Dissonant Identities

Dissonant Identities
MUSIC/ CULTUR E
A series from Wesleyan University Press
Edited by George Lipsitz, Susan McClary, and Robert Walser
Published titles
My Music b y Susan D. Crafts, Danie l Cavicchi, Charle s Keil,

and the Music in Daily Lif e Project
Running with the Devil: Power, Gender, and Madness in

Heavy Metal Music b y Robert Walse r
Subcultural Sounds: Micromusicso f the West by Mark Slobin
Upside Tour Head! Rhythm and Blues

on Central Avenue by Johnny Otis
Dissonant Identities: The Rock'n'Roll Scene

in Austin, Texas by Barry Shank
B A R R Y SHAN K
THE ROCK'N'ROL L
SCENE IN
A U S T I N , T E X AS
W E S L E Y AN U N I V E R S I T Y P R E S S
Published by University Press of New England
Hanover & London

WESLEYAN UNIVERSIT Y PRES S
Published by University Press of New England, Hanover , N H 03755
© 1994 by Barry Shank
All rights reserved
Printed in the Unite d States of America 5 4 3 2 1
CIP data appear at the end of the book
The lyric s from Gu y Clark, "Desperados Waiting for the Train,"

© 1973 Chappel & Co., ar e used by permission.
For Shari
This page intentionally left blank
Contents
Preface i x
1. The Imaginary Tourist: An Introduction to Austin's
Rock'n'Roll Scene 1
2. Constructing th e Musicalized Performance o f

Texan Identity 2 0
3. Desperados Waiting for a Train: The Development of

Progressive Country Music 3 8
4. Th e Collapse o f the Progressive Country Alliance 6 6
5. Punk Rock at Raul's: The Performance

of Contradiction 9 1
6. The Performance o f Signifying Practice 11 8
7. The Inscription o f Identity i n the Music Business 1 62
8. The Commodificatio n o f Identity 19 1
Contents I vi i
9. The Continuing Importance of Musicalized
Experience 238
Notes 25 3
Selected Bibliography 28 1
Index z8 9
Contents I vii i
Preface
When I moved t o Texas I was dead se t on doin g wha t it was I wanted t o do .

I had never really fit in anywhere, and when I moved to Austin, I decided, I' m
really gonna appl y myself to drama and music and have a really good time. No -
body knows me ; I'll onl y have to b e here a year. I can make a complete as s out
of myself if that's what it takes, but I'm going to do something. So I decided t o
just start all over again. Just start fro m scratch . And I went a little bit haywire.
I wore weird clothe s righ t of f the bat. I t was like, no on e knows m e and the y
don't know tha t I haven't wor n al l this stuf f al l my life. An d i t was just great .
And I me t thi s frien d name d Je b Nichols who tol d m e what wa s really goo d
about music. And I believed him, and he introduced m e to Jonathan Richman
and Elvis Costello. And he introduced m e to Raul's . And the drinking age was
eighteen. So we'd go to the clubs and we'd see all these great bands. I remember
going to Raul's and being really intimidated. People were very strange and a lot
older than me and seemingly sophisticated in a real worldly sense. These people ,
the scene , I mean , I' m sur e a lot o f i t wa s self-imposed, but the y seeme d t o
have soul. Hardship, the y knew hardship. They seemed so urban. From Austin .
Which is really funny. Bu t t o m e i t was like this real eye-opening experience—
that people could actuall y do somethin g the y believed in. Like to b e weird o r
something. —Ki m Longacre'
Every busines s ha s it s researc h an d developmen t function . We hav e tha t i n

spades. It's the clubs and the musicians, the songwriters. But all industries have a
production function, sales and marketing, distribution, an d point of sale, where
you reac h th e consume r with th e product . I n the musi c industry , productio n
is made up o f recording studio s an d the personnel t o effec t tha t function. This
personnel include s productio n managers , which ar e record producers , i t als o
includes managers an d publishers. Sales and marketing in the music business is
performed b y publicists, concert promoters , managers , and record labels . Dis-
tribution i s handled b y record companies and distributors and booking agents .
The final point of sale, which is the other end we have plenty of, includes record
stores an d th e nightclub s an d concer t venues . S o it i s clear wha t w e need t o
focus on, what we need to encourage. We need better studios, mor e professional
producers, stronge r publishin g companies, label s with internationa l distribu-
tion, manager s wit h internationa l aspirations , booking agent s wit h interna -
tional aspirations. We need to educate bankers that music is a legitimate industry
and increas e their comfort in dealing with those in that industry.
—Ernie Gammage2
Preface I i x
The rock'n'roll scene in Austin, Texas, is characterized by the productiv e
contestation betwee n thes e two forces: th e fierce desire to remake one-
self through musical practice, and the equall y powerful struggl e t o af-
firm the value of that practice in the complexly structured late-capitalist
marketplace. Insofa r as this book i s an attempt t o represen t that scene ,
it too has been produced ou t of this struggle and bears its marks. Grow-
ing ou t o f a complex set of contradictory and historicall y constructe d
factors, "th e Austi n music scene" indicate s a constellation o f divergent
interests and forces, and the effort t o depict it requires both an attentio n
to empirica l detai l an d a n expansiv e theoretical framework. Not onl y
does this particular story of the Austin music scene beg to be told in all of
its fantastic specifity, but the details of that story give us many new ways
to thin k abou t ho w th e performanc e of popular musi c functions a s a
process of identity-formation. Therefore, this book carries on two quit e
different argument s a t the sam e time. I n s o doing, i t bring s togethe r
two antagonisti c analytica l paradigms and, consequently, breaks certain
familiar scholarl y rules. Deliberately.
I began this project wit h the belief that no signifying practice capabl e
of transformin g identitie s operate s i n isolation , but alway s withi n a n
historically structured cultural and economic context. Therefore, I have
spent considerable tim e detailing that contextual history. But my major
fascination with th e music made in Austin derives from it s extravagant
subjective power—its abilit y to chang e the live s of those (suc h as Kim
Longacre) wh o participat e in it . Consequently , I hav e als o struggle d
to construc t a theory o f identificatio n in musical practice that i s based
in the poststructuralis t appropriatio n of Lacanian psychoanalysis. I am
arguing tha t the performance of rock'n'roll musi c in the clubs of Austin
creates an environment conduciv e to the exploration of new identities.
In fact , I believ e that thi s performanc e of new, sometime s temporar y
but nevertheles s significant , identities i s the definin g characteristi c of
scenes in general as well as their most important cultura l function.
My second argumen t i n this book i s related to the historical context
of the Austin scene. I argue that a major transformation has taken place
in the organization o f music-making in Austin. During the mid-1980s ,
the production of popular musi c in Austin became more closely linked
with the requirement s an d the values of the national recording indus -
tries. This resulted i n a shift no t onl y in the economi c organizatio n o f
the city's rock'n'roll scene , but also in the musical and cultural aesthetics
of that scen e and, therefore , in the subjective qualities of any identities
it might produce .
The intersectio n o f my two argument s take s place at that momen t
Preface I x
of restructuring . Durin g thi s period , I was living in Austin an d play-
ing musi c i n the clubs . Part o f my intense fascination wit h th e powe r
of musica l practic e i n Austi n derive s fro m thi s persona l experience .
Something happene d t o m e while I wa s playing music i n thi s town .
Slowly, I becam e a membe r o f th e scene . Through tha t process , m y
tastes changed, m y desires and interest s changed, quit e subjective feel -
ings of pleasure, belonging, loyalty , along with jealousy, frustration, and
envy changed, and thus, my identity changed along with them. Through
living the mundan e everyday life of a rock'n'roll musician i n Austin, I
identified wit h an d incorporated a musical signifying patter n that then
shaped an d constructed m y experience. I attempt to theorize that pro -
cess here even as I chronicle important change s in the conditions that,
even now, make it possible.
Broadly speaking , thi s boo k inhabit s the genr e o f critica l cultura l
studies ethnography. 3 Thus, i t attempt s t o represen t th e intersectio n
of divers e cultura l forces—musico-aesthetic , economic, ideological —
within a n historicized depiction o f lived experience. The effort t o write
both diachronicall y an d synchronically , theoretically an d empirically ,
radically complicates the already difficult problem s of ethnographic rep-
resentation. Bu t the ethnography of complex (post)modern cultures—
particularly of commercialized cultural practices—demands such an ap-
proach, even as this approach creates problems of its own.
Any ethnographer mus t recogniz e tha t th e objec t o f knowledge —
whether conceive d o f a s a culture or a practice under study—does in -
deed exist beyond what he or she could possibly say about it, and at the
same time that the culture or practice is constituted only through similar
and innumerable, dccentered yet interested cultural acts.4 Ethnographi c
descriptions hav e effect s o n th e cultur e o r practic e bein g describe d
—creating ne w angle s fro m whic h t o vie w th e object—an d ethnog -
raphers ar e responsibl e fo r thes e discursiv e effects . Therefore , impor -
tant questions mus t b e asked: What form should the descriptions take?
Should the y remai n wholl y academi c and impersonal ? O n th e othe r
hand, shoul d the y explicitl y avow their inescapabl e interests? Can a n
admittedly intereste d and involved ethnographer sa y something mean-
ingful abou t the cultural practices in which he or she is involved? Or d o
the persona l interests limit th e validity of the ethnographer's interpre -
tation? Finally , do suc h representations excessively test the patienc e of
their readers through thei r necessary blurring of genres?
Following th e implications and assertions of postmodern ethnogra -
phy, I believ e that n o cultura l description can be neutral. Every repre-
sentation is drawn from a particular limited perspective which produces
Preface I x i
its own effects. Yet all cultural practice, not only ethnography, consists of
such actions—speech acts, performances, material constructions—each
of which spins new connections among already existing threads within a
cultural web, changing not only the shape of the web, but the direction,
the meaning , th e value, of the threads . Ethnograph y is simply another
cultural practice, a writing that originates from somewher e between lit-
erature and social science. According to its generic rules, the written text
gestures toward something—a culture, a practice, other texts—with the
intention of interpreting it s meaningful characteristics . In order t o ac-
complish thi s interpretive goal, ethnographers try to buil d models ou t
of words that represent th e distinctive contours o f their object, even as
they ascribe new surfaces to its shape. Ethnography, then, is not a reduc-
tion of practice to text , nor merely a translation between these modes ,
but instea d bears the burden of creation.
Ethnographic creation , however, must remain a representative inter-
pretation o f the significant characteristics of the cultural object. Ethnog-
raphy i s the inscriptio n o f meaningful metaphors tha t aris e when th e
subject (the writer) and the object (the culture) "muddle their borders."
Through participation i n cultural practice, ethnographers experience a
subjective identificatio n wit h th e interna l dimensions o f thei r object .
Writing an ethnography then becomes an attempt to recreate a necessary
distance between thi s object and our writing selves, to re-establis h the
borders, using the materials of our craft—words and sentences, phrases
and paragraphs. It therefore becomes doubly important to describe ex-
plicitly the ground upon whic h ethnographers stand . In severa l of the
following chapters , I hav e inserted myself as an acto r in th e storie s I
tell. By announcing m y interests, I hope to mar k out m y specific place-
ment in the constellation of forcesand to use that positioning t o achieve
a dialectic o f distance an d intimacy, subject an d object, generality and
particularity, descriptio n an d object described, throughou t th e book .
This, it seems to me , becomes the point of postmodern ethnography :
performing Pygmalio n i n reverse , ethnographer s transfor m a lovin g
dialogue into an imitative object.5
In th e end , however , m y act o f ethnograph y i s a layered narrative
that I have constructed abou t music-making in Austin. Therefore, thi s
book canno t contai n th e fined story o f the Austi n music scene. Rather ,
it attempt s t o describe , from th e ground floor, the important cultura l
functions of this scene during a specific moment of transformation along
with the historical backgroun d of that transformation. I have not writ-
ten extensivel y about Austin's majo r recen t recordin g "stars. " The late
Stevie Ra y Vaughan , th e Fabulou s Thunderbirds, Joe Ely , an d eve n
Preface I xi i
Marcia Ball, appear only in retrospect an d mostly in passing. Without a
doubt, the stor y I have told would b e quite differen t i f I were to have
focused on the commercial successe s that have been produced throug h
this transformation . Instead , th e contributio n o f thes e "stars " t o th e
story tol d in this book comes fro m th e time in their careers when the y
too wer e strugglin g quasi-professiona l performer s makin g thei r mos t
impassioned musi c in the city's nightclubs. This is where I have focused
my interest: o n musicians who have not reached stardom but who con -
tinue t o struggl e throug h performance , an d on th e fan s wh o identif y
with that constitutive struggle .
This boo k begin s wit h a n imaginary tour o f the som e o f the mos t
significant site s o f th e Austi n musi c scene : recor d stores , nightclubs ,
rehearsal rooms, city neighborhoods, streets, an d alleyways. On a ho t
night i n August , I lea d the reade r through spac e and time , sketchin g
out th e histor y o f the tow n itsel f and its relations wit h th e res t o f the
state. The secon d chapter begin s a lengthy discussion of the histor y of
music-making i n Austin. I trace the cultura l importance of local musi-
cal performance bac k t o th e link s constructed b y John Aver y Loma x
between a n idealize d visio n o f Texa n identity—the cowboy—an d a n
equally idealize d representatio n o f musica l practice—Lomax's collec -
tion of cowboy songs. 6 I then follow the dissemination of this traditio n
through the developmen t o f the singing cowbo y and the effect s o f this
image o n th e commercia l trajector y o f hillbill y music. A brie f discus -
sion o f th e developmen t o f honky-ton k cultur e set s up a n analysi s o f
the reviva l of folksinging b y university students an d local , traditional ,
amateur musician s a t Threadgill's bar . Through thi s vitall y importan t
rearticulation o f tradition an d youth, music-makin g in Austin becam e
the mos t significant local means for the performance of identity . These
performances sprea d throughou t th e nex t severa l decades an d encom -
passed many different musica l styles. From countr y to psychedelic rock
to blue s to punk, music-makin g in Austin attracte d the desires and the
ambitions o f several generations o f students, resultin g i n a sedimente d
tradition of musical signifying practice. Chapters 3, 4, and 5 follow this
shifting history of musical styles and cultural transformation.
Chapters 6 and 7 contain a different discussion ; they attempt to theo -
rize the musical production of subjectivity and support this theorizatio n
through an extensive ethnography of musical practice. I argue that th e
cultural function to which local musical performance is put (tha t is, the
construction o f identit y an d community) result s in a musical aestheti c
organized around a postmodern concep t of sincerity. Sincerity becomes
a valu e that ca n only b e signifie d throug h a n evident resistance o f th e
Preface I xii i
disciplinary constraints of the dominant culture . Yet, the articulation of
this refusal through th e commodifying structures of popular culture de-
mands a certain disciplined acquiesence . Thus, the performance of iden-
tity in the practice of popular music involves a constant renegotiation o f
the relationship s betwee n Imaginar y sincerity and a commodified Sym-
bolic. Chapter 8 concludes the historical discussion, arguin g that a radi-
cal transformation i n the economi c bas e of music-making has not onl y
altered th e condition s withi n whic h rock'n'rol l i s produced i n Austi n
but ha s also placed constraints on the identities that can be performed.
Regardless o f any momentary arresting effects produce d b y this ob -
jectifying ethnography , th e scen e in Austin maintains itself i n constan t
flux. Most of the fans whose subjective impressions shape my argument
no longe r frequen t the clubs ; mos t o f the nightclub s I mentio n hav e
closed o r changed ownership ; most o f the bands I discuss have broken
up. But the final assertion of this book remains: a certain semiotic excess
continues t o b e generated i n the production o f collective musical plea-
sure by each new generation of musicians and fans i n each new genera-
tion of the city's clubs. And, further , suc h moments of mutual pleasur e
contain a promise tha t transcend s any competitive drive for individual
gain. Through this musicalized experience, the Austin music scene fights
against the newl y industrialized conditions o f its own existence and re-
creates a momentar y postmoder n community . The remainde r o f thi s
book i s intended to suppor t thes e assertions; in so doing, this ethno -
graphic objec t hopes t o represen t convincingl y something o f life i n th e
rock'n'roll scene in Austin, Texas.
Sixty different musicians , fans, writers, and industry support person -

nel agree d t o b e interviewe d fo r thi s study . Their name s ar c listed i n
an appendix , bu t I want t o begi n thes e acknowledgments b y thanking
them collectively for their help. As Shotgun Willie once said, "You cain't
make a record i f you ain't got nothing t o say." They gave me somethin g
to say . This book began a s a dissertation for the American Civilization
department a t the University of Pennsylvania. There, I was fortunate to
work unde r th e directio n o f Janice Radway; I remain extremely grate-
ful fo r her patien t an d assured guidance i n matters both academi c an d
personal. George Lipsitz not only carefully read and critiqued many ver-
sions of this work, h e consistently encouraged m e to complet e thi s un-
orthodox project. I would like to thank the staff of the Austin Chronicle,
particularly the editor and the publisher, for allowing me access to thei r
entire ru n o f issues . The librarian s at the Barke r Texa s History Cen -
ter extended more than professional excellence, courteously responding
Preface I xi v
to desperat e long-distanc e phon e calls. John Wheat aide d in the selec-
tion o f illustration s fro m th e Barker' s extensive collection o f posters .
Jim Franklin and Kerry Awn graciously authorized the reproduction o f
their poster art . Pa t Blashil l kindly allowed the use of hi s photograph s
of Austin clublife . Greg Sowders and the staf f of Jack Rosner's offic e a t
Warner Chappell music were friendly, efficient, an d helpful. The follow -
ing people read drafts of this work: Roger Abrahams, Peter Casagrande,
Mellissa Cobb, Terry Cochran, Joh n Gennari, David Katzman, Cheryl
Lester, Kathy McTee, Robert St. George, Randall Stross, Shirley Wajda,
Robert Walser, and an anonymous reader for the Press. I would lik e to
thank them for the work they did for me, for their stimulating criticisms
and their supportive comments. Finally, this book is dedicated to Shari,
who understands the personal importance of history and who every day
makes it real.
Preface I x v
Map o f Austin . Draw n wit h the assistance of Shari Speer and her computer, Emily .
C H A P T E R ON E
The Imaginary Tourist

An Introduction to Austin's Rock'n'Roll Scene
There ar e nights in Austin when the air grows hotter once the sun goes
down. When you no longer se c the hea t rising in waves from th e pave-
ment but you feel it, you walk through it , you breathe it. The heat hold s
your clothe s agains t your skin . And th e sweat that drip s fro m yo u has
nowhere t o go . I t i s one of those night s durin g th e summe r o f 1991.
I a m standing a t the corner o f 2,6th and Guadalupe, lookin g dow n th e
drag toward the university. The rusting hulk of the studios for the radio-
television-film schoo l lean s over th e stree t fro m the left . O n th e right ,
the marquee fo r th e Hole in the Wall lists tonight's show of Teddy an d
the Tall-Top s an d last night's sho w of some two-month-ol d ban d tha t
only go t th e gi g becaus e they whine d for i t three day s in a row whil e
eating Realit y Sandwiches , extra-real. 1 The bartender , wh o i s also th e
booking agent an d the cook, was impressed by their ability to consum e
jalapenos an d greas e and figured they had the making s o f a real band ,
someday. S o the Post Stompers got to play their guitars in the corner of
the Hol e in the Wall on a Thursday night . The cove r charge is usually
small at the Hol e in the Wall and the bee r is always cold, bu t we'r e no t
going i n there . I wan t t o wal k up th e dra g on e mor e block , t o zyt h
Street, and show you where Raul's used to be.
Some will sa y that Raul' s i s sort o f a sacred space . They mea n th e
memory o f the place , not th e actua l building. The buildin g now holds
a dump calle d the Showdown . The fron t o f the buildin g by the stree t is
covered wit h brow n shingle s that splinter off into your back if you lean
up against it. But no one leans up against it. No longer arc there crowd s
waiting around outside . The Showdown's onl y attraction seem s to be a
remarkable abilit y to thin k new ways around whatever no-happy-hour
rules th e stat e legislatur e can invent. At 4:3 0 every afternoon , th e ba r
The Imaginary Tourist I i

fills up wit h thos e goo d of boy s who no longe r ca n drink while the y
drive home fro m work . So they throw bac k about hal f a dozen Shine r
Bocks at fifty cents a pop while they curse the white collars in the capitol.
Of course , Raul' s wa s a dump, too . Te n years ago , th e insid e walls
were cake d with graffit i an d sweat so that when yo u leaned up agains t
them o n night s lik e this , splinter s didn' t pierc e your ski n but instea d
band names—lik e the Offenders , and the Huns , an d the Re*Cords —
would b e imprinte d backwar d on you r shirt . Raul' s bega n a s a Mexi-
can bar, featuring bands like Salaman and the Mexican Revolution. Bu t
one night in January 1978, Joseph Gonzalez, Jr., agreed to le t the Vio-
lators play punk rock for their trendy friends a t his club. Quickly, Raul' s
became th e CBGB' s an d Joseph Gonzale z becam e the Hill y Kristal of
Austin punk. 2 Fo r a coupl e o f years , this clu b wa s th e cente r o f th e
music scene.
It i s not a coincidence that punk rock received its first home in Texas
at a Mexican bar. In this other place , young (mostl y white) people wh o
had read about the Sex Pistols and listened to the Ramones could gather
to explor e th e relation s betwee n a musical and theatrical performance
style and the social and industrial context within which it was produced
and which i t directly confronted. The special significance of Raul' s was
confirmed o n Septembe r 19,1978, when a particularly clear confronta-
tion between divergent cultural practices took place.
Phil Tolstead , th e lea d singe r of th e Huns , wa s not ver y differen t
from the hundreds of other Johnny Rotten imitators leaning into micro-
phones al l over th e United State s and Great Britain, but tha t nigh t his
performance of antidisciplinary logic ran into an equally compelling per-
formance o f state power. Durin g the Huns' set, Steve Bridgewater and
several other plainclothe d an d uniformed officer s o f the Austi n polic e
department entere d the club and shut down the show, arresting Tolstead
and five others. The punk scene in Austin was instantly legitimized. Be-
fore this confrontation, pun k was another passing trend tha t amuse d a
few disaffected college students. Like the Tex-Mex music that was played
other nights a t Raul's, pun k didn't even count a s Austin music. Across
the stat e an d nationally , in newspape r articles an d i n recor d compan y
offices, "Austi n music " meant progressive country or, a t most, progres -
sive country an d a rising communit y o f young whit e blue s musicians.
After th e polic e arreste d th e singe r an d fou r fan s o f th e Huns , pun k
rock in Texas represented a musical style with the power t o threaten the
dominant cultura l identity.3
The arres t demonstrate d th e breakdow n o f th e cross-generationa l
hegemony tha t ha d bee n haile d a s the grea t achievemen t o f th e pro -
D I S S O N A N T I D E N T I T I E S I 2.
gressive country scen e in Austin during th e early and middle seventies .
While th e cosmi c cowboy s celebrate d the healin g of an earlier genera-
tional wound , punk roc k opened a new gash on the smooth surface o f
the dominant power blo c of Texas. In terms of commodity aesthetics —
that is , as a cultural produc t that determine s its specific worth b y dis-
tinguishing itself through marketplac e competition wit h thousand s o f
other cultural products—the Huns were not very good. But in the light
of local conflicts and local meanings, the Huns were a great band whose
performances brough t to the surface underlying tension s in the Austin
music scene—between international musical styles and local traditions ,
between tha t componen t o f the loca l population intereste d i n alterna-
tive cultures an d alternativ e politics, an d the grou p mor e intereste d i n
stability and orde r an d maintaining a profitable way of life .
Later I will argue this more carefully , bu t now it is time to step back
outside int o th e hea t an d wal k on dow n th e drag . Her e a t 2.4t h an d
Guadalupe w e will turn right , hea d down th e street a block, an d duc k
into Inner Sanctu m records . Durin g th e seventies, this was the recor d
store o f record ; thi s small , airless space was stuffed wit h music . Fro m
1974 to 1978, a guy named Cowboy worke d here. He knew all the pro -
gressive country musicians and really understood tha t sweet sound. Bu t
here also , Richar d Dorset t spen t hour s convincin g regular customer s
who previously had bought every Charlie Daniels record to try out th e
Ramones or th e Dictators—band s fro m Ne w York who playe d simple
but lou d musi c an d wer e kin d o f funn y looking . On e nigh t Dorset t
managed t o convinc e Loui s Blac k tha t Jonatha n Richman's naive sin-
cerity wa s more interestin g tha n Pete r Gabriel' s cleve r intcllcctualism,
that direc t expression s of persona l commitmen t mean t mor e tha n in -
strumental virtuosity . Loui s ha s used the page s of hi s Austin Chronicle
to tell everyone else that for the past nine years.4
During the eighties, Inne r Sanctum hosted record release parties for
local bands . The Standin g Waves , the Bi g Boys, an d th e Dick s played
in th e parkin g lo t whil e roc k critic s dran k fre e bee r an d skate punk s
swerved through the crowd. Eventually, however, Inner Sanctum began
to los e touc h wit h it s customers. Chai n store competitio n fo r the stu -
dent marke t increase d a t the same time that othe r independen t store s
opened that bette r understood th e audience s for new music in Austin.
Waterloo Record s opene d i n 1981 with a complete moncybac k guaran-
tee, eve n fo r nondefectiv e records . A rac k b y the fron t doo r displayed
the commercial recording s o f local talent. The Sound Exchange, a small
chain base d i n Houston tha t sol d ne w an d use d records , lande d a trc-
The Imaginary Tourist I 3

mendous retai l location at the corner of zist Street and Guadalupe. They
hired clerks like Geoff Cordner, wh o knew both the new music and the
musicians in the bands. The rapid transition to compact discs hurt Inne r
Sanctum als o and, gradually, they became the thir d o r fourt h plac e to
look for new hot tunes . Record releas e parties now happen at Waterloo
or at Sound Exchange, where they have turned into promotional events ,
valued for the amount of product moved, not for the music heard or the
amount o f beer consumed.5
Back on the drag, every light pole carries posters from the last several
weeks' worth of shows. Old flyers arc torn down ever y week or so, but
occasionally you can see one from a year or two ago, on an alley wall or
a newspaper stand . Poster ar t has been important in the Austin musi c
scene since Jim Franklin first began drawing little armadillos to promote
shows at the Vulcan Gas Company in the late sixties. While flyers do no t
work as successful advertisement s for specific shows—they do not dra w
people into the clubs to see bands they have never seen before—they do
work as another way to display aspects of a band's image to those willing
to pay attention. I t can be fun to see yourself staring at yourself from on e
of these poles . Some band s use their flyers to carry on publi c conversa-
tions with critics , with bookin g agents , an d with othe r bands . Others
simply sprea d paper-thi n slices of thei r publicit y machine over utilit y
poles near the university, near record stores, and near clubs—sticky pic-
tures of their crafted surfaces peering from the gleaming structures that
surround th e stroller down the drag.6
There i s a flyer advertising Bouffant Jellyfish , Sprawl , and Joe Rock-
head for a Friday night at Liberty Lunch. These groups play an amalgam
of white-boy speed-meta l and learned-from-records funk-ra p much like
that develope d b y the Red Hot Chil i Peppers. The poste r displays the
bands' names around a xeroxed picture of Malcolm X. Such bands will
achieve fame by any means necessary. There is a flyer for Happy Family's
show a t the Texa s Tavern on Saturday . Happy Famil y sings songs like
"Cavemen i n Neckties" an d "Trashcan" that foregroun d contradictor y
aspects o f gende r construction . The flyer says tha t th e wome n i n th e
band wil l b e wearin g bikin i tops fo r th e show . There ar c stick figure
drawings o f the ban d member s and a hand-lettered quote, "We prom-
ise." Uh-huh , sure . These flyers are free ar t sellin g art, decorating the
spaces carved out fro m within the retail center of university life. Viewed
against the stor e window display s that screa m low prices on textbook s
and orange-and-whit e sweatshirts , th e mockin g sel f commodified o n
D I S S O N A N T I D E N T I T I E S/ 4
these flyers appears different an d intelligent, instead of merely sarcastic,
petulant, o r bitter.
This sectio n o f Guadalupe, between Z4t h and zist streets, is the cen-
ter of the drag. Across the street is the west mall of the university campus
where officia l studen t organizations distribut e material s to th e heav y
traffic tha t passes in front o f the undergraduate library and the studen t
union. Historically , th e wes t mal l has bee n th e sit e of man y interest -
ing confrontation s betwee n differen t representative s of the university .
Here, the Students fo r a Democratic Society used the concept of Gentle
Thursdays to provoke anxiet y among the fraternity and sorority group s
by playing guitars on the grass in the early sixties. Here members of the
theater grou p Art an d Sausage s campaigned to tak e over student gov -
ernment in the seventies. In the eighties, touring evangelist s like Sister
Sarah beat their breasts while they denounced their wicked pasts, spon-
sored b y the Campu s Crusade for Christ. 7 The west mall is also referred
to a s the fre e speec h area . It i s where the antiaparthei d shanty recently
stood. Fre e speec h a t the Universit y of Texas is confined to thi s small
rectangle flanked at one end by the administration building and cut off
at the other by the drag. Fronting th e west mall on Guadalupe Street are
book stores , fas t foo d restaurants , and clothing store s tha t function as
the fron t line in the effor t t o engage the students in the local economy.
From fre e speec h to fre e market , the grand political illusions of Ameri-
can society flirtatiously invite the participation of each new generatio n
of students .
Tonight, though , i t i s pretty quiet . Durin g th e day , acoustic musi-
cians stand in the shade by these stores, playing fiddle and guitar, singing
with their cases lying open on the street in front of them. At night som e
of these musicians go to the clubs; others go to the river to camp under
a bridge. There they join other homeless who had spent the day panhan-
dling o n th e drag . Only a few of the homeles s actually spend the nigh t
on the street. This man sitting on the stairs by the bagel shop looks to be
about twenty-five years old. I have seen him around here for six years. I
used to walk by him in the mornings on my way to work, when I worked
at a bookstore called the Universit y Coop. H e i s always smiling, even
when h e sleeps. His shir t is always unbuttoned, eve n in the winter. Hi s
hair grows longer and then is cut, but that is the only change I ever see.
He spends the night right around the corner, in an alley offzznd Street .
He ha s never asked me for money; I have never said a word t o him . I
won't talk to him tonight either .
I wan t t o ste p int o Soun d Exchang e quickly an d se e if they hav e

the newes t Squa t Thrust tape . This stor e no w features th e most direc t
access to the music of the underground scene. They carry the best selec -
tion of homemad e tape s by local bands and host recor d release parties
for eve n th e noisies t amateu r productions. Th e Butthol c Surfer s hav e
played here, the Skatenigs have played here; it can get really loud inside .
And on hot nights like this, it usually is this crowded, with about thirty-
five people squeezing through th e aisles, looking through cds , tapes and
vinyl, T-shirts, posters, and magazines—men with ponytails and women
with thei r hai r dye d black , everyone wearing T-shirts an d short s an d
boots. The guy behind the counter has worked her e for years. He always
says somethin g to me abou t whateve r tape or magazin e I buy , but I
don't kno w hi s name. There i s a woman wh o work s her e sometimes,
who I have lusted after for years, but I don't know her name either. She
never speaks to me . Let's pic k up a Chronicle for its club listings befor e
we go out the door. I know who I want to show you tonight, but there's
always tomorrow . Befor e w e g o t o tonight' s show , w e hav e t o driv e
around an d look a t some of the old places, where some important club s
used to be . While we are driving, I will tell you a few stories about th e
history of this town. We had better roll up the windows. Even though i t
is hours afte r dark , it is still hot enoug h t o tur n on th e ai r conditioner .
In Januar y 1839, Mirabea u B. Lamar, presiden t o f th e Republi c o f
Texas, commissioned a group to scout out a location for the permanent
capital of Texas. A year before, he had camped by the town of Waterloo ,
and h e instructe d th e commissioner s to inspec t tha t spo t h e remem -
bered. The y sen t bac k an enthusiastic report focusin g o n th e natura l
beauty of the surrounding area: the river and the many creeks, the hills
covered with trees , and the rich plain that spread out from the hills. I t
did no t matte r tha t th e beautifu l rive r was not navigabl e and that th e
location wa s far from th e republic' s Anglo populatio n centers . The sit e
of the capita l of Texas was chosen for aesthetic reasons.8
This beautifu l lan d o f the Republi c ha d bee n take n b y forc e fro m
American Indian s an d Mexicans by migrating southerner s wh o hope d
to us e it to becom e ric h planters. Its boundarie s still require d violen t
enforcement. This tension betwee n a love for the physical beauty of th e
land and the need to possess it, to make it one's own and thereby trans -
form it into a capital, motivates much of the history of Austin, Texas.9 By
1860 Austin's population ha d grown to 3,494. During the secession de-
bates three distinct positions emerged. One group argued for remaining
in the Union, one group argued fo r joining th e Confederacy, th e third
wished that Texas would regain its independent status as a single repub-
lic. The vote in Travis County went against secession, 704 to 450—th e
first in a long line of elections where the opinions of voters in the Austin
area differed fro m those i n the remainder of the state. 10
In 1871 the first railroad came to Austin and the transportation trou -
bles tha t ha d limite d th e town' s effectivenes s a s a center fo r th e stat e
were alleviated. Only then, i n 1872, did Austin become the officia l capi-
tal. By 1883, when the University of Texas opened it s first term with 21 8
students, th e cit y was hooked u p t o tw o railroads ; i t ha d a library, an
opera house, a theater, an d four dance halls." As the location of the state
government, an d th e plac e wher e th e state' s childre n pursue d highe r
education, Austin had to provide adequate intrastatc transportation and
appropriate cultural fare.
Here we are just north o f the engineering part of the university cam-
pus, a t a club that used t o b e the Beach. Before 198 3 it was called Folk-
ville, now it is a beer pub called the Crown an d Anchor. It is cleaner and
quieter tha n i t was, but i t really looks about th e same as it did si x years
ago when band s lik e Zeitgeist, th e Dharm a Bums , Texas Instruments ,
the Wild Seeds , an d Doctors' Mob, an d their insisten t psychedelicized
fans turned this ex-ice cream parlor and folk club into the most excitin g
musical performance site in town. The tide o f rock'n'roll musi c rose a t
the Beach once the effects o f the Raul's punk explosion were integrate d
into loca l musica l traditions . It collapse d whe n the drinkin g age was
raised to twenty-one. O n the nights when my band would pla y this club,
I woul d gra b a bee r an d si t outsid e her e o n th e patio , watchin g th e
people come in, agonizing over the size of the crowd and whether or not
we would be good enough to satisf y them . The last show I ever played
in Austin wa s here in July 1986. We opened fo r Zeitgeist ; th e plac e was
packed. I remember that the audience liked us that night. We were really
loud. Let' s get bac k in the car and head south; a t least in the ca r it is air
conditioned.
In 1900, with th e population nea r 25,000, Austin still had no major
industries.12 Agricultural marketing, particularly of cotton and corn, was
an important componen t of the local economy, linkin g local farmers t o
the railroads an d thereby to mills in other part s of the state. 13 The mos t
important publi c works concern was taming the Colorado River , which
tended to excee d its banks at unpredictable yet frequent intervals . Dam
projects for flood control and the production of electrical power wer e
proposed from the 18905 to the 1930 5 with varyin g degrees of success.
Several dams wer e destroyed b y the floods they were buil t to control ,
and the current system of dams and lakes was not completed until World
War II. 14

