Jimmie Vaughan started playing blues guitar when he was a kid and now, more than 5 decades later, he just never stopped. Growing up in Dallas in the 50 and 60s, Jimmie and his little brother, Stevie Ray used to spend their time listening to music and figuring out how to play it on guitar.
By the time Jimmie was about 15, he’d already been getting paid to play in a band 6 nights a week and decided to strike out on his own, eventually landing in Austin, where he’d end up playing with legends like BB King, Eric Clapton and nearly every other blues legend, and eventually earn his own place a legendary blues player.
Along the way, his brother, Stevie Ray Vaughan would join him in Austin, carving his own iconic status in the world of blues. Tragically, Stevie lost his life in a helicopter crash, leaving Jimmie in what he calls his dark years, trying to carry on with music and life. He eventually emerged and has been a guiding light in the world of Blues for more than 50 years now. His new album, BABY, PLEASE COME HOME (https://www.jimmievaughan.com/), is a rolling and righteous celebration of everything the blues can be.
And, as with all of our very special music episodes this month, at the end, Jimmie plays a bit of guitar for us. This one was really special for me, because Jimmie didn’t have his guitar with him in the studio, but he gave me the great honor of playing the acoustic guitar I’d built with my own hands almost a year-to-the-day earlier.
Jimmie is currently touring (https://www.jimmievaughan.com/jimmie-vaughan-tour-dates), so be sure to catch him on the road!
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This is an unofficial transcript meant for reference. Accuracy is not guaranteed.
I am raising excited to dive
in the two hour month of music, this month, music in may, and today we have Jimmie Vaughan. Sir Jimmy is somebody who I have been listening to for years and years and years and years and awed by jimmy started playing guitar when he was a kid and now more than five decades later, he kind of just never stopped growing up in dallas in the fifties and sixties Jimmy and his little brother stevie. Who will talk about more? They used to spend their time listening to music and figuring out how to play it on guitar, but it was actually a football accident that led him to pick up the guitar in the first place and we'll talk about that by the time Jimmy was about. Fifteen
old he'd have already been playing and getting paid to play in a band six nights a week and decide to kenneth strike out on his own, eventually landed in Austin, where he ended up playing with legends like baby, king, Eric clapton
Jimi hendrix and nearly every other blues legend and eventually earned his own place as a legendary blues player and along the way his brother, Stevie Raven, ended up joining him, an austrian they occasionally play together, but stevie quickly carved out his own iconic.
status in the world, the blues and very tragically stevie also lost his life in a helicopter crash after show, leaving Jimmy and what he can cause his dark years and trying to figure out how to carry on with music and life. So we dive into jimmy
his incredible journey the night, the days and years surrounding stevie's death, how he emerged and finally figured out even what to tell his mom about that loss and step back into a life of music and blues and grace and as with all of our very special music episode this month, at the end,
me plays a little bit of loose for us, so this one was also really special for me, because Jimmy didn't actually have his guitar with him in the studio, but he did me the great honour of picking up and playing the acoustic guitar that I had built with my own hands almost a year to the day earlier, so excited to share this conversation and some music with it on Jonathan fields, and this
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and I was like oh no. What am I gonna? Do I'm thinking you know, I can't really play football and you know played a little baseball down the street. Some people had a diamond and you know and and would play football
school and stuff, but didn't really, I didn't know anything about it or I went to football players for sure. So I said: ok, ok, so
so what should I go out for us and I don't even know you know because he goes he looked at me, cause you look like a left halfback. I dunno, where I came up with that. So he said get over here in this line over here. So there's an ending to this story,
the they got okay VON. So I run out and I mysteriously catch this pass. I keep a slight dunno, how I did it, but I caught the pass. They all tackled me piled on me and I broke my collarbone, so I went home for three months and that's when my dad said well, you know you've been trying to play guitar and you've been trying to play drums everything he said just play this guitar, maybe this'll keep you out of trouble and I've been playing ever since
it's there and that's. So that's how it happened. I always think about that. Maybe it was you know the trauma and the I dunno it all work together, somehow yeah. I always wonder about moments like that, and I wonder about IL what, if that one moment didn't happen, he die we'd, be in jail. That day, like most of my friends, see red with a fast crowd.
well, it was just where we lived. It was I dunno how you would describe it at you, wouldn't call it upper middle class for sure I was just working people that lived in a neighborhood on the edge of town there, so you start taking up the guitar. So what is this? This is middle school junior, high yeah I was like twelve thirteen right and but it sounds like you've been messing around with various instruments before that. Well, my dad again worked with a guy who's.
