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Remembering Stevie Ray Vaughan on the 20th Anniversary of His Untimely Death
- Posted on Aug 26th 2010 5:30PM by James Sullivan
Redferns / Getty Images
Acknowledging that he'd hit rock bottom, the quiet bluesman once renounced the myth of the sainted rock 'n' roll casualty. "The lie is that it's OK to go out in flames," he said. "But that doesn't do anybody much good. I may be wrong, but I think Hendrix was trying to come around."
Vaughan, the closest thing to Jimi Hendrix we're likely to see, did come around. Sadly, less than four years later, his life came to an abrupt end anyway, when the helicopter he was taking from an all-star blues jam in Alpine Valley, Wisc., crashed into a hill in heavy nighttime fog just after takeoff. Aug. 27 marks the 20-year anniversary of Vaughan's death at age 35.
At the time of the accident, he was set to release 'Family Style,' a joint album project with his older brother Jimmie Vaughan, who'd recently left the Fabulous Thunderbirds. Despite his wayward years, Stevie Ray was essentially a family man, remaining close to his brother and loyal to Tommy Shannon and Chris Layton, the rhythm section that composed his backing band, Double Trouble.
"We were best friends," Shannon recently told the Oklahoman newspaper. "I lived with him and his wife when we weren't on the road."
Shannon first met Vaughan when the guitarist was still a teenager, performing at a Dallas club called the Fog. (Coincidentally, it was the same place where Shannon had met his previous employer, guitarist Johnny Winter, with whom he would play at Woodstock.)
"I walked inside, and there's this little skinny, pigeon-toed, big-eared kid playing his ass off," Shannon recalled.
Stevie Ray Vaughan and Double Trouble went on to record four studio albums, including the double-platinum 1983 debut, 'Texas Flood' and its 1984 followup, the classic 'Couldn't Stand the Weather.' That album was recently reissued in an expanded, remastered, two-disc version.
Vaughan, who became eligible for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2008, also left behind several live sets, including the landmark 'Live at Carnegie Hall.' Released posthumously in 1997, the performance featured the Roomful of Blues horn section and Dr. John on piano.
Two years after his death, Vaughan won a Grammy Award for Best Rock Instrumental Performance for his cover of Hendrix's 'Little Wing.' The song appeared on an outtakes collection called 'The Sky Is Crying,' named for another of Vaughan's favorites, the song by blues great Elmore James. Vaughan's life may have been cut short, but he lived plenty long enough to be lauded for his own take on the transcendent power of the blues.
- Filed under: Between the Notes
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reguntofer
R.I.P Vaughan are always in my heart......
Flying Little wing.....
Vaughandrix.....
jman
I remeber where I was standing and what I was doing when I heard the news of the death of SRV. I was 15 and felt an incredible loss. Got all his stuff. Listen to it daily. There is only one SRV. RIP my man.
August 30 2010 at 9:32 AM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down Reply
G Ruby Santana
Unfortunately for me I didn't discover SRV, until 1995. A friend of mine played
The Sky Is Crying, cd and I was instantly blown away by his style of playing the
BLUES!! He learned from the GREATS but was such a musical genius he developed
a style all his OWN and wrote alot of great music music as well. I don't have all his
music but i do own a few among them "Family Style" I love Jimmie, too!
RIP STEVIE, your MUSIC LIVES FOREVER and you will not be FORGOTTEN! Thank You.
terry dail
Fans, listen to Steve Vaughn, his dad, play guitar. Also, then listen to Johnny Winter play Highway 61. I must say, don't ya'll love John Mayer?
August 28 2010 at 5:48 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down Reply
Steve Larson
Stevie, I still grieve for you, and all the music we still miss. In reality, we grieve for ourselves.
August 28 2010 at 1:44 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down Reply
Larry
I had only discovered him in 1988. I was standing in my office with two co-workers when the radio announced his death. They saw this horrified look on my face and asked me what was wrong? I said that SRV had just died. One said "Who is he"? I said "Oh....never mind"! I have bought every recording I have found. I love the way he changes the style of a song from one live recording to another. The best being "Leave My Little Girl Alone", where rather than playing the rifts as on the studio version, he bundles the notes together in lightning fast moments, allowing the melody to play on, well after he has played the notes. I love ya' man!
August 28 2010 at 10:49 AM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down Reply
phishya
First time I saw Stevie He opened for Ratt in Dubuque IA when he first came out. Were is Ratt now...
August 28 2010 at 9:44 AM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down Reply
pnut166
I was introduced to SRV as a teen, via MTV Unplugged. Both me, as a beginning rock guitarist, and my father, who was a seasoned, lifelong blues / folk guitarist, were completely blown away that night. He completely changed what I thought of guitar music; among the teen crowd, bands like Poison and Warrant rules the airwaves at that time. In ten short minutes, he exposed everything in current pop rock for what it was: talentless and soulless. I was an instant, rabid fan. Years later, I was entering my senior year in high school, when he died. I cried that morning watching MTV, yet didn`t even know why - it`s not like I knew him or anything. SRV was the rarest of musicians in that the recording studio could not capture his essence; he was infinitely better live than on record. His studio recordings are okay, but for those of you who never saw his live performances, you don`t really understand SRV. Studio records never captured the ferocity in his voice, or the trancendental fury of his licks - he never played a song live the same way twice; he played "in the moment" unlike any other guitarist ever. His technique was masterful - he NEVER hit a sour note. And his phrasing and structure - especially live - were second to none. Anyone who reads this, please go to youtube and check out some of his live clips, especially from his pro - recorded Austin City Limits or El Mocambo appearances. You WILL be blown away if you`ve never seen them, whether you`re a blues fan or not ! RIP SRV - you are still missed !
August 27 2010 at 11:05 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down Reply
ronald boykan
Absolutely my favorite... clapton has said that stevie was the fastest guitarist he's evr seen... i miss him...
August 27 2010 at 10:38 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down Reply
RickH
SRV was the biggest inspiration to my own music. I have played his music since 1984, and I have heard others as well. But nobody plays it with the fluidity that only SRV could. I remember the day he died, and what I was doing, just like you you remember exactly where you were when you heard about the space shuttle explosion or 9/11 for the first time. Stevie Ray was the best.
August 27 2010 at 9:26 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down Reply
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