The Austi n Chambe r o f Commerc e wa s founde d i n 1914 . Fo r th e
next thirty-fiv e years , th e Chambe r pursue d a polic y o f encouragin g
"a steady rat e of municipal growth throug h th e improvemen t an d en -
largement o f it s educational, governmental, recreationa l and commer -
cial facilities."15 The business community of Austin encouraged project s
that improve d loca l transportation, develope d th e recreational aspects
of the area' s natural resources, and worked to make Austin more attrac-
tive to conventioneer s an d tourists. 16 This strateg y differed fro m thos e
of Chambers o f Commerce acros s the country, who tende d t o pursu e
manufacturing projects, but the approach fit in well with a service econ-
omy already oriented to the after-hour s desire s and the leisure needs of
politicians an d students. In 1950, Travis County had the lowest propor -
tion of manufacturing employment o f any county in the United State s
with ove r 100,00 0 people. 17 Throughout the first half of this century ,
Austin remained a slow-paced town, geared to the rhythms of the schoo l
year and a once-every-two-years legislative session.
Now w e are crossing th e Colorad o Rive r on th e Congress Avenu e

bridge. We are a couple of miles south of campus; the pink granite of the
Capitol i s right behin d us . On Barto n Springs Road, we turn righ t an d
drive over to where the Armadillo World Headquarters reigned for over
ten years . This empt y twenty-stor y office buildin g rise s from th e sam e
ground where once stoo d the most heavily promoted music venue this
town ha s ever seen. Fo r many , the Armadill o will alway s b e th e spiri -
tual hom e o f Austi n music . Throughout th e seventies , i n articl e afte r
article, fro m Time magazine t o th e Chicago Tribune t o Oui t o Mother
Jones, the Armadillo World Headquarters dominated an y description o f
music in Texas. It wa s described a s a "groover's paradise," a "counter-
culture concer t hall, " an d a home fo r "queer-minde d socia l misfits." 18
Many writer s traine d i n Austin—a t th e studen t newspape r th e Daily
Texan, a t th e progressiv e biweekly , the Texas Observer, a s well a s a t a
number of "underground" or "alternative" papers like the Rag and the
Sun—went on to write for national magazines or big-city dailies. Wher-
ever the y went , the y wrot e abou t th e musi c mad e i n th e tow n the y
came from . An d the y alway s wrote abou t th e Armadillo. Despit e th e
fact that th e basi c form of the musical style known as progressive coun-
try, or redneck rock, or cosmic cowboy music, had already been hashed
out i n jam sessions at other clubs like the Jade Room, the New Orlean s
Club, the Chequered Flag , and the Vulcan Gas Company, the Armadillo
became associate d wit h th e cultura l significance o f thi s musica l amal-
gam.19 Perhaps this i s because the hal l was big enoug h t o contai n the
D I S S O N A N T I D E N T I T I E S / 8
different group s tha t this music was supposed to have brought together .
Or perhap s it was because the original partners, Mike Tolleson, Eddie
Wilson, and Bobby Hedderman, wer e masterful publicists who, i n com-
petition with othe r clubs and other promoters , effectivel y create d thi s
unshakable associatio n i n the mind s of music fans in Austin an d across
the country betwee n one performanc e site, one rathe r narrow slic e of
Austin music, and a specific image of Texan identity.
In 1976, after six years of operating in the red, leaving a history of un-
paid voluntee r employees and bounce d checks , the original visionarie s
turned the operation over to one of their janitors, Hank Alrich. The son
of a silentscreen-cra movie cowboy, Alrich had inherited a considerable
amount of money, and he struggled for another four years to operate th e
Armadillo o n a cash basis while paying off the hall' s bankruptcy settle-
ment. But he had to give up when th e Austin rea l estate boom becam e
too powerful . Hikes in the property tax made it impossible for the land-
lord, M. K. Hage, to continue the five-cents-a-square-foot monthly ren t
that he had charged since Wilson first negotiated fo r the building. Dur-
ing 1980, several firms made serious offers fo r the land. After the zonin g
for the area was changed to allow highrisc construction, the Hage famil y
sold out, an d the Armadillo era ended.2"
People sa y that many magical nights happened here. The concerts of
Willie Nelso n ar e particularly singled out a s paradigmatic examples o f
the musica l construction o f community. Nelson was a master of sincere
performance. H e would loo k ou t int o the audience and, while making
eye contact with someone , hi s voice would di p behind th e bea t a little
and his head would til t slightly . At that instant , that audienc e membe r
knew that Willie was singing genuinely, honestly, directly to her or him.
As his band rolled through a n unending medley of hits—great songs like
"Crazy," "Night Life," "Family Bible," "Whisky River," "Me & Paul"—
Nelson woul d smil e and no d an d sin g to everyon e in the room . Hi s
small town Texa s roots and his Nashville training enabled hi m t o con -
nect wit h suc h generationally divergen t individual s as the coach o f th e
University o f Texa s football team , th e speake r of the Texa s House o f
Representatives, the mayor of Austin, as well as the college students an d
the hippie s fro m who m h e bought hi s dope. Becaus e each of these fan s
felt connected t o Willie, they felt connected together, a s they performed
with hi m the reunificatio n of a Texan cultural bloc.21
The Armadillo ha d been torn down befor e I moved t o town, an d I
have neve r see n Willie Nelson perform . Bu t hi s legend permeate s th e
music scene. Everyone know s the stories about Willie leaving Nashville
and comin g bac k home t o Texa s wher e hi s peopl e love d hi m an d le t

him be himself. They admire how he was able to grow his hair long and
smoke marijuana and top the country charts all at the same time. What a
hero. I did talk to his sister, Bobbie, on the phone once. That was pretty
exciting.
I will not have time to show you all of the clubs that have opened and
closed downtown. There have been s o many. We won't even look at the
parking lot that use d to be Club Foot, or the joint that use d t o be the
Chequered Flag , or the office buildin g that used to hold the Vulcan Gas
Company and , later, Duke's Roya l Coach Inn . We cannot sto p no w t o
trace the circular moves of the Soap Creek Saloon from the hills west of
town to a highway north o f town to a location only a few blocks from
here on Sout h Congress. Bu t on our way to the freeway , we will drive
by the Austin Opera House an d look a t the complex of music industry
related services that is growing there.
In 1977, this place was opened by Tim O'Connor and Willie Nelson
as a concert hall that would compete with the Armadillo to book nation-
ally touring acts. It s openin g nigh t sho w headline d bot h Waylo n Jen-
nings an d Willi e durin g th e heigh t o f the "outlaw " craze . The build -
ing originall y had bee n designe d a s a motel an d conventio n center . I t
had tw o mai n ballrooms , severa l smaller meeting rooms , an d a lon g
hall fro m whic h branche d man y rooms tha t coul d b e remodele d int o
offices o r storefronts . Over th e pas t thirteen years, this plac e has bee n
transformed fro m a simple attempt t o cash in on the Austin sound to a
complex of music businesses. The increasing sophistication of the musi c
scene i n Austi n ca n b e rea d i n th e carefull y thought-ou t commercia l
strategies signified by the changes in this building. More than a concert
hall, thi s long, low , brick building i s now th e hom e fo r Arly n record -
ing studios, the local chapter of the American Federation of Musicians,
the Austin Guitar School, a management company, and an independen t
record label . Austin Community Colleg e hope s to hold it s music man-
agement classe s her e soon . I t ha s become on e o f the center s fo r th e
industrialized production an d distribution of Austin music. 22
Now that we are finally heading north on Interstate 35, recrossing th e

Colorado, we can see the racia l segregation of the city vividly displayed
before us . This highwa y was built i n 1950, addin g a barrier of rushin g
cars an d concret e t o th e lin e betwee n Eas t Austin an d th e res t of th e
town. The mostly empty postmodern architectur e of downtown make s
jokes about th e eighties real estate boom t o our left , while to the righ t
sits th e mostl y Latin o portio n o f town. Tha t distric t blend s int o th e
African-American sectio n by 6th Street or so, and this section stretches
D I S S O N A N T I D E N T I T I ES / T O
up to the airpor t b y 38th Street. The Anglos liv e in the western par t of
town, near the hills. This segregation isn' t quit e so strict now as it used
to be. In the wake of the civil rights movement, the Chicano movement ,
and various progressive politica l projects sinc e then, some whites hav e
moved int o East Austin, a very few blacks have moved west , som e his -
panics have bought homes in the northern suburbs. Sout h Austin, from
just south of the rive r down int o the newer subdivisions , i s the hom e
for workin g peopl e o f al l ethnicities. But thi s tow n wa s built t o serv e
the Anglo politicians an d students, t o be the center of knowledge an d
political power in the largest state in the South. And the degree of social
and residential segregation stil l evident reflect s that origin .
In the first two decades of this century, most of Austin's black popu-
lation wer e servants for the state power brokers, living near downtow n
and nea r th e universit y in small neighborhoods calle d Wheatville an d
Clarksville. Bu t Austin's first black high schoo l ha d bee n buil t i n Eas t
Austin, o n nt h Street , i n 1884 . Childre n fro m thes e neighborhood s
in th e west portio n of town ha d to rid e the trolley to nth Stree t an d
Congress Avenue and then walk two miles east to go to school. 2' Som e
families began to move east. Lying just to the west of the cotton fields of
Texas, Austin had becom e a labor market for agricultural workers; th e
Austin Chambe r o f Commerce operate d a bureau that recruited cotton
pickers in i9Z5, 24 During thi s decade, the market for cotton pickers and
corn shuckers drew more African-Americans and Mexican-Americans to
the capita l city.
In I9z8 , th e cit y council responde d wit h a plan that include d " a de-
sign for the deliberate segregation of the city." Mexican-Americans were
to b e remove d fro m th e regio n betwee n Shoa l Cree k an d Congres s
Avenue an d betwee n 6t h Stree t an d th e river , eithe r acros s th e rive r
into South Austin, o r across East Avenue into Eas t Austin. The labor -
ing population of Mexican-Americans could not be allowed to interfere
with Austin's main task of commercially servicin g stat e representative s
and students. Accordin g to the plan, "The property values on Congres s
Avenue going south from Sixth Street drop very abruptly at Fifth Stree t
and continu e t o decreas e a s the rive r is approached. . . . Austin can -
not affor d t o have its retail business district throttled b y the presence of
an obstruction of this nature." 25 The Chicano Catholi c parish had bee n
moved t o Eas t Austin three years before; the cit y plan then reinforce d
this eastward Mexican-American migration.
Austin's African-America n population wa s to be moved ou t o f their
old downtow n neighborhood s an d int o anothe r are a of Eas t Austin ,
near nt h an d czt h Streets . The city' s tw o blac k college s were alread y
The Imaginary Tourist I n

located eas t o f Eas t Avenue , as well a s the "separat e bu t equal " hig h
school.26 The city segregation plan intended to follow this lead, concen-
trating municipal facilities for blacks in this part of town. The rhetoric of
the pla n is straightforward. "All the facilities an d conveniences [should]
be provide d th e negroe s i n thi s district , a s an incentiv e to dra w th e
negro populatio n to thi s area. " It was argued that onl y in East Austin
could blac k schools b e given "adequate playground space and facilitie s
similar to the white schools in the area." 27 Exploiting the implications of
the 1896 Supreme Court decision, Plessy v. Ferguson, the city of Austin
worked t o mov e it s African-American populatio n ou t o f th e wester n
portions o f th e tow n an d acros s Eas t Avenue . The cit y pla n o f 192. 8
residentially segregated Austin's population, reinforcin g an ethnic sepa-
ration tha t still exists.
By 1940 , 7 5 percen t o f th e city' s blac k populatio n live d i n Eas t
Austin.28 This degree o f population densit y encouraged an d reinforced
the establishmen t o f a Negro Citizens ' Council , a Negro Communit y
Center, and an extensive commercial district that encompassed the east
side of nth an d izth Streets. 29 This par t of town becam e the home fo r
blues musi c i n Austin. African-American s wh o wer e recruited to pic k
cotton by the Chambe r of Commerc e migh t wor k in the field s wit h
Texas Alexander, and maybe they would atten d parties where Ragtim e
Texas would pla y the quills . Back home i n Austin, they would bu y th e
blues recordings tha t label s like Paramount and ARC wer e marketing.
A few nightclubs opened alon g i2th Street where traveling blues musi-
cians would play . While never rivaling the musica l activity of the blues
scenes i n Housto n o r i n Dallas , the African-America n communit y i n
East Austin nurture d a blues culture that woul d come to reinforc e the
developing whit e blue s scene in the late sixties and seventies—eve n as
one remained clearl y and firmly separated from th e other. 30
We get of f the freewa y a t Airport Boulevar d and head west on 45t h

Street. Now we are north of the university campus, north of downtow n
and the Capitol. Finall y it is cool enough to turn off the air conditione r
and ope n th e ca r windows. Th e wid e street s i n thi s par t o f tow n ar c
fronted b y tree-covere d lots , an d th e individua l house s ar e al l freshl y
painted. This i s the northern en d of a residential area called Hyde Park.
It was built in the 18908 as a community "exclusively for white people."31
During the late seventies and early eighties large portions o f Hyde Park
were thoroughly renovate d an d refurbished i n the gentrification move-
ment of the time. Almost no musicians can afford t o live in Hyde Park ;
most o f th e home s belon g t o lawyers , doctors , universit y professors,
D I S S O N A N T I D E N T I T I E S / T Z
successful entrepreneurs, an d a sprinkling of high-tech workers. Behind
us, across the highway and near the airport, liv e quite a few of the musi-
cians who ar e currently active in the scene. Many more live to our right ,
just north of Hyde Park, where the rents are cheaper because airplanes
landing a t th e airpor t roa r overhea d a t depressingl y precis e intervals.
This is where many bands experience their first public performances: i n
backyard partie s hoste d b y other musicians , under th e roa r of landin g
airplanes.
I a m taking you to on e of these house s tha t musicians rent. This is
the hom e o f E d Hall, on e of the most excitin g underground band s in
Austin. I interviewed Kevi n Whitley, the drummer , on thi s unpainte d
porch on e evening , whil e the rus h hour commute r night s landed onl y
a quarter of a mile away. Kevin invite d us over tonight t o catc h a little
bit o f the band's practice . I had t o promis e that w e would leav e if we
bother them. Kevi n says that the musical and emotional balanc e within
the ban d i s rathe r tenuou s righ t now . The y use d t o al l write song s
together, each contributing spontaneousl y to the group creation . No w
that method is not working as well as it used to, and they find themselves
bickering over the scales, the rhythms, and the structures of new songs.32
All three of the member s of Ed Hal l live here, as well as a couple of
fans an d anyone else who drop s by for a night and needs a place to stay.
The hous e i s a small three-bedroom affair , a single story with a slant-
ing asbestos roof. The members of Ed Hall arc ex-art students, and the
walls inside the hous e ar e covered with the self-referentia l illustration s
of contradictio n an d angs t commo n t o suc h educationa l experiences.
In th e fron t roo m is a couch covere d with tha t dark-gree n ribbed ma-
terial that furnishe s dormitor y lounge s all over the country. One of th e
wooden legs is missing and that corner is held up by several small pieces
of red brick. The table in the kitchen is covered with sheets of paper torn
from a sketch pad . Mos t o f them sho w only two o r thre e lines trace d
across their surface by a crayon. Glancing to your left, you see a sink with
very few dishes i n it. The boy s don't eat here that often, instead cithe r
going out o r eating at their girlfriends' homes. Behind the kitchen is the
rehearsal room. Kevin hollers at us to come on back.
The roo m is filled with amplifier s an d drums and tape machines and
microphones. Everywher e there are electrical cords that twist across the
rug an d through the air , connecting al l the separate machines into on e
sound generator . Yo u ca n barel y se e the rust y dreadlock s of Kevin' s
white-boy rasta hair behind his drums. Gary is across the room, tuning
his guita r a t a volume tha t concretize s overtones . Larr y strips of f hi s
shirt befor e he pick s u p hi s bass , an d swea t begin s t o coagulat e i n the
The Imaginary Tourist I 1 3

air as we find a place to stand against the wall. Without looking a t either
of th e othe r two, Larry begins t o pla y a line on his bass that whoops
and swooshes, jumping around the lower two strings of his instrument,
and the n slidin g t o th e to p o f the nec k just at the momen t whe n th e
line repeats. It is a one-bar, four-beat riff that rises in pitch and increases
in rhythmic complexity over that short musica l period. Kevin looks u p
sharply an d slowl y rattle s hi s rid e cymba l into alertness , drawin g hi s
drumsticks from the center out t o the edge of this large circle of brass.
Gary just listens, standing with his head cocked to one side, until Kevin
shifts i n his seat an d finds the puls e with his kick drum. Much o f what
makes Ed Hal l exciting is the interplay between Kevin's kick drum an d
Larry's swoopin g bas s lines. In this song, Kevi n is a little ahead of th e
two bea t a s defined by th e bas s par t an d jus t a hai r behin d th e fou r
beat. This effect increase s the feeling of instability in the song and makes
Larry jump up and down and sideways a few times. Then Gar y steps on
one of the foot pedals he has wired together and stretches the strings on
his guitar into a high-pitched banshee wail that descends slowly as he re-
laxes the strings and finds the chord that now defines the key. This single
bar o f music then repeat s almos t four hundre d times , with onl y sligh t
variations in the detail s of pitch and rhythm. The volume of the music
and it s unrelenting forwar d tension mak e the roo m see m alive, while
the bodie s o f the musicians—the hands of Larry and Gary, and Kevin's
legs and arms—move like puppets pulled by a very complex web of pul-
leys and wires. I like it when the music gets this loud, when it seems t o
invade my head and the blood in my temples pulsates with the drivin g
motion of its purple sound. But anymore, I just cannot stand it for very
long. We have to leave before they start another song. It is almost eleven
o'clock and time to g o the show . We wave goodbye to Kevin , no d a t
Larry and Gary, and head out the door.
Driving bac k down Guadalupe, it is quiet enough that you can almost
sense what this town wa s like twenty years ago, before the first oil crisis
pumped million s o f ne w dollar s throug h th e Texa n economy , befor e
Jerry Jeff Walker, Michael Murphey, and Willie Nelson moved to town,
before hundred s o f other , unknow n musician s moved here , lure d b y
the lo w cost of living and the plentiful opportunities t o perform—be -
fore Austi n expande d beyon d it s cit y limits . Yo u could imagin e tha t
we might b e going to th e Vulcan to smoke pot an d listen to th e Con-
queroo pla y thei r swirlin g rhyth m an d blues , o r t o th e Spli t Rai l t o
drink bee r an d danc e th e two-step . We might b e joining the student s
and the politicians and the other hangers-on who appreciate the quality
D I S S O N A N T I D E N T I T I E S /1 4
of service at clubs lik e the Jad e Room, the Id , th e Ne w Orlean s Club ,
the Saxo n Pub, or even the Eleventh Door, Charlie's Playhouse, or th e
Chequered Flag. 33 For decades this has been true: at this time of night,
the energ y of this town i s wired throug h it s nightclubs, linking powe r
amps and speakers, transistors and tubes into a clashing counterpoint o f
discordant tonalitie s played together.
And the n th e boo m happened . Motorola, IBM , an d Texas Instru-
ments opene d plant s in Austin, initiating the city' s taste for high-tec h
industries. Betwee n 1965 and 197 5 student enrollment a t the universit y
increased by almost 50 percent from 28,86 8 to 42,598. 34 The Armadillo
opened in 1970. In 1973, the Majewskis opened the Soap Creek to pro -
vide more opportunities for area bands. In 1975, Castle Creek, the On e
Knite, th e Bac k Room , th e Hol e i n the Wall, Mother Earth , an d th e
Broken Spoke were all booking local musicians. Clifford Antonc opened
his blue s joint o n 6t h Stree t tha t summer , an d the universit y opene d
a bee r hal l called the Texa s Tavern. In 1976 , th e Rom e In n an d Lib -
erty Lunch adde d to the offerings o f Austin music.35 And those ar e only
the most well-know n venues, those that catered to students, musicians,
and journalists . The numbe r of nightclub s pe r capit a peake d i n 1976 .
In tha t yea r there were 28 places to hea r live music for ever y 100,000
people in Austin.36 As the population was just over 300,000, tha t meant
there were close to 84 stages from which musicians could perform. The
national reputation of the progressive country scene continued to attract
more musician s even a s the nationa l appetite for ever-mor e expensive
oil pushed mor e mone y into Texas, driving up land values and turning
Austin from a slow-paced town int o a rapidly growing sunbel t capital.
And i n 1978 , the yea r that pun k invaded Raul's, pe r capit a income i n
Austin exceeded the national average for the first time.37
Throughout thi s perio d an d eve n u p t o th e mid-19805 , Austin' s
rock'n'roll scen e wa s supporte d b y a honky-ton k econom y tha t re -
inforced a local se t o f traditiona l cultura l meaning s an d establishe d a
flexible ye t consistent musica l aesthetic. Beneath the tonalities, rhythms ,
and lyrics that gencrically distinguished th e various musical styles per-
formed i n the clubs lay an emphasis on personal sincerity that, in turn,
enabled the mutua l blending of personalities in each band's musical ex-
pression. This belie f i n th e importanc e of sincer e personal expression
established a communicative atmosphere that elicited a willing and plea-
surable identificatio n among Austin' s youn g musi c fans. These youn g
fans developed a tendency to group together in the city's music clubs—
listening, dancing, and fantasizing along with the performances of local
musicians. Once this tradition was established, the clubs of Austin began

to functio n as a cultural synecdoche. The cultural distinctions betwee n
the relatively liberal town of Austin and the remainder of the highly con-
servative state o f Texa s were represented an d intensifie d i n th e belief s
and behaviors constructed an d reinforced through musica l practice.
Ironically, th e cultura l aesthetic produced throug h thi s practice re-
tained a powerful conservative strain. The critique of modern commer-
cialized societ y develope d b y Austin musician s throughout th e sixtie s
and th e earl y seventies had depende d upo n a romantic nostalgi a fo r a
premodern society . Encode d int o th e musica l an d lyrica l expressions
of thes e musician s was a naive anticommercialism and a longing fo r a
populist egalitarianis m o f unalienated labo r an d spontaneou s expres -
sion. A s the musi c scene develope d durin g thi s period, playin g music
came to b e see n as a way to "no t hav e to work, " a means toward a life
"relatively free of hassle. " This aestheti c reached its zenith a t precisely
the point when th e Texa n econom y achieve d national integration and
complete modernization—durin g th e oi l crise s o f th e seventies . Fo r
a brie f moment—the much-acclaime d er a o f th e cosmi c cowbo y an d
the Armadill o Worl d Headquarters—Austi n music appeared t o defin e
the cultural meaning of being Texan. An astounding allianc e developed
among progressiv e country musicians, long-haired pot-smoking youn g
people, radi o disc jockeys, nightclub owners, football players, and even
local and state politicians. However , i n order t o build this cultural alli-
ance, Austin' s musi c scen e ha d ha d t o emphasiz e som e o f th e mor e
regressive aspect s that i t had inherite d fro m it s origins i n honky-ton k
culture and cowboy songs. The cultural identity promulgated in Austin's
progressive countr y scene increasingly reinforced a set of characteristics
traditionally associate d wit h white, male, Texan entrepreneurs.
The moment o f cultural alliance did not las t long. Effort s t o marke t
Austin's music nationally were not successful . Althoug h musician s like
Willie Nelson, Jerry Jeff Walker, and Michael Murphey did have national
hits, the y wer e al l relative newcomers to th e city . N o locall y nurtured
talent buil t a successful recordin g career while retaining a home bas e in
Austin's music scene. The national attention drawn to the Armadillo did
not bring with it a stream of capital sufficient to sustain and reinforce th e
local conditions tha t ha d enabled its musical/cultural synthesis of pro-
gressive country. Durin g th e second hal f of the seventies, competitio n
increased amon g liv e music clubs just as many of the city' s most prom -
ising musicians moved awa y and the town's college students carrie d on
a momentary fling with disco. Progressive country had not managed t o
produce a life "relatively free of hassle" for any of it s constituents .
As th e seventie s turned int o the eighties , a new generatio n o f col -
lege student s entere d th e city . Jus t a s the stat e o f Texa s had becom e
D I S S O N A N T I D E N T I T I E S /l6
increasingly interlinked with the national economy, this new generatio n
of students was significantly more comfortabl e wit h a mass-mediated ,
nationally oriented, commercialized culture . Rather than looking t o the
dominant Texan tradition s o f popular music , these young peopl e wer e
paying attentio n bot h to new recordings an d to stories i n the nationa l
news medi a tha t wer e representing a sound strippe d o f frills an d a raw
musical attitude . The version o f punk roc k tha t too k hold i n Austin' s
music scen e wa s a peculia r hybri d o f Ne w York' s art-scene bohemia ,
London's flagran t nihilism , an d Austin' s ow n outrageou s individual -
ism. Almos t a self-awar e simulacrum , th e performanc e of pun k roc k
at Raul' s wa s alway s deflecte d throug h a n ironi c sideway s glance , a n
oblique self-parody of its own conditions o f performance. But this new
music als o carrie d wit h i t a do-it-yourself ideolog y tha t merge d quit e
easily with the long tradition o f Texan entrepreneurialism. The result of
this cultura l syncretism was an increasing emphasis o n improvin g an d
modernizing the economic base of music-making in Austin.
During thi s perio d o f economic restructuring , th e underlyin g aes -
thetic principles of Austin music held. Music-making was still centered
on liv e performanc e i n th e clubs , an d thi s musi c was stil l value d b y
the member s o f th e scen e t o th e exten t tha t i t represente d a sincer e
expression o f the personalitie s of th e musicians and enable d a sincere
integrative respons e o n th e par t o f the fans . Bu t a s long-time partici -
pants i n th e scen e worked togethe r wit h loca l music-business owner s
and the Chamber o f Commerce t o orient an d stabilize the flow of capi-
tal through Austin's music-relate d businesses, they reorganize d music -
making i n Austin. They deliberately and self-consciously built an indus-
trial infrastructure modeled on that of the national recording industry .
After thi s restructuring, it was still possible to explore innovative sub-
jectivities through th e mutual performance of musicalized identitie s i n
the city' s clubs. However , by the beginning of the nineties, live perfor-
mance i n th e club s had bee n reconceive d a s a process o f research an d
development fo r th e production o f recordings.
We are almost bac k down a t the rive r again, at a club called Libert y
Lunch. We can park across th e stree t i n this cit y government lot ; the y
don't ticket a t night. The city owns the land that Libert y Lunch stand s
on. I t i s part o f a block o f warehouses that on e da y will be a new city
hall. The city manager used to threaten every year to tear down the club,
but now that city coffers ar e empty and the Chamber of Commerce see s
Austin musi c as a clean growth industry , Libert y Lunch appear s to b e
one o f th e safe r musica l institutions. Its landlor d i s interested no w i n
the continued succes s of this important club. With a capacity of abou t

eight hundred, Libert y Lunc h is one of the few places large enough t o
be able to boo k tourin g alternativ e acts. Yet it is so cheap to ru n tha t it
can break even with local bands most nights. At any rate, we don't have
to worry about parkin g here.
Liberty Lunch sits on this part of znd Street that always looks to me
like the dark end of a tunnel, leading out of the downtown are a and into
an unknow n world . Th e streetlight s barely cut throug h th e obscurit y
around us . We find ourselves lured toward th e club not b y a neon sig n
or a flashing marquee but by a sound that slips through th e structure of
the building , a vibration that run s across our skin , contracts our stom -
ach muscles, an d quickens our step . We arc going t o se c the Reivers . I
feel m y body tightenin g a little, telling my hips to slow down, to strol l
towards the door. We must not rush as we pay our five dollars and go in.
They hav e alread y begu n t o play . John , wearin g his T-shirt insid e
out, stare s at the neck of his Telecaster. Kim and Cindy dance and play
together. And w e feel rathe r tha n se e Garret work hi s drums. I kno w
that i t look s ver y crowded u p front , bu t w e should b e abl e t o stan d
over to the right an d see pretty well. This ban d used to pac k this place.
Although the y no longer fill the largest clubs in town, thei r crowds are
still decent . Jus t las t fal l the y los t thei r recordin g contract ; the y wer e
dropped fro m Capito l Records . Bu t th e ban d seem s almos t relieved .
Onstage, they appear lighter, happier.
The son g they are playing is from thei r second album , Saturday. It's
called "Onc e in a While." See the kid s sort o f swaying back and forth,
moving thei r weigh t fro m sid e t o side , no t ye t actuall y dancing , bu t
comfortable? This is the way the Reivers start. And their audience starts
this way with them . This ban d breaks no new dance ground, bu t thei r
rhythmic conservatis m provide s no obstruction fo r their ever-younger
audience. In fact, the simple rhythms of the lower-pitched beats support
the mor e intriguin g uppe r harmonic s of the guitar s (emphasize d by a
"chorus" pedal and a bi-amped system), much as John's gruff and some-
what stif f vocal s provide th e backdro p for Kim' s more liquid singing .
"Once i n a While" float s on , contrastin g lou d an d quiet passage s tha t
gesture towar d a greater engagement, a greater interest to come .
After a fe w mor e songs , the y click . As the y star t a numbe r calle d
"Baby," th e crowd fold s i n on itsel f and then burst s out, dancing. Th e
men look down at their feet, studying their own unfamiliar movement s
while the y dance thei r first real joy of the night . Kelly , wearing a polo
shirt an d khakis , looking lik e the recen t U T compute r scienc e gradu-
ate he is, leans over and says , "I'm feelin' a familiar rhythm. " Lookin g
over t o th e left , w e se e Josh shakin g his long hai r up an d down . Thi s
D I S S O N A N T I D E N T I T I E S/ 1 8
slow headban g i s what Josh, with a sort o f self-deprecating irony , calls
"his dance. " H e see s us watching him an d point s u p a t Joh n onstag e
before disappearin g bac k int o th e crowd . I n fron t o f u s i s Rita , th e
Baylor student who said hello when we first walked up. As "Baby" starts,
she shouts an d begins dancing with considerable intensity, her waving
elbows forcing us backward a few steps.38
Several women , som e o f whom hav e bee n dancing al l along, focu s
their attentio n o n Ki m Longacre. There i s a young girl leaning against
the stage , wit h loosel y perme d ligh t yello w hair, a slightly turned u p
nose, an d bleache d Gues s jeans, who appear s t o mirro r Kim' s perfor -
mance. While John sing s the verses, Kim strums and sways, nodding at
Cindy and laughing. During the bridge of the song, she steps forward to
sing the line, "Leave me alone just for a while." Everyone in the audience
sings along, a s one mass echoing this chant, but Blondic-in-Guess-jean s
does more tha n that. Sh e literally copies every physical move that Ki m
makes. She mimes Kim's guitar strum, sh e bobs her head from sid e t o
side a s though circlin g a microphone with th e prosod y of the phrase ,
and she hops backward at the end of the vocal line when Kim steps back
and John reassumes the melody.
Kim look s at us her e takin g note s and step s dow n fro m the stag e
to say , "It's magic , you know . It feel s lik e you coul d d o whatever yo u
wanted to . I t feel s s o uninhibited. I t feel s lik e you coul d loo k ove r a t
John an d he' s makin g a weird fac e an d you could laugh at him an d h e
would just laugh back. It feels like I could stand on the monitor an d act
like a rock star, stick my tongue out a t someone in the audience and no t
worry about being sharp or flat or finding the right chords. It's that zen
thing. It's a physical thing. I like the way it makes me feel. It's heaven up
there you know, when it all comes right through and it's effortless . It' s
just this voice coming out." 39
Smiling, John looks over at Kim, down at us, and out at the audience.
"The succes s of this band," he says, "is fundamentally based on provid-
ing an almost religious experience for the audience, producing that feel -
ing and making sure the audience gets it. What I want to have happen is
for the m to understand. It's lik e there's something there that you maybe
can't sit down and analyze, but they are there and they understand. It' s
a real cathartic thing."40
And s o while the Reiver s continue to play , the men in the audienc e
awkwardly dance, their bodie s struggling to understand, an d while the
women no d and sing along with their understanding, I try to stand still
and scribbl e words i n a notebook, "Leav e me alone just for awhile. " I
just have to think about this a little bit.