And was named robert louis Stevenson, and that was his real name, but it was not as far out because of his name, but he was a rock and roll musician and him and his lay guitar play play drums and his leg qatar,
There was name Jimmy, a nay their stuff was that their debts house, so I would go over there with my parents because they played
a domino game called forty two. They replay forty two every weekend with all these people.
So the guy was away in the buddy plan. You know what that is like like. If you get that he got too many speeding, tickets, him and his buddies because they played out at the jacksboro highway. Witches was his big strip between Dallas and fort worth. It was all honky tonks like for you know a couple of miles,
just how get all after hugged, and so they played out there in the rock and roll ban in a country ban.
So they got all her tickets. They got in trouble and the cop said: okay, if you want to either go to jail or you join the navy, that's what they used to have back then,
and so him and his guitar player went away in the navy and all their stuff was at the guy's house. So I would go over there and it would be a room full of guitars and a piano and drums, and so that's how I got started on it plus my uncles all played there were you I mean so he just started it kind of like a blend of circles,
ass. You ended up nearly around with instruments that you just had available to you. They reaches lion round about pick him up and try to play in
and then he would come home leave sometimes and he would play piano and he would.
guitar, he would sing all they songs, country songs.
Enroll songs and you know I was just in the right spot.
there. I was always interested in it because I was cover weird kid that that drew a lot and I was the cannot artistic
but I wonder if you could actually
im going to be athlete, wasn't my calling yeah and it sounds like also cause you're damning. Clearly, your dad was pretty into music and into dancing your mom also. Yes, she liked term. You know country and western
my dad in particular like her to western. He said, but my mother, like term country, singers and hank Thompson and stuff, like that. I was just music
it was all over. It is unbelievable when I think back about where I grew up it was, it was like everybody was in a band or something
and it was on the radio us on tv.
all day on Saturday. All the country shows not low cost,
and then ernest tubb? And you know all those shows if you've ever seen any of those old clips yeah. It was a great thing. I mean I'm so fortunate to grow up in
place ever so, surrounded by music. Like that, and I didn't know the difference
between jazz and blues and country. I just thought it was cool means.
And you're, not till I got older, I started seeing you know where you can go over there, because these,
where over there, nice or you know what I mean all that kind of stuff? I didn't even know about that when I was sick when I started playing yeah. So when you, what what happens that makes you go from this chemical? This is fun. It's all around me all the time and I'm playing raleigh your quotes playing around with a guitar in no small part, because you're at home, you know and like I gotta do some, but so how do you go from there to get into point where, like huh, this could be something more? It happened like the first.
to her third day now. Ok, I I had a guitar, the guitar that I had had three stirrings on it and I I knew the song hockey talk. I'd heard on the radio.
Learn learn learn so I tried to play that, but I played it backwards. I'll show you. If you want an now applied it upside down
but it was a sort of a form of it, and that was the first
A plate, and then I learned that and then couple of days later I thought you know I could. I could really get good at this.
I can make rogerson in split and how will you and you think and twelve? I love it so thinking vague.
Really, that's great, you don't know any better right light, his dislike it. The whole thing is a fantasy
I dream right so yeah and so that's the way it's been for me. I've been playing guitar ever since, and I love music and all that- and you know it's been really good and they're so mean you, but you start to play em. It sounds like this becomes kind of like an obsession, slash passion for you really fast absolute and then you find yourself plate like like literally just a couple of years later playing out. When did the chessmen like? When did that whole thing happen? Newly formed a band with my first band was a band called, we called ourselves was
ray of us. We call ourselves the diamonds and then so my so you can have that name. It is already a ban collar diamonds missile, okay, so we're just school kids school there and
so somebody said you call yourselves the swinging pendulums.
because somebody that vigorous answer we like
care was swinging pendulums whatever. That means, however, that in last so that lasted a couple years, we got gigs pretty quickly
gig at a place called the hobnob, lounge and weak pled another place gothic the Saracens club
And you know this
in the summer, so it was six nights a week. You started eight, you played a midnight, durno,
and then authority. Not it was ninety one in my dad would take us in his pick up and then the other two fathers would die,
switch off their cause. You got disorders like Doorn annie. I gotta take the kid, but down at the club dinner. I'm sorry
enable everything you know he has had to see. Jimmy says when he was just sin and we and we had a ball. I mean we we
to go play every night in this grown up club. You know hockey tongue and they had a beautiful girl, go dance. Who was like twenty that stood right next to the stage we sang through the jukebox plugged in the back in the past,
a jack and you know, and there she was on the stage with us we're just like these little dumb kids. You know trying to play and there there she is. So that was my first experience and I was like man what's not to like, but, as you know, see you at your
Playing six nights a week and you're getting paid for this at data yeah, we made women one hundred and fifty bucks a week field which, especially then, that series money think about that
sixty here. So you know I mean for us like little kids, it was terrific and we got the newspaper. They took a pitcher of some person newspaper, you famous author.
