are essential to creating one-of-kind songs, but people seem to always identify most with one or the other. Fortunately for both types, this weekend Austin City Limits is bringing you an encore episode that features two artists that are known for their eloquent lyrics as well as their beautifully crafted harmonies: The Decemberists and Gillian Welch.

Portland natives The Decemberists have graced Austin City Limits twice and each time is as memorable and heartfelt as the other with their crowd participation and musically eclectic performance. In this episode we hear mostly from the group’s 2011 album The King is Dead with special accompaniment from Gillian Welch on “Down By The Water,” and Welch and David Rawlings on the final song, “All Arise!” There’s also the appearance of “The Rake’s Song,” from 2009’s Hazards of Love,  that serves as a crowd favorite and frontman Colin Meloy’s personal favorite recording.

Going with the “less is more” approach in their music, Gillian Welch and longtime partner David Rawlings have been creating their known sparse yet haunting music for two decades. Welch is also no stranger to the Austin City Limits stage – her appearance with us in Season 37 marked her third recording. Welch and Rawling perform predominantly from their 2011 album The Harrow & The Harvest, and also perform a classic rendition of “I’ll Fly Away.”

Whether you’re all about connecting with music on a lyrical level or a purely musicianship standpoint, you won’t be disappointed this weekend with this encore episode.

Be sure to check your local listings for showtimes to see this episode and be sure to follow us on Facebook, Twitter, or Tumblr to keep up with updates on tapings and airings. Next week: the Avett Brothers and the Heartless Bastards.