C H A P T E R TW O
Constructing the Musicalized

Performance of Texan Identity
Cowboy Lore
Music-making i n Austi n grow s ou t o f a lon g history , a histor y tha t
struggles t o cente r th e meanin g o f bein g Texan in the voice s an d th e
sung narrative s o f specifi c historica l individual s representin g certai n
groups. Th e effect s o f thi s histor y ar e stil l fel t i n th e popula r mem -
ory of those wh o continu e th e musicalized performance of identit y i n
Austin's nightclub s an d the recordin g studios. As individual musicians
come t o terms with the institutional and discursive structures that con-
strain an d enabl e thei r performances , they ma p ou t a relation t o thi s
history—a relation describe d a s a continuance o f a powerful traditio n
or, conversely , a s a throwing of f of this tradition's burden . I n it s most
elaborated narratives , th e popula r histor y of music-makin g in Austi n
looks beyon d th e disruptio n o f tradition a t Raul's , bac k throug h th e
cosmic cowboys performin g a reconstructed traditio n at the Armadillo,
back throug h th e psychedeli c fires stoked a t th e Vulcan, bac k beyon d
even the self-consciou s revival of folksinging a t ThreadgilPs, and traces
its powerful articulation of performed song an d performed identity t o
the folkloristic construction o f the singing cowboy.
By th e lat e i88os , cowbo y lore , rangin g fro m dim e novel s t o aca -
demic folk song collections, was developing into an ongoing process of
mythologizing, a discursive construction o f legends, tales, myths, an d
songs that intermingle d an d produce d image s o f an idealized wester n
male. Throughout the early part of the twentieth century, these idealized
representations worke d their way through academic , popular, and com-
mercial expressions, effectively legitimatin g a variety of Texan cultural
practices as the wor k o f rea l cowboys . Texan populism, Texan democ -
racy, Texa n business , and Texa n music al l dre w o n th e imag e o f th e
D I S S O N A N T I D E N T I T I E S / 2. O
cowboy as an independent entrepreneur , a strong masculine hero freel y
participating in the creation of Texan society.
John Aver y Lomax contributed to thi s proces s with th e first publi-
cation o f Cowboy Sontjs an d other Frontier Ballads i n 1910. ' H e wa s de -
termined t o represen t a more authentic cowboy than those depicted in
popular culture. The "Collector's Note" for the first edition of Cowboy
Songs insiste d that , "Stil l muc h misunderstood , h e i s often slandered ,
nearly always caricatured, both by the pres s and by the stage . Perhap s
these songs , comin g direc t from th e cowboy' s experience , giving vent
to hi s careless and his tender emotions, will afford futur e generation s a
truer conception o f what he really was than is now possesse d b y those
who kno w him onl y through highl y colored romances " (Loma x 1910,
xxvii). Loma x argue d tha t thes e songs, anchore d in th e cowboy' s ex -
perience, were directl y expressive of the cowboy' s tru e character . His
argument carrie d th e authorit y of hi s ow n experience : Lomax wa s a
Texan who ha d hear d these songs himself as a child.
In his autobiography, Adventures of a Ballad Hunter, Lomax described
his first encounter with the material that would become his life's work :
I couldn' t hav e bee n mor e tha n fou r year s old whe n I first hear d a cowbo y
sing an d yode l t o hi s cattle. I was sleeping in my father's two-room hous e i n
Texas besid e a branch of th e ol d Chishol m Trail—twelve o f us sometime s i n
two rooms . Suddenl y a cowboy's singin g waked me a s I slep t on m y trundle
bed. . . . These sounds come back to me faintly through th e years, a foggy maze
of recollections; an d my heart lept even then to the cries of the cowboy trying
to quiet, i n the dee p darkness and sifting rain , a trail herd of restless cattle.2
By the tim e of Lomax' s autobiography (1947) , he had already been ac-

knowledged a s one o f th e foremos t ballad and fol k son g collector s i n
the United State s and was considered to be an authority on the musical
culture of the cowboy. As this passage makes clear, Lomax's professional
reputation ha d been built on a nostalgic celebration of the work culture
of a few men wh o live d and worked nea r his boyhood home . On th e
basis o f thi s "fogg y maz e of recollections, " Loma x had constructe d a
romantic representatio n of an autonomous, strong, independent , and ,
sometimes, violent guardian at the edge of civilization, and then spread
this representation through the collections of cowboy songs that he pro-
duced durin g th e first fifty years of the twentieth century . The edg e of
civilization guarded by the cowboy—the boundary between nature and
culture—was marked by lines of race and gender, and the work of polic-
ing thi s boundar y carrie d a n implicit class ideology. The imag e o f th e
Anglo-Texan cowbo y who worked hard—transforming the natural ma-
terial of cattle into the cultural material of wealth—and played hard—
The Musicalized Performance o f Identity I 2. 1

singing an d dancing as one i n a prcsocial Utopia—became the myt h of
the originar y Texan. This forme d the cor e of Texa n identity that was
propagated throughou t both popular and academic culture during th e
first half of the twentieth century.
According to the literary standards shaping folklore research during
the earl y par t o f th e twentiet h century , all ballads were b y definitio n
produced b y "the homogenous folk." For George Lyman Kittredge, this
phrase conveyed a "community whose intellectual interests are the same
from the top of the social structure to the bottom." Cultural productio n
for thi s folk occurred when they gathered
under very simple conditions of life , fo r the purpose of celebrating some occa-
sion of common interest. . . . The dancing and singing in which all share are so
closely related as to be practically complementary parts of a single festal a c t . .. a
singing, dancin g throng subjected as a unit to a mental and emotional stimulu s
which is not only favorable to the production of poetry, but is almost certain to
result in such production.3
For Lomax, who was following these conventions of ballad scholarship,

this presocietal moment o f communal creation existed at the end of the
nineteenth century , on th e cattl e trail and in the co w camps of Texas.
The assumptions of ballad scholarship contained both historical and
ethnological components. I f the balla d form o f the cowbo y song s de -
fined the m a s folk poetry , th e conten t wa s valued for "th e ligh t the y
[shed] o n the condition s of pioneer life, an d more particularly because
of the information they contain [ed] concerning that unique and roman-
tic figure in modern civilization , the American cowboy" (Loma x 1910,
xxv). I n additio n t o thei r literar y merit, thes e ballad s were valued as
documents o f past ways of life where important cultural traditions were
anchored in the material daily practices of nonelites. The dancing, sing-
ing thron g provide d th e locu s fo r th e origin s o f cultura l values, and
the stud y of cowboy ballad s was one means of recovering these values.
Within th e Hcrderia n traditio n tha t America n balla d scholarshi p in -
herited, thes e originary values, to a greater or lesser extent, establishe d
the inherent legitimacy of a people and a nation. According to the tradi-
tion of ballad scholarship, cowboy ballads displayed cultural values that
were directly linked to a premodern world where men worked together,
transforming the natural world for mutual profit.4
In th e thir d editio n of Cowboy Songs, Lomax emphasized specifi c as-
pects of the cowboy heritage:
We cannot trace all the influences , bu t w e do kno w that th e aftermat h o f th e
Civil War sent t o Texa s many a young Virginia aristocrat; many sons o f Ala-
bama, Mississippi, and Georgia Planters; many a coon hunter from Kentucky ;
D I S S O N A N T I D E N T I T I E S /Z Z
roving and restless blades from al l over the South (an d everywhere else). From
such a group, given a taste for killing in the Civil War, in which Southern feeling
and sentiment s predominated, came the Texas cowboy and the cowbo y songs.
These may have been rough, raw , wild individuals but, according to th e
academic rules of song collecting, the blood in their veins and the spirit
in their song s indicate d souther n descendant s from th e pures t Anglo -
Saxon patricians. Despite the obvious influence of the Mexican vaquero
tradition from which the cowboy's wor k (an d the guitar) derived, an d
Lomax's own acknowledgment tha t "it was not unusual to find a Negro"
on the trail, his song collectio n was valued to the extent that it demon-
strated the continuing dominance of an Anglo-Saxon cultural tradition.5
Lomax's representation of cowboy culture inserted the Anglo-Saxon
patrician into a condition of rugged freedom , "hundreds of miles from
places where the convention s of society were observed. . . . These men
lived on terms of practical equality. Except in the case of the boss, ther e
was littl e differenc e i n th e amoun t pai d eac h for hi s services . Society,
then, was here reduced to it s lowest terms. The work of the men, their
daily experiences, their thoughts , thei r interests , were al l in common"
(Lomax 1910, xxvi). Here in this imagined world of masculine equality
and freedom , th e socia l contract wa s renegotiated daily . Social powe r
came fro m th e cowboy' s abilit y instantly t o enac t hi s desires , fro m a
willingness t o provok e confrontation, an d from th e physica l agilit y t o
defeat a n opponent face to face . On the trail, where everyone's interests
and even their thoughts were supposedly in common, thes e aggressiv e
behaviors worked together fo r the good of the community.
The ballad s collected b y Lomax contain representation s of some of
the originar y values of Texan presociety. "Sam Bass" is a typical cowboy
ballad. According t o Loma x (and , again , following the necessar y con-
ventions), "it sprang from the people. No one has ever claimed to be its
author. It s source s are as mysterious and unknown a s the Texas grasses
that gro w abov e hi s grave. " Nevertheless , "during cattle-trai l days, in
Texas, 1868—1892,, every singing cowboy carried Sam Bass in his reper-
toire."6 As published i n Lomax' s first collection, i t tell s the stor y of a
young ma n fro m Indian a wh o move d t o Texa s to becom e a cowboy .
According t o the song, Bass wanted to live the life of impulse and free -
dom that the West promised. In other words, within the narrative of the
ballad, an idea of the cowbo y already existed in Indiana, and this idea,
whether i t would have come from Josep h McCoy's histori c sketches or
from a Ne d Buntlin e melodrama, dre w Sa m Bass t o Texas , the plac e
where one could b e a cowboy.7
Bass i s a Robin Hoo d figure , " a kinder-hearte d fello w yo u seldo m
The M usicalized Performance o f Identity I 2. 3

ever see." After a drive north, Bass and his crew go on a "spree," robbing
trains o n thei r wa y back to Texas . When the y ge t bac k to Denton , he
shares his wealth with all his friends. Sam's ability to act on his desires is
celebrated in the ballad; he robs trains, spends money freely , an d drinks
good whiskey . Bu t th e balla d doe s no t giv e us the journalisti c details
of hi s crimes , detail s commo n t o nativ e America n balladry . We don't
know wher e th e robberie s occurred , an d there is some confusio n over
how many there were. We do learn about Sam' s companions, tha t the y
were bol d an d darin g an d tough enoug h t o whi p th e Texa s Rangers .
One stanz a tells us how Arkansas, a gang member, was shot by a ranger
named Thomas Floyd, who i s "a deadbeat on the sly." One stanza is de-
voted to the scene of Sam's death. Bu t three of the eleven stanzas detail
the actions , th e motives , an d the expecte d futur e fo r Jim Murphy, th e
man wh o betraye d Sa m to th e authorities . Jim Murphy an d Sa m Bass
form a binary opposition o f cowboy morality . I n thi s narrative , Mur -
phy's ac t is a crime that must be punished. "Perhaps he's got to heaven ,
there's none of us can say/But if I'm righ t i n my surmise he's gon e th e
other way."8
"Sam Bass " rank s masculin e qualitie s accordin g t o th e oppositio n
between Bas s and Murphy. Bravery , agility , generosity, forthrightncss ,
toughness, an d impulsivenes s ar e the positive virtues associate d wit h
Bass; being a deadbeat and disloyalty are the negative behaviors of Mur-
phy. In the world o f the cowboy song , Bas s and his gang are a premod-
crn rovin g ban d o f hunter s devote d t o mutua l self-survival . Bu t thei r
communality i s threatened b y Murphy. Hi s action s indicate disagree -
ment and conflict. Even worse, he admits outside authority into the pre-
social democracy o f the cattl e trail. Ultimately, this is Murphy's crime. 9
Lomax intended to correc t th e popula r caricatur e of the rough and
tumble cowbo y by includin g song s tha t expres s "careless and tende r
emotions" (Loma x 1910 , xxvii) . Fa r fro m careless , however, muc h o f
the tenderness found i n Cowboy Songs i s encoded i n a strict sentimen -
tality. "Th e Ga l I Lef t Behin d Me," first appeared i n the 191 6 editio n
of Lomax' s collection. 10 It describes a cowboy who "struc k th e trail in
seventy-nine," ye t who was constantly reminded of his sweetheart. N o
matter what danger the cowboy rode through—a storm, a stampede, an
Indian attack—h e thought only of her. The danger s are , of course, de-
scribed with numerou s details, while his thoughts o f her consist solel y
of th e refrain , "tha t swee t littl e gal , tha t tru e littl e gal, th e ga l I lef t
behind me " (Lomax 1916, 344).
Contrast tha t typica l rigidity with the convincin g expressions of re-
spect, affection , an d eve n lov e reserved fo r othe r cowboys . Cowbo y
ballads celebrated those men who most heartily embodied the image of
the western hero. With a passion that cannot b e found in their strictly
disciplined declarations o f heterosexual love , these ballads describe th e
actions an d often the corpses of the cowboy hero. "Utah Carroll " pro -
vides a convincing example. Lomax first published it in the 1910 edition
and i t appeare d essentiall y unchanged in the 191 6 publication . But b y
1938, "Utah Carroll" had acquired a heightened dramatic narrative. The
story was essentially the sam e in the later version, only more polished,
with more elaborate detail."
The ballad begins with the narrator stating what makes him "sad and
still, an d wh y m y bro w i s darkened like cloud s upo n th e hill. " Uta h
Carroll is dead, and the balla d will tell us just how he died, how brave
and stron g h e was, and ho w glorious was his death. The narrato r was
Utah's "pardner." "We rode the range together and rode it side by side;
I love d hi m a s a brother; I wept when Utah died." Carroll dies saving
the boss' s daughte r fro m a stampede sh e carelessly caused. As she was
riding her pon y i n front o f the cattl e herd, a corner of he r red blanket
slips ou t fro m beneat h he r saddle , throwin g the animal s into a rage.
When Lenore , th e daughter , see s the stampedin g cattle she falls fro m
her pony , carryin g the red blanket with her to the ground . Their pas-
sions furthe r inflamed , th e her d rushe s toward her , sure t o crus h her
under thei r hooves . A t this moment, Utah spur s his own horse into a
race with th e cattle . He gets t o he r befor e th e herd an d reaches down
to swee p he r u p ont o hi s saddle. Bu t the weigh t o f the tw o o f the m
together i s too muc h for the cinches. They snap, and Utah and Lenore
are thrown bac k onto the ground togethe r with the red blanket. Then
comes th e momen t o f Utah' s ultimat e sacrifice . "Uta h picke d up th e
blanket. 'Lie still,' again he said,/Then h e raced across th e prairi e and
waved the blanket o'er his head." His fellow cowboys can only watch in
awe. "H e ha s saved the boss's daughter, though we know he's bound t o
die." Uta h succeeds in turning the cattle away from Lenore , then turns
and pulls his gun. "He was bound to die a-fighting, as all brave cowboys
do." Althoug h h e shoots th e lead steer, the herd docs crus h Utah. The
lesson of Utah's sacrifice is emphasized i n the next stanza. Lenore goes
unmentioned. "Ever y boy upon th e cow ranch knew how bravely Utah
died, / And the y passe d hi s grave in sorrow an d the y spok e his name
with pride ; / Fo r h e die d a s a cowboy, neve r bending , neve r a fear, /
When the cattle were upon him and the rush of death was near." In th e
last stanza we learn that Uta h wa s buried wit h "that ver y re d blanke t
that brough t hi m to his end" (Loma x 1938,12.5—2.8).
One o f th e ke v moments i n thi s narrativ e i s when th e re d blanke t
The Muskalized Performance o f Identity I 2, 5

shows underneath the saddle. Just beneath a layer of cowboy utility, in-
deed under Lenore's seat, lies a hidden passion. Lenore shows her inade-
quacy first by displaying this passion an d then by falling to the ground
at the obvious result , when the animals go out of control. The next key
moment i s when th e cinche s fail. Th e tool s o f cowboy presociet y ar e
strained beyon d thei r limit s when force d t o carr y the weight o f bot h
men and women. Finally, Utah snatche s up th e blanket, retrieving the
emblem o f passion from th e unworthy, and, running across the prairie,
he waves it over his head only in the moment of his death. Verging o n
parody, this ballad sings of masculine virtue enacted and admired. When
the homosocia l Utopi a of the cattl e trail is disrupted by the presenc e of
Lenore, Utah's sacrific e redeems the community, and all the boys in the
camp lear n the lesson . The narrato r loved Uta h Carroll . H e ca n only
think o f hi m i n hi s grave with th e re d blanke t wrapped aroun d him .
This love is a self-love, the lov e of an image of who th e cowbo y shoul d
be. Through the song , th e love of the narrator is transformed into th e
love of the singer and then identified with the love of the listener. All of
these desires, misrecognize d i n the mirro r of popular song, reproduc e
the passionate attachment to the idealize d western male.
Lomax intended hi s collection to b e "frankly . . . popular" (Loma x
1910, xxix). Although i t was funded a s an academic enterprise, he hoped
there would b e a larger audience for his work. By the 191 9 publication
of hi s second volume of cowboy songs, Songs of the Cuttle Trail and Cow
Camp, popularity had becom e his main concern. In thi s second book,
Lomax admittedl y included songs collected from newspaper s and even
"Western verse" written an d published by contemporary authors. The
level of overt romanticizin g in the introduction wa s much higher. The
commercial valu e of cowboy song collections had bee n demonstrated ,
and was enhanced by the elements of romantic nostalgia that Lomax em-
phasized in his new introduction. "Herein , again, through thes e quon-
dom song s w e may come t o appreciat e something o f the spiri t of th e
big West. . . may sense, at least in some small measure, the service , the
glamour, th e romanc e of that knight-errant of the plains—the Ameri-
can cowboy." 12 A s th e natio n gre w increasingl y complex , urbanized ,
and industrialized , thi s mythical identity, rooted in a presocial Utopia,
grew mor e attractive . The academi c work o f fol k son g collector s lik e
Lomax contribute d no t onl y t o th e developmen t o f a canon o f son g
but als o to th e commercia l production o f popular cowboy lore . This
industrially disseminated culture would soon come to promulgate thes e
cultural values, the belief s an d desires rooted i n the mythi c presociety
D I S S O N A N T I D E N T I T I E S / 2.6
of the Texan cowboy, throughou t the southwest, an d eventually across
the country .
The effect s o f Lomax' s canon formatio n ca n be directly observed in
the caree r of a n early professional singing cowboy. RCA-Victo r copy-
righted th e phras e "The Origina l Singin g Cowboy" for it s recording s
of Jules Verne Allen released in the late twenties and early thirties. Allen
had acted in cowboy movies in Hollywood an d played cowboy roles on
radio drama s in Dallas and San Antonio. H e had also grown u p work-
ing as a cowboy on ranche s throughout Texas . In 1933, Allen publishe d
a boo k version o f hi s popula r Sa n Antonio radi o shows . Cowboy Lore
includes definitions of cowboy terms, jokes, stories from Allen' s yout h
in th e cattl e trade, an d a detailed an d illustrate d explanation o f cattle
brands. Hal f o f th e boo k i s taken up wit h cowbo y songs—i n Allen' s
words, "taken down from my voice, just as I sing them." Allen claims the
same authorit y b y whic h Loma x authenticate d hi s collectio n twenty -
three year s previously , tha t o f live d experience, "i n th e mai n most o f
[the songs ] ar e presented her e just as I learne d them o n th e range." 13
The collection include s thirty-six songs. All but three of them were pre-
viously published in Lomax's collection. Of those three, one was written
for Allen' s recordin g career ; the othe r tw o ar e the noncowbo y songs ,
"Barbra Allen " an d "Buffal o Gals." 14 Whether Alle n learned th e othe r
thirty-three song s o n th e rang e or not , th e version s published i n hi s
book were nearly identical to those in Lomax's collection. The commer-
cial representation promulgated b y Allen over the radio did not signifi -
cantly differ fro m th e academi c representation disseminated by Lomax
in journals or at the meetings of learned societies.
Whether Alle n learned his songs directly from th e Lomax collectio n
is not s o important as the demonstration that, by 1933, the traditional
cowboy song canon had been formed. Cowboy song s existed before th e
work of John Lomax . They had even been collected an d published be-
fore. However , once thi s cano n was established, th e convention s tha t
defined "cowbo y songs"—necessaril y imbue d wit h consciou s an d un -
conscious politica l an d socia l assumptions—bega n t o limi t th e type s
of experiences an d expressions tha t fit the qualifier "cowboy." Lomax's
canon codified "a set of practices normally governed b y overtly or tacitly
accepted rules . .. which seek to inculcate certain values and norms of be-
havior." Just as Eric Hobsbawm claim s for all invented traditions, thes e
songs wer e used to establis h "the membershi p of groups, rea l or artifi -
cial communities," th e legitimatio n of "institutions, statu s or relations
of authority," an d "the inculcatio n of beliefs, value systems, and conven-

tions of behavior." 15 After th e momen t o f canonization, a song ha d t o
display a certain set of characteristics to achiev e the status of a cowboy
song. The traditio n o f cowboy song s the n carrie d social and politica l
meanings tha t worke d t o legitimat e specific musica l event s a s the au -
thentic expression s o f a dominan t socia l group. When a Jule s Verne
Allen, who di d spend his youth i n cow camps and on cattle trails, pub-
lished identical arrangements of the same songs that appear in Lomax's
collection, h e was clearly borrowing th e authorit y of this invented tra-
dition in order to authenticate his own status in much the same fashion
as Lomax himself borrowed th e authorit y of an academic tradition t o
legitimate hi s statu s a s a serious scholar . By this point, a discourse o f
cowboy authenticity was already constructing the cultural practices and,
indeed, the lived experience of some Texans.
The Popular Dissemination of the Cowboy Singer

Whether o r not cowboy songs were ever functionally integrated int o
the lif e o f the cattl e trade, by the en d of the i9zos the cowbo y singe r
was a professional entertainer participating in a commercial medium .
The industria l disseminatio n o f the cowbo y imag e wouldn't reac h its
full spee d until the late 19305, but the commercial viability of cowboy-
related cultura l products bega n to accelerat e throughout th e twenties .
During thi s decade , J . Fran k Dobie, a n Englis h professor , Texas his -
torian, an d folklorist , wa s publishin g article s an d book s o n cowbo y
lore for ever-increasing audiences. Cowboy singers were performing on
record an d o n th e radio . Powerfu l radi o station s bega n broadcastin g
barn dance programs, distributing a specific representation of rural cul-
ture int o th e home s o f bot h rura l an d newly urbanize d listeners . I n
January 192.3 , WBAP ou t o f For t Worth , Texas, broadcasted th e firs t
national barn dance. Carl Sprague recorded "When the Work's All Done
This Fall" (included in Lomax's 1910 edition of Cowboy Songs) fo r Victor
in 192.5 . Spragu e insisted that h e learned all his songs while he was sit-
ting around campfire s with "real cowboys." But it was his recording tha t
sold over 900,000 copies. 16 Oscar Fox was a classically trained composer
who directe d th e chora l society at the Universit y of Texas. As early as
192.4, while Lomax was also working at UT, Fo x copyrighted arrange -
ments of several songs from Lomax's collection. In I9Z5 the Carl Fischer
company of New York published Fox's arrangemen t of "Home on th e
Range." The son g becam e a best-seller in 193 3 after i t was used i n th e
Broadway pla y "Green Gro w th e Lilacs, " an d Frankli n Roosevel t de -
clared i t t o b e on e o f hi s favorites . Th e copyrigh t becam e the objec t
D I S S O N A N T I D E N T I T I E S / 2. 8
of lawsuit s when numerous peopl e claimed to hav e written "Hom e on
the Range. " " It was becoming increasingl y difficult t o blen d theorie s
of communal compositio n with capitalis t notions of cultural property .
Nevertheless, th e claim of authenticity—that a song came directly from
a "real " cowbo y an d therefor e was related t o th e prcsocia l origin s o f
Texan societ y an d the idealize d wester n male—woul d ad d to a song's
appeal, its popularity, an d its profit potential .
As par t o f hi s work with th e chora l societ y a t the university, Osca r
Fox produce d program s o f cowboy song s take n from Lomax' s collec -
tion. On July i, 19x7, Fox presented a lecture-concert that included ver-
sions o f "Home on the Range, " "Sa m Bass," "Cowboy's Lament," and
other ballads . The singe r wa s a young la w student wit h dramati c aspi-
rations named Woodwar d Mauric e Ritter, late r known a s Tex.18 Ritter
never claimed authenti c cowbo y statu s for himself , bu t hi s interest i n
cowboy culture was piqued by his contact with Lomax, Dobie, and Fox
at the Universit y of Texas. By 192.8, he was a singing cowboy on KPRC
in Houston, and then i n 1930 Ritter move d to New York to pursu e an
acting career. 19 There he almost immediately landed a part in the Theate r
Guild's production of Lynn Rigg's "Green Gro w the Lilacs. "
"Green Grow the Lilacs" was called a folk-play by the New York crit-
ics. It was alternately hailed and reviled for representing too clearl y the
rituals, th e lifeways , an d th e emotion s o f "th e folk s o f th e cornfields
and the prairies." 20 Ritter won an actual acting role in the production,
but h e also joined i n with th e dozen singer s who were hired solel y t o
perform "authentic songs o f the plains" between th e scenes of the play .
This "ensemble o f cowboys and Oklahoman maidens . . . were vivid and
pliant, earth y and folksy, aliv e and urgent," an d were recruited from th e
Madison Squar e Garde n rodeo. 2' Man y obliging critic s an d reviewer s
touted their cowboy authenticity in articles that described their abilities
to perfor m rodeo tricks . Arthur Chapma n mad e th e point i n the New
York Herald-Tribune that , "i t i s doubtful i f the Ne w Yor k publi c real -
izes how fa r the Theater Guil d ha s gone i n quest of reality. A first-class
rodeo could b e organized righ t ou t o f the cast now performing at the
Guild."22 Durin g th e Bosto n previews , Franklin Jorda n wrot e fo r th e
Transcript that , "Most o f these cowbo y actor s ar e followers of rodeos
and almost without exceptio n have taken one or more honors in various
events during the year." Nevertheless, "Though they have been in Wild
West shows an d in the movies, their first speaking part onstage brough t
out a streak of shyness."23
Margaret Larki n performed the lead cowgirl singing role during th e
Boston run . In he r own boo k o f cowboy song s she repeate d a distinc-

tion she learned from this performing troupe. "Cowboys usuall y enjoy
teaching thei r song s to an unpretentious tenderfoot , but they are likely
to criticize Drug Store, Moving Picture , and Radio cowbo y singer s on
the groun d tha t the y are unable to rid e a bucking horse. I hav e heard
some o f the bes t known cowbo y singers condemned a s follows, 'What
does he know about cowboy songs? He never was nothing bu t a honky-
tonk singer. He don't know a maverick from a branding iron.' "24 Despite
the fact that he was a radio cowboy singer, Tex Ritter had been academi-
cally trained i n cowboy lore, received from Dobic, Fox, and Lomax, and
this trainin g enable d hi s performance in this stage d displa y of authen-
tic cowbo y lif e tha t wa s wholly convincing t o th e mos t sophisticate d
east coast theate r critics. Ritter wen t fro m Broadwa y to singin g on th e
popular WHN radio barn dance in New York. His performances on this
radio statio n caugh t th e ea r of movie producers lookin g t o cas h in on
the craze of Hollywood singing cowboys and, in 1936, Ritter move d t o
California.25
During th e thirties , Hollywoo d ha d becom e fascinate d wit h sing -
ing cowboys. I n 193 0 Ken Maynard starred in the movie "Songs of the
Saddle" an d bega n his successful caree r of combining the narrative s of
his own cowbo y song s wit h th e plot s o f cowboy movies . Gene Autry
had a small part in Maynard's "In Old Santa Fc," but soon move d on t o
starring roles o f hi s own. Autry's first feature was "Tumbling Tumble -
weeds" i n 193 5 and, by thi s point , th e cinemati c link betwee n Texas ,
cowboys, an d son g was complete.26 When Tex Ritte r move d to Holly -
wood in 1936, his training, his accent, and his documented Texa n roots
marked hi m a s a more authenti c alternativ e to Gen e Autr y an d Ke n
Maynard.27 Ritter's first big cowboy hit was "Jingle, Jangle, Jingle," writ-
ten b y Cindy Walker . But amon g his earl y successfu l recording s wa s a
version o f "Goodby e O F Paint," whic h h e first sang wit h Osca r Fo x
in 192.7. 2S Ritter's us e of songs fro m th e Loma x collection contribute d
to hi s reputatio n a s a real cowboy and a real Texan. Even on th e larg e
screen, in opulent movie palaces, the real Texan was the real cowboy, an d
the rea l cowbo y san g rea l cowboy songs , howeve r the y were learned .
Obviously, som e Texan s were included an d som e were excluded by
this discours e a s it sprea d throughou t th e popula r cultur e of movies ,
radio, an d records. Hispanic s and Native Americans were the targets of
much o f the eas y violence of the cowboy. The dominant rational e for
the separatio n fro m Mexic o and the founding of the Republic of Texas
was to enable the Anglo cotton farmers to continue the practice of racial
slavery. Women were by definition excluded from the homosocial Utopia
of the cattl e trail. 29 And just as obviously, the category of cowboy song s
in no way exhausts the plethora of musics produced i n Texas in the early
decades of the twentieth century . The Deep Ellum section of Dallas was
the home for a thriving blues community, centered on the performances
of Blin d Lemon Jefferson an d Huddie Ledbetter . Hispani c communi -
ties i n Sa n Antonio, E l Paso , an d smalle r towns throughou t th e Ri o
Grande valley boasted larg e dance bands that blended traditiona l Lati n
tonalities an d rhythms with jazz instrumentation, creating orquesta an d
norteno music. Smal l towns i n central Texas featured polka band s an d
traditional Centra l Europea n son g and dance styles. 30
However, the image of the authentic cowboy inherited from Lomax' s
initial formation continue d t o describe the dominant cultura l power in
terms o f a n idealize d Anglo-Saxon mal e rooted i n a presocial mascu -
line Utopia : autonomous, strong , independent , acquisitive , fre e fro m
the constraint s o f society, generous, impulsive , quick to anger and will-
ing to us e violence t o settl e disputes, distrustful of women bu t capable
of a rigidly constrained sentimentality . The mor e closel y a Texan male
approximated th e cowbo y model , th e mor e authorit y accrue d t o hi s
cultural practice . The mor e aspect s of the authenti c cowboy h e coul d
identify with, introjcct into the construction of his own ego, and project
with his performances, the more closely he could approach the cultural
power of the dominant grou p i n Texan society.
Cowboy song s themselves were an amalgamation of a variety of musi-
cal practices, developed by many different group s of people. But in th e
process o f canonization , becaus e of th e condition s unde r whic h suc h
canonization occurred , certain attributes of these songs were deemed t o
be definitive. They had to be the communal creations of males of Anglo-
Saxon descen t engage d i n a particular occupation. The canon simulta-
neously defined the cultural practice and the people who engaged i n the
cultural practice by describing the songs as the direct expression of a way
of life . Rathe r tha n dispellin g th e romanti c myt h o f th e cowbo y tha t
had already become popular, cowboy songs contributed to its strength.
But a t the sam e time , linkin g the definitio n o f the cowbo y t o a n on-
going cultural practice of popular music opened the door to a process
of redefinition that continue s today.
Obviously, popular musi c is not the only field in which such negotia-
tion takes place. But it is an important one. Because of its simultaneous
aesthetic and social textures, along with its peculiarly motile relationship
with the rising culture industries, Texan music provided the cultural site
where th e cowboy , th e idealize d wester n male , was first reduced fro m
the specific s o f Lomax' s so n of the Sout h t o th e abstrac t set o f char-
acteristics I have enumerated. Through th e cultural practice of popular
The Musicalized Performance o f Identity I 3 1

music, ne w groups negotiate d thei r wa y into thi s discourse, becomin g
authentic Texans through their demonstrated abilit y to perform authen-
tic Texan music. The varieties of Texan music continued to intermingle ,
borrowing fro m and mutually influencing one another. Eac h new iden-
tification was a transformation, a translation that retained something of
the origina l structur e bu t tha t introduce d chang e as well. The field of
authentic Texa n music began to include more than cowboy song s even
as each newly won authenticit y was anchored b y reference to the newl y
transformed cowbo y image .
Fromjimmie Rodgers to Honky-Tonks:

The Modernization of a Cultural Practice
In 1929 , Jimrni e Rodgcrs , th e mos t popula r hillbill y singer i n th e
country, move d t o Kerrville, Texas, forty-five mile s west of Austin. Suf-
fering fro m tuberculosis , Rodger s wa s draw n t o th e sanatorium s i n
the smal l hill-country town . Rodger s wa s born i n Mississippi an d ha d
lived i n a numbe r o f place s throughou t th e South . Bu t a s stil l hap -
pens i n centra l Texas whe n a successful musician move s t o town , h e
was warmly welcome d an d instantl y referred t o a s a local hero. Ther e
is on e publicit y stil l o f Rodger s i n a cowboy outfit , take n righ t afte r
he moved t o Texas. But he never performed in this outfit, an d he only
recorded tw o song s wit h cowbo y themes . The importanc e o f Jimmie
Rodgers t o th e developmen t o f th e Austi n musi c scene is more tran -
sitional tha n iconic . Jimmi e Rodger s wa s the firs t sta r o f commercia l
hillbilly music. H e translate d th e imag e of the singin g cowboy's ideal -
ized male into the successful professional musician. Rodgers's recordin g
career mapped th e core of the traditional southern masculin e hero onto
a modern commercialized landscape. Jimmie Rodgers live d out the nar-
rative o f th e independent entrepreneu r who , throug h har d wor k an d
determination, transforme d nature for a generously shared profit, an d
he di d i t i n th e ne w mediu m o f the recor d business. 31 N o longe r di d
the southern hero have to sing of his work at the cow camp, no longe r
did cowbo y song s hav e to ech o th e rhyth m o f the strollin g pony , n o
longer wer e thes e song s th e anonymou s productio n o f an impersona l
folk. Instead , a singer coul d liv e the myt h of the independen t cowbo y
by turning his own natural resource—his voice, his personality, his very
self—into a highly desirable commodity. B y writing and singing song s
that communicate d a very personal style , a son of the Sout h could , in
effect, transfor m persona l nature for mutual profit, through the magi c
of radio and records .
D I S S O N A N T I D E N T I T I E S / 32 .
Even a s Rodgcr s an d hi s recor d compan y were turnin g hi s talen t
into a marketable commodity, hi s success was dependent upo n a n audi-
ence who no w bough t it s music, either directly—on records—or indi-
rectly—by listening t o specifi c radi o programs. This broad change, th e
development o f th e cultur e o f consumption , enable d th e transforma-
tion o f th e cowbo y singe r reflectin g a lif e o f independen t autonom y
into a professional entertainer achieving a life of independent autonom y
through th e marketin g of cultura l products. What remaine d constan t
were the masculine virtues displayed in the songs and the images of the
stars. Rodgers inspire d probably thousands of young Texans to try their
hand, not at cattle raising, nor at oil well drilling, but at singing, writing,
and selling songs.
Ernest Tubb was one of the many so inspired. As a youth, Tubb en-
joyed th e song s an d storie s o f Jule s Verne Allen, listenin g t o Allen' s
program o n WFAA out of Dallas. But it wasn't until he heard a Jimmie
Rodgers son g that he decided to become a professional musician.32 Tubb
searched out Mrs . Jimmie Rodgers i n San Antonio i n 1935 after findin g
her name in the phone book . Sh e encouraged him to continue singin g
because she thought tha t h e sounded sincere and believable, that audi-
ences coul d tel l ho w h e felt . Mrs . Rodger s fel t tha t thi s wa s th e ke y
to Jimmie' s success . He san g sincerely, so the audienc e could identif y
with real feelings; their feelings could become identified with Rodgers' s
through hi s performance of genuine expression. After si x more years of
struggle, Ernest Tubb had his big hit, "Walking the Floor," which sold
over 400,00 0 copie s in 1941. The success of the son g won him a movie
contract. I n Hollywood , western director Charle s Starret t tried to ge t
Tubb to sing "one of those old cowboy songs like Jules Verne Allen used
to sing. I told them, I used to sing 'cm, but those kind of songs are dead.
Why bring me out here in the first place, if it wasn't to sing 'Walking the
Floor Over You'?" 33 Indeed, b y the time that this young man who ha d
learned cowboy songs by listening to Jules Verne Allen on the radio and
who learned all of Jimmie Rodgers's song s from his records had his own
hit, the commercial performance of masculine independence, strength,
and spontaneity require d that every singer have an individual style and
an individual sound .
Tubb changed the image of hillbilly music. He insisted that the com-
pany for which he recorded, Decca , market his records under th e cate-
gory o f "country " music. By 1949, the importan t trad e magazine Bill-
board had rename d its hillbilly charts, following Decca's lead.34 Through
his focu s o n th e powe r o f thi s imag e an d thi s marketin g label , Tubb
emphasized th e connection s between th e musica l projectio n of Texan
The M usicalized Performance o f Identity I 3 3

identity an d commercial recording success . Another importan t chang e
accompanied this modification of image. Tubb did not sing in the hig h
tenor rang e commo n t o Anglo-Saxo n mal e folksinging . Hi s relaxe d
tonality and lower range were more suited to the recording an d broad-
casting technologie s o f hi s day. Paradoxically, this contribute d t o th e
authenticity of feeling communicated i n his singing; in the media where
it was more frequently heard, Tubb's voic e sounded mor e "real," more
like the voices heard everyday by his fans.
Apparently, Ernest Tubb's song s directly reflected his life an d there -
fore directl y communicated t o his audience. However, Tubb's sincerit y
was wholly a performance style. Thirty-five years after the first success of
"Walking the Floor" he could still sing that song with the same emotive
signs of genuine feeling. 35 The fac t tha t the song still sounded convinc -
ing t o hi s audienc e speak s to th e enduranc e o f thi s genr e o f sincer e
performance and the cultural power of the signs associated with it.
This genre of "sincere " country and western performance was most
clearly an d importantl y displaye d a t a specifi c cultura l site know n a s
the honky-tonk. 36 During th e i9zos, the oil fields of the Permian Basin
began pumpin g dollars int o rural Southern Baptist communities. Th e
Depression exacerbate d the difference s betwee n thos e stil l dependent
on a farm economy and those successful individuals whose land held oil.
The honky-ton k wa s one of the important socia l institutions fo r nego -
tiating th e conflict s betwee n poo r rura l familie s with stric t religiou s
backgrounds and a rising generation of newly wealthy and newly urban-
ized Texans. Such conflicting cultural values often coul d battle within a
single person, when one who was raised in one world came of age into
another.
Every socia l an d economi c syste m exclude s element s o f humanit y
from it s productive processes . But thes e excluded elements cannot re -
main permanently repressed. Cultures develop traditions of expression
and celebration that display excluded elements, usually transformed, ex-
aggerated, o r intensified. 37 Traditionally, celebrations of release require
sensory stimulatio n a t multiple levels simultaneously . Music, dancing ,
contrasting visua l levels of light an d darkness, food an d drink, all con-
tribute to a n intoxication o f the sense s that allow s for the recognitio n
and pleasurabl e acknowledgmen t o f represse d area s o f th e human . I n
the discipline d homosocia l wor k world o f the cattl e trail, thi s releas e
came in th e frontie r towns , where the cowboy s "tripped th e fantasti c
toe to wretched music " with "beings full y degraded a s the most vile." 38
With th e regularit y o f th e seasons , thes e workers made thei r wa y up
the trai l to a special plac e where, flush for a moment, they could dis-
play exaggerated forms of the skills they used in their work, invert value
systems otherwise necessar y for survival, and satisfy appetites elsewhere
denied. With the end of the cattle trails, the cowboy carnival moved into
other arenas. The tradition s o f the count y fai r an d the rode o filled th e
need for an exaggerated display of skills and a celebration of the harvest,
and man y o f thes e fair s an d rodeo s hel d dance s i n th e evenings . Bu t
such dances tended t o remai n fairly calm, more a place for stable famil y
entertainment. The site where values were inverted, where the culturally
repressed returned , an d where the tension s an d conflicts o f a changing
social world were fought over became the honky-tonk. 39
Generally located o n or near the city limits, on the margins betwee n
country an d tow n wher e law enforcement was less consistent, honky -
tonks bega n a s a place to bu y bootlegged whiskey during Prohibition .
They wer e a favorite hang-ou t fo r me n wh o worke d i n th e oi l fields.
People who live d in the city would driv e just out o f the jurisdiction of
the loca l police and drink and dance to th e ban d or to record s o n th e
juke box. Peopl e wh o live d in the countr y would driv e to th e edg e of
the cit y for the regula r display of music and lights an d movement an d
liquor. Honky-tonk s wer e magica l places where promise s wer e mad e
and new possibilities of life could be imagined in the free recombinatio n
of repressed elements of the human. While carnivals, frontier towns, and
rodeos were tie d t o th e seasons , availabl e only at certain time s o f th e
year, the honky-ton k was continually present. In the same way that th e
cultural practice of folksinging became a commercial medium for popu-
lar entertainment, the cultural practice of carnival was transformed into
the commercially oriented honky-tonk.
The limina l aren a ha d move d t o th e edg e o f tow n wher e i t coul d
be entere d an y night th e cowbo y desired . A s Bill Malon e argues , th e
music responde d t o thi s contex t o f intensifie d physical release by em-
phasizing its rhythms. Focusin g on its role as dance music, highlighting
its African-American influences, honky-tonk drums and bass, accompa-
nied b y firmly struck electric guitars, laid down a beat loud enoug h t o
be heard over conversation and drinking noises, steady enough for the
most lame-foote d cowbo y t o danc e to. 40 And s o country an d wester n
music, a s it no w bega n t o b e called , took a dominant rol e i n the dia -
lectical modernization o f Texan life. Her e th e commercialized countr y
and wester n sta r coul d perfor m th e rol e o f th e traditiona l masculine
hero i n a n increasingl y rigidified, ritualized , an d controlled—becaus e
marketed—version of the carnival.
In th e honky-tonks , a s in all carnival traditions, th e rituals , images,
and symbols of corporeality, sexuality, and sexual relations formed a ripe
The Musicalized Performance o f Identity I 3 5

field for the negotiatio n of cultural tensions. The turmoil derived from
modernizing a rural culture that ha d roote d it s values in a premoder n
homosocial Utopi a was displayed, heightened, critiqued, and lived in the
previously hidde n aren a of sexuality . As systemic capitalism grew ever
more successfu l i n producing a subject whose desires could b e instantly
aroused b y the latest styles, the genr e o f cheating and drinkin g song s
became quite popular .
In 195 1 Hank Thompso n recorde d "Th e Wil d Sid e of Life." 41 Th e
text is set to the same traditional tune and sung in the same tempo Roy
Acuff used to glorify the Bible in "Great Speckled Bird." But Thompson
adds the steady beat and the singing steel guitars of the honky-tonk style
to Acuff's sparse accompaniment. Thompson sing s from the discursively
constructed positio n of masculine virtue identified with a performance
style that reinforces its authority, but the song's lyrics describe a world of
instantly remolded desires, shaped anew each night i n the honky-tonk .
The son g contain s generi c signs of sincere expression a s the narrator ,
singing directl y to the angel, puts his private feelings into song because
she wouldn't read his letter if he wrote to her.
Implicitly, th e singe r me t hi s ange l i n th e honky-tonk , wher e th e
modernization o f culture is played out. A conservative critique of mod-
ern capitalis m i s aime d a t thi s "ga y nigh t life " wher e "th e win e an d
liquor flow." There, i n the fluid, modernizing world of the honky-tonk,
the ange l wait s t o b e "anybody's baby. " Her desire s are not he r own ,
instead the y ca n b e stimulate d b y any passing object. The narrato r o f
"Wild Side of Life" was the truest love she'll ever know, a sincere, stable
model of premodern masculine virtue. He once loved her, and she is still
an angel . Bu t eve n thoug h th e honky-ton k itself causes her infidelity ,
she willingly goe s bac k there every night. The desires produce d withi n
an intoxicating modernit y cannot easily be left behind . He "might have
known [she'd ] neve r mak e a wife." From th e conservativ e perspective
articulated by country and western music, social forces are not capable of
producing suc h subjective, private feelings. Therefore, only God coul d
have made her that way.
Months afte r th e releas e of Thompson' s hit , i n perhap s th e finest
answer song ever recorded, Kitty Wells sang, "It Wasn't God Who Made
Honky-tonk Angels." 42 Using agai n th e sam e melody an d the honky -
tonk style , Wells snaps up th e tempo an d sings with a barely restrained
vibrato. Sh e insists that , "To o man y times marrie d men thin k they'r e
still single. That has caused many a good girl to go wrong." In this song,
the sociosexua l hierarchy is inverted and al l broken hearts are "because
there alway s was a man to blame. " Honky-tonk angels are not th e crc-
ation of the suprem e being , bu t instea d ar e forged b y the duplicitou s
actions o f men . Kitt y Wells's performanc e provides a challenge t o th e
discursive construction of masculine virtue and authority, givin g voic e
to women's sense of frustration both at the shiftin g desires of the men
around them, an d at bearing the blame, in the male version of the story ,
for th e cultural disruption .
In th e honky-tonk— a magical modern marketplac e of pleasure and
possibility—social, economic , an d cultura l tension s ar e deflected int o
the real m of sexual relations. There they are lived, felt, and experienced.
The languag e o f honky-tonk romance , which includes a musical style, a
performance style , and a n encoded mora l history, structure s thes e ten -
sions int o generi c expression s o f good lov e gon e ba d tha t necessaril y
carry a nostalgic air , a look backward to better times .
In th e modernize d marketplace , signs do not hav e stable meanings ,
and desire s ar e instantly created and instantly disappear. This unstabl e
context informs the paradox of the honky-tonk. The processe s of mod -
ernization, whic h disrupt older cultural practices and replace them with
signs an d commodities , enabl e th e constan t presenc e o f th e carniva l
arena. Onl y withi n th e commerciall y enforced boundarie s separatin g
honky-tonk reality from the rest of the world does it becomes possible to
display, in an intensified sexualized form, the most troublin g aspects o f
contemporary life . Fo r th e generatio n o f white Texans reaching matu -
rity immediatel y afte r Worl d Wa r II, thes e aspect s reflected the effect s
of powerfu l economi c forces , th e solidificatio n of a class structure, th e
rising wealth o f some an d the lingerin g povert y of others, th e increas-
ing use of culture to signify distinction, the development o f the cultural
marketplace, an d th e commodificatio n o f cultural practice. Other Tex-
ans and other generations woul d deal with different sets of conflicts. But
the Austi n musi c scene wa s built on thi s foundatio n o f a commercial-
ized cultural tradition of popular music, centered in the liminal arena s
of honky-tonks , an d performe d wit h a n assume d ai r of Anglo-Saxo n
masculine moral authority inherited from the mythical presocial origin s
of the state of Texas through th e discourse of cowboy lore .
The M usicalized Performance of Identity I 37

C H A P T E R T H R E E
Desperados Waiting for a Train

The Development o f Progressive
Country Musi c
Throughout the summe r and the fal l of 1933, the Texas state legislature
busied itsel f debatin g th e prope r metho d o f licensin g drinking estab-
lishments. Th e twenty-firs t amendmen t ha d returne d to eac h state th e
authority t o regulate the sale of alcoholic beverages. But the liquor issue
was not a simple matter i n Texas. The larg e state, torn betwee n it s vast
but sparsel y populated rura l spaces and its growing urba n centers, en -
compassing extensiv e German and Latin cultures to whom the reformis t
motives o f the Anglo s mad e little sense, had depende d upo n a system
of count y contro l befor e federa l prohibitio n ha d bee n enforced . Th e
gubernatorial electio n o f 191 1 had bee n fough t ove r th e prohibitio n
issue. After the single federal standard was repealed, no immediate con-
sensus could b e formed to replace it. While county control seemed again
to b e the obviou s compromise , th e old reformist bloc hoped t o retai n
a prohibition o n liquor , allowin g for only the sal e of bee r and wine in
the state. 1
However, sentimen t i n the capital city ran toward tota l legalization .
On Octobe r 3 , 1933 , The Austin American publishe d a n anonymou s
article calling for a twofold system of liquor licensing. Its argument took
the for m o f a n analog y between taste s i n liquo r an d taste s i n music .
Just a s there were clearly two type s of music, and two distinc t group s
of people wh o appreciate d each, there were two types of alcoholic bev-
erages, an d two distinc t population s o f drinkers. "High-brow people"
preferred "high-bro w music " an d cocktails ; others coul d res t conten t
with beer and wine and the rough sounds of less than polished entertain-
ment. Sinc e it would b e clearly inappropriate to mix these two group s
of people in the same establishment, the obvious solutio n was to create
two type s o f licenses . The mor e expensiv e liquo r licens e would allo w
for th e proper atmospher e i n downtown hotels , while the cheaper beer
and win e license could b e purchased by any saloon i n the county . Th e
American reasoned tha t while each citizen of Texas had the right t o his
personal taste in alcohol and in music, a clear homology existe d between
the two. Bee r and hillbilly music marked the pleasures of the low-brow. 2
An oft-repeate d legen d (i n fac t almos t alway s acknowledged a s a
legend whe n repeated ) insist s that Kennet h Threadgill bought the first
beer an d win e licens e issue d i n Travis County i n 1933. 3 The buildin g
that house d ThreadgilP s Ba r had bee n a n old gasolin e statio n locate d
near the northernmost edg e of the town. The legend also says that, dur-
ing Prohibition , customer s a t the filling station often bough t a gallon
of hooch with their gasoline. What i s known fo r sure i s that Kenneth
Threadgill bough t th e plac e i n th e middl e thirtie s an d furnishe d th e
front roo m of the station wit h a few old round tables , about twenty o r
thirty chairs, and two old coolers stashed behind a countertop. B y 1946,
he was selling soda pop an d beer out of those coolers while some of his
friends playe d guitar o r fiddle and sang hillbilly songs.4 Threadgill ha d
taught himsel f to yodel after he heard Jimmie Rodgers perform in I9z8,
developing " a pretty large repertory of Jimmie Rodgers' songs" as well
as a few phrase s and verse s of eve n older , mor e traditional , material .
By th e middl e nineteen-fifties , Short y Ziegler , Cotton Collins , an d a
few other loca l singers and musicians were congregating first on Friday
nights an d later on Wednesdays to sing a few of their favorite songs an d
drink a few of their favorite beers. While Mr. Threadgill tended bar , th e
musicians would perfor m for fun and on e o r tw o fre e rounds ; hi s few
steady customers would pa y for their drinks, listen to the musicians, and
occasionally join in the singing.5
Most of ThreadgilPs customers during this period wer e local work-
ing men—mechanics, day laborers, and "cedar choppers." Bu t by 1959,
a grou p o f graduat e student s fro m th e universit y had discovere d th e
pleasures of the low-brow. Bill Malone was writing a dissertation on th e
history of th e countr y musi c business. Sta n Alexander was an Englis h
graduate studen t wh o love d traditiona l fol k song s an d ballads . Willie
Benson wa s devoting equa l attentio n t o th e stud y of psychology an d
bluegrass guitar, while Ed Mellon wa s playing the mandoli n an d idol -
izing Bil l Monroe. These fou r youn g me n had been meetin g regularl y
in Mcllon's apartment , listening to and trying to copy the recordings of
traditional an d bluegrass material that they had discovered in the Austin
public library. Once Willie Benson heard about ThreadgilFs, he dragged
Desperados Waiting for a Train I 3 9

the quartet ou t to the bar , where they played "at least once a week, and
sometimes more , fo r three or four years." 6
The enthusias m tha t thes e graduat e students share d fo r older musi c
endeared the m immediatel y to the regular performers and customers of
the ol d honky-tonk. Fo r the first two years that the group of graduat e
students performe d a t ThreadgilPs , th e musi c the y playe d wa s exclu-
sively th e musi c o f th e olde r generation—oldtim e countr y an d blue -
grass. Benson would back up Mr. Threadgill while he yodeled his Jimmie
Rodgers songs. Shorty Ziegle r would announc e the keys for each song
so tha t th e younge r musician s coul d pla y along. "We'r e goin g t o d o
this on e i n A. A as in Aig," Shorty woul d holle r an d the n emphasiz e
the rhyth m wit h his "sock" style of guitar playing. Malone an d Alexan-
der woul d sin g duet s lik e "Gathering Flower s fro m th e Hillside, " an d
every no w an d the n th e fou r younge r musician s would cu t loos e o n
one o f thei r bluegras s numbers . Sinc e almos t everyon e who cam e t o
ThreadgilPs o n Wednesday nights coul d sin g at least a little, ther e was
not much distinction betwee n performer and audience. Only during the
virtuoso performance s of the bluegras s ensembl e and th e yodelin g o f
Mr. Threadgill wa s a clear difference i n musical ability displayed.7
At first, the graduat e student s brought only a few close friends with
them an d th e audience , smal l a s it was , remaine d basicall y the sam e
people wh o ha d drun k an d sung at ThreadgilPs for over ten years. Bu t
gradually, th e reputatio n o f this little bar spread . In 1960 , the univer -
sity added a "folksinger" to the faculty of its English department. Soo n
after Roge r Abraham s arrive d that fall , h e was introduce d t o Malon e
and Alexande r an d t o ThreadgilPs . Abraham s also becam e the faculty
sponsor o f a folksinging clu b that me t a t the Chuckwagon i n the stu -
dent union. On th e college campuse s of the east coast, folksinging ha d
become a popular pastime , as students attempte d t o recreate the condi -
tions of prcmodcrn, precommercialize d cultural practice. Because of the
sense of active participation that came from amateur group singing, th e
folk songs themselves seemed to be more meaningful than popular song s
on th e radio . Durin g th e fol k son g reviva l Osca r Bran d wrote, "Fo r
many, folk music has become a n antidote t o the conformity induced b y
our mass culture."8
In Austin , folksingin g quickl y becam e a way of markin g one's dif-
ference fro m th e studen t bod y represente d b y fraternities, sororities ,
and football players . Students fro m small towns throughout Texas wh o
felt tha t thei r live s differe d fro m th e conservativ e meanings tradition -
ally available were attracte d t o th e folksingin g club. John Clay , Powel l
St. John, Lann y Wiggins, Jani s Joplin, Tary Owens, an d others latche d
onto the singing o f traditional fol k song s a s a way of activel y demon -
strating thei r difference—thei r "beatnik " o r "proto-hippie" status. The
reconstruction o f a traditional, noncommercia l musical practice carried
an aur a of authenticity. That is , participation i n these peformances in-
dicated a n interest i n musical pleasure for its own sake , freed fro m any
direct articulatio n with the commercialized and, according to the ideol-
ogy of authenticity, debase d world of everyday life i n Texas. Accordin g
to a letter Joh n Cla y wrot e i n 1972. , "Lookin g bac k on th e situation,
it seem s ther e wa s a generation ga p affectin g th e earl y Sixties scene ,
but no t lik e th e on e the y tal k abou t today . Peopl e lik e Janis an d m e
and th e other s I mentione d wer e rejectin g th e standard s of our ow n
generation."9
The actual group o f undergraduate folksinger s wa s small but, b y all
accounts, intens e an d active . Several o f them live d togethe r i n a run -
down apartment comple x near campus called the Ghetto. Once a week,
they woul d congregat e i n th e Chuckwago n are a of the unio n t o tak e
turns passing around instrument s and singing. By the time Tary Owen s
arrived i n th e fal l o f 1961 , th e Fol k Sin g wa s a n importan t weekl y
gathering o f member s fro m a variety of alienate d group s o n campus .
Writers an d illustrator s fo r th e satirica l campus humor magazine , The
Ranger, were regula r participants. Individual s coordinating loca l civi l
rights demonstrations recruite d new members at the sing-along. Even a
group of cave explorers, the spelunkers, wa s attracted t o this practice.10
But it was the committed core group—Clay, Owens, and the trio of
St. John, Wiggins, an d Joplin—who directed eac h week's singing an d
who le d the excursio n ou t t o ThreadgilPs . According t o Owens , "We
heard tha t Mr. Threadgill had a bar out ther e and that musicians were
welcome." By reputation, th e Wednesday nigh t gathering s a t Thread -
gill's were dominated b y bluegrass music. As the most accomplished per-
former of this genre among the undergraduates, Lanny Wiggins was the
first of this group t o venture out to Threadgill's. Bu t he was quickly fol-
lowed b y the other members of his band, the Waller Creek Boys (Powell
St. John an d Janis Joplin), and then Clay and Owens. Eventually, these
younger studen t musician s becam e par t o f th e regula r performer s at
Threadgill's, joining Bill Necly, Cotton Collins, Shorty Ziegler, an d the
graduate students .
By the fal l of 1962., the gatherings at Threadgill's ha d become, i n Bill
Malone's words , a "raucous" occasion . That year , Malone bega n teach-
ing i n Sa n Marcos ; consequently , th e frequenc y o f hi s attendanc e a t
Threadgill's diminished . Bu t he noted tha t "th e clientel e changed dra -
matically" once Wiggins, St. John, Joplin, and Owens arrived . And s o
Desperados Waiting for a Train / 4 1

did the repertoire . The younger musician s brought with the m a grow-
ing entourag e o f fello w students a s well as the tast e for an d desir e t o
perform blue s and jugband music. Where the bluegrass performers had
played strictl y acoustically, the crow d brough t b y the undergraduate s
necessitated the use of a microphone an d a small, old amplifier to rende r
the singe r audible. Yet, Threadgill wholeheartedly welcomed hi s ne w
customers, an d they, in turn, gav e him the respect and attention tradi-
tionally tendered a patriarchal figure. When he came out from behind th e
bar to sing, the room grew quiet. Fo r this younger audience, Kennet h
Threadgill embodie d th e position o f moral authority that had been tra-
ditionally constructe d throug h popula r musical practice in Texas. When
Mr. Threadgill yodeled his versions of Jimmy Rodgers's "T for Texas" or
"Waitin' for a Train," h e was performing his identification with a com-
plex tradition. Throug h his singing, Threadgill evoked both the origi -
nary myth of the Texan presocial Utopia and the entrepreneur who could
transform hi s personal resource s fo r mutual profit . I n turn , whe n th e
younger musician s sang their own versions of the traditiona l material,
they wer e projectin g thei r specifi c identification s with thi s se t o f in -
herited positions , reinterpretin g them for a new generation. The atmo -
sphere i n the ba r remained on e of mutual respect, as the eighteen - an d
nineteen-year-old musicians listened t o an d learned honky-tonk coun -
try song s like "Wild Side of Life, " "Your Cheating Heart, " and "Walt z
Across Texas," while the older musicians admired the musical and vocal
talents of the youngsters. "
Ironically, thi s practic e o f performin g traditional folksongs a s well
as commercia l countr y hit s wit h "rea l folk " on th e outskirt s o f tow n
became a way for these nontraditional students t o separat e themselves
from thei r undergraduat e peers . Thus , b y th e winte r o f i^6z— 1963,
musical taste and musical practice were established in Austin as the mos t
significant indicator s o f cultural difference amon g th e generall y white ,
middle-class students at the University o f Texas. The hip san g "Jimm y
Brown the Schoolboy" an d "Six Pack to Go" under the tutelage of older
white working men near the edge of the city limits, while the mainstream
twisted t o Chubby Checke r records at parties near campus.12
The hig h degre e o f conservatis m prevalen t amon g th e majorit y of
students at Texas resulted in a harsh counterattack on the most threaten-
ing representative of the folksinging group. Janis Joplin had a clear, high
voice equally capable of imitating Jean Ritchie, Ros e Maddox, or Bessie
Smith. Sh e also liked t o drink , wear jeans, go barefoot, an d flaunt her
disregard fo r the straitjacket of femininity prescribed by traditional gen-
der roles . I t wa s the latte r transgression that most offende d th e frater -
D I S S O N A NT I D E N T I T I E S /4 Z
nity members on campus. After tolerating her presence for only a single
semester, the y blatantly acknowledged the power of her threat, namin g
her "th e uglies t mal e o n campus. " I n Januar y 1963 , Jopli n lef t Austi n
and hitchhike d t o Sa n Francisc o wit h anothe r estranged , ugl y male ,
Chct Helms . I n he r biograph y of Joplin, Myr a Friedma n emphasize d
the emotiona l impac t of this moment, suggestin g that Joplin's journey
west was a result of this rejection. But friends of hers in Austin, people
like John Cla y and Tary Owens, favored a different interpretation . They
insisted that the mock election only confirmed what Joplin had believed
all along , tha t Texas was simply too square , too backward , for he r t o
tolerate. Seeing themselves as beatniks, Joplin and Helms headed for the
beatnik capital , initiatin g a n Austin-San Francisco exchange of musi -
cians and the culturally hip that would continue for decades.13
Meanwhile, the on-campus folksinging club continued to attract both
the musica l and th e disaffecte d o f eac h year' s newly arriving students.
Ed Guinn wa s the son of the third African-American t o graduate fro m
the University of Texas medical school. H e had idolized his high schoo l
band director, an d he came to UT t o major i n music. In his first semes-
ter, the fall of 1962., he joined the symphony and the jazz band but foun d
himself barred from the Longhorn Band , the marching musical accom-
paniment t o the most visibl e symbol of the university's power—its still
all-white football team. "I had come as a starry-eyed youth, never dream-
ing tha t ther e woul d b e a color barrier, " Guinn tol d me . " I though t
that wa s somethin g tha t stoppe d a t back-of-the-bu s stuff . Yo u know ,
that once you left working-class society that that wouldn't b e a problem
anymore." Believing that he was coming to the intellectual center of the
state, Guinn was shocked by this display of intolerance. 14
By the sprin g semeste r of hi s first year at Texas, Guinn had becom e
a regula r participan t i n th e Fol k Sing . Soo n th e divers e rebel group s
brought togethe r b y folksinging took up Guinn's campaig n to join the
Longhorn band. That thi s clearly talented musician could not eve n ob-
tain an audition fo r the marching band outraged an d engaged th e local
student-led civi l right s movement . The y bega n a letter-writin g cam-
paign an d gradually increased the pressure on the administration as the
school yea r went by.
In earl y Septembe r 1963 , E d Guin n was given th e opportunit y t o
audition for the band. But by this point, he was no longer quite so inter-
ested. H e was far more involve d with th e folksinging group tha n wit h
any of the more official musical organizations. After Guinn passed "their
silly audition," h e went hom e an d called his father, tellin g him tha t h e
no longe r wante d t o march . Bu t when he woke up th e next morning ,