Well, you know around where we are from yeah right, local celebrities and we get to play at school and they used to have dances in texas. I dunno if they still have this, but they had dances on mondays and fridays before school. So I can go at seven. Schools say if school starts at eight, they it would start an hour earlier. Thirty minutes early and you're gonna spend records and you dance,
Switcher girlfriend know I dunno do still have their. You know it's interesting. I don't think they have that,
enable to spend the latest whatever the record is an kids dance there. So your cost a dime to get here and hey if you're, making one hundred fifty bucks in a week left and right here, the affordable for anyone says you started the lake you're playing more your chops are getting better you're deepening to blue is also at the same time. Yeah. You got a little brother Alex four years younger stevie and yahoo, who, along with you like both
you start to come up and had did he actually get turned on his to guitar? Was it through you or was the himself it was to me I mean I, I was four years older, so I got the guitar had a record player and start again records trying to play these records and trying to play along with the record player in putting it on thirty three in on the forty five and trying to figure out what the note was in an he was stand there
got a toy guitar. You know that was like you know the little cowboy cardboard ones and he had that and he would play along. So he started playing trying to play when I started trying to play you know, and so after I got to where I could play a little bit. I'd put the guitar down and I'd say no, don't touch my guitar, because we had the samer right, just normal kids and soon as I would leave. He picked the guitar up and play him in there, and I knew that you know, but it was all just normal stuff in there, so he actually started playing,
and he watched me sore figure out how to play or how to try to play right and then you know I ran away from home when I was like fifty
a fourteen and a half or something like that and ran off to be in a band. I got in this band that was twenty one. The chest
if they were twenty one years old and had apartments and cars and everything- and I was like fourteen- and you know so- I ran off and gotten it. I got in that pan and I ran off pretty soon, which and through your parents, mind me like okay, are they talking about a totally flipped out and I got in a fight with my dad and and and just left and
They didn't come get me because it was his back in the day when I think my father ran away to. He ran away and join the marines and went to war war too,
so I think in their mind, I made the break and I fought for it, so they they didn't exactly know what to do, but back in those days. That was how you kind of separated, you know
The fight is left. If you don't know any better. I guess that's the way you do it there, so you find yourself on the road touring. With these guys for a five,
years older than you and your atlantis and like serious gigs I mean you open for when we finally yeah, we got one for hendricks one time or you can't just gloss pass that so you're, like fifteen years old and you're in a band. That's opening for hendricks
and what's that like for what was it, it was incredible. His dislike the whole thing, I'm telling you the whole thing has been amazing for me: spin, I'm like a magic carpet ride or something you know the whole time. I really can't believe it myself. He knows that way.
You feel like that they're. So anyway, we went, and we were this ban. When I got in this ban the chest they already have. Forty five
so they were already in the local station that was kay alive
which was called the big rock and roll station in town or one of em and together they had us singles out and stuff like that,
so then I got the ban and they were already popular, so yeah,
but all the sudden I was making three hundred dollars a week, and so I could have you know I could go on buyer.
the castor and had to superbly lamps and in it was amazing and I and they would go play every weekend.
More like houston or dallas or Oklahoma or west texas or somewhere, and I would take off with him like on thursday, wouldn't go to school, take off gone on a weekend, road trip and perhaps free. I, though you know. So how do you on? How do you land in austin Texas, from there, while we
the plan in austin lot with this band for fraternity parties with playful turn hitting like they would hire as attacks the eye rear, they made a lot of money going for these big fraternities and these big balls and things like that, and so I that's why
I first went to Austin and I went down to Austin and I met Jim Franklin and I went to the vulcan gas company and I went all these clubs. They had all these clubs down there I mean, but Austin now is very different than it was then like what was it? What was this?
music cannot ask than there are well. There is a couple of guys that are still playing
on that. I knew that, I'm mad. They all campbell is blues guitar where that play
round, and I met a lot of guys like that. But what happened was as I. Finally, when I got to be about, seventeen
tina. All the hippies came in and the in all that seen in San francisco, so I bought a ticket wendy,
It's for my move to california, and he said you gotta come see this assembly, so I bought a ticket dislikes.
