After seeing Willie Nelson at his 4th of July Picnic this year I put his 1980 movie, Honeysuckle Rose, on our Netflix list. It arrived a few weeks ago so I've watched it a few times, during which, coincidentally, Leslie and I attended a public memorial service for its screenwriter, Austin legend Bill Wittliff, who also wrote the screenplay for Lonesome Dove.
I hadn't seen the movie since I saw it in 1980 when I was in grad school in San Diego. It brought back much about my love for Willie and my mental state at the time (trying to figure out a way to get to Texas). More on that later.
Honeysuckle Rose is the story of singer Buck Bonham, played by Willie, and his band, played by Willie's band The Family, as they tour around Texas and the south in their tour bus. Buck has a beautiful cowgirl for a wife, Viv, played by Dyan Cannon, and a son. His longtime guitar player, Garland, played by Slim Pickens, is retiring to spend more time with his family and Val wishes Buck would do the same or at least spend more time at home. Into the picture comes Lily, Garland's daughter, also a guitar player, who is home from college and teaching guitar to Buck and Viv's son.She's played by Amy Irving, with captivating eyes and a passable Texas accent.
While trying to find a temporary replacement for Garland, Viv suggests Lily, who jumps at the chance and joins the band. From there all hell breaks loose. Buck of course falls for Lily (who wouldn't?) and they make a mess of things until Buck's eventual reconciliation with Viv. Lily is the one left with a broken heart but at least has the guts to come home and apologize to Viv.
All of this happens with the soundtrack of late-70s Willie and Family front and center. The live performances from the tour are used to advance the plot and then expertly cut into scenes of life on the bus, etc. All of those great Willie songs are here: Angel Flying Too Close To The Ground, On the Road Again, Uncloudy Day as well as covers of Kris Kristofferson's Loving You Was Easier Than Anything I'll Ever Do Again, Rodney Crowell's 'Til I Gain Control Again, Leon Russell's A Song For You, and of course Johnny Bush's Whiskey River.
Willie does a fine job acting, especially in the scenes with Dyan Cannon (presumably relying on his personal history - he's on his 4th marriage). Conversely, Dyan Cannon and Amy Irving do a fine job singing and Amy Irving learned at least enough guitar to make it look good.
Emmylou Harris joins Buck on one of the tour stops to sing 'Til I Gain Control Again and So You Think You're a Cowboy. At one point Lily is so awestruck watching her she forgets to play her guitar and has to be prodded by the drummer. Aside from the great duet it's a poignant reminder of how Emmylou started out as Gram Parsons' protege. (Emmylou won't talk about the personal side of her relationship with Gram but anybody who has seen video of that tour will tell you it doesn't look that different from Buck and Lily).
I first watched the film recently before the Wittliff memorial and didn't realize he wrote the screenplay. Upon viewing it afterward I noticed how tight the dialog was and how well the scenes work together. As a non-filmmaker, I'm thinking, how hard could it be? Just get the basic plot, and Willie and his band and the other actors, and throw it together. It practically writes itself! But of course I'm not a filmmaker or screenwriter but Bill Wittliff was, as the quality of the script shows.
In several of the scenes Willie's sister and piano player, Bobbie, looks suspiciously at Buck and Lily as their relationship evolved. I couldn't help but thinking how many times she gave him the same look in real life!
One scene is shot at the Soap Creek Saloon, which I visited with my brothers in 1976, and was located about a half mile from here in Austin, behind the middle school our kids went to. A great nod to a now long-gone Austin landmark!
One of my favorite parts is a long depiction of a Bonham Family Reunion, a large all-day Texas party with music, dancing, barbecue, horses, kids skinny dipping, games, and some hanky panky going on with some of the band members and some of the other band members's girlfriends. The music and dancing goes all day, with other Texas legends Kenneth Threadgill and Johnny Gimble playing.
Which brings me back to me. I started buying Willie Nelson records in college in New Haven, Connecticut, in the early 70s, and devoured Chet Flippo's Rolling Stone articles about the burgeoning Progressive Country scene in Austin, after Willie gave up on Nashville, grew his hair long, and moved back to Texas. I finally visited here in 1976 and my experiences at the Soap Creek and other places only cemented my desire to move here.
In grad school my roommates and I played a ton of Jerry Jeff and Willie and caught several Willie shows. Once on a hike through the Sierras my buddy George and I laid out a whole movie based on Willie's epic Red Headed Stranger. (Bill Wittliff's was probably better than ours but that movie seems to have disappeared).
Seeing Honeysuckle Rose in 1980 confirmed everything I felt about Willie and Texas but it was several years before I could figure out how to get here. First I had to have a job upon graduating in 1982 and that job turned out to be at IBM's Watson Lab, next to my hometown of Ossining, New York. I finally had my chance in 1988 when IBM was looking for volunteers for temporary assignments in Austin. Based on the fact it was only two years, Leslie reluctantly agreed to move (our kids were only 6 months and 2 years at the time). I kept my mouth shut and, within a year, Leslie was asking me if we had to move back. That was 31 years ago and we're still here, and still loving Austin and Texas and Willie Nelson!