the fron t pag e o f th e Septembe r 2, 3 Daily Texan blare d th e headline ,
"Longhorn Ban d Accepts Negro. " The articl e included a quote fro m
the chair of the Board of Regents, W. W. Heath. Heath insiste d that th e
"Longhorn Ban d has been integrated fo r a long time. " E d Guin n was
simply the first qualified Negr o who had auditioned. As Guinn told me
nearly thirty year s after th e fact , "The y decided i t was time they had a
Negro, and I was the one. Bu t I'll never forget tha t th e first song the y
had m e play in the ban d was 'Dixie.'" Within tw o months, E d Guin n
had quit the Longhorn Band , and he soon droppe d ou t of school. Just
as Joplin had flaunted her difference fro m th e university mainstream, so
Guinn rejected its judgment in order to concentrate full time on playing
his own music. 15
The fal l o f 196 3 brough t anothe r youn g dissiden t t o campus . Jef f
Shero ha d attende d Texa s A&M an d Sa m Houston Stat e for a semes-
ter each , leaving bot h school s afte r organizin g civi l right s demonstra-
tions fo r the Studen t Nonviolen t Coordinatin g Committee . Ove r th e
summer, Sher o ha d attende d th e secon d conventio n o f th e Student s
for a Democratic Societ y a t Pin e Hill , Ne w York . Onc e h e arrived at
UT, Sher o organize d a local chapter of SDS and coordinated protest s
against the segregated toilet s on campus, finding great support amon g
the folksingers . H e foun d tha t th e "alienate d an d rebe l group s wer e
all i n allianc e in those days , the integrationis t groups , th e motorcycl e
riders, the folksingers and the cave explorers." All who differed fro m th e
mainstream of approved student behavior had been thrown together i n
a necessary strategy of survival. He tol d m e that "Folksinging was th e
music of the time. In the civil rights movement, we'd march and sing. It
was fun. And at the university, Thursday was folksinging nights. And in
the contex t of a university dominated b y fraternities an d sororities, th e
kind o f people wh o would com e to folksingin g were the rebe l group .
But w e were s o isolated. When yo u la y out thi s insurgen t group , an d
this is including everybody, we were about 2.00 in a sea of 2.0,000." No t
all two hundred would participat e in any one event at any one time, bu t
each of thes e overlappin g practices was a way of signifyin g difference ,
each contributed t o the construction of the radical group of students at
the Universit y of Texas. 16
However, thi s confluenc e of differenc e di d no t guarante e an y spe-
cific politics. Despit e the fact that folksinging was the music of the civi l
rights movement an d that, during the 1962—6 3 school year, most of the
student member s of the folksinging club were also regular customers at
Threadgill's, the north-side honky-tonk had never admitted an African-
American. "In fact , i n the earl y days, there was some of what we would
now cal l racis t material on th e wall s in ThreadgilPs," Tary Owens tol d
me. "Earl y on , ther e wa s even a n incident wher e the y wer e going t o
[formally] ba n black people." Ed Guinn was talked out of trying to sin g
at ThreadgilFs by John Clay. Clay insisted that Guinn's presence would
just be too disruptive. "I had considerable respect for John," Guinn said.
"I fel t no need to blow up their bucolic scene. They were all my friends,
anyway. I wa s already playing with al l of them." Howeve r stron g th e
ties between folksinging and the civil rights movement a t UT, the most
committed participant s in both practices did not believe that integrating
ThreadgilFs woul d b e worthwhile. Althoug h Austin' s folksinger s had
incorporated a beatnik willingness to cross racial barriers with their taste
for fol k music , their belie f in the importanc e of integratio n conflicted
with thei r respec t fo r thi s livin g symbo l o f th e connection s betwee n
generations—Kenneth Threadgill. Althoug h th e associated radical stu-
dent groups ha d adopted folksingin g as a way of marking their political
difference fro m th e Texa n mainstream, they could no t simpl y avoid o r
ignore the conservativ e elements in this traditional practice. No t eve n
the authenticity of noncommercialized musical performance could guar-
antee a progressive political stance. It would remai n up t o th e les s tra-
ditional, commerciall y oriented folk club s to present African-American
folksingers for their growing young white audience.17
The nt h Doo r wa s the first explicitly commercial venu e fo r folk -
singing in town. Owned b y Bill Simonson, th e clu b offere d th e mos t
regular performin g opportunitie s fo r Mance Lipscom b an d Lightnin '
Hopkins, a s well as Jerry Jeff" Walker, Do c Watson , an d othe r tourin g
representatives of the fol k revival . In additio n t o thei r downtown per -
formances, man y of these musician s would driv e north t o joi n i n th e
hoots at ThreadgilPs, lured by the bar's reputation as a haven for the au-
thentic. Joa n Baez and the Jim Kweskin Jug Band were among the out -
of-town singer s wh o visite d th e honky-tonk . Such appearance s added
to th e growing fam e of Threadgill's, and soon the tiny room was over-
flowing with an audience of students who had come to listen to, rather
than to play, folk music. 18
Gradually, a quasi-professional group coalesced out of the musicians
who were hanging out at Threadgill's. The band, called the Hootenann y
Hoots, consisted o f Tary Owens, Powel l St. John, Lann y Wiggins, Bill
Neely, Short y Ziegler , an d Kennet h Threadgill . They wer e pai d "tw o
dollars a night and all the beer we could drink. " " Other forme r mem-
bers of the UT folksingin g club were turning professiona l as well. E d
Guinn ha d teame d u p wit h a precociou s whit e hig h schoo l studen t
named Bo b Brown . Durin g th e 1964—6 5 school year, thes e two wer e
Desperados Waiting for a Tram I 4 5

spending man y night s a t the Library , a nightclub where a rock'n'roll
band led by John (Toad) Andrews regularly performed. Guinn had never
paid muc h attentio n to roc k o r pop music , and the song s tha t h e and
Brown wer e writing on acousti c instruments fit more closel y int o th e
folk reviva l genre. But whenever they went to the Library, "there were
lots of girls and lots of action. It was listening to Toad that got us into
rock'n'roll. It was what we wanted to do," Guin n told me . In addition,
"Toad was playing a lot o f clubs, but h e was basically making a living
playing at fraternity an d sorority parties." The excitemen t of a scene—
lots of girls and lots of action—combined with the possibility of earn-
ing a living through playing music , captured the desires of these young
musicians. Guinn an d Brown identified with the imaginativ e possibili-
ties signifie d by Andrews's success , an d i n th e summe r o f 1965 , the y
decided to buy electric instruments. Along with Powell St. John, Guinn
and Brow n forme d St . John th e Conqueroo , one o f Austin's first cult
rock'n'roll bands. 2"
In 1966 , Rod Kenned y opened th e Chequered Flag , and there were
suddenly two clubs in town where acoustic musicians could be paid for
playing their own material. The highest-paying jobs for rock'n'roll musi-
cians were th e fraternit y parties, bu t thes e organizations insiste d tha t
the band s perform the popular hits of the day. The Conqueroo foun d
themselves i n the middl e of this split. They aspired to th e lou d excite-
ment an d the musical opportunities offered b y electric instruments and
rock'n'roll, bu t the y had als o come out o f th e fol k traditio n carryin g
a distinct anti-mainstream , anti-student-body, and an anti-commercial-
music attitude. I t i s important t o emphasiz e this las t point. The Con -
queroo rejecte d commercial music , no t th e commercialize d structur e
of musical production. Th e performanc e of commercial music catered
to th e taste s of the dominan t mainstream of Texan culture. Althoug h
Guinn an d Brow n were eager to mak e a living from thei r music , the y
were not willing to pla y "Do th e Freddie" for the tri-Delta sisters. Un-
able to find regular paying gigs downtown, E d Guinn went over to th e
east side where he talked Ira Littlefield int o letting the Conqueroo play
their "crippled hippi e folk music with rhythm and blues presumptions"
two night s a week at his I.L. Club.21
Playing on the east side of Austin, the Conqueroo drove awa y most
of the I.L. Club's regular audience, but they brought with them an audi-
ence of their own—girlfriends an d fellow dropouts, the first hippies in
Austin. According to Guinn, "It worked. The place got pretty crowded,
and Ir a wa s making money—as much money as you ca n make on fifty
cents for a quart of beer . It was a slightly difficult marriag e of the cul -
D I S S O N A NT I D E N T I T I E S / 46
tures, with th e whit e guy s bus y protectin g thei r girlfriend s fro m th e
black guys , bu t basicall y it worked. " However , i t wa s a volatile mix-
ture t o contain i n thi s perio d i n central Texas. It explode d on e nigh t
when th e band's soun d enginee r used the word "niggardly" to describe
a friend's pla n to fix his car. A "barroom brawl" broke out, a gun wen t
off, th e polic e wer e called , an d th e Conqueroo' s regula r east-side gi g
came t o a n end. Bu t fo r muc h of 1966, this raciall y mixed ban d enter -
tained a racially mixed audienc e with origina l songs tha t were writte n
deliberately t o flou t th e convention s o f commercia l po p music . And ,
among the young whit e fans o f the band , a bond between a particular
taste i n musi c an d a particular attitude towar d contemporar y politica l
and social relations ha d been again reinforced. 22
Another ex-membe r of the folksinging club was perfecting her Bessie
Smith imitation durin g regular shows at the nth Doo r that spring. Janis
Joplin wa s agai n livin g with her parent s i n Port Arthu r an d perform -
ing a t professiona l fol k club s i n Housto n an d Beaumon t a s well a s i n
Austin. Although severa l of her old friends felt that she had become to o
polished, i n fact , "commercial, " other s respecte d he r ne w profession -
alism, recognizin g he r effort s t o becom e "on e o f the grea t ones." The
distinction wa s crucial.23
In th e earl y days of the Folk Sing , the anticommercia l stance of th e
members expressed an anti-mass-culture position. Folksingin g ha d been
a means of acknowledging an d constructing differenc e i n a heavily con-
formist cultural milieu. It was a cultural practice that marked out a space
within whic h mainstrea m cultur e could b e resisted an d individual and
group identity could b e actively produced. However, a s the urba n fol k
revival grew and became absorbed into the recording industry, the musi-
cal parameters of fol k musi c bega n t o indicat e a n aestheticall y defined
genre o f popula r music . Topica l lyrics , smoothl y strumme d acousti c
stringed instruments , occasional but infrequent instrumental interlude s
(or leads), an d closely harmonized sincere vocals indicated a folk, as op-
posed to rock'n'roll or pop, song . Eventually, this genre of "folk music "
produced commerciall y successful singers whose talent was wholeheart-
edly admired b y Austin's folksingers , an d whose success—both artisti c
and financial, subsumed int o th e ter m "professional"—th e loca l musi-
cians desired t o emulate . Jimmi e Rodgers ha d been admire d i n central
Texas fo r hi s success , fo r hi s abilit y to creat e an d displa y financial in-
dependence throug h transformin g hi s voice an d hi s presenc e int o a n
exchangeable commodity . Similarly , the "stars" of the urban folk revival
were admired for their ability to perform their independence fro m mass
culture. B y enthusiastically identifying wit h these performers, fan s sig-

nified thei r ow n independence . Therefore , th e professiona l succes s of
Janis Jopli n coul d onl y tarnis h her loca l reputation i f she seeme d t o
be compromising th e identit y sh e performed for commercial—that is,
mainstream or mass-culture—tastes.
In th e meantime , th e Ne w Orlean s Clu b ha d broadene d it s book -
ing polic y beyon d dixielan d to includ e local rock'n'roll band s like the
Wigs an d the i3th Floor Elevators. The Wigs were a commercially ori-
ented band. They featured a young Austin native, Rusty Wier, on drums
and played a variety of Rolling Stones and Beatles material. The Eleva-
tors stoo d in opposition to th e Wigs, playin g their own composition s
yet still managing t o fill the club. Their abilit y to dra w large crowds of
college students wa s to a large extent derived fro m th e fac t tha t thei r
local single "You'r e Gonn a Miss Me" was receiving top-ten airpla y on
radio station s throughou t centra l and south centra l Texas. Yet despite
the fac t tha t th e Elevator s appeared to b e commercially successful, re -
ceiving AM airplay, they still attracted Austin's hip crowd, those actively
distinguishing themselve s from the Texas mainstream.24
When "You'r e Gonn a Mis s Me" was filling the airwave s of centra l
Texas, Tary Owens wa s producing field recordings of rura l eas t Texan
folksingers an d storytellers, but the one band he would consistentl y g o
to se e was the Elevators . According to Owens , "Th e audienc e [at Ele-
vators' shows ] wa s mostly students . Bu t ther e was also a large under -
ground contingen t o f people—proto-hippies, I don't kno w wha t you
want t o cal l them—but there were a lot of people that were becomin g
more an d mor e weird , studen t drop-outs , artists , writers, ther e wer e
quite a few of that . An d th e Jade Roo m an d the Ne w Orlean s Club ,
when the Elevators played there, it was quite a deal."25
The Elevator s quickl y becam e anothe r o f Austin' s cul t rock'n'rol l
bands. Their musi c helped defin e th e genr e of psychedelic punk. Har -
monically, they used standard blues progressions with a t least one an d
sometimes mor e than one unexpected chord included in order to forc e
the melod y o f the son g ou t o f it s common pat h awa y fro m an d back
to the tonic. Rathe r than exploring melodic variation within a standard
pop o r blues chord change , the vocal line in sixties punk tended not t o
stray too fa r from th e toni c of the chords . B y inserting a drastic chord
change—say, by moving to a major tria d built on the flatted fifth of the
song's key—the Elevators forced their standard melody through a n un-
expected transition , contributin g to a feel o f "weirdness " in the song .
This wa s precisel y the fee l tha t suc h a songwriting strateg y achieved.
An unrelentingly simple yet purposive beat drove the song through thi s
unexpected harmonic transition, emphasizing the feeling i n the song of
being force d through weirdness . In a n analogous move , th e Elevator s
paid twisted tribut e t o the folk scene in Austin by including an electric
jug i n their instrumentation . The jug produced a "weird" sound i n ob-
bligatos that intertwined through man y of their recorded arrangements.
Over al l of thes e od d sound s screame d th e voic e o f Rok y Erickson ,
promising differenc e with the torn shards of his vocal chords.
Onstage, Erickso n woul d enthusiasticall y endorse th e pleasure s o f
drug use , particularl y psychedclics. The ban d wrote song s abou t trip -
ping, an d their record liner notes spoke of being on a quest. Peyotc ha d
only recently been outlawed in Texas. For a while Austin's proto-hippic s
had bee n abl e t o driv e t o Sa n Antonio and buy whole peyote plant s
from Hudson' s Wholesal e Cactus—"fiv e fo r a dollar. " Th e promise d
new awareness, hinted a t by the weird music and physically reinforced
by psychotropi c drugs , maintaine d th e necessar y ideologica l distanc e
between Austin' s hi p an d the ongoin g mainstream Texan culture. The
hip coul d mingl e with th e squar e in the Ne w Orlean s Clu b while th e
13 th Floo r Elevator s performed , smu g i n their secret knowledge tha t
they shared an understanding with the band of the meaning of the event
that no fraternity member could grasp.26
This rock'n'rol l i n Austin wa s marked by a contradiction a t its very
heart. It had grown out of the articulation of two opposing practices —
folksinging as the marker of youthful distance from mass culture and the
honky-tonk commodification of an antimodernist critique. Throughout
the earl y sixties, young people from al l regions of Texas had flocked to
Austin a s a center of cultural possibility, where they could liv e a bohe-
mian, beatnik, proto-hippi e life and mark their own difference from th e
Texan cultural mainstream through suc h practices as folksinging, liberal
politics, an d dru g use . However, a t the very moment whe n the y were
singing th e pleasure s of immediate , uncommodified , collectiv e differ -
ence, they were also dependent upon the recognition and economic sup-
port o f a system that produced a commodity fro m thei r performance.
Austin's hip population coul d not commercially support all these art-
ists and musicians. Bands found themselves competing with each other
for limite d resources . Within the structure of the honky-tonk economy ,
rock'n'roll musicians in Austin could not affor d t o play only for the con-
verted, the hip . The successfu l performanc e of difference require d th e
economic participatio n o f the ver y mainstream from whic h th e musi -
cians were struggling t o distinguish themselves. Because popular musi-
cal performance in Austin developed within the context of folksinging's
critique of mass culture, professional rock'n'roll musician s found them-
selves performing a critique of their own practice.

The Elevators soo n heade d out to San Francisco, where Chet Helms
offered the m booking s at the Avalon Ballroom. This marke d one pat h
to commercia l ye t nonmainstream success . Rock'n'roll musician s wh o
were unwillin g t o ope n thei r performance s to th e Texa n mainstream
could lear n thei r musica l skills in the club s of Austin an d then pursu e
their professional ambitions i n the Sa n Francisco Bay area. Boz Scaggs,
Toad Andrews , Powell St . John, an d Janis Joplin, amon g others , mad e
just this trip, moving wes t i n search of a hip communit y large enough
to provide economi c suppor t for the professional musical expression of
cultural difference .
However, for those rock'n'roll musicians who stayed in Austin in the
spring o f 1967, there were two choices . They could play popular radi o
hits a t privat e parties an d venue s like the Ne w Orlean s Club , o r the y
could play their own songs for free at outdoor gatherings and occasion-
ally for a slight fee indoors a t the Doris Miller Auditorium. Rusty Wier's
new band, th e Lavender Hill Express, took th e first path. The fact tha t
this ban d coul d pa y its members a regular wag e enable d i t t o attrac t
some of the more technically skilled musicians who had recently moved
to th e city , like Gary P. Nunn an d John Inmon. The Conqueroo chose
the second alternative . And consequently, th e Conqueroo's continue d
inability to find steady paying gigs led its soundman, Sand y Lockett, t o
pool his resources with those of two friends, Gary Scanlon and Huston
White, to start the Vulcan Gas Co. Opening in October 1967, the Vul-
can soon became , i n Ed Guinn's words , a "home for the freaks , wher e
they didn't have to fee l like freaks, the y could fee l a t home, an d no t b e
hassled by the fraternity and sorority student clement."27
This home for the freaks mad e no attempt to obtain a liquor license.
Rather tha n set itself up as another rock'n'rol l club , the Vulcan tried t o
establish itsel f as an alternative "community center," holding silen t film
festivals and bake sales in addition to hosting music performances. For a
short while, the Vulcan provided a space for rock'n'roll performanc e that
was distanced fro m the honky-ton k economy. Bu t the absenc e of even
a bee r and wine licens e did no t mea n the absenc e of intoxicants . Wit h
the Vulcan serving as the alternative community center, all the markers
of antimainstream cultural distinction wer e in full evidence . Marijuana
was sold openl y fro m a van parked i n front o f the hall. Undisciplined
youthful sexualit y was flagrantly displayed, and the harshly strict code s
of appropriate appearance for each gender in Texas were continually vio-
lated. Several employees, including th e artist Jim Franklin, simply lived
in the hall, making it literally their home.28
This radica l displa y of differenc e ensure d tha t th e regula r busines s
Turning a commercial liability into a cultural asset: one of Jim Franklin's early flyers for
the Vulca n Ga s Company . Courtes y Texa s Poste r Ar t Collection, The Cente r fo r American History , The
University' of Texas at Austin.
community woul d avoi d entering into economic relations with the Vul-
can. Th e Austin American-Statesman banned al l advertising fro m th e
home of the freaks. No radio station would announc e upcoming shows .
Thus th e Vulca n cam e t o depen d o n lavishl y illustrate d poster s an d
handbills distribute d throughou t the university area to attrac t an audi-
ence. This visua l art was drawn by Gilbert Shelton , Jim Franklin, and
other local artists who later became identified with underground comics .
Turning a commercial disadvantage into a cultural advantage , the Vul-

can initiated a tradition o f posting eye-catchin g flyers along the drag, a
tradition that soon developed its own set of aesthetic criteria, offering a
pictorial means of expressing difference. 29
The Vulca n survived for littl e mor e tha n tw o years , continually re -
quiring ne w investment s an d neve r really breaking even. Toward th e
end o f it s tenure a s the hom e o f Austin's hip , th e mos t popula r ban d
at th e Vulca n wa s Shiva' s Hea d Band . Fronte d b y Spence r Perskins ,
Shiva's merge d th e attitude s o f th e hi p communit y wit h commercia l
success. While Perskin s wa s i n colleg e a t Nort h Texa s State , h e ha d
joined th e fol k clu b started ther e b y one o f the school' s Englis h pro -
fessors, Sta n Alexander . Alexande r misse d th e musica l communication
he had enjoye d a t Thrcadgill's; th e fol k clu b at North Texas was an at-
tempt t o reconstitut e tha t experience . Many individuals who san g folk
songs i n Alexander's clu b moved t o Austin in the lat e sixties and early
seventies, bu t Perskins was the first to merge the attitudes and the style
of fol k musi c associated wit h the Texa n folk club—an antimainstream
stance an d a concentratio n o n lyric s an d voca l harmonies—wit h ex -
tended "druggy " improvisational passages . Musically, Shiva's blende d
the instrument s common to a Texan folk club, like a fiddle, a harmonica,
and a jug, with electri c guitars in arrangement s tha t crafte d extende d
climaxes. Like the Elevators , Shiva' s Head Ban d had managed t o gai n
local radio airplay for an independently released single, "Take Me to the
Mountains." Thi s airplay attracted larger audiences than could be drawn
by the word-of-mouth metho d availabl e to unrecorde d band s like the
Conqueroo. And, i n addition t o th e Vulcan, Shiva's played many fre e
shows and could b e counted on to contribut e to an y benefit tha t th e
local hip community migh t organize. 30
As their popularit y grew, Shiva' s Head Ban d attracted th e attentio n
of Capitol Records, a major nationa l company. By 1970, major record-
ing labels had seen the rise of the Liverpool sound and the San Francisco
scene. MG M ha d attempte d t o marke t bands from Boston b y signin g
Ultimate Spinac h an d th e Beaco n St . Union an d b y promoting thei r
music as the "Bosstown Sound." Following th e herd mentality common
to th e recordin g industry , Capitol hoped that th e popularity of Shiva's
Head Ban d an d th e existenc e of the Vulcan Gas Co. indicate d a lively
scene i n Austi n tha t the y coul d exploi t an d turn t o profit . With tha t
intention, their contrac t offe r t o Shiva' s include d a certain amoun t o f
money fo r Perskin s t o us e i n Austi n fo r artis t development . Thi s ar -
rangement allowe d Shiva' s Headban d (a s Capitol printe d thei r name )
a perfect expressio n of their communit y orientation. No t onl y had th e
band won a major recordin g contract, but the y would b e able to hel p
other Vulca n regular s record thei r musi c through thei r operation s a s
Armadillo Productions . Unfortunately , weeks after th e dea l was final -
ized, th e Vulca n wa s force d t o clos e it s door s fo r good . No w ther e
was n o hi p communit y center , no obviou s plac e to cente r Armadill o
Productions an d look fo r new talent. 31
When Shiva' s Headband signed with Capitol, Perskin s hired a n old
college frien d to manag e his band and help administer the productio n
company. Eddie Wilson bega n booking Shiva's Headband int o honky-
tonks like the Cactus Club just south of the Colorado River . According
to Wilson, "I t wa s a smoky little joint that had discovered what hippi e
music could do for beer sales." While the Vulcan had existed, rock'n'roll
performance i n Austi n ha d bee n free d fro m it s dependenc e o n th e
honky-tonk economy . Operating withou t a liquor license , the Vulca n
was no t presentin g musi c in order t o sel l beer , nor wa s it dependen t
on bee r sales to support it s music. Although thi s freedom undoubtedly
contributed t o it s early demise, the Vulcan presented rock'n'roll solel y
for th e musicalize d pleasure of it s fans . Fan s and musician s were able
to perfor m together a pleasurable critique of modern societ y without
the mediatio n produced by the traditional articulatio n o f commodifie d
musical practice and alcohol by the drink. Once the Vulcan closed, that
linkage was reestablished. Honky-tonks like the Cactus Club would hire
bands tha t playe d "hippi e music " onl y becaus e their fan s woul d bu y
more bee r tha n othe r patrons . Very few of the band s associated with
the hip community in Austin could make that claim. Under these condi-
tions, the artis t development claus e in Shiva's Headband's contrac t and
their implici t promis e to thei r community woul d b e quite difficul t t o
fulfill.32
These wer e th e factor s tha t le d to th e foundin g of th e Armadill o
World Headquarters . On e Jun e night , whil e Shiva' s was packing th e
Cactus Club, Eddi e Wilson stepped outside in an attempt to avoi d the
long lines for the bathroom . Starin g across a vacant lot, h e saw an old
armory tha t "ha d 'roc k hall ' writte n al l over it. " Initiall y envisioning
simply a larger version of the Vulcan Gas Co, Eddie Wilson arranged for
Armadillo Productions t o rent the empty 30,000-square-foot buildin g
from it s owner, M . K . Hage, for five cents a square foot. As the man-
ager of Shiva's Headband, Wilson thought that this move would solv e
most of the big problems the band faced. The hall would provide a focal
point for Austin's hip community, ensuring that Armadillo Productions
would hav e the first look a t an y local bands with recordin g potential.
It woul d als o provide a venue large enough t o hol d th e ever-growin g
audiences for Shiva's Headband, giving them the opportunity to make

Constructing a cultural icon: Jim Franklin's poster fo r the Grand Opening of the Arma -
dillo Worl d Headquarters . Courtes y Texa s Poster Art Collection, The Cente r fo r American History , The
University o f Texas at Austin.
more money from each performance. And it would free the band and its
production compan y fro m dependenc e o n th e traditiona l honky-tonk
economy. Consequently, Wilson invested the remainder of the band's ad-
vance from Capito l int o the first an d last month's rent , a sound system,
some lights , an d a few scraps of carpet. Here , Austin' s hip communit y
could celebrat e it s freedom from th e compromisin g interaction s with
the straigh t world . The hal l woul d pa y for itself through roa d shows ,
and th e productio n contrac t wit h th e recor d compan y would ensur e
that talente d musician s need n o longer leav e centra l Texas in order t o
make a living from their craft. 33
Wilson wasted no time. The first show at the Armadillo World Head-
quarters featured Tracy Nelson and Mother Earth, the band that Powell
St. John an d Toad Andrew s had started in California, for $1.50 admis-
sion on the night of July 7,1970. Technically illegal, the first show acted
more a s a taste o f what th e Armadill o would com e to offer . Th e club
had n o liquo r license , no ai r conditioning, a n inadequat e soun d sys-
tem, an d a n unorganize d staff . Bu t i t promise d a gathering spac e for
what really was a still-growing population of alienated young Texans, a
space devoted to the construction of their alternative identities through
the performance of rock'n'roll music. Wilson hoped to use that promise
D I S S O N A N TI D E N T I T I E S / 5 4
to attrac t a consistent audience . He hired Jim Franklin, the artis t mos t
closely associated wit h th e hi p community' s us e of armadillo imagery ,
to illustrat e th e club's advertisements , to pain t murals on its walls, and
to b e the master of ceremonies a t the club. Mike Tolleson wa s hired on
the basi s of his resume, which boasted wor k experience at the London
Arts Laborator y an d a familiarity with th e Beatles ' version o f Utopian
commercialism—Apple, Inc. Othe r staf f member s were paid in brow n
rice, sleeping space at Wilson's house , an d all the pot they could smoke .
The Armadillo was going to be the headquarters of a new kind of Texan
with a new way of living. 34
On Augus t 7 , th e dat e fro m whic h th e club' s anniversarie s wer e
marked, Shiva's Headband performe d for the official opening . Immedi-
ately, the Armadill o leadership was confronted wit h th e nee d t o ac t as
an economic agent . Accordin g to Mike Tolleson,
The plac e opened , w e pu t togethe r th e first show . . . had a great party an d
then everybody went home, and we were lef t wit h a big pil e of trash, bills t o
pay and ren t comin' up. An d w e said, "Wait a minute. What are we gonna d o
tomorrow night, what are we gonna do next Saturday night, who are we gonna
book, who's gonna sel l tickets, how we gonna let people know what's happen-
ing?" None of these systems were in plate because none of us had ever done this
before.
The clu b continued t o flounder economically for a year, with th e man-

agers promisin g t o pa y the musician s after th e next show mad e money ,
borrowing mone y from drug dealers when the next show did not mak e
money, an d barely keeping the doors open. Shiva' s Headband's record s
were no t sellin g i n th e nationa l market , s o n o ne w recordin g indus -
try incom e wa s entering Armadillo Productions . Occasiona l successes ,
like the packed houses the two nights that Freddie King recorded a live
album, woul d momentaril y rais e hope s agai n as some bac k bills wer e
paid off . But graduall y the Armadill o World Headquarter s was forced
to modif y its initial plan and become more concerne d wit h linkin g the
performance of rock'n'roll musi c with strategics for commercial succes s
and economic survival. 33
"Frankly, I don't believ e in fre e music, " Eddi e Wilson sai d in 1974 .
"The onl y free music is when I'm picking for myself on my porch. When
it gets any more complicated tha n that, suddenly it's not free music any-
more." In this pith y statement, Wilson acknowledge d the distance tha t
youthful musical performance in Austin had traveled over the precedin g
ten years. When member s of the folksinging club were no longer simply
"picking" for themselves and each other on their porches, in the studen t
union, an d even during the early days at ThreadgilFs—once they bega n

to turn "professional"—the conditions o f musical performance became
more complicated an d the necessary economic mediation bega n to have
a partially determining effec t o n the styles and meanings of music per-
formed in Austin.
Using $2.5,00 0 borrowe d fro m a volunteer employe e wit h a trus t
fund, th e Armadillo World Headquarter s remodeled in 1971 and 1972. ,
expanding it s capacity. It opene d a kitchen and a beer garde n an d ob -
tained a beer and win e license . B y expanding its economic bas e to in -
clude alcoho l an d foo d sales , the clu b experienced its first steady cash
flow. It als o developed a payroll of thirty-five peopl e who expecte d t o
be paid i n dollars an d cents rather than brown ric e and pot seeds . Bu t
even as this articulation of musical performance with diverse economic
practices increase d th e potentia l fo r profitable evenings, the manager s
of the Armadillo noticed tha t Shiva's, and the bands like them that em-
phasized th e musica l difference associate d with psychedclics , were no t
filling the cavernou s space. If the Armadillo World Headquarter s wer e
to continu e t o provid e a space for the musica l performance of a pecu-
liar Texan identity , commercia l considerations woul d requir e that thi s
identity become no longer quit e so different. 36
Along wit h th e plan s to diversif y an d expand the economi c bas e of
musical performance at the Armadillo, Eddie Wilson and Mike Tolleson
were experimenting with their booking policies, attempting to diversif y
and expand their audiences . In addition to local rock'n'roll performers ,
the club began to feature touring acts as diverse as Earl Scruggs and Ravi
Shankar. They foun d tha t ther e were audience s in Austin wh o woul d
support this variety, who were pleased by this opportunity to hea r and
see performers who ha d previously ignored central Texas. As this effor t
continued, the identification of the Armadillo World Headquarters with
the cente r of Austin's community of alienated youth bega n to weaken.
Although the club was too big for bands like Shiva's Headband t o fill by
themselves, when they were billed with a contrasting act like the Austin
Ballet Theater, th e two differen t audience s would b e enough to ensure
a ful l hous e an d a profitable evening. Thus, i n defiance o f a forty-year -
long tradition o f separating the musical pleasures of the different classes
in Texas, the Armadillo became "the only place in town where you drink
beer and listen to Beethoven." 37
Although som e tensio n wa s inevitable whe n thes e two antagonis -
tic groups woul d mee t o n th e danc e floor at the Armadillo, th e man-
agement bega n activel y looking fo r performer s who coul d appea l t o
both segment s o f thei r audience—th e alienate d estranged yout h an d
the dominan t mainstrea m of Texa n culture . According to Mik e Tolle-
D I S S O N A NT I D E N T I T I E S / 56
son, "W e knew tha t differen t act s drew differen t type s of peopl e an d
we experimented wit h blendin g differen t act s to dra w bigger crowds .
From this experience, we were sure that certain artists from the countr y
field would appea l to th e rock'n'roll kids. " From th e viewpoint I have
been constructing regardin g th e cultural functions of music-making in
Austin, w e ca n see that th e use s o f th e buildin g itsel f bega n t o edg e
closer to those of a traditional honky-tonk and away from a "home for
the freaks. " The Armadillo would n o longer insist on being an alterna-
tive communit y center . Instead , thi s overgrow n honky-ton k bega n t o
provide a consistently available commodificd carnival , driven economi -
cally b y liquo r sale s ye t functionin g simultaneousl y a s a modernized
marketplace o f divers e musica l offerings an d a forum fo r a sexualized
critique o f modernity. A s that transition occurred, th e managers of the
Armadillo bega n seeking a musician who could perform the traditiona l
Texan role of the center of moral authority for an audience incapable of
agreeing about where that center lay.38
While the y searche d fo r a performer who coul d dissolv e these tw o
factions int o on e cohesiv e audience , a local radi o statio n trie d t o ex -
pand it s market share by combining the sam e groups. Rust y Bel l was a
disc jockey at a top-forty station i n town who approached the dominan t
local country station , KOKE , with a n idea for a new experimental for-
mat. Bel l had worke d i n small radio markets all over the country , bu t
he ha d bee n struc k by the intensit y with whic h Austi n radi o listeners
identified themselve s as Texans. He developed a musical format that h e
hoped would simultaneousl y appeal to th e younger marke t favored by
pop an d rock station s and identify itself with singularl y Texa n musica l
styles. This format was called "progressive country."
Jan Reid grew up in Wichita Falls and wrote extensively about Austin
music during th e seventies . Rei d asserte d that, "Th e secre t to th e suc-
cess o f KOK E . . . was that Bel l propose d a very libera l definition of
country music . What mattere d wa s not th e identit y o r hai r length o r
philosophy of the singers, but the kind of instruments that accompanied
them. If anything remotely country could be discerned in a recording ,
it qualified. " Followin g thi s argument , th e succes s of th e forma t de -
pended o n th e specifi c sound s that ha d been traditionally identified as
the sound s o f countr y music—th e timbr e of fiddles and stee l guitars ,
a steady , uncomplicate d shuffl e o r two-ste p rhythm , and, a t the most ,
a particular style of closely harmonized vocals. Rather than directly ar-
ticulating a n explicit set of beliefs , feelings , o r ideas, the expressio n o f
Texan identity was accomplished by means of this set of musical signi-
ficrs. The lyrical content, the origin or reputation of the singers, and any
Desperadtis Waiting for a Train I 5 7