Fifteen or seventeen dollars round trip take on braniff. I flew to allay.
went down on sunset boulevard and just walked down the street all night, and then my flight was like it in late at night and flew home.
Tell my parents, were our wine or anything. You know, and I went to the whisky and I went to the the record store: was the big record store own sense strip there? I can't tell you the name of it that was pre tower that LISA he might have been tower anyway.
but just walked up and down the street. Didn't have a hotel didn't have any fifteen dollars ana as like man, I think johnny rivers was planet
ski hurrying away? I couldn't get here, you know, but I'm walking in the parking lot looking. It is looking at the whisky and walking around on sunset and,
Thinking yeah, maybe I'll, have to come out here. You know, try this place or something. You know. You know when you're a kid you're you're, not really thinking you just sorta on rolling yeah, that's a good way to explain
emma so I came home in you not just keep playing. I always just love playing inside just kept playing, no matter what would happen, don't stop playing.
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My plan was the first to go back home in and get it together. I didn't have a gig and I didn't know anyone
anyone got. It told me told me he moved to California, but I didn't seem you will find them. No one entity implant around.
You were in part. I was only Brandon yeah I'd get ahead again in dollars in it at a club or something you know, but it was just you know like if you are from Dallas back in those days, new york, city and los angeles was like like mars. You know everything from the
no business came from there and you heard about it. You read about it, but you didn't really can really imagine what it was like. So we had to go and said to go there and-
If not stay can stay yeah, it was exploratory and, as you do right at that age, I see come back and and you're playing around and at that point lie in your mind or you just like this is my life like I'm in yeah. I just never thought about anything else and it was
one and I you know I wasn't really supposed to be doing that. I'm supposed to be doing turn. What my dad did, I guess, or most of my friends school in I would get some job and.
Like the same job, their dad's hat, and they go to the job and then come home, and next thing you know they get a girlfriend and they have a kid and- and I I got to do all those things, but I didn't I dunno I got to play through it all. I play guitar to the whole thing, and here we are yeah, I mean so it's interesting too, because, as you're developing your chops, you know making a name for yourself earning a living, taking care of yourself doing it and you're one of the things that that I think musicians struggle with any artist performing artist. Traditional artists and sounds like actually you had both
insane. You really struggle with is finding a distinct voice like because you're surrounded by like we all start out like amen, one copy this, and then I'm going to copy this from this person. This from this, because that's how we learn like we met exactly right, but at some point like if you want to endure you've, got to discover your own thing like how did ellen full free will- and I would listen to all these. There was a radio station called w r R in dallas, and there was a guy named Jim LO, and
he would come on at midnight or ten thirty. I say ten thirty. He would come on and he would his home for headaches show for a couple of three hours. He would play jimmy red and lighten up so so. Listen to that had a low transistor radio in my bed under the pillow and you click it on just click and you could hear, but nobody else can hear
right. So I've listened to that and then I would switch station over to Debbie. I see nashville, it would come in real, strong, enable play all blues.
And everything, and then after that was over. That was the horseman. After that, you click it over to the wolf man, jack and coon. Your quad wheeler make would come on and listen to the wolf man and he would play how a morphin you know all that stuff. So it was just on the radio, but you had to find it. You know nah, but then you gotta find like start with that as okay. So what's my
commission too is like how might envy I'm he was at a conscious cause. You have your new clearly have my god. He learned how play from all these relate, listen and all these records, and also that was
when the english guys were coming out to so the beatles came out, and I you then, all that stuff from england
I'm out, plus there was abandoned Dallas first record, everybody was called the night caps
It was wine wine wine by the nightcaps and it was a whole album and it was straight blues. If you listen to that, I recommend any of anybody that loves blues to go, find
the night caps on vandam records, and there was they had hit record for
five call, while my plan, which was an
It's your song, winds, bodie, ot and all those wind songs that were out and they had a guy lead, guitar player named David Swartz and they were grey still. I still listen to that record because it's fabulous, and so that was a big influence-
That was the first or I could ever by Hamas and industry, again lonnie mac and everything, and then then
then our dairy clapton came out with the blues breakers. A guy called me on a phone said. If you heard this, my my uncle came back from england. He brought me a record called
if the blues breakers and there's a guy named Eric clapton, I was like okay, he he goes I'll play it, for he played it for me on the on the Fung awesome, and so I heard this woo in all the while guitar and I was like man. Yes,
they are there and so and then you know
There is all the other stuff bebe king and you know how a more often.