Postscript
It turns out Willie and Amy weren't acting! According to Wikipedia:
Irving dated American film director Steven Spielberg from 1976 to 1980. She then had a brief relationship with Willie Nelson, her co-star in the film Honeysuckle Rose. The breakup with Spielberg cost her the role of Marion Ravenwood in Raiders of the Lost Ark, which he had offered to her at the time,but they reunited and were married from 1985 to 1989. She received an estimated $100 million divorce settlement after a judge controversially vacated a prenuptial agreement that had been written on a napkin.
Lucinda Williams writes often about her life growing up in the South. I thought it would be interesting to plot these points on a map to visualize her Southern references throughout her career. I actually started this back in the late 90s and I'm not a web designer so it's a little crude but you get the point. The songs are in chronological order and you can click on them to hear a snippet. Enjoy!
The other day my daughter Dara posted a link on my Facebook page to Jimmy Kimmel's interview with Snoop Dogg and Matthew McConaughey, promoting their new movie, the Beach Bum. She especially instructed me to watch the whole thing. So, aside from my love for Austin's own MM, the "Minister of Culture" for the Texas Longhorns basketball team (really), I knew there was something she wanted me to see. It turns out there is an oregano reference at the end of the video. So here's my oregano story.
Somewhere around freshman or sophomore year a bunch of us Yalies went up to Harvard. My buddy "Piss Toes" Pete Weber and I were hanging out in the dorm room of my high school bro Mark Robbins. We had just polished off a pizza so sitting on the coffee table was a jar of oregano I had swiped from the pizza place along with a pipe that we had been indulging from earlier.
A roommate of Mark's came in and joined us. He motioned to the empty pipe and said, "What have you guys been up to?". I don't know why I did this, but I pointed to the oregano jar and said, "that's good stuff man, you should try some". At first he looks at me like I'm kidding but I'm keeping a straight face. He says, "that's oregano, you dumb fucking Yalie" (actually he didn't say the last part but you could tell he was thinking that). So I said, "no, man, we just bought it from a kid out on the street, $5, what a great deal for all that weed!". So again he looks at me like I really can't be that stupid, picks up the oregano, smells it, and pronounces once again, "it's oregano".
Meanwhile Pete has picked up on what I'm doing and he's been doing a slow burn. Just as I'm about to crack up, Pete bursts out, "I'll fucking kill that kid that sold us that shit". And he is livid. I'm like, "what, that's not weed?" and join Pete in yelling about getting ripped off.
Meanwhile the Harvard guy is buying this whole act. It just confirmed what he thought about us Yalies!
I know I'm a bit late to the party on this, but I'm really into A Star is Born, the movie and especially the music.
My wife Leslie and I saw the movie in the theater last November. I enjoyed the movie pretty much. I thought Bradley Cooper was great, Dave Chappelle knocked me out, and I liked the music. But then I didn't gave it too much thought until my son Gary gave me the soundtrack for Hanukah.
So I'll admit I didn't know much about Lady Gaga going into this. I knew she had a great voice but the only song of hers that caught my interest was her song with Big Man on sax, The Edge of Glory.
On the hand other I am a big fan of Lukas Nelson. We've seen him at ACL and Willie's Picnics. He plays all the guitar on the album, he and his band Promise of the Real backed up Bradley Cooper in the movie and he co-wrote many of the songs. I read that Bradley Cooper spent two years learning guitar to play the role and he does sing but it's Lukas we hear on the record. In this little video, Bradley, Lukas and Gaga talk about how the sound came together.
The first song that grabbed my attention was Maybe It's Time, which is Bradley Cooper singing and Lukas Nelson playing guitar. In the movie Jack (Bradley Cooper) plays it at the end of the night at the drag club, with just the club owner, the bartender, one drag queen, and Ally (Lady Gaga) watching. It's an instant American classic:
Maybe it's time to let the old ways die
Maybe it's time to let the old ways die
It takes a lot to change a man
Hell, it takes a lot to try
Maybe it's time to let the old ways die
Jason Isbell wrote that song. He's a fantastic singer/songwriter from Alabama, used to be in the Drive-By Truckers. It could have been a Ryan Bingham song too. BTW we saw both of them at Willie's Picnics as well.
Lady Gaga and Lukas Nelson wrote Music to My Eyes. According to Songfacts Lukas had
some help from his dad's product in writing this beautiful song:
You're music to my eyes
I had to listen just to find you
I'd like for you to let me sing along
Give you a rhythm you feel
Always Remember Us This Way is a great soul song by Lady Gaga. I'm looking forward to hearing it covered by some classic country singers!
And then there's Shallow, also co-written by Lady Gaga. Initially I thought of that song mainly for Lady Gaga's soaring vocals but, after listening to it a bunch of times, checking out the words, and, recently, watching the film again, I've come to be even more impressed. The lyrics, in the context of the plot, or standalone, are haunting.The lines
I'm falling
In all the good times I find myself
Longin' for change
And in the bad times I fear myself
really get to me.