other contribution t o the meaning of each song wer e free t o vary from
traditional t o nontraditiona l concerns . KOK E coul d pla y the Rollin g
Stones singin g "Dea d Flowers, " follo w i t with Littl e Feat' s "Willin', "
and close the set with anyone from the Flying Burrito Brothers to Janis
Joplin t o Willi e Nelson . Becaus e of the cultura l meanings encoded i n
this loose set of musical sounds, i t all became progressive country, an d
it all signified Texas.39
The dis c jocke y most closel y associated wit h thi s forma t wa s Jo e
Gracey. In 1978, Gracey looked bac k proudly on his years at KOKE .
I think by 1972. people were growing wear y of maintaining the various cultural
and politica l stances they had maintaine d during the late sixties. You just can't
maintain suspicion and hate and cynicism without getting sort of ugly yourself.
Country music is relatively mild-mannered; it's pretty, you can dance nonaggres-
sive dances to it. It is music created to have fun with. There is nothing ominou s
about it . People were ready for something new , fun. There was the adde d fac t
that countr y music is essentially indigenous t o Texa s and people here were re-
discovering their . . . roots. . . . Just like the Chicanos, just like the black s [sic],
we realized that we were about to lose our roots, and everybody said, "Just wait
a damn minute . I' m fro m Texas, I love Texas, it's a great place to live. I love the
way we eat, I love the way we dress, I love our habit s and our customs, an d I
love the way I talk. I love everything about this state—and why wouldn't I ? It's
a great place!" 40
Ironically, th e ver y popular musical tradition tha t alienate d youn g

people had used to mark their distinction from the mainstream of Texan
culture was being transformed into a means of dissolving those antago -
nisms. Where young folksingers had learned old country songs like "Th e
Wild Sid e o f Life " an d "Walkin ' th e Floor " in order t o indicat e thei r
active distaste fo r mas s culture and the mainstrea m of Austin's colleg e
students, radi o stations and music hall promoters wer e beginning to use
the same tradition t o link the diverse musical tastes of the alienated an d
the mainstream into a heightened consciousness of a specific meaning of
being Texan. The strength of the conservative aspects to this articulation
can b e see n i n Gracey' s clearl y delineated "we"—no t th e "Chicanos, "
not th e "blacks, " bu t thos e Texans who ea t certain foods, wea r certain
clothes, an d tal k in a special way. Class lines could b e crossed i n Texas;
the boo m and bust economies o f cotton growing , cattl e ranching, and
oil drilling combined with the historical legacies of political populism to
ensure the permeability of these cultures. However, th e racial and ethnic
distinctions coul d no t b e s o easil y erased ; i n fact , th e effor t t o blen d
audiences fro m different economi c classe s forced the progressiv e coun -
try movement t o emphasize the traditional racial and gender character-
istics associated wit h the mythical identity of the Anglo-Texan cowboy .
The antimodernist nostalgia of honky-tonk country and western perfor-
mance became the focal point for a constellation of conservative cultural
signifiers, communicated throug h a set of specific musical sounds called
"progressive country. "
As the managers o f the Armadill o continue d thei r searc h for musi-
cians who coul d perfor m thi s rearticulation of traditional Texa n iden-
tity fo r a younger audience , they began hearing about a country singe r
who had recently left Nashville and who was rumored t o enjoy smokin g
marijuana. Willie Nelso n move d to Austin near the en d of 1971, living
"right down the street" from th e Armadillo on Riversid e Drive. Willie
Nelson's first performance at the Armadillo took plac e on Augus t iz ,
1972, and his band played the hall between twelve and fifteen times over
the nex t thre e years . Through his own powerfu l singin g styl e and th e
thoroughly professional musicianship of his band, the performances of
Willie Nelson becam e the cultural center of a reconstructed communit y
of Anglo-Texans.41
Jan Rei d live d throug h an d wrot e abou t thi s reallianc e of youn g
white Texans with the state's cultural traditions, the commercial recon-
struction o f traditional communit y tha t was so effectively performed by
Nelson, hi s band, an d his audience. Her e i s his 1974 description o f th e
Nelson performanc e style.
The guitar-and-song performance became the great American ritual well before
Willie Nelso n made hi s debut, bu t h e was a master of the art . . .. H e stoo d
considerably less than six feet tall , his torso was beginning to bell y out a little
with age, and he cocked his hip an d dipped his shoulder as he played his guitar
and seemed forever i n want of a comfortable stance . But he was always seeking
eye contact with the people in front o f him, nodding and grinning once it was
established. Women flushed with pleasure when the skin aroun d Nelson' s eyes
wrinkled in their behalf, but hi s look was just as direct and genuine when it fel l
on another male. He involved the audience with himself, his music, and they fel t
better for it. His songs might be sad, but he had the look of a happy man, a rare
animal indeed, in these times. . . . History was etched in the lines of his aging
face, and he was their link to their Texan past. 42
Nelson's show s a t th e Armadill o containe d an d resolve d throug h

musical performanc e al l the contradiction s tha t were conjure d u p b y
the concep t o f progressive countr y music . His ban d featured th e sing -
ing peda l stee l guita r and the thump-thum p rhyth m sectio n tha t sig -
nified countr y music . Yet his appearanc e and hi s outspoke n fondnes s
for nontraditiona l intoxicant s appeale d t o younge r fan s wh o ha d pre -
viously though t o f countr y musi c a s entertainment fo r rura l squares .
This constellatio n o f contradictor y cultura l signifier s wa s transforme d
into a synthetic resolution b y means of Nelson's abilit y to perform "sin-
cerity" for every group in his audience. Through his ability seemingly to
make personal contact with every individual who watched him perform,

Nelson coul d embod y th e traditionall y masculine center of mora l au -
thority respoke n for a new audience of country and western music fan s
in a reconstructed post-hippi e honky-tonk community. The new Anglo-
Texan cowbo y ha d lon g hai r an d smoke d marijuana , bu t h e was still
recognizably the same good old boy who was admired for his ability to
meld his own sincere desires with those of the group and then transform
those desires into profit.
But Willi e Nelso n wa s not th e onl y successfu l songwrite r t o mov e
to Austi n i n th e earl y seventies. Michae l Murphe y was a professional
songwriter wit h a recording contract fro m A&M. In the spring of 1972.,
he moved t o Austin and began looking fo r skilled musicians to join his
backup band. Murphey ha d been anothe r membe r of Stan Alexander' s
folksinging clu b a t Nort h Texas State. Afte r h e graduated , h e move d
from Dento n to Lo s Angeles, where he had a successful caree r writin g
songs for Screen Gems. But when he tired of producing hit s on deman d
for Do n Kirschncr' s publishin g company , h e decide d t o mov e bac k
home t o Texas to develop his own act. By this point, Austin was where
the young musicians were in Texas, so it was to Austin that he moved.43
The local musicians hired by Murphey had been playing the commer-
cial rock club s in Austin fo r several years. These were the professiona l
players wh o ha d worked wit h Rust y Wie r an d othe r loca l singer s i n
bands lik e the Wigs an d the Lavende r Hill Express , catering t o main -
stream musica l tastes i n the club s and a t private parties. In a study h e
conducted o n th e developmen t o f the sol o singer/songwrite r styl e in
Austin, Hug h Spark s traced th e musical characteristics of "progressiv e
country" music to this group of musicians. Sparks located the germina-
tion of the music that would dominate Austin throughout th e seventies
in the effort s mad e b y these musicians to resolv e the conflicts betwee n
the economic pressures to play a certain style of popular music and their
own desire s t o perfor m a music they found personall y interesting an d
challenging. Spark s describes thei r struggl e t o develo p a commercia l
musical practice that coul d signif y differenc e an d therefore be use d i n
the constructio n an d communicatio n o f personal and grou p identity .
"To cove r u p som e o f their uneasines s at being associate d with a style
resembling, i n th e mind s o f many , straigh t country , regardles s o f it s
actual roots in jazz, rock and folk, members of the Interchangeable Band
seemed most o f the time to have their tongues firmly implanted in their
collective cheeks," say s Sparks, who performe d with this group . While
the pedal steel guitar whined, these musicians would grin impishly, turn
the rhyth m aroun d int o a driving roc k beat , an d mim e th e rapi d in-
halation o f marijuan a smoke . They playfull y an d ironicall y combine d
D I S S O N A N T I D E N T I T I E S / 6 0
many of th e sam e cultura l signs associate d wit h th e performance s of
Willie Nelson's band , yet the core of their music—the rhythm section—
was far more rock oriented than Nelson's col d country beat. These rock
musicians had create d a performance style that containe d a certain de-
tachment fro m the music they played. Initially developed in the contex t
of performing othe r people' s hi t song s fo r fraternity partie s and main-
stream audiences in nightclubs, their ironic performance style was easily
transferred to the revision of country music developing in Austin. Even-
tually, thes e musician s becam e know n a s the Austi n Interchangeabl e
Band, s o calle d becaus e of thei r abilit y "to perfor m with an y artist i n
styles ranging from rock to jazz to progressive country to bluegrass with
no notice , no rehearsa l and often in a state of questionable sobriety." 44
But mor e tha n a musical style was codified by the behavior s and be -
liefs o f these musicians . An entire set of political an d personal feelings
and ideologies gre w out o f their placement in the contradictory condi -
tions of popular musi c performance i n Austin, a set that would domi -
nate the attitude s o f local musicians for over a decade to come. Accord-
ing t o Sparks , "There was a tendency fo r many Austin are a musicians
(sidemen and songwriters alike) not to take their work or themselves too
seriously and to avoi d working wit h those who did. Rather tha n bein g
solely concerned wit h artisti c or financial matters, their primar y focus
seemed t o b e on persona l pleasure and the pursui t o f happiness. " An
anticommercial ideology grew out of the need t o reconcil e th e frustra-
tions these musicians felt when forced t o base musical decisions on eco -
nomic factors , blending neatly with the anticommercial ethos inherite d
by local hippies from their origins i n the folksinging movement. 45
These were the musicians who backe d up Michael Murphey durin g
local performance s o f hi s ironic swipe at Austin's progressive country
scene, "( I Jus t Want t o b e a) Cosmic Cowboy. " Murphe y and his band
felt that the rearticulation of white Texan youth with the dominant cul-
tural traditions was not necessaril y a "progressive" development. They
experienced th e retur n t o countr y musi c as another i n a line of com -
mercially motivate d adjustment s to the taste s of thei r audience , and
Murphey fel t tha t the scen e in general and particularly the adoptio n o f
the cowbo y a s the model fo r masculine morality was dangerous. Often
Murphey woul d lectur e to hi s audiences about the negativ e aspect s of
gruff, aggressive , an d violen t masculin e behavior . And h e continually
insisted tha t h e wrote "Cosmi c Cowboy " a s a parodic jab a t Austin' s
unthinking tren d follower s who saw no contradiction in combining th e
cowboy traditio n with the pacifist hippie ethos.
Of course Murphey himself was a professional competitive musician,

struggling bot h t o benefi t an d distanc e himself from th e progressiv e
country movement . Hi s professionalis m grate d agains t th e anticom-
mercial ideolog y of Austin musicians . Murphcy's habit s of consultin g
a rhyming dictionary and taking notes on people's conversation s struc k
his back-u p band a s evidence o f too grea t a concern wit h professiona l
success. Insofa r a s the member s o f th e Austi n Interchangeabl e Ban d
were more focused on immediate personal pleasure than artistic or finan-
cial success, they began drifting away from Murphey's employ. 46
Many of these sam e musician s ended u p workin g wit h ye t anothe r
immigrant singe r and songwriter , Jerry Jeff Walker . Walker had bee n a
folksinger associate d wit h th e Greenwic h Village folk scen e in th e six-
ties, bu t b y th e tim e tha t h e moved t o Austi n i n 1971, his career was
at a standstill. H e wa s known simpl y as the autho r o f a very popula r
song about a tap-dancer and his dog, "Mr. Bojangles. " Self-destructive
behavior, rangin g throughou t th e typica l humiliations o f alcoholics ,
was part o f Walker' s public persona. Bu t that attitud e o f to-hell-with-
tomorrow-let's-havc-a-drink mad e Walke r a mor e congenia l bos s fo r
the pleasur e seekers i n the Austi n Interchangeabl e Band. These musi -
cians first worked with Walker on hi s "comeback" albu m for MCA an d
quickly solidified into a more consisten t an d coherent group , th e Los t
Gonzo Band.
The mos t fruitfu l collaboratio n betwee n Walke r an d th e Gonzo s
was th e secon d recor d the y mad e together , Viva Terlingua. A blen d
of irony , detachment, an d rough sincerit y characterizes this recording ,
along with a combination o f a respect for cultural and musical traditions
and a weary resignation abou t the legacies they imply. Walker's alcohol-
inspired loosenes s provide d th e perfec t recording contex t wherein th e
members o f the Lost Gonzo Ban d could rela x their heavil y disciplined
defenses agains t trying to o hard . The track s were recorde d liv e i n a n
empty honky-ton k i n a tiny hill-countr y tow n calle d Luckenback. Al-
though th e recordin g wa s for th e majo r labe l MCA , ever y effor t wa s
made to limit outside influences. This was to be a recording that reflected
the musicianship , desires , an d ideologie s o f the singer s an d player s of
Austin. N o othe r record i n the histor y of Austin music has so success-
fully represente d th e experience s and attitude s performed i n th e city' s
honky-tonks. Simultaneousl y slopp y ye t musicall y coherent , raucou s
and silly yet painfully sincere, combining precisely the surface references
to Texan musical and cultural traditions that signified progressive coun-
try with a sometimes humorous, sometimes somber recognition of their
absurdities, the performances on Viva Tcrlingua represented the change s
in musical practice that had occurred in Austin over the previous fifteen
D I S S O N A N T I D E N T I T I E S / 62 ,
years. As Jerry Jeff Walker's voice cracked and swayed in and out of tune,
the guitars , fiddles, drums, harmonicas , piano, an d background voice s
all projected togethe r a musically defined community tha t could neve r
be completely harmonious , yet that could continue to find a source of re-
newal through redefining its traditions. As Walker sang of the pleasures
of "Sangri a Wine" in on e son g an d th e perplexitie s of bein g "thirty -
four an d drinkin g bee r in a honky-tonk, kickin ' hippies' as s and raising
hell" in another , the ban d surge d and lurched throug h hastil y throw n
together arrangements that conveyed spontaneit y and impulsiveness in
a musical form that Austinites could easily decode .
Probably th e mos t effective o f all the songs hear d on thi s record re -
mains thei r versio n o f Gu y Clark' s "Desperado s Waiting fo r a Train. "
The performance begins with an erratically strummed acousti c guitar as
twin fiddles harmonize o n th e first line from th e ol d song "Red Rive r
Valley." Walker sings the verses with th e dee p half-voice of a hungove r
forty-year-old. "Yeah, I'd pla y the Red River Valley and sit in his kitchen
and cry. Run fingers through seventy years of living and wonder if every
well we drilled gone dry . We was friends, me and this old man, like des-
perados waiting fo r a train." In this one verse, the song lyrically sets th e
scene of a passing of knowledg e an d emotio n betwee n tw o men , on e
much older than the other, a s the younger is introduced int o the male as-
pects of honky-tonk culture. The two liv e near a west Texas oil field and
communicate with each other throug h th e signs, images, and sounds o f
commercial popula r culture . The representations of Texan masculinity
in Hollywood movies and country and western music become elements
in thi s sentimenta l song about a n evolving friendship. The ol d man , a
"driller of oil wells," teaches the singer to drive , introduces him t o lif e
at the local honky-tonk, an d gives him "money for the girls." While the
singer remain s young, thei r live s see m like "some ol d wester n movie. "
But the younger man slowly watches his "hero" turn into someone with
"brown tobacc o stain s all down hi s chin . . . dressed up lik e the m ol d
men." The story of the relationship between these men stands for the re-
lationship betwee n the generations of male Anglo-Texans rearticulated
through song. As the song's narrator watche s the old man grow older
and i s forced t o recogniz e ho w har d thi s lif e ha s bee n an d wit h ho w
little th e ol d ma n i s left, th e tw o o f them clos e thei r eyes and conjur e
an idealized memory of their past while they "play another verse of that
old song."47
Melodically, the son g follows traditional ballad style for its first four
lines, with the final notes o f each line dropping slightly . But a fifth line
leads each verse into the chorus, and Walker increases the tension of that
Desperados Waiting fur a, Train I 6 3

line b y holding the higher not e just a moment longer , suspendin g it s
resolution wit h th e toni c cente r of the song . These lines are the mos t
emotionally resonan t o f each verse. "We was friends, me an d thi s ol d
man." Or , "An d I wa s just a kid, they al l called me sidekick." And, o f
course, "Our live s was like some old western movie." Each of these lines
leads into the chorus of Walker singing, "Like desperados waiting for a
train," over steady and sober piano chords, with strummed acoustic gui-
tars an d high-pitche d fiddles softl y whinin g in the background. Just as
the song ends lyrically with an affirmation o f the important communica -
tive power o f Texan musical traditions acros s generations, th e musical
accompaniment o f the song indicate s the surviva l of traditional mean -
ings eve n though specific elements might change . The aural textures of
the song convey the historic development of progressive country musi c
as the y shif t fro m th e traditiona l hillbilly arrangement o f fiddle s an d
acoustic guitar , throug h th e honky-ton k assertion o f the western bea t
as bass, drums , an d piano enter , then finally ending th e son g by turn-
ing that beat around into a rock shuffle while Walker repeats the choru s
and a n electric guitar rock lead dominates the fadeout . Listened t o a s a
whole, the version of "Desperados" recorded by Walker and the Gonzos
concisely, sensitively, and sympathetically performs the narrative of the
alienation o f Anglo-Texa n yout h fro m it s traditions, followe d b y th e
consequent rearticulatio n of thes e generation s throug h th e powe r o f
popular cultur e and the particularl y evocative communicative capacity
of popular musical practice.
According t o Archie Green, "cowboys hav e always read dime novels
about thei r exploits , tol d idealize d tale s t o eac h other , an d sketche d
themselves on scratch pads in lines larger than life." As the cosmic cow-
boys of the progressive country movement in Texas, musicians in Austin
were force d to com e to term s with thei r already constructed position s
within th e ongoin g development o f local popular musi c performance.
Like desperados waitin g for a train, progressive country musicians were
certain tha t the y wer e ont o a sur e thing , a musical style that woul d
effortlessly becom e popular . The y als o believe d tha t thi s popularit y
would ensur e that eac h of them, simpl y by pursuing his own pleasures
and followin g hi s ow n desire s fo r sincer e expression , woul d fin d lif e
growing increasingl y comfortable. No compromise s wit h commercia l
motivations woul d an y longe r b e needed . Th e performanc e of a re-
vived an d rewed-u p honky-tonk critiqu e of modernity, underline d by
an ironic detachmen t from it s necessary commercial base, would guar -
antee success for Austin's musicians. 48
But b y th e sprin g of 1974 , representative s o f th e nationa l record -
ing industr y wer e castin g doubt s o n thi s visio n of a musically created
anticommercial Utopia . Jerr y Wexler wa s a vic e presiden t fo r Atlan -
tic Records ; h e wa s responsibl e fo r Willi e Nelson' s signin g wit h th e
label and produced Nelson's first crossover rock success, Shotgun Willie.
Rolling Stone quoted Wexler's puzzlement regarding the musi c scene in
Austin. "I keep hearing about this great Austin scene but whenever I ask
who I should sign , nobody seem s to know. Is it a mirage down there? "
The recording industry could not understand a music scene that was not
organized around the production of nationally oriented , commerciall y
viable recordings . Therefore, th e write r of the articl e concluded, "th e
jury's still out on Austin music. It has not made any impact on the charts
and those charts will determine Austin's nationa l impact."49
In th e sam e article , Jim Franklin tried t o explai n th e loca l attitude.
"This has always been an anticommercial scene. That's why most o f the
people wh o move d her e di d so . Most o f the musician s are content t o
play the same clubs and just get by and smoke their dope an d drink their
beer. How do you take an atmosphere that's suspicious of capitalism and
heavily anticommercial and market it?" Popular music-making in Austin
grew out o f a traditional practic e of antimodernist critique. University
students bega n to sing old traditional and commercial songs a s a means
of distinguishing themselve s from their mass culture consuming fellows.
By s o doing, they linke d themselve s to a practice that carried , already
inscribed into its meanings, a particular set of racial and gender codings
along with a contradictory relationshi p to the changing economic bas e
of musical performance. Honky-tonk cultur e critiqued the commodifi -
cation o f modern lif e eve n while the honky-tonk itsel f instantiated th e
commodification o f its own practice. During the sixties and early seven-
ties, as the state of Texas grew inexorably more urban and progressively
more integrate d int o th e nationa l economy , th e romanti c nostalgia o f
antimodernism tha t la y at the hear t o f Austin music transformed into
the romanti c nostalgi a o f anticommercialism , accompanie d b y a n in -
sistence o n th e valu e of Anglo-Texan identity . While music-making i n
Austin remained linked to the honky-tonk economy and a critique based
on romanti c nostalgia , Austin music would continu e t o b e difficult fo r
the national recording industr y to exploit commercially. 50

C H A P T E R F O U R
The Collapse of the Progressive

Country Alliance
Although th e recordin g industr y ha d difficult y packagin g progressiv e

country fo r a nationa l audienc e in 1974 , loca l performers , radi o dis c
jockeys, and nightclub owner s were offering almos t no other music for
popular consumption. For the next two years, music-making i n Austin
became wholly identifie d with this contradictory genre. The yea r 1975
has been calle d the "peak year of the progressive country period," with
70 percent o f the entertainmen t act s during on e weekend performin g
"some kind of country or country-based genre."' In February 1976, the
Austin Sun, an independent weekly, published its first reader's poll indi-
cating th e mos t popular musician s performing in Austin during 1975 .
Not surprisingly , reader s voted Willi e Nelso n th e bes t mal e vocalist,
and Marci a Ball the bes t femal e vocalist . They declare d Aslee p a t th e
Wheel the bes t country band , while Balcones Fault took the roc k divi-
sion. According t o the Sun's editors, they received more than 125 ballots
a day, considerably more than they had anticipated. Along with Nelson ,
progressive countr y singer s Jerr y Jef f Walker , Steve Fromholz , Willis
Alan Ramsey , an d Townc s Va n Zand t appeare d in th e mal e to p ten.
Marcia Ball's band, the Misery Brothers, were a country act, and she was
joined in the female top te n by country singers Lisa Hattersly of Greczy
Wheels, th e Reynolds Sisters , Chris O'Connel (of Asleep at the Wheel),
and Cassel Webb (of B. W. Stevenson's band).
Nevertheless, the poll was not completel y dominated by progressive
country acts . The editor s wrot e that , "Man y ballots reveale d an appre-
ciation of a variety of music, with selections of more obscure artists and
write-in votes coupled wit h mainstrea m choices. The first five finishers
for Ban d of the Year, could be categorized a s playing hard rock, eclectic
rock, country, blues an d jazz, i n that order." 2 The tight gri p that pro-
gressive country ha d held on the musical tastes of Austin clubgoers was
beginning t o loosen .
Paul Ray , leader of the blue s band the Cobras, note d th e variety of
styles in a letter t o th e edito r i n the followin g issu e of the Sun. H e re -
ferred to the poll as "a veritable rented warehouse of useful information
on the musical proclivities of Austin clubhoppers." He went on to say,
The mos t interesting aspec t o f the result s is the diversit y of musical taste bes t
exemplified i n the "Ban d o f the Year" vote. . . . [T]he to p si x vote-getters pur -
vey a wide rang e o f musical idioms . . . . The thre e yea r deluge o f progressiv e
country musi c that inundate d Austi n ha s somewhat subsided , o r at least, it has
been diluted . There i s evidence tha t th e "Armadill o Sea l of Approval" i s not a
prerequisite t o local success. 3
The dissatisfactio n and sens e of frustratio n displayed i n thi s letter

had bee n buildin g u p amon g group s o f Austin's musician s and club-
goers for some time. One year previously, Jeff Nightbyr d had published
a thoughtful critiqu e o f the progressiv e country movement. Acknowl -
edging that i t successfully articulated an identity for its fans, Nightbyr d
pointed ou t som e of the more unfortunate elements in this reconstruc-
tion o f traditional Texa n manhood. H e argued that, "Cosmic Cowboy s
didn't becom e a phenomena becaus e of Michae l Murphey, Armadillo
World Headquarter s o r businessme n wantin g t o mak e Austi n Nash -
ville II, it worked because people wanted to feel they had some identity.
And what better identity in Texas than cowboys," he continued, "even if
it's a bit nostalgic an d everyone really rode Schwinn bicycles when they
were kids." According to Nightbyrd, th e success of this identity was at
least partially due to the fact that ,
Any young dude can come in from Amarillo, grow moderatel y lon g hair unde r
his cowboy hat, smoke a little grass, maybe wear a little simulated Indian jewelry,
and b e a cosmo cowboy . I t doesn' t tak e much . Particularl y it doesn't requir e
any changes i n attitude lik e being a hippie in the sixtie s did. You don't have t o
know anythin g about the war , give a damn abou t race , tussle with psychedel -
ics, or worry about mal e chauvinism. No interna l restructuring i s required. . . .
You don't have to b e a peaceful guy , or a hip guy, gentle o r persuasive. Cosmo
cowboydom allow s yo u t o b e just what yo u alway s were . . . it's a relief. . . .
Where hip consciousness create d a n unrealistic Utopian vision of brotherhood,
the cosmo cowboys fall bac k on the old mythology. 4
It was easy for young me n from wes t Texas to purchase and display the
signs of this identity because these signs were meaningful within familiar
contexts. This old mythology—the reconstruction of the idealized west-
ern male , impulsiv e an d violent , independen t an d autonomous—wa s
not straine d by historical changes in the specifi c tastes of masculine de-
sires. Wearing long hair and jewelry and smoking marijuana could easily
Collapse o f the Progressive Country Alliance I 6 7

fit into the catalogue o f available pleasures. Nightbyrd's readin g of this
commercialized identit y focuse d not o n th e fac t tha t i t was purchased
and, therefore , inauthcntic , bu t o n a political resonanc e generate d b y
the historical context within which this identity had developed. Fo r this
ex-SDS organizer, th e easy identity projected by the progressiv e coun -
try musi c scen e di d no t transfor m its fans o r it s musicians; i t did no t
construct a n imagine d solutio n t o th e contradiction s o f commercial -
ized modernity . Instead , Nightbyrd asserted , th e successfu l marketin g
of the "cosmo cowboy" indicated the wearing of an old and comfortable
mythology, an acceptance of the traditional discourses of Anglo-Texa n
identity.5
That winter , Nichola s Spitze r publishe d a discussio n o f a Waylon
Jennings record , "Bo b Will s i s Still the King, " in whic h h e describe d
a publi c performanc e o f th e cosmi c cowbo y identity . Accordin g t o
Spitzer, th e Opr y Hous e audienc e fo r thi s liv e recording "hoot s an d
hollers o n cue in a manner t h a t . .. I would describ e as self-conscious.
That is, they are themselves performing in the fashion presumed t o b e
truly Texan. " For Spitzer , thi s group performanc e wa s an ironic an d
playful participatio n i n a commercially promulgated musica l tradition.
He argued tha t th e sign s of traditional Anglo-Texan identity displaye d
in the performance of "Bob Wills is Still the King" were "primarily sur-
face cultura l traits " use d t o construc t "fantasie s of a simple self-relian t
life i n the fac e o f a modern, complex , often unrewardin g society. " Fo r
Spitzer, thes e fantasie s remaine d quit e distinc t fro m th e everyda y lif e
of thi s audience . H e insiste d tha t ther e wa s no relatio n betwee n th e
conservative image s an d rhetori c traditionally associated with countr y
and western musi c and the pleasur e experienced and given voice by its
fans. Instead , the fantasie s enable d by this performance were the resul t
of a "matrix o f acculturation an d self-conscious romanticis m that hav e
long bee n the paradoxical mainstay of country and western music." Fo r
Spitzer the self-conscious celebration of Anglo-Texan identity was a sur-
face characteristic that enabled the fan "to sho w his new affinities with -
out sacrificin g hi s deeper values." He base d this conclusion o n the fac t
that youn g fan s h e observed at this an d other Waylon Jennings show s
continued t o liv e togethe r outsid e o f marriage , continue d t o smok e
marijuana, an d refuse d t o atten d churc h services. In Spitzer' s analysis ,
these were the important cultura l characteristics; they continued t o sig-
nify a meaningful split between the progressive aspects of youth culture
and th e "surfac e traits" o f the country an d western "fashion. " Spitze r
insisted o n th e authenticit y of these "lifestyle " signifiers i n contrast t o
the inauthenticity of the signifiers associated with the music. Therefore,
participation i n this commercialized musica l practice carried no politi -
cal or socia l implications. I n contrast t o Nightbyrd' s concerns , Spitzer
found the appeal to traditional Anglo-Texan identity to be a benign and
rather insignificant result of popular musical practice.6
The argument s o f bot h Spitze r an d Nightbyr d tur n o n a contrast
between surfac e and depth in their readings of the cosmic cowboy iden -
tity. Both acknowledge tha t they are attending to surface characteristics,
to the signifier s of identit y availabl e for purchas e in the marketplace.
For Spitzer, this commercialization limit s the cultural importance of the
practice. Spitzer' s analysi s of "romantic regionalism " distinguishe d th e
self-consciously Texa n aspect s o f th e cosmi c cowboy , perpetrate d b y
the forces of fashion, from what he saw as deeper social transformations
indicated b y cohabitation, dru g use , an d a n absenc e of churc h affilia -
tion. The surfac e cultural traits put on during the performance of "Bo b
Wills is Still the King" could be taken off as soon as the audience left th e
Opry House. Nightbyrd, o n the other hand , was concerned about what
happened whil e the costume was being worn. He did not assume that a
deeper, more authentic identity lay beneath the hat, the boots, and the
moustache. Instead , he worried about the comfort and ease with which
they wer e worn by "the semi-hi p guy from Lubboc k or Big Springs."7
These two position s prefigure d a debate on th e effect s o f commer -
cial culture an d postmodernism tha t would soo n come to prominenc e
in academi c analyse s of popula r culture. Spitzer's insistence tha t Way-
Ion Jennings's audienc e was maintaining a playful, ironic , and distance d
participation i n one of many optional cultura l games points toward th e
vision of postmodernism espoused by Francois Lyotard an d Jean Bau-
drillard. This interpretation state s that with the collapse of overarching
metanarratives of knowledge and legitimation, al l cultural practices arc
self-contained an d self-legitimating , with n o necessar y connectio n t o
any other discret e cultura l or politica l practice. Nightbyrd, however ,
maintains the relevanc e of history and cultural connections in his analy-
sis of the cosmi c cowbo y identity . In s o doing, he outlines th e version
of postmodernism associated with Fredric Jameson and George Lipsitz ,
which recognizes that commercial culture is an important site for politi-
cal struggle. I t i s interesting that, althoug h neithe r Spitzer nor Night -
byrd wa s explicitly discussing postmodernism, thei r concerns with th e
effects of commercialized cultural practice and the construction of iden-
tity le d the m int o precisel y th e tw o position s tha t woul d dominat e
academic discussions of postmodernism in the eighties. 8
This concer n wit h th e relationship s betwee n musica l practic e an d
identity permeated commentar y on Austi n musi c in the middl e sevcn-