Lonnie mac and the night caps- and I mean it was just everywhere- and I mean, as your growin into this and selling into asked and also in you're starting to play with some these guys on a regular basis. When I got to ask- and I moved austin permanently when I was eighteen in-
about a couple of years later. Maybe it was not on what time and tones open but went in
opened it was again and clever lantern and he goes ok
see we're gonna, have a club here and we're gonna have just blues, and at that time there was such a thing really.
I had never heard of any place that just had blues you know. Most clubs have you know whatever their local bands are or if there's a traveling acts that have records out there.
So if you had a nice club there would be
no so lax or country bans or whatever you know note, ellen right,
but this guy says I'm gonna have just blues and he heard
all the guys from Chicago in mississippi.
louisiana and you know be.
Fats domino. One way can and then it will be clear chin and then it would be.
he had jimmy red came and he didn't tell jimmy red and he didn't tell eddie terror that they were both coming home. They he gotta
act together after like sixteen years, and I was there
and I saw you know, I may listened jimmy races-
I was twelve, but I never saw him in person right and then I'll send Jimmy reed's there and eddie taylor and he would bring all the guys from Chicago and Jimmy rogers would come down there for two.
Weeks three weeks, he just be in austin in a hotel room and he would play every night and we got to be the back ban. The fabulous thunderbirds were the house back. There sat so that is under restoring what lay tyrannies antics heavy alchemy nine. My answer you, basically just your house by your plane, your plane, your own gauge, but then you also
and with all of these, we we would open up and then we would play. We would backup jimmy rogers or
eddie taylor Jimmy
feed or you know you name it muddy waters would come from Chicago and we would even if we didn't know play with him, we'd be on the show so we'd play for like thirty minutes and then they'd come out. So how? How often did you just were in the middle of playing and just look around for a beat me like
Is this really happening? Well, as what I'm saying? That's why I told you it's still happening today, so it's been absolutely amazing, yeah and then to know that you, like you, are one of these guys and you have been for a long time.
Now I mean like, I know your modest any aid, both from the outset like in by any measure, but so you're. I mean you're new europe in your settled in Austria. In your plan, you ve got the t bird rolling at some point. Stevie joins you also. He comes out well yeah. I think steed
He came to Austin, nay, was playing around in or around his school and plus. When I ran off my parents,
Sort of clamp down on him said: ok, you're, not gonna, do what he did. You know, so they were sort of watched him with her with the terrified I
It kind of clamp down on him, said: okay, you're going to go to school and you're, going to you're not going to do this, but they couldn't make him stop playing because they liked it. But.
So soon ass. He got out of high school, he he came straight arson and he
had already been planned all those years several years and.
he just sort of, fell right in and.
that is one night to roman,
got is one night at the different clubs where we used to play like we play on a monday, he'd play on a tuesday. You know after got going there, it sounds like he hit the ground running a lot to Austin was. That was the reason why.
I moved to Austin cause it had that feeling it was a small college town and it was they had like they had a lot of weird bands. They had the thirteenth floor, elevators, for instance, they were real popular and played all around town, and they, you know they had an electric jug player and and didn't know that existed. I didn't either
so the guy had a pick up in a jerk and he got more watery did you know he was very famous in psychedelic world, so I figured again not knowing any better. I figured it they'll. Let them do that, though. Let me play bullets, so that was my.
You know a lot of times when you want to do something: that's crazy or or is out of the norm. If you can convince yourself that it's okay, that's all you need there, and I I kind of feel like also that, if what you're doing you're just you're hundred percent you're all in and it becomes like a conduit for the deepest part of yourself and it's just letting it out, people feel that and it almost doesn't matter what the genre is. I agree yeah if you can just to find your voice and you you just have to do it. I mean I I was also you know kind of desperate like I, I didn't really have anything to fall.