And how that song comes together in the movie (and yes, I realize it's a movie) is amazing. From Ally coming up with the lyrics in the parking lot, with Jack putting together an arrangement and teaching it the band overnight, to Ally walking on stage never having sung in front of a large crowd, and nailing the song, is just an incredible piece of film.
Another piece of music I want to note is the Allman Brothers' Whipping Post blaring in the bar they go to after leaving the drag club. Perfect! You can hear it starting up at the end of the Maybe It's Time clip.
I've come to appreciate Lady Gaga more, both as an actress as well as a singer/songwriter. Of course I love her stuff with Cooper on the record. But even as she is pushed away from that Americana/Rock groove into being a pop star I see Ally fighting to retain her musical spirit, and Jack's influence. So I really like those songs too, all co-written by Lady Gaga.
But let's give a big shout out to Bradley Cooper. He's a great actor, singer, plays guitar well enough to fool ya, co-wrote a few of the songs and directed this thing! What I would give to have one of those talents! He is so meticulous he spent a week planning his Shallow duet at the Oscars with Lady Gaga, designing the staging, the lighting, the camera angles, how they would sing together. I'm not going to get into the debate about which movie should have won Best Picture but Bradley Cooper should get some kind of MVP for acting, directing and co-writing a great movie!
I'm a radio guy. I grew up in New York listening to the great Dave Herman on WPLJ and then WNEW. I love personality-driven, free-form radio with a focus on the music. I'm a big fan of Americana music (as the name of this blog implies) but to me "Americana" is a big world (including Rhythm 'n' Blues, Reggae and Conjunto, for example).
So living in Austin and being a big fan of Austin and Texas music (which itself is a large and expanding universe) I'm in radio heaven with so many great alternatives on our dial, and more if you count Sirius XM.
The big three are Sun Radio, KUTX, and KGSR.
Sun Radio is listener-supported, commercial-free, solar-powered radio with stations all over the Hill Country. It started as KDRP in Dripping Springs featuring the late Larry Monroe, whose Blue Monday and Phil Music shows were a mainstay at KUT for years. My favorite Austin DJ is the morning show's Kevin Connor, whose "A Hill Country Saturday" is a great way to kick off the weekend. Kevin, who also was at KUT, and KGSR before that, knows every musician in town and loves to feature Austin music. Several current musicians such as Suzanna Choffel have regular shows, along with specialty shows like John Dromgoole's Dance Halls and Last Calls and Ed Miller's Across the Pond Celtic music show.
KUT, Austin's NPR's station, used to fit in great music around its news programming but 5 years ago spun off the all-music KUTX. Some of their best jocks have moved on to Sun Radio and some, like Paul Ray, whose Saturday evening R&B show Twine Time was required listening in the Jaffe household, have moved on, period. But they still have Austin stalwarts Jody Denberg and Jay Trachtenberg and Laurie Gallardo, the most enthusiastic and refreshing DJ ever, plus long-time specialty shows like Michael Crockett's Horizontes. And don't miss John L. Hanson's Old School Dance Party Fridays after work. Their music is a an eclectic blend of different genres including a wide spectrum of new Austin bands, especially on the Laurie show (she must go out every night)!
KGSR, recently re-branded Austin City Limits Radio (to go with the television program, the music festival, and the venue) is more mainstream indie and pop-oriented than its Radio Austin roots but still plays a lot of good music. Andy Langer remains one of the most knowledgeable Austin disk jockeys.
Just one measure of how these three stations contribute to Austin occurs this week, during SXSW. All three have morning and afternoon shows at restaurants around town featuring SXSW as well as local acts, open to the general public without a badge or wristband. For a $5 or $15 donation (going to the Health Alliance for Austin Musicians in KUTX's case) you get breakfast tacos, coffee and the likes of Wyclef Jean, Steve Earle and Hayes Carll.
If that weren't enough we have a range of country stations including Bob Cole's reincarnation of the legendary KOKE FM, which was a big station during the Armadillo and progressive country days in Austin. When Cole's not talking the station plays a good range of country music, including a lot of Texas acts like Kevin Fowler and Cody Johnson. And two Sirius XM shows, Dallas Wayne's shows on Outlaw Country and Willie's Place, broadcast out of Austin. BTW, Dallas sings every Sunday night at the Continental as part of Heybale!
So I know a lot of people are down on Austin, saying the growth has changed it. While I'm sensitive to affordability issues Austin is still badass and radio is a big part of it!
And if you're not lucky enough to live in Austin, all these stations stream!
The title of this piece was suggested by my daughter Dara. Her friend Lauren Ruth Ward played SXSW a year ago and, while driving the band around to various showcases, I of course was showing off these stations. As soon as I had them in my car I was saying, "I wanna play some great radio for you", so of course my Doors fanatic daughter said, hey Dad, you're like Jim Morrison in The Wasp (Texas Radio and the Big Beat).