ties. For some Austinites in 1976, the entire phenomenon o f progressive
country music itself—the music and its associated images—was believed
to b e "concocted by the media." 9 Bob Brown, guitarist and singer for
the Austi n rhyth m an d blue s ban d Conqueroo , dismisse d th e entir e
movement. "Ye e haw! Country musi c is whooping an d hollerin g an d
pouring beer on your head." I0 Some fans of progressive country insisted
that the apparent inauthenticity of the musical culture was not related to
a failure of the origina l synthesis, but was a result of the distortion that
follows from the packaging and promotion efforts tha t constitute mass-
marketing strategies. They felt that the pure spirit of progressive country
had bee n corrupte d b y commercial considerations . Accordin g t o Ja n
Reid, the hones t pastora l vision of progressive country music had bee n
transformed int o a virulent record compan y sale s gimmick . Fo r Reid ,
"Progressive country wa s a songwriter's poetr y of homecoming , cele -
bration o f nature, intelligent sou l searching." Michael Murphey, Stev e
Fromholz, Willie, Jerry Jeff, an d the rest had created lyrical and musical
paeans to a simpler life. "Sown deep in Texas tradition, sentimentally at-
tached to the rural lifestyle, country and western was the handiest means
of expressing tha t pastora l fantasy." 11 Bu t 1976 had bee n th e year that
RCA-Nashvillc marketed a collection of songs by Willie Nelson, Waylon
Jennings, Tompal Glaser, and Jess i Colter called Wanted! Th e Outlaws.
The unexpecte d commercia l success of thi s record (i t sol d ove r a mil-
lion copies ) stimulate d th e recor d industry to produc e mor e "outlaw "
product.
For Rei d an d other Austin critics, such popular success in itself was
not harmful . I n fact , man y Austin musician s and writer s anticipate d
that national popularity for their music would mar k the final success of
their romantic antimodcrn ideology. What these commentators objected
to wa s the cultura l effect s o f the commerciall y disseminated "outlaw "
image played out i n the attitude s and behaviors of fans i n attendance at
Willie Nelson picnics , Waylon Jennings concerts, and David Allen Coe
performances. At a Willie Nelson concert in the Austi n area, only two
years after the "rise of redneck rock," Reid decided that the entire mean-
ing of progressive country music had changed. He found the musicians
to be the same, the songs to be the same, many of the individuals in the
crowd t o b e the same , yet the feeling h e received from th e experience
was wholly different. A nasty macho attitude—drunk, sloppy, mean, and
proud—dominated the behavior s of the audienc e and disgusted critics
like Reid. But these critics insisted that the negative characteristics had
not followed from the progressive country reliance upon the traditional
cowboy identity ; instead , the y were the resul t of media manipulation.
"How di d th e good guys of country musi c come t o wear black hats?"
Reid asked . "Outlaw country music is not just some misguided notio n
of the crowd . It' s a sales promotion hawked by the recordin g industr y
with Madison Avenue zeal." u
Reid an d other loca l critics who had championed progressiv e coun-
try distinguishe d betwee n th e "authentic " loca l performance s of th e
music and the "artificial" marketing tool of the outlaw image. They in-
sisted on a distinction between "the musi c itself"—for Reid , the hones t
pastoral poetr y tha t envisage d a hassle-free life—an d th e image s asso -
ciated with th e music through th e marketing efforts o f outsiders. These
cultural signifier s coul d no t b e phenomena o f the same order, an d th e
pleasures the y produce d fo r thei r audience s could no t b e equivalent .
One cultural construction indicated th e positive elements in the musica l
performance of Texan identity; the other betraye d this identity throug h
packaging that emphasized its negative components. "So we have an art
form tha t extol s violen t behavior . Scrapes with the law are prestigiou s
affairs. Th e sullen resentments of poor Souther n whites are represented
as positive values." B Produced i n office suite s far from th e performances
of community tha t unifie d th e "real " progressive country audience, the
outlaw imag e recreated th e same caricature of the country music audi-
ence that urban record executives had always promoted. The image used
by outsiders t o market the music had counteracted the positive cultural
contribution of the music itself.14 It was particularly disturbing to Rei d
to se c this inauthenticity played out i n the attitude s o f some audienc e
members and reflected back to the stage.
On th e streets , an d in the club s an d rehearsa l room s o f Austin, th e
outlaw marketing strategy only confirmed an d exacerbated already exist-
ing tension s amon g differin g group s o f musicians . There stil l existe d
musicians i n Austin who did not play country musi c and who resented
the Armadillo's dominanc e of the loca l scene. The national fascination
with th e cosmi c cowbo y phenomenon , an d th e music' s amazin g suc-
cess a t forging an "affective alliance " among conservatives and Austin' s
hip community, lef t many of these Austin musicians feeling isolated an d
alienated from their immediate audience. 15
Alex Napier was a bassist who playe d with the (wit h few exceptions ,
white) blue s and southern roc k musicians in town. H e ha d performed
with Angel a Strehl i an d W . C. Clark in Souther n Feelin g and woul d
soon joi n Pau l Ra y in th e Cobras . Thi s grou p o f musicians had bee n
completely overshadowe d b y th e glarin g medi a spotligh t shinin g o n
progressive country. In response, the y moved to the blues scene on the
east side of town. I n the clubs on East nth an d izth Streets, they found
Collapse of the Progressive Country Alliance I ji

an audienc e that ha d appreciate d live blues performances for decades.
During th e lat e fiftie s an d earl y sixties, Albert Collins , Freddi e King ,
and B . B. Kin g performed almost monthl y at places like the I.L . Clu b
and Charlie's Playhouse. Johnny Holmes hired blues musicians from th e
surrounding are a for his club, th e Victory Grill. There L. P . Pearson ,
T. D. Bell , and Erbie Bowser formed the core of a house band that set
the standar d for blues performance i n East Austin.16 And in the sixties ,
Ira Littlefield , th e owner o f the I.L . Clu b ha d booke d Conqueroo , a
west side rhythm and blues band featuring both black and white musi-
cians, s o a (somewha t tenuous ) preceden t fo r racia l mixin g ha d bee n
set.17 When th e migration o f white blues performers to East Austin oc-
curred in the early seventies, they found an already existing community
of African-American musicians, fans, and clubowners. In these clubs, an
exchange of musical ideas took place, creating the foundation on which
was constructed th e Antonc's blues scene.18
Alex Napier sold the the Soap Creek Saloon, an old honky-tonk west
of town on Be e Caves Road, t o Georg e an d Carlyn e Majcwski i n late
1972.." The Soa p Cree k Saloo n wa s intended t o challeng e th e Arma -
dillo's dominance o f the musi c scene in Austin and to provid e greater
opportunities fo r Austin's local musicians. According to Carlyne Majer
(Majewski),
The reason I opened up Soap Creek Saloon . .. was because I really felt like there
was a disservice to the local music community in terms of the lack of ability for
them to play . Prior to th e Armadillo, there was a rich heritage of liv e music. I
would tel l you that the Armadillo World Headquarters was a national touring
act club . An d tha t althoug h sometime s i t used local band openers , i t was fo r
national touring acts. It was not that they did not want to be a part of this music,
the loca l music scene, or that they weren't. I t was that their facilit y was so large
that i t demanded nationa l touring acts. There were some places in East Austin,
but there were no significant clubs for regional and local talent, to be billed and
not t o b e used a s an opener but t o hav e a primary focus i n that typ e of music
as opposed to the type of music that was national touring with record company
backup.20
"Type of music" has two meanings here. It mean s the generic distinc -
tion betwee n progressive countr y and other musical styles, and it als o
refers t o th e regiona l identificatio n of local musicians. The Soa p Cree k
was not against country music. Alvin Crow and the Pleasant Valley Boys
played ther e regularly . Durin g th e year s when Marcia Ball was a pro -
gressive country singer , she was performing at the Soa p Creek. Greezy
Wheels, th e Los t Gonz o Band , an d eve n Jerry Jef f Walke r an d Willi e
Nelson haile d fro m th e Soa p Cree k stages . Bu t al l of thes e musicians
were considere d t o b e loca l acts, and it wa s this orientatio n tha t wa s
the more significant. The meaning of music-making in Austin had to be
The re-placemen t o f loca l tradition : on e o f Kerr y (Awn ) Fitzgerald's calendar s fo r th e
Soap Creek. Courtes y Texas Poster Art Collection, The Center for American History, The University of Texas at
Austin.
protected. Local control, local performers, and local audiences were re-
quired to produce the context within which this meaning would remain
stable. Under thes e conditions, th e performances of local Austin musi -
cians, regardless of whether they played country or blues, continued t o
project a romanti c antimodernism , a critiqu e o f work , an d th e Soa p
Creek became the most important sit e for this honky-tonk critique .
The Soa p Cree k attracte d a grou p o f regula r fan s tha t Maje r esti -
mated a t "maybe 5,000 strong. You know, that came back once or twice
a wee k yea r i n an d yea r out . . . . Everybody kne w each othe r an d i t
was the counter culture." 21 This "counter culture," the aging core of the
sixties hi p community , forme d th e materia l base of fans , a core audi -
ence whose disposabl e incom e supporte d th e musical performance of
this antimodern identity. No longer universit y students, these were the
same "socia l hangers-on " tha t forme d th e initia l progressive countr y
audience, stil l concerned wit h loca l music, local identity, displayin g a
romantic anticommercia l nostalgia and yearning for a life "relatively free
of hassle." 22
Michael Ventura , a writer fo r th e Austin Sun, spen t man y night s
at th e Soa p Creek . I n a 1977 articl e abou t Marci a Ball , h e describe d
the attitudes o f the postuniversity crowd and the atmosphere in Austin
honky-tonks.
Especially her e i n Austin , a honky-tonk city, where sometime s ou r collectiv e
desperation i s like a knife-edge o n th e night . Where we drink, dance , take th e
drugs, laugh , cry , want, fuck , think , mock , gossi p . . . [sic] * where th e dar k
adolescent driv e to consume one's ow n innocence has become a way of life an d
lasted into what's becoming the middle-age of some of us. To cruise past 30 un-
able to ri d ourselves of adolescent drives and dreams is our peculia r fate. What's
our socia l lif e bu t night-by-nigh t last-ditc h attempts to dows e ou r loneliness ,
and consum e what's lef t o f our innocence ? It perhaps speaks well of us that we
can't. Loo k in our eyes during the happy flashes when the dancing's good , or
when we're drunkenly sincere, or the singer is just right, an d you see innocence
untouched, yo u loo k int o th e eye s o f children . What a n atmospher e fo r ou r
singers to support their songs! 23
A relative newcomer to these honky-tonks was a young Louis Black.

And the n so I came here in '74 and we were here for about four or five months.
The first night w e were here, I remember this, we went, we got a n Austin Sun,
and Doug Sahm was playing in the old Soap Creek out in the hills. Which at that
point, you know , no w goin g dow n t o Be e Caves you're stil l in Austin, bu t a t
that point, i t was like driving out of town. And, you know, you think you're los t
and you driv e down thi s dirt road an d then al l of a sudden there's this honky-
tonk an d yo u wal k insid e an d there' s Dou g Sahm , who ca n be , o n a regular
basis, God, an d was that night. And I knew I was in the right place. 24
"Where an ellipsis occurs in the quoted source, I have indicated it in this manner.
Just a s Willie Nelso n coul d embod y an d project the meaning o f th e
Armadillo, Dou g Sah m became th e "spiritua l godfather " o f the Soa p
Creek regulars , epitomizin g th e combinatio n o f counterculture roots ,
musical diversity , an d honky-ton k orientatio n tha t th e Majewski s in -
tended t o offer. 25 Sah m ha d grow n u p i n Sa n Antonio, professionall y
performing a n astoundin g variet y o f musica l style s fro m th e ag e o f
twelve. I n 196 5 a local promoter, Hue y Mcaux , rename d Sahm's ban d
the Sir Douglas Quintet and marketed their song "She's About a Mover"
to th e nation , ridin g th e long coattail s of the Beatles. For the next te n
years, Sah m roame d betwee n centra l Texas and Sa n Francisco, search-
ing fo r a "hassle-free life, " workin g wit h basicall y the sam e band, an d
gradually returnin g t o th e eclecti c blend of country, conjunto , swing ,
blues, and rhythm and blues that he had grown up performing. By 1975,
Sahm's musi c an d hi s persona l styl e ha d becom e identifie d with th e
local meaning o f music-making in Austin. And the Soa p Creek Saloo n
had bee n constructe d a s a specific performanc e site out o f a threefold
struggle wit h th e loca l dominance of progressive country music , wit h
the Armadillo as the headquarters for that dominance, and with the con-
straints of what was by now a nationally and commercially disseminated
identity tha t ha d bee n strippe d o f it s local anticommcrcial resonance .
By the winter of 1975—1976, Austin's blues scene was offering a con-
trasting se t of musical pleasures. Paul Ray had gon e t o th e wes t coas t
in 1974, in order t o scout ou t recordin g opportunities . H e found that,
"Progressive country was all the rag e in Austin and L.A.; since rhyth m
and blue s was not, Denn y [Freeman] , Alex, and I were back in Austin,
broke and in need of work."26 The Cobras formed that summer, playing
the L a Cucaracha Nightclub (i n the buildin g tha t use d to b e Charlie' s
Playhouse) o n a weekly basis. Throughout 1975, the white blue s scene
consolidated, a s musicians recombine d int o earl y form s o f band s tha t
survived int o th e eighties , an d two ne w clubs opened acros s the bor -
der on the west side, providing even more opportunities for the blue s
crowd t o play . The One Knite was located on Re d River, an d Antone's
opened a t it s first location o n Eas t 6th Street—bot h jus t wes t o f th e
freeway. Thes e tw o club s and the Soa p Creek were the mai n west-sid e
performance sites for not onl y the Cobras, bu t als o the recently formed
Fabulous Thunderbirds and the Nightcrawlers (with Stevic Vaughan on
lead guitar and Keith Ferguson on bass).
Jimmie Vaughan ha d moved to Austin in 1969. He had been in rock
bands i n Dalla s wit h bot h Pau l Ra y and hi s younger brother , Stcvie .
But h e moved t o Austi n because , " I couldn' t play blue s in Dallas. . . .
It jus t wasn't workin g i n Dallas , an d I kne w som e musician s her e o n

the East Side , at the old I.L. Club. S o I thought I' d mov e here and try
to star t playin g with them . I wante d t o play , pla y what I liked. " And
besides, "I t wa s just abou t th e onl y tow n i n Texas wher e yo u coul d
have lon g hai r withou t gettin g th e shi t bea t ou t o f you." Alon g wit h
harpist and singer Kim Wilson, Vaughan formed the Fabulous Thunder -
birds i n th e fal l o f 1974 . Soo n the y were garnerin g regula r booking s
at the On e Knite , th e Soa p Creek, and Antone's. Stevie Vaughan's last
show with th e Nightcrawler s was New Year's Eve, 1974, and within six
months h e was gracing Austi n stage s a s the featured guitarist i n Pau l
Ray and the Cobras. The story of the central Texas white blues scene—
the Cobras , th e Fabulou s Thundcrbirds, Stevi e Ray Vaughan, and the
rest—requires more room than I can give it, but it is important t o not e
that thi s momen t o f th e blue s scen e consolidation (th e secon d hal f of
1975) corresponded with the first street and club-level cracks in the pro-
gressive country, cosmi c cowboy local hegemony and it was marked by
the movemen t o f th e whit e blue s musicians across th e highway , back
into downtown Austin.27
Despite wha t was going o n i n Texas, the national appeal of Austin's
version of country music, whatever its label, was at its height. In the fal l
of 1975 , Willie Nelso n ha d release d his best-sellin g album s o far wit h
Red Headed Stranger. Asleep at the Wheel's an d Jerry Jeff Walker's most
recent record s joine d Willie's i n the to p twent y on Billboard's countr y
charts, and within months th e compilation album Wanted! Th e Outlaws
would become countr y music' s first documented platinu m long player.
Curiously, i n th e mids t o f thi s nationa l succes s fo r th e musica l genre
most closel y associated with it, the Armadillo World Headquarters was
experiencing its deepest financial crisis. 28
By the summe r of 1976, the Armadillo was $140,000 in debt. I t had
never bee n manage d well . Th e principal s had leape d int o th e night -
club business propelle d b y the availabilit y of a small amount o f record-
company-provided capita l an d a vagu e urg e t o promot e Austi n a s a
music capital. They ha d los t mone y consistently sinc e their firs t show .
Legitimate difficultie s tha t derive d fro m th e siz e o f th e hal l wer e ex-
acerbated b y poor accountin g practice s and a n inability to matc h th e
grandeur o f their self-aggrandizin g vision with the limitations o f thei r
situation. B y 1976, th e Armadill o was no longe r th e headquarter s fo r
the musical celebration of Texan identity. Competition ha d dramatically
increased: ther e were more club s in which t o hea r loca l music. Willie
Nelson, th e onl y local performer who could b e counted o n to sel l ou t
the hall , had shifte d hi s local performances to th e Texa s Opr y House .
The Soa p Creek , th e Ritz , an d a host o f smaller clubs presented loca l
musicians, could operate with less overhead, and so risked less each time
they opened. These smaller venues could afford t o experiment with less
mainstream musicians, thereby offering performanc e opportunities t o a
greater percentag e o f those musicians flooding the cit y in the wake of
the cosmi c cowbo y phenomenon . I n a final attempt to rais e sufficien t
capital t o retir e thei r debt s an d se t Armadillo Production s o n a new
track, with a firm financial footing, Wilson, Hcdderman , and Tolleson
came up with the idea of the Armadillo Special Interest Group. 29
The chie f function of the ASIG was to exploit the sixt h birthday of
the club , transforming it into an opportunity fo r massive fundraising.
The strategy was in line with the grandiose Armadillo ideology. Wilson
had already been discussing plans for a $50,000,000 a year software and
entertainment industr y that he would situate on the six acres where th e
Armadillo sat. It was conceived of as a "miniature Universal City." These
plans were intended t o spar k the interes t of loca l politicians, drawin g
their attention t o the financial contribution that a healthy music indus-
try coul d mak e to th e loca l economy. The ASIG intende d t o promot e
this ide a to Austin power brokers , while at the same time pushing th e
legend of the Armadillo's special significance in the cultural life of Texas
to those musicians and fans who saw it as a temple of the counterculture.
Following standar d fundraising techniques, the ASIG solicited already
sympathetic individuals and then added their names to a list used to at-
tract other contributors. Contribution s were structured in the form of
$100 tickets to th e Armadillo World Headquarters 6th Birthday Party
on Augus t 7 , 1976. They hoped t o sel l one thousand tickets, and the n
use that lump sum of $100,000 to attract other investors. As of May 2.1,
1976, th e ASI G ha d confirme d the contribution s o f ninety-one indi -
viduals o r groups . Amon g th e ticke t purchaser s were An n Richards ,
then the County Commissioner; Jef f Friedman , the mayor of Austin; a
representative of Texas State Bank, and several lawyers. By far, the bul k
of the contributors were individuals with whom the Armadillo regularly
did business—musicians , managers, A&R representative s from recor d
companies, an d the owners of other music-related businesses.30
Eventually, the hype resulted in 191 tickets sold and 2, 6 tickets traded
out fo r reduction s i n pas t debts . The tota l incom e (includin g reduc-
tions i n account s payable ) wa s ove r $22,000 ; th e amoun t spen t o n
the part y exceeded $13,000 . The ne t financial gain, representin g over
three months of work, was slightly more than $9,ooo.31 As a fundraising
effort, th e birthda y party had been a failure. Within two months , Mik e

Tolleson, Bobb y Hcdderman, an d Eddie Wilson left Armadillo Produc-
tions, Inc. , turnin g over th e operation s an d the accumulate d debt s t o
their chief creditor, Hank Alrich.
By November, the Su n was publishing rumors of bankruptc y pro-
ceedings fo r the Armadillo among article s detailing a "local depressio n
in the live music business." Alrich reduced the payroll from 14 3 employ-
ees to fewe r than 70 and vowed to operat e the clu b on a cash basis. In
an effor t t o limi t talen t costs an d to recemen t relationships with loca l
musicians, Alrich announce d a new booking policy tha t would reflec t
a three-to-on e rati o o f loca l to tourin g acts . However , thes e measures
were not sufficient to hold off the hall's other creditors. During 1976, the
hall had grosse d $1,219,00 0 yet missed breakin g even by $40,000. By
January, 1977, the Armadillo' s debt ha d increase d to $152,000 . Alrich
further cu t th e staf f t o 3 6 workers, an d most o f them wer e not bein g
paid. Prompted by a suit for overdue payments for radio ads, Armadillo
Productions Incorporate d filed for Chapter n bankruptcy. 32
What wer e th e factor s that le d to th e fiscal collapse of this cosmi c
cowboy cathedral? I have already mentioned the increase in competitio n
from th e growin g number of nightclubs and from th e increased recog-
nition give n to the diversity of musical talent in Austin. But changes in
the loca l audienc e exacerbate d th e effect s o f these aestheti c an d com -
mercial developments . Th e ris e o f rednec k roc k ha d bee n materially
sustained b y a continued increas e in undergraduat e enrollment a t th e
university. Made more prosperous b y the local effects of the oil embargo
of 1973, the students attending the University of Texas during the seven-
ties brought wit h the m more disposabl e incom e tha n the y ha d i n any
previous decade . Average attendance at the Armadillo probably peaked
in 1974 , when "suddenl y th e plac e was full mos t o f the time. " At tha t
moment, th e entertainmen t tastes of these students, th e pleasure s they
chose to purchase, coalesced with the entertainment tastes of local poli-
ticians and business people around the performance of country music. 33
The affectiv e allianc e produced throug h the shared pleasures of pro-
gressive country musi c was a contingent construction , stronges t whe n
all th e component s wer e operatin g i n tandem . Th e mos t gifte d per -
formers had to be singing the most articulate and well played songs i n a
building that symbolized the coming together of traditional Texan inter-
ests with th e sensibilities of the baby-boom generation. When th e gen-
erationally divers e bu t mutuall y flush individuals who embodie d tha t
affective allianc e were dancing next to eac h other weekly , or even mor e
often, i n the physica l spac e consecrated to tha t cause , th e celebratio n
of the cosmi c cowbo y communit y coul d appea r self-replicating, natu-
ral, the result of authentic, unmediate d cultural practice. But, of course,
none o f it was unmediated. An d the mediations slowl y turned i n other
directions.
Michael Murphey , Jerr y Jeff Walker , and, especially , Willie Nelson,
were professiona l entertainers , with recordin g industry-oriented caree r
demands an d nationa l aspirations . Th e Armadill o wa s a nightclu b i n
sudden competition wit h severa l new nightclubs fo r the market of liv e
music fans. The socia l hangers-on, th e core audience for Austin music ,
searching for the meaning of life in a beer bottle and a song, were driven
away by the influx of instantly semihip students. And the students were
looking for a good time, that pleasure which comes from the creation of
an instant identit y that marks their student years as different, tha t con-
tributes to the construction o f the self as individual. While Austin critics
were blaming the industrial marketing of progressive country music for
its failur e t o exten d th e authenti c cultural meaning o f the movement ,
transformations interna l to th e syste m that produce d thi s musi c wer e
contributing t o its decline.
In 1976, the university students, recently neglected by the ideologue s
struggling ove r th e meanin g o f Austin music , were n o longe r consis -
tently packing the live music clubs, and their allowances were no longe r
paying th e bills , neithe r a t th e Armadill o no r a t th e othe r liv e musi c
clubs tha t ha d sprun g u p i n recen t years . A s Ramsey Wiggins pu t it ,
"the liv e music business, once a jewel in our city's crown, seem s to have
come o n har d times , indeed. " Fo r al l the tal k abou t a lac k o f dept h
to the college student identification wit h the antimodern, cosmic cow-
boy community, th e waning of their support wa s a serious blow to th e
honky-tonk economy , especiall y affecting thos e club s tha t require d a
large audience to cover their overhead. The most recent manifestation of
the student search for meaningful pleasure, the transformation of musi-
cal taste and , eve n more important , entertainmen t practices , that mos t
directly threatene d th e economi c foundation s o f liv e music in Austin ,
was the ris e of disco.34
Disco, as a sensibility, never achieved a firm foothold on the west side
of Austin. I t owe d too much , to o directly , to African-American tradi -
tions, tastes, and pleasures, to become truly popular at a street level, able
to produc e locall y effective meanings . Disco' s abilit y t o forg e its ow n
affective allianc e was predicated upo n a n urban audience , wit h exten -
sive contact acros s racia l barriers, and it utilized a frank publi c display
of eroticism foreig n to the recently rural, Baptist backgrounds o f most

white musi c fans i n Austin. Bu t th e colleg e years are a time fo r tryin g
out ne w pleasures, new identities, ne w meanings, and, even in Austin,
disco briefl y held sway. 35
Ramsey Wiggins wa s the publicity manager at the Armadillo World
Headquarters fo r three years. In 1976, he explained the appea l of disco
in Austi n a s "part o f th e environmen t fo r a new socia l phenomeno n
arising fro m urba n anomie : th e prepackage d party. " Wiggins catego -
rized disc o as background music as opposed t o "the rea l thing, th e op -
portunity t o hea r a famous son g playe d and sung b y the perso n wh o
made it famous." H e wa s astonished that anyon e could prefe r dancin g
to record s ove r th e face-to-fac e interaction s with musician s that char-
acterized a honky-tonk. Bu t Wiggins did understand one aspect of the
shift i n taste . Honky-tonk s tende d t o hav e a "funky, run-dow n ambi -
ence" whereas disco s offere d a "modern, saf e attractiv e environment. "
He conclude d that , "Wha t w e are witnessing is an increasing rejectio n
by club-goers of the funky discomfort and passive, listeners' role offere d
by the performance-oriente d club , in favor of the stylish comfort of the
disco with its greater opportunities for dancing and social interaction."3<s
As progressive country ha d become more professional, it had grow n
away from the traditions of honky-tonk performance. Rather than form-
ing a mutual musical celebration of collective local identity, the perfor-
mances o f Austin singer-songwriter s had becom e more aki n to a con-
cert, where the audience attended t o and applauded the pastoral poetr y
of the performers. The group participation necessary for the musicalized
production o f collective identity—inherited from the carnivalesque tra-
dition of the honky-tonk an d effectively syncretized with the practice of
the folk song revival—was being eliminated from th e experience of lis-
tening t o Austin's musicians . Yet these performances were still situated
in th e "funk y run-dow n ambience " commo n t o honky-tonks . Unde r
these conditions, progressive country could no longer form the musical
center o f a n antimodern critique . As Wiggins pointe d out , whe n stu -
dents faced the choice between the physical activity of dancing in a clean
setting and the quie t discipline d attentio n require d b y Austin's singer s
in a honky-tonk, the y chose the modern experience.
The two mos t successfu l disco s in Austin at this time were the Caba-
ret an d th e Greenhouse . Ted Simerson manage d th e Greenhous e an d
described a different se t of advantages his club held over live music halls.
"It's har d t o bea t o r duplicat e a real good soun d syste m . . . there' s
no wa y you ca n have a live band an d hav e the variety we have. I f yo u
have Willie Nelson o n stage, it's fantastic , but he only plays one kind of
music." Both Wiggins and Simerson were describing the lasting changes
that th e commercial for m of disco entertainmen t would contribut e t o
the ongoing Austin live music scene. If live music nightclubs in Austin
were to continue to attract the entertainment dollars of students and the
rising professional-manageria l clas s (th e extensio n of the governmen t
bureaucracy to which they had traditionally catered), they had to recog-
nize the importance of dancing and active participation by the audience,
they had to improv e their sound quality , and they had to offe r variety .
And i n orde r t o compet e effectively , the y needed t o offe r somethin g
else, something more than the discos could provide. 37
The prepackage d parties that discos sold were largely dependent on
the qualit y of the sensual stimulation that could be guaranteed. Simo n
Frith has written that, "Disco ha d changed . . . the meaning of a good
night out, an d . . . this has to b e understood i n the contex t o f 19705'
sexual mores." Disco s mad e explicit the relationship s betwee n musica l
and physica l pleasures. "The danc e floor is the most publi c setting fo r
music as sexual expression an d ha s been an important aren a for yout h
culture sinc e th e danc e craze s of th e beginnin g o f th e centur y whe n
Afro-American rhythm s began to structur e white middle-class leisure,
to set new norms for physical display, contact, and movement." But the
experience of dancing in a disco was more than foreplay. "The disc o ex-
perience is an overwhelming experience of now-ness . .. an experience in
which the dance r is, simultaneously, completely self-centered and quite
selfless, completely sexualized and , in gender terms, quite sexless." This
on-the-dance-floor deccnterin g of the sel f required an overstimulation
of the senses that recent innovations in sound reproduction and lighting
technologies could recreate each night. The dancer's body had to feel the
sound t o such a degree that cognition was erased, and all that remained
were moments of movement organized by the rhythm of the music. 38
For tw o years , the disco s of Austin effectively package d this experi-
ence for local students. But, even at its height, the dancing in the main-
stream disco s wa s relatively restrained and effort s wer e made t o limi t
the influenc e o f African-America n cultures . During th e fal l o f 1976 ,
the most requeste d song in Austin discos was Wild Cherry's "Play that
Funky Music , White Boy, " a numbe r tha t mocke d th e tension s sur -
rounding Anglo-America n incorporation of African-American musica l
forms. In some Austin discos, racist admissions policies prevented black
and whit e mixin g o n th e danc e floor, ostensibly becaus e "minoritie s
don't slug their drinks back fast enough." The White Rabbit, a disco that
opened in the winter of 1976—1977, denied admission to one African -
American woman "because she was wearing a turban."39
But lastin g changes i n the expectation s o f the audience , and i n th e
Collapse o f th e Progressive Country Alliance I 8 1