I cone or wasn't trying to do that. You know and I had jobs like I, I worked construction. I worked at a lumberyard and there's guys walking around with fingers, cut off and things like that, because it was a woodworking place. You know where they make trim for door trim like that stuff they're there and you had to put through a lay. Then that was my job as I had a big cart that that stick it through the lathe and pull it out the other end, and so I worked jobs. I was a garbage man as my first job, and so you know it was obvious that if I could play guitar, that was a lot better. There so you
You're in Austin Steven Austin and you're, both building fabulous thunderbirds when did dabble with tough enough come out that was like. That was. Why am I right, or am? I was like late eighties or something like that? Yeah he's still kind of building your groove locally and was that was at the first sorta like big national breakout, where
people like? Oh there's, something bigger going on it was announced earlier. So what happened was we were playing and and tones in robinson from sleep wheel would play there too. He moved to Austin about same time. I did with his band and at sleeps
and we're similar in the same that here
Finally, one of the play which was kind of not normal. You know most people, I think if they have dreams about being
Musician than there might try to play pop music, her what's popular and throwing away, we that is the way, asked him what it was like a little san francisco and they had all can stuff. So you don't have to. I don't know. I can't explain here so you are building with them with a t, birds, Steve's billy, with his own. There need s kind of like dance with each other here and there, but you really kind of like parallel your billing, your own thing
and both successfully, but for some reason you decide that you can actually create an other eighty. Nine in shit, what I was say was robinson told a told: her ganem bruce was a hollywood record guy here and
said you should hear these guys. They played blues and there really good in their like little young kids, you trying to play blows, but there I
we are right, so you can see me MIKE
this managed magic, saham and a couple of other guys from Chicago when he was doing pretty good. He knew about record business and things like that book and agents and all that stuff that little kids don't know about you know. So he came and saw us, and he said I, like you guys he said miss. If I can get you a record deal were like okay cool, so he got his record deal with tacoma, which was that folk singer, guy https label- and I couldn't I can't think of his name now, but.
in a way we got to record on tacoma records. We made two or three albums started picking up momentum. We went to england, we went to europe and went to germany. We went and played san francisco blues festival, we came to new york city and we played one of those little jazz clubs or something you know there and it just started took off and next thing you know we're making records and after two or three albums you know that I think tough enough was like our fifth or sixth album or maybe even more
I dunno we had two or three record deals: they've virus or we'd go somewhere else. You know all there as the business am and and a lot of people would hires to open their tours too so we'd be on this rock tours and we'd be come out for thirty minutes and they'd throw shit at us yeah. You know man that must be so hard. Well is you're doing out there doing what you love and you're really good at it, and it's like, but you know it's better than being an asbestos work. I hear ya. So it's perspective. It's like a bad day as an opening band is still a pretty good day and the acts of life right right. Yeah, hey it's jonathan from good life project. If you are
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about united healthcare insurance plans at u h, one dot com. So what brings you and Steve Ebert together late eighties to to make it where we at all? When, when I was a kid somebody would come over to the house, my dad said Jim
go, get your guitar and play a song for a song, so you know his guest. What or whoever it was. Ok, so I'll go get my acoustic, guitar and I'd play in the mood or something or updated land do ditto to dare to do. There was a Glenn miller software and he liked that, so he would always request that and then the person-
and whoever it was would say, esp you're pretty good kid. He said. Maybe you can make a record some day. You know so that's kind of planted the seed and Steven will be there too.
First with his little guitar and then later on, I gotta,
the guitar and he would get the hang me down and ask them
It went, and so you know then it got to where. Well, maybe you, your kids, are pretty good. Maybe someday make a record, so I was kinda. I did pretty good in stevie. You know made that record his first album men bust out and all sudden he was just like you know, turn it up, and so tony martell
from us, CBS record sony records said. I want you guys to put. What do you think about my can? Allow me to get the vondra there's like who could save ii was already in a hidden, it pretty good and we had done done well, but we weren't intellect hit. We didn't have hit in the top ten or anything like that.
you know so we said cool, so we got together and we said: ok, let's try to do some deaf, because we sort both had ourselves established with what we did. Anyone. We thought we knew what we were doing
so we got together. We a careless rider,
we have now. Rodgers was the producer, and he said you know, let's get a different drummer and a bass, player and isolate. You know, let's play everything with the guitars, but let's try to make a pop record for fun, because we have never done that. So whatever pop is, I don't know what that is, but it just means: let's try to make something that they'll play on the radio
That's what we do, and so there we made that our warm and there now,
months later. It came out what brought before it came out. Stevie got killed where he was playing a game with Eric.
and robert cray in IRAN. I re man, a big festival and stevie called an area. Constant, hey wants you come up here, buddies come in from Chicago. Why don't you come up here? It's a big big weekend will have a big time, so I went up there and course that, sir, when stevie crashed in the helicopter, leaving the gig at alpine valley
So that's what happened and I was just we had the family cell in the can. The record company was totally
excited about it because we had both done good apart and they were going to. They were excited. You want your company to be excited, you don't want to be like. Oh damn. What are we going to do with this? You know so they were you know the the executives at sony and CBS associated records were excited about the label, so they were going to. I mean the the record so and then stevie got killed and everything
Became dark and gloomy and like what in the world is this enough so then, finally, later on, they put the record out and they didn't really promoted and we didn't know what to do cause it was it felt weird. You know why me ascites your snotty. I mean one thing about what do we do with the record, but the other thing is that, like, while you guys are incredibly close since he just didn't know what to do, you didn't know what to do about anything. It was just so that's why one of the reasons why we didn't promote the record, because I wouldn't do it and I was like I dunno, you know what am I going to do, go out there and promoter record without my brother, he just died and it didn't make sense,
So that was twenty eight years ago in august, in this august, it'll be twenty eight years since he was killed, which has a long time. It is but only a blank there, but you are both and that's the way time is in there. I mean seems like in the years after that. Also it's you
like he kind of pulled back like he kind of withdrew from the guy was like for three years or I dunno how long it was cause, it was kind of like a dark cloud. Whirlwind, don't know really what happened
Just kind of one day at a time dealing with everything and are trying to.
And trying to make sense out of it. I just realized
a year or so ago.
because you know you're going you're going to have therapy and you can do and anything you could try to understand how to deal with something like that. It helps to a lot of people. But how do you carry one? You know and hold your head up, and what do you do so? I just realized not long ago, I'm not going to get over it and I don't like it and I'm pissed off. So that's just the way it is, but I have a beautiful life. I have a wonderful family and a wife and beautiful kids. My children are, I have twins who are going to be fifteen in june and.
I know I have a beautiful life, have a wonderful wife, and so, but that whole thing you know, is like a bad's fairy tale that won't go away and I dunno still don't want to do about it. But you know when something like that happens, you you you try to figure out what you're going to do about. How are you going to be the carry on the stop
Do you? What do you do hm? I finally realized I'm not going to get over and I don't I'm pissed off and there's nothing. I can do about it. So it's one day at a time yeah and but but like I said, I have a beautiful life,
mere. I get to come here and beyond the radio with you are our podcast order. It is Adam, I mean it's also cause was you. I guess the next EU put out was was about years later was apple, we're on that was extremely
we are now about. That was strange or leisure. Five re strange pleasure that was clear to me about three or four years to.
Kind of find my way in
it's okay, I didn't want to go out and pub. I go to the grocery store and I begin bent down and in the aisle to get something and somebody would come up and they go and they would
burst into tears. Oh I'm! So sorry because
they had all experience. You know the thing was stevie, but they didn t say anything like David. Maybe
somehow sent, but when they would see me and they would, it would come out so you know he was a credible. I keep flipping back and forth,
is that's kind of the way it is not a man like I have, but I do have a wonderful life now and I think out about that and I get to play guitar every single,
I have a wonderful ban, have made a lot of records in and all the things that have got to do have a family and dogs in you, no horses in my kids, my wife right horses and in all missed my brother, never got to do any of them.
He he was, or you know, like a hurricane on the guitar, and he really made his mark. Everybody loves it. You know just as do I, but he didn't get to have a family and all that stuff that you get there. If you just can hang around, do you ever do ever get any sense, and- and maybe this is completely no, but I would just as commentary right now said: Jeffrey get a sense that.
in any way, you're almost sarah lake living for him or his like his living through you to a certain extent with what you do, or is it really just like? No, I he will always be with me like
I life is never going to be the chain the same, and yet I need to go on and live my life and created two and it created well as worked three years after he died, is kind of sad. My house try to what do I do with about this or not do, or you know what I mean so
Can I finally realised I think Stevie just like I had always played before I started plan first, and he would want me to play what would he want me to do
And the answer would be, you want me to be happy and do everything that he.
I like to do also if he were here piano there, so you I mean you move on and also in enough or sound there's a song on that album which is unwilling to in the shown us is really powerful short. It's really stripped down six string down, whereas extra rings down rank that your turn
It. Basically that's like yes, the whole time around when I'm making that album. I'm thinking when I'm getting ready to make time. I'm thinking you know what am I going to do about stevie, I dunno what to do about stevie cause. If you say anything, people want to tell you how sorry they are and they want it. Anyway. It was the perfect song and it was art, never wrote the song.
no kidding art neville and his brothers wrote the song and they were going to do it, and it was also about Jimi hendrix air cause. I remember it's a rainbow dreads. Your child is welcoming into in the lyrics yeah, so they sent me the song on a cassette and I was like man. This is it. This is because I couldn't the thing about it was. I couldn't figure out what to tell my mother what
tell your mother cause I'm. I was the big brother, so I'm supposed to get my little brother to school and getting back home. You know, and I I fucked it up. I know, even though I didn't have anything to do with it. It just felt that way. You know so anyway, the song came. They it came in the mail and I was like
This is it so I I I took the song and I changed it took out
rainbow bridge, and that and just made it my song and I said: okay, I'm gonna write a couple of verses at the end and we'll put stevie in blues Heaven with all of our favorite guys. That's where he is.
So it was really to tell my mother something I had to tell my mother some. You know I had a collar when when stevie died, I call my mother and said
also see that, on the same day as my father, so it was four years apart. You know and she thought I was calling to say. I'm sorry, you known as a bad day for, but I had to tell our also
That's tv and so on
song was really special in a healing. Why? Because at least I could put stevie.
Somewhere and he was in Heaven with
these are the singers. You know very well the old song hillbilly heaven about where
The hillbilly singers go when they die and they're all up in Heaven,
in around together, and so I
I heard that one day and I thought this is the same thing. Missus ware stevie is with the blessing.
and he's with Jesus Mary and Joseph are sitting there too. You know, and that was from my mom, and you know what I meant there and sounds like I mean that was one of the things that kind of, let you say, okay like this, is out there like. I figured out what I need to say and how to say it, and now it's time for me to step back into doing my thing. Another blues, singer, yeah back home, yeah,
That really helped me alive. You notice that whole notion sorting gave me a rudder back, and then I made the rest of the them and try to me
happy songs on the arm and doktor john help me
now. Rogers helped me and all in all, a lot of people helped me make that album and you're out touring. I mean note, that's been a twenty five years ago and the career keeps rolling on keys building.
Gone and your kids or the musical have they have they play piano. They take piano lessons and they play you know like classical and and every once in a while, but come home with a a standard or something, but they are quite good,
and they both play like one point, one will play and then the other one gets on there and plays and they play different songs, but they all know each other songs. So they're really great. You think either one will end up in music. I think is possible yeah because
They play very well. You know, I'm sure it's fifty percent proud father when I listen to him, but they they play very well. They have a thing where they play and they play each nor in it it makes you feel it so, the wherever that is. They have now set in that thing that you can't wait, and I wonder if that thing is an unknown really cares and what you think about this, because it always wonder whether that that indescribable thing do you feel like that, something you either have. Are you don t think so that you can develop over time? I would think if you want it, maybe you can get it in other,
the gypsies have a thing that they called Dwayne de, which is when they're all playing in the caves. Like the gypsies are in the caves. You know, and they have a thing called dwayne day, and I doubt some kind of entity shows up and gives him the extra mojo.
You know, and that was another song on the album called. I may come back porch dwayne de which you know, I've discovered all this stuff and I was like you know just fooling around with it, and
So I just the notion of doing days like you, if you play an instrument in your own stage, sometimes you can really play good. Sometimes you can't most of the time you you're trying to get somewhere. You know trying to get to a calm place where you can really get your in herself to come out or something like that, and that would be my version of explanation of dwindle.
or maybe muddy waters? They would call it if you heard muddy waters and he was like doing that thing and you go okay. He's got soul right, so I think it's it must
the same thing like when jazz players take off and do something you know, and it all comes out there. When you look back, I mean not that you're done in any way shape or form it sort of like look back at now decades of doing this work. How much of that do you feel how much of that was planned? How much of it was intentional? How much of it just was you just showing up doing what let you up and going where it took you? I think it's
pretty much all that I think you did. It feels like it's all that you know. Maybe I made some good decisions by accident along the way and then I you know I got into drugs and alcohol along the way
and the fought with that and then finally realized through a lot of help from a lot of people that I couldn't do that or I was gonna die, and so it's all a gift. Now, I'm in I understand that every day is a gift, and you know what a wonderful thing that we get to do. There feels like a good place for us to come full circle tier. So, if I ask you, a question fell for the term to to live a good life. What comes up
I think I've been doing that have have been fortunate. Let's put it that way and in every way- and it's a good thing that I probably didn't get what I deserved, you know. So I'm.
Excited and happy- and I enjoyed play a more now than ever before and
You know as if you play for a while, it seems like you. It kind of moves over here a little bit and it kind of goes over here kind of goes over
You can play the same way on purpose. Even if you try, you know it move, so it just snatch. It's all natural is the way it feels.
So it's just one day at a time you don't have to wear. It really worry about all that and it's not a big plan. If it is a big plan, then somebody else knows the plan and I'm not sure about it. Thank you. Thank you.
So do man? Are you don't have your guitar in the studio with you right at this moment, we happen to have a couple of two six. Can I hang it on the wall? Over here any chance I could in
are you to just grab. One may be just play a little bit of something for us here.
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thanks a lot,
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Transcript generated on 2023-06-27.