method of delivering liv e music, did take place. In additio n t o demon -
strating th e importanc e o f physical audience participatio n an d qualit y
sound, discos diminished the demand for cover bands—groups of musi-
cians who replicated the recordings of other artists. The success of discos
showed tha t peopl e woul d pa y money t o danc e t o recordings . Mor e
expensive an d les s dependabl e tha n high-powere d stere o system s an d
extensive librarie s o f recorde d music , liv e musician s wer e n o longe r
a necessar y item i n a prepackaged party . Furthermore , th e bes t disc o
performances wer e wholl y studi o creations . The productio n team s o f
Gamble an d Huf f an d Bernar d Edward s an d Nil e Rodgers , wer e cre -
ating sonic texture s i n the studio tha t coul d no t b e reproduced i n live
performance fo r man y years to com e (whe n ne w technologies o f tap e
synchronization, mor e sophisticate d synthesizers, and digita l sampler s
became considerably less expensive). Live music clubs simply could no t
compete with discos in the presentation o f already known music for the
purposes o f dancing.40
While the disc o phenomeno n di d encourage active audience partici-
pation, thi s activit y wa s distanced fro m th e productio n o f th e music .
The hig h leve l of musical expertise and the increasin g amount o f tech -
nological mediatio n betwee n th e momen t o f musical productio n an d
that o f consumption widene d th e gap between th e performance of the
music an d it s reception . Instea d o f producin g a n interpla y betwee n
dancer an d performer, disco constructe d an audience free t o pa y atten-
tion onl y t o itself . I n Austin , a town where musical performance rep-
resented a romantic antimoder n ideolog y an d was judged i n term s o f
sincerity, authenticity , spontaneity , an d immediacy , disco musi c could
not functio n a s the cente r of a cultural practice capable of integratin g
elements fro m the everyday life of its audience. But, in the meantime, i t
reinforced th e loca l focus i n live music clubs on performer s who wer e
more than human jukeboxes. Slowly, gradually, the musical influence of
disco woul d mak e it s way into the liv e musi c scen e in Austin , bu t it s
most immediate impact was to reemphasize original music performed by
musicians capabl e of producing somethin g mor e tha n recorde d musi c
could offer .
Clifford Antone had already assimilated many of the business lesson s
discos had to teach. Antone had a clear idea of the specific type of music
he wanted to provide, an d he presented his acts in a comfortable setting ,
conducive both to listening and to dancing. "We were a little more mod -
ern an d a little mor e togethe r tha n mos t club s in those times, " he says.
Antone's opened wit h Clifto n Chenic r playin g for five straight night s
in Jul y 1975, instantl y stakin g hi s clai m t o bein g the plac e in Austi n
to hear nonmainstream blue s and blues-related music. Antone's did not
feature musicians playing other peoples' music. And those musicians he
hired could b e had relatively cheaply. Within his first year of operation ,
Clifford Anton e brough t Mudd y Waters , Jimmy Reed , Willie Dixon ,
Bobby Bland , Sunnylan d Slim, John Lee Hooker, Big Walter Horton,
Albert King , Budd y Guy , Junior Wells, Koko Taylor, Clifton Chcnier,
and other significant blue s performers to the west side of Austin for the
first time. In between these road shows he would feature the local blues
musicians who ha d been playing on the eas t side or in south Austi n at
tiny honky-tonks lik e Alexander's Place. The tourin g act s were able to
draw a larger crowd, mostly because they attracted fans from acros s the
race and ag e barriers in Austin, significantly expandin g the numbe r of
people willing to pay money to listen to the blues. According to one fan,
"It was real funny, caus e like in Antone's there would be almost all white
people unles s a road sho w woul d come . An d the n al l the 45-year-ol d
black people would suddenl y appear." The local white blues musicians
were not abl e to draw these fans into a downtown club. 41
Neither di d the y attrac t a n audienc e of students . Cliffor d Anton e
remembers th e club' s first year a s "the pea k o f progressiv e country in
Austin, which I wasn't into at all. We were outcasts. The T-Birds and the
Cobras togethe r couldn't draw 100 people on a Saturday night." Omar
and th e Howler s were a white blue s band fro m Arkansas who move d
to Austi n in the summe r of 1976. Here, the y were forced to bil l them-
selves a s a "country an d blues , rhythm and wester n band. " I n th e fal l
of 1976, the One Knit e closed, reducin g the number of west-side blues
venues by one third. Clearly, blues in Austin was not abl e to attract the
student audience . It remaine d a music of dedicated fans an d musicians,
increasingly performe d b y and for a select circle of the knowing. 42
As Austin's national reputation continued to shine (ironically height-
ened b y the disavowe d Outla w image) , the capita l city attracted musi-
cians from other sections of Texas and throughout th e South . O n May
24, 1976 , th e Jo e El y Band fro m Lubbock , Texas, played at th e Spli t
Rail, a traditional honky-tonk in South Austin. The Split Rail had never
competed fo r th e studen t audience . Bil l Bas s ha d opene d th e ba r i n
1962, and , fro m 196 6 on , th e Spli t Rai l provided Kennet h Threadgil l
and th e Hootenann y Hoot s wit h thei r mos t consisten t gigs . I n 1969 ,
Marcia Ball's Freda and the Firedogs had pioneered progressive country
at the Spli t Rail. The lower cover prices that discos charged in the mid-
seventies had no effec t o n this honky-tonk's business. Jim Parrish (who
had take n ove r th e ba r i n 1975) kep t the clu b open without chargin g
admission, and relied upo n more standard country-styled musicians to
Collapse o f th e Progressive Country Alliance I 8 3

pull in a beer-drinking crowd. When musicians associated with progres -
sive country playe d at the Spli t Rail, the y performed their more tradi -
tional numbers , emphasizin g th e countr y components i n their music .
But when the Joe Ely Band played there in 1976, they performed songs
written b y Ely and b y Butch Hancock, on e o f hi s friends fro m a n ol d
group called the Flatlanders . The crowd "overflowe d int o the parkin g
lot, where the ban d sounded lik e it was coming from a jukebox the size
of a Trailways." By the end of the year, Ely had recorded an album for the
Nashville branch of MCA, an d all of the cx-Flatlanders—Jimmi e Dal e
Gilmore, Butc h Hancock, an d Joe Ely—had made Austin the center of
their operations. 43
This infusio n o f musician s fro m Lubboc k renewe d anothe r tradi -
tional strai n of country music in Austin. While the progressive countr y
musicians mos t closel y associated wit h th e cit y (Murphey , Fromholz ,
Bridger, Walker ) ha d emphasize d th e lyrica l aspects t o thei r compo -
sitions, writin g withi n acousti c "folk " musi c conventions tha t empha -
sized listening ove r dancing, these musicians from wes t Texas carried a
hard-core, hard-drinking, and hard-driving honky-tonk sensibility that
blended easil y with the orientation and the attitudes of the blues musi-
cians in town. The band' s tenacious performing style strengthened th e
link between th e rhyth m and blues of performers like Doug Sahm and
Delbert McClinto n an d the "gut " countr y of Alvin Cro w an d Marci a
Ball. Stylistically , Ely's musi c was not ver y differen t fro m th e outla w
music of Waylon Jennings (als o from Lubbock) , bu t hi s performances
at the Spli t Rail enacted and confirmed a local orientation tha t blende d
with th e effort s o f othe r Austi n musicians . I n effect , th e "Lubboc k
Mafia" provided a crucial musical discursive node within the live music
scene in Austin. They reinforced the reorganization of the scene around
local performance conventions and musical genres insofar as their music
was specifically contraste d with th e nationally markete d an d stylisticl y
similar outlaw music. And the core audience for this harder-edged blen d
of country, blues , an d rock'n'roll wa s the Soa p Creek "counterculture"
regulars, th e "socia l hangers-on, " th e alienated , dishevele d an d self -
reflective organi c intellectual s who were , i n Ventura's words, "unabl e
to ri d ourselve s o f adolescen t drive s an d dreams. " Thi s slightl y olde r
hip community foun d their hopes sung back to them and their demon s
danced ou t o f them b y this locally focused blen d o f rhythm an d blue s
and honky-tonk country music in Austin.44
By Februar y 1977, Han k Alric h ha d successfull y steere d Armadill o
Productions throug h it s bankruptc y hearings . A n arrangemen t wa s
established that would allo w for ne w accounting procedures b y which
all services and goods purchased, including artists fees an d advertisin g
costs, would b e pai d upo n deliver y in cash, and back debts woul d b e
paid to the court out of the net cash flow at the end of the coming year.
For their New Year's Eve celebration in 1976, the Armadillo hired three
local bands: Too Smooth, Paul Ray and the Cobras, and the Wommack
Brothers. Over nin e hundred peopl e attended , payin g five dollars each
for th e entertainment , free champagne, and 1977 calendars. Total talent
costs were kept under two thousand dollars, and, allowing for staff costs
and supplies, Armadillo Productions cleared over two thousand dollar s
that night, exclusive of bar profits. Alrich and the rest of the staff had t o
have been thrilled by this indication of the success of their new plans. 45
At the Soap Creek, the Majewski's were continuing a booking polic y
of rotating local acts and bringing in regional musicians who contrasted
with the progressive country genre. For the acts who cam e in from ou t
of town, the Soa p Cree k would offe r a guarantee, but loca l musicians
would pla y fo r th e doo r (th e tota l o f the cove r charges paid to ente r
the clu b b y each member of the audience) . On mos t nights , th e Soa p
Creek incurred no talent costs. The audience would pay a three-or four-
dollar cover , an d the y could hea r four set s b y th e T-Bird s o r Marcia
Ball's band, or Paul Ray and the Cobras , or Doug Sahm. According to
Carlync Majer, thes e bands made their living from thei r regular gigs at
the Soap Creek.
It was an opportunity fo r a dozen o r mor e bands to b e abl e to pa y their rent,
pay their bills , and continu e their career becaus e they were capable of making
a lo t o f money. The firs t Soa p Creek ha d a capacity of 600 an d we could d o a
turn aroun d (well , remember we added a wing to tha t club in '75, we added a
wing tha t hel d anothe r zoo , 30 0 people) becaus e turnover was what we were
all about. Most band s preferred no t t o pla y with any opening act because they
could sav e that $Z50 . These band s would com e in and pla y three o r fou r sets .
When th e liquo r law s change d an d we went to tw o o'clock , th e turnove r was
great. People would sto p into the club, the doors were cheap, three to four dol-
lars cover. So it meant that people would come out for a half hour, or spend two
hours or three hours and then leave. Which left u s a lot of turnover i n terms of
the door. People would com e real late for the las t two hours and people would
come early and go home.
Some band s coul d mak e a living within the honky-ton k economy de-
scribed b y Majer. Bu t it was also an opportunity fo r some bands to g o
broke. Again, i n Majer' s words , "Th e iron y is you pla y fo r a percent-
age of the gate and whatever you're worth you make." In the context of
the honky-tonk economy, the traditional material mediation for musical
performance i n Austin, musician s were "worth" the number of peopl e
they could draw to a club. In these terms, the worth of Austin musicians
became a n airy , almost magical affair , ovcrdcterminc d b y th e comple x

relations o f marketplace competition. Whe n dealin g with club owners ,
trying t o boo k gigs , th e performin g musician was directly confronte d
with he r or hi s position in the overlapping se t of cultural systems tha t
operate t o produce he r or his difference, meaning , and value. Any anti-
commercial ideolog y woul d necessaril y be straine d b y this confronta -
tion.46
The ballo t fo r th e Texas Su n (a s i t wa s no w called ) zn d Annua l
Readers Pol l wa s published i n the issu e dated Januar y 28, 1977. I t in -
cluded bot h a greate r numbe r o f categorie s an d specifi c nomination s
within eac h category. The editors nominate d band s in only a single cate-
gory each in order "t o avoi d splitting votes." Therefore, countr y band s
were differentiated fro m roc k bands in this ballot, resulting in an inter-
esting fissure cracking through th e progressive country edifice. The Joe
Ely Band wa s classified a s country while the Los t Gonz o Ban d played
rock; Butc h Hancock , Marci a Ball , Alvi n Crow , an d Grecz y Wheel s
were all included in the country category, with Doug Sahm joining th e
Uranium Savage s an d Balcone s Faul t i n rock . The Blues/Sou l group
included Pau l Ray and the Cobras , Jimmi e Vaughan and the Thunder -
birds, and seven other bands . New categories included Best Dee Jay and
Best New Band . The ban d of the year was the only write-in category.47
When the results of the voting were published two months later, Paul
Ray and the Cobras were declared the most popular band in Austin. But
the balloting wa s very close, an d the result s showed bot h a consolida -
tion and a fragmentation of the Austin live music audience. Significantly
fewer ballot s were cast than ha d bee n the year before . Eac h genre ha d
one (o r two ) ke y acts tha t wer e successfull y promote d t o th e smaller
Austin scen e a s the bes t fo r tha t style . Yet in th e overal l category , n o
consensus coul d b e found. The Cobras received 9.5 percent o f the tota l
ballots. Tie d fo r secon d wer e Alvi n Cro w (country) , Balcone s Faul t
(rock), an d th e Poin t (jazz) , eac h with 7. 5 percent o f th e votes . No t
surprisingly, tw o of these last three groups won the generic category in
which they were nominated (Alvi n Crow finished second in the country
division, behin d Aslee p at the Wheel). Progressiv e country continue d
to exer t some influenc e as Willie Nelson an d Marcia Ball repeated thei r
victories as best male and female singers, and deejays from KOKE swept
the top three slots in their category. But, in its current form, the Austin
scene no longe r wa s unified by a single musical taste. An d i t no longe r
embodied (in the tastes, pleasures, and desires of its participants) a col-
lective representatio n o f the nostalgi c antimodernis t myt h tha t unite d
cowboys an d hippies in a consensus on the meaning of being Texan.48
That May, Marcia Ball signed a recording contract with Capitol Rec-
ords. One o f th e mor e self-reflectiv e singer s in town , wit h consisten t
local support, Bal l analyze d her relationshi p with th e Austi n audienc e
in an interview with Michael Ventura.
Austin create s the scene . That i s the magi c of Austin. It make s it s own scene.
Austin peopl e have t o hav e a place to go , where they can see everybody they
know. So I was a part of it, and I feel proud that I was. I feel more like an in-
strument—an instrument of the Austin tendency to group the way they do. It' s
not who' s here playing music, it's that the people here appreciate it enough to
make it a big deal . What draws attention is that there are clubs an d club s and
clubs, and people filling them up every night.
This vita l music scen e was created b y the "Austi n tendenc y t o grou p
the way they do, " whic h i n turn gre w out o f the historica l importanc e
of th e honky-ton k a s a site for negotiating th e tension s produce d i n a
newly urbanize d an d industrialize d culture . By the mid-seventies , th e
middle-class, Anglo population o f Austin—itinerants of privilege, alien-
ated fro m thei r origins , livin g i n a tow n establishe d o n a n aestheti c
whim—had develope d a tradition o f groupin g i n clubs , listenin g an d
dancing t o th e onl y artistic form tha t mad e any sense out o f their feel -
ings of dislocation, anxiety, an d possibility, and musically constructing
a new connection wit h thei r origins.49
Marcia Bal l was unique i n being abl e to lan d a national major-label
recording contrac t i n 197 7 withou t leavin g Austin. Onl y th e Jo e Ely
Band had been signed the year before. These two performers were prob-
ably the last Austin-based musicians contracted b y the recording indus -
try as progressive country acts. Other musicians with national recordin g
ambitions wer e leaving Austin for the west coast, just as bands had done
throughout the sixties.
That summer, Dou g Sahm headed west to play on Rick Danko's solo
record. H e wrot e an open lette r t o hi s fan s tha t th e Su n publishe d i n
August, explainin g his two reasons for moving: the increased opportu -
nities on the west coast, "Thi s thing wit h Dank o coul d go anywhere" ;
but more importantly, "let's face it, fellow Austinitcs, the scene is rapidly
decaying from the lovely, stoned, slow town i t once was to a sometime s
circus o f egos tha t ha s made i t not th e fu n i t used t o be. " Th e cit y of
Austin wa s indeed growing beyon d it s "lovely, stoned , slow " state, bu t
it was the transformation s i n the scene itself—that traditiona l aren a of
antimodern protest—whic h Sah m mos t bitterl y protests . No w a "cir-
cus of egos," the professional tensions withi n the music scene in Austin
were a product of the increase d competition fo r a shrinking nightclu b
audience (no w reduce d to it s core constituents ) an d the beginning s o f
a reorientation o f local music businesses toward th e nationa l recordin g
Collapse of th e Progressive Country Alliance I 8 7

industries. No longer able to subsist on earnings from live performances,
local musicians had to choos e betwee n eithe r accepting part-time jobs
or focusin g thei r attentio n o n non-Austi n audience s (includin g both
extensive touring and soliciting the attention o f major labe l representa-
tives). Despite the assertions of Carlync Majer, no Austin acts were able
to suppor t themselve s solely throug h Soa p Cree k gigs . I n fact , i t ha d
been Maje r hersel f wh o negotiate d Marci a Ball's contrac t wit h Capi -
tol, representing he r as a progressive country act, packaged for Capitol's
Nashville division. 50
In December 1977 , the local press was again reporting financial trou-
bles at the Armadillo. There had been no net positive cash flow during
the year, and, therefore, no progress had been made on debt reductions.
The staf f ha d been reduce d t o twenty-four people—the bare minimum
required to run shows at the large hall. Many of these people were not re-
ceiving checks, had given up their homes, an d were sleeping in the front
office. Th e belie f tha t th e Armadill o was the essentia l elemen t i n th e
Austin musi c scene was still strong amon g thes e unpaid laborers. On e
employee wa s quoted at the time, " I can' t imagin e what Austin woul d
be like without an Armadillo. I feel like the Austin music scene will die,
if Armadillo goes." Alrich was forced to give up his booking polic y tha t
focused o n local bands because, "what we found was that nobod y local
can dra w o n thi s scale. " Unlike the smalle r clubs, the Armadillo coul d
not surviv e without the participation of a large student audience . With
the collaps e of the progressiv e country alliance, there was no easil y ex-
ploitable link between the local music scene and the students. Alrich saw
this as bad for both the clubowncrs and the musicians.
There's really not an Austin sound or any great professionalism among the musi-
cians. They're no t thrivin g locally . You can't fin d a band wh o i s making i t i n
Austin. All of them are having to hustle out of town, because there are a tremen-
dous numbe r of picker s who hav e to tak e whatever the clu b owners wil l for k
over, whether they'r e good musicians or bad.
It appeared to Alrich that, in the winter of 1977-1978, the Austin music

scene ha d fragmente d t o suc h a n exten t tha t discriminatin g betwee n
good an d ba d loca l performer s was no longe r a simple task. The clu b
owners competin g wit h Alric h ha d contribute d t o thi s conditio n b y
hiring divers e musicians and by paying them only the accumulatio n of
minimal cove r charges. Musicians were forced t o leav e Austin becaus e
they could n o longe r subsis t on liv e performance earnings only and be-
cause they could no t win recording contracts while performing only i n
central Texas. In th e absenc e of a dominant musical aesthetic, a central
headquarters an d effectiv e gatekecpin g by club owners, th e qualit y o f
music in Austin ha d declined. The good musicians were forced to leave
town, to go to where they could earn more money. According to Han k
Alrich, ba d musi c ha d drive n ou t th e good , throug h th e inflationar y
pressure of too man y musicians and too many clubs.1'
In order to halt this outwar d flow of musical capital, Bobby Bridger
argued for the developmen t and implementatio n of an industria l
strategy.
I've seen so many people come through here in the eigh t years I've been here
who say, "Well, it's time to go to L.A.—we've got our shit together"—and they
take off to L.A. and that's the last you hear of them. . . . And I've been screaming
for years, "Hey, let's stay here and do it here." Make a different plac e here. Make
ourselves a counter-culture music thing. Let' s just do that. Just don't mak e us
one lik e al l those other places . Austin' s a power spot . That's the wa y I see it .
I'm not the first person to ever say it, but I'm certainly on the list of people. It's
an energ y spot an d i t catches al l of us soone r or later . . . . Cause this i s really
the plac e t o b e righ t now . From all indications, it's the plac e to b e for a long
time, too.52
Articulating essentiall y the sam e argumen t tha t Eddi e Wilso n ha d

been making for six years, Bridger was calling for a local system of indus-
trial gatekcepin g tha t woul d b e sensitiv e t o loca l meaning s an d loca l
traditions, ye t tha t woul d stil l be abl e to mak e qualitative discrimina-
tions an d rewar d the selec t few wh o ha d prove n thei r abilitie s in local
live performances . Instead o f having to mov e to L.A . or to Ne w York
to compete for a recording contract, musicians should be able to remain
close t o thei r pastora l muse , i n this "powe r spot. " The hope was that
by developing an d implementing a locally controlled industria l strategy,
the necessar y commodification o f Austin musi c could avoi d inauthen -
ticity. N o outsid e interest s woul d interfer e i n the cycl e of productio n
and consumption . Thi s concept of an industrial production purifie d of
outside interest s continue s t o b e th e drea m o f thos e involve d i n th e
music business i n Austin: th e desir e to "mak e ourselve s a counter cul -
ture music thing" that could fulfil l al l the function s o f a music industry
while maintaining strict local control ove r its effects. 53
At its peak, the progressive country movement had established a cul-
tural hierarch y o f musical taste s and performer s tha t effectivel y main -
tained a n "Austi n sound. " A t th e to p were Willi e Nelson , Jerr y Jef f
Walker, Michael Murphey, and a few other artists who were consistently
able t o perfor m a powerfu l musica l articulatio n o f a traditiona l cen -
tral Texan masculine identity. These musical performances created an d
maintained a contingent affectiv e allianc e that linked university students
with musicians , busines s people, politicians, administrators , an d even
law enforcement officers. The base of the hierarchy was this audience of

students who were momentarily hailed by this identity and who foun d
pleasure in the self-conscious performance of the dominan t Texa n cul-
ture. For some, this commercially encountered identit y took hold, pro-
viding a relatively stable position fro m whic h to encounte r the world .
For others, progressive countr y remained an enterprise organized int o
a circulation of commodities, wher e the "worth" of a particular musical
performance was overdetermincd b y a complex of interactin g cultural
factors. As the experienc e of dressing like (Anglo)Texans , drinking like
(Anglo)Texans, an d dancin g lik e (Anglo)Texan s to th e kin d o f musi c
(Anglo)Tcxans lik e lost it s appeal for the students—whe n performing
the culture of the (Anglo)Texan no longer produced the necessarily mo-
mentary pleasures of an illusory completion—the students turne d away
and bega n to look elsewhere for reflections of themselves.
When the progressiv e countr y allianc e cease d to be effective , the
Austin music scene was divorced from the interests, needs, and desires of
the college students. Musicians who had trained themselves within this
framework foun d that they were playing increasingly for each other an d
for thei r agin g core audience . Younger musicians attending th e univer-
sity were not attracte d to this scene; they were put off by the perceived
insularity, th e relativel y high leve l o f musicianshi p that th e genr e ha d
developed, an d a n increasin g dissatisfactio n with th e vacuit y of anti -
modernism. Accordin g to Stev e Chaney, a younger musician who ha d
moved to Austin in the middle of the decade,
I think tha t that whole cosmi c cowboy thing was tuned t o the older musicians
and i t was such a big thing I think in some ways it sort of intimidated some of
the younger musician s from doin g stuff . Ther e reall y wasn't muc h happenin g
with younger people playing original music in Austin in the midseventies. There
were older guys and the blues scene was burgeoning a t the time , the souther n
rock/blues thing . That wa s a pretty tigh t littl e societ y too. Jesus, you ha d t o
know your minor ninth suspended chords just to fee l like you had a place.54
Looking back at this time, Jeff Nightbyrd recalled, "The cosmic cowbo y
was a marketing devic e built i n part aroun d somebod y wh o wa s very
genuine, Willie Nelson, who wa s just a gifted conveyor , a gifted story-
teller an d song writer." Bu t b y 1977, "No alienate d eighteen-year-olds
at the University of Texas thought, oh , I'll be a Cosmic Cowboy. They
were startin g t o d o har d roc k and meta l and lou d turn-up-the-amps -
and-blast-our-senses stuff." 55
Indeed.
C H A P T E R F I V E
Punk Rock at Ratios

The Performance of Contradiction
Offered th e choice between two self-reflective spectacle s of alienation—

the disc o an d th e loca l liv e musi c scene—man y colleg e student s i n
Austin turne d thei r musica l attentions elsewhere . I n Ne w York , Lon-
don, an d Lo s Angeles , youn g musicians , ar t students , an d clothin g
designers wer e elaborating a new musical aesthetic and a new theory o f
performance that would radically change the tastes of Austin's rock'n'roll
fans, an d would revitaliz e the city' s live music scene. The musical roots
of American punk rock lay in the midwestern and west coast garage rock
of th e midsixties . I n th e wak e o f the Britis h Invasion (tha t perio d o f
the midsixtie s where recor d companie s in the United State s promoted
any band with a mop-top an d a British accent), thousands of white sub-
urban American (usually male) teenagers formed combos that produce d
a crud e cop y o f th e record s created by English ar t student s imitatin g
African-American musicians. Bands like the Shadows of Knight, We the
People, the Unrelated Segments, an d the Chocolate Watchband created
a twiste d testimonia l t o th e (ofte n misogynist ) powe r o f three chord s
and a grunt. In 1972., a New York rock critic and historian named Lenny
Kaye compiled an d annotated a collection of several of the more popu -
lar recordings of these bands for Elektra Records. The release of Nuggets
established th e generi c convention s o f sixtie s pun k rock : limite d bu t
unrelenting rhythms , a reduce d rang e with a straine d voca l tonality ,
minimal instrumental embellishment, and a constricted, whiny, "snotty"
attitude expresse d both in the lyrics of the songs and in the styles of the
singers. America n pun k roc k of the sixtie s took the chords , th e beats ,
and the lyrica l images that blue s musicians had develope d int o an ex-
pressive form of great emotional breadth and discarded all but the most
immediate signifier s o f frustrated mal e sexuality. This was a music that
Punk Rock at Raul's I 9 1

any boy could play six months afte r h e found a guitar under the Christ -
mas tree, a music that expresse d "the relentles s middle-finger driv e and
determination offered onl y by rock and roll at its finest."'
By the time this record was released, Lenny Kayc had already played
rudimentary rhythm guitar during a poetry reading given by Patti Smith
at St . Marks Church i n New York. Within three years, the Patt i Smit h
Group became the center of a New York music scene that combined th e
emotional orientatio n an d th e musica l simplicity of sixtie s pun k roc k
with a textual self-consciousness and a n artisti c ambition nurture d b y
contact wit h New York's literary, theatrical, and artistic circles. The mi-
sogynist thrust of this proto-punk musi c was subverted by Patti Smith' s
extended progra m o f self-construction , a self-presentatio n which de -
constructed rock'n'roll' s gendere d expectations . Performing atona l bu t
physically expressiv e guitar solos , Patt i Smit h foregrounded an d mad e
explicit the phalli c implications of lead guitar playing. In her lyrics and
in he r publishe d poetry , sh e created a series of subjec t positions tha t
demanded identification s acros s traditiona l gende r lines . An d i n th e
publicity photographs taken of her b y Robert Mapplethorpe , sh e pre-
sented hersel f as a more intelligent , mor e artistic, and (sinc e somehow
still feminine) more dangerous Keith Pvichards. Patti Smith cut into and
opened up the surface of punk rock, creating a space for feminine inter-
vention an d performance, a space that would be exploited effectively b y
women in the English punk movement.2
Playing t o th e sam e minimalis t sensibilit y that ha d supporte d th e
Velvet Underground and the New York Dolls, th e seventies punk rock
musicians in New York created a rock'n'roll essentialism, an antimusical
formalism centered upon the idea that rock'n'roll define s a n attitude.
What make s a rock'n'roll ban d great is not s o much what they play as how they
play it. ... Th e talent comes in taking those six chords and putting them togethe r
better and more effectivel y tha n anybody else. . . . What makes rock'n'roll th e
all-powerful energize r that i t i s is the recognitio n b y the performe r of what' s
good and what's bad. It al l boils down to essentials and . . . can be explained in
three chords , tw o verses, and one chorus. Anything more is unnecessary icing.
The ban d tha t mos t elegantl y embodie d thi s rock'n'rol l minimalis m

was the Ramones. Conceived i n strict opposition t o the technically de-
manding hyphen-rocks then popular on mainstream FM radio (art-rock,
country-rock, jazz-rock), the music of the Ramone s represente d a "car-
toon vision o f rock and rol l . . . bound t o enchan t anyone who fel l i n
love with rock and roll for all the right reasons." They were described as
"the mos t cleanly conceptualized Ne w York rock show ther e is to sec,"
and "rock'n'roll formalists, convinced that good R&R derive s its maxi-
mum effects from solid shapes, from right angles and jagged edges." The
Ramones first album was released in the spring of 1976, and the concep t
of a rock'n'roll aesthetic—th e reduction of a previously expansive genre
to it s mos t bar e elements , a reformulatio n o f rock'n'rol l convention s
that organize d a very basic structure around a n ephemeral "attitude"—
dominated conversation s i n th e roc k press , i n nightclubs , an d i n th e
suburban bedroom s of rock'n'roll fans across the country.3
During the summer of 1976, the Ramones and the Patti Smith Grou p
toured England. There they performed before a growing English pun k
rock movemen t tha t share d a similar minimalist musica l aesthetic , bu t
that articulate d this minimalism with a set of political and cultural posi-
tions critica l of th e distancin g effect s o f mas s cultur e an d concerne d
with encouragin g th e participatio n o f th e masse s i n th e transforma-
tion of spectacle into situation. Malcolm McLaren's work with the New
York Doll s i n 197 4 ha d convince d hi m tha t technica l virtuosit y wa s
not a requirement fo r rock'n'roll music. Rather than auditioning expert
musicians a s h e searche d fo r a ne w ban d t o manage , h e bega n look -
ing for individuals who could convincingly perform the contradiction s
that Situationist s foun d i n mas s culture . Accordin g t o Simo n Frith ,
"McLaren's ambitio n wa s to tur n spectacle—the passively experienced
structure o f realit y tha t we , a s consumers, liv e with—into situation ,
the structur e blow n up, it s rules made clear, the possibilities for actio n
and desir e exposed." B y the fal l o f 1975, McLaren's new band , the Se x
Pistols, wer e playin g at college s acros s England (no t i n club s or pub s
and not i n theaters like the Odcons), attemptin g to attrac t an educate d
audience wh o woul d observ e the spectacl e o f th e Se x Pistols, se e th e
rules of rock'n'roll revealed , and seize the possibilities for action thereb y
created.4
The first fans of the Sex Pistols were art students. The Bromley Con -
tingent was a group o f committed Pistol s fan s wh o soo n formed pun k
bands of their own. They met at a Pistols performance at the Ravenston e
College o f Art. Bernar d Rhode s was a friend o f McLaren's . H e soo n
found a group o f ar t student s formin g a band and , b y directing the m
toward Situationis t slogans and other strands of Marxist cultural theory,
helped to create the Clash. When th e Pistols played at a college in Man-
chester, Pet e Shelle y and Howar d DcVot o were i n th e audienc e and ,
within tw o months , th e Buzzcock s were rehearsing . Such flatter y b y
imitation followed the Sex Pistols throughout thei r early performances.5
Soon this flurry of activity caught the attention of both young British
academics and the British culture industries. Even as these two group s
fought ove r th e meanin g o f pun k rock , suc h meanin g escape d the m
Punk Rock a t Haul's I 9 3

and played across the surface s of lives transformed b y random. Increas-
ing numbers of pun k roc k fans bough t th e records , wore th e clothes ,
read th e analyses , and develope d a self-conscious awarenes s of the im -
possibility o f their positions . The Englis h punk roc k rhetoric of revo-
lution, destruction , an d anarch y was articulate d b y means o f specifi c
pleasures o f consumption requirin g th e ful l industria l operations tha t
ostensibly were the objects of critique. This contradiction a t the core of
punk practic e allowed fo r a wide diversit y of interpretation , a n open -
ness toward divergent (i n fact, contradictory) identifications, a complex
of meanings, all of which have remained the progressive legacy of thi s
movement.6
Punk smashe d dow n th e keepers ' gate s an d encourage d participa -
tion in the productio n a s well as the consumption o f its products. No t
only wer e fan s lik e th e Bromle y Contingen t motivate d t o star t thei r
own musica l groups, bu t independen t entrepreneur s were inspire d t o
create new fa n magazines, new design firms, new recording companie s
that could package, distribute, advertise, and sell this self-contradictory
semiotic complex . Jus t a s the firs t pun k fan s ha d rccombine d alread y
existing elements o f the culture into a collage signifying freedom , these
punk entrepreneurs coul d recombin e elements of the culture industries
into a new distribution system . This i s the aspect of punk celebrated in
Dick Hebdige's classic work, Subculture: The Meaning o f Style.
By repositioning and recontextualizin g commodities, by subverting their con-
ventional use s and inventing new ones, the subcultural stylist. . . opens u p the
world o f object s to ne w and covertly oppositional readings . The communica -
tion of a significant difference, the n (an d the paralle l communication o f a group
identity) i s the "point" behind the style of all spectacular subcultures.7
When records by the Sex Pistols, Generation X, the Damned, and the
Stranglers mad e th e Englis h to p ten , thi s was considered t o b e a vic-
tory for pun k rock as a movement and, by implication, for Situationis t
theory. The machiner y of mass culture could b e used to distribute rep -
resentations o f anti-mass-cultur e experiences . While thi s appeare d o n
the surfac e t o b e a radica l detournement, fro m a differen t perspectiv e
it showed the supple subtlety of capitalist cultural practice. Punk rock
in England mad e explicit , a t the level o f youth cultur e and rock'n'rol l
music, the contradiction s inheren t in the mass reproduction o f cultural
signs o f distinctio n an d difference . An d i t showed tha t eve n th e mos t
difficult taste s could be broadly disseminated.8
In th e Unite d States , th e commoditie s alon g wit h th e mor e out -
rageous example s o f th e rhetori c o f Englis h pun k roc k receive d fa r
better distributio n tha n di d th e mor e thoughtfu l analyses . Th e anti -
D I S S O N A N T I D E N T I T I E S/9 4
mass-culture message of punk rock was most directly marketed to thos e
subjects o f distinction-through-obscure-consumption: devote d rock'n '
roll fans an d record collectors . These were the individual s in the State s
who too k rock'n'rol l musi c seriously, and who pai d rapt attentio n t o
every stylistic tremor that reverberate d from th e British Isles. For these
fans, th e smar t ange r o f Englis h pun k roc k len t a n artisti c aur a t o
the dum b populis m o f the Ramone s an d extended the polymorphou s
sexuality of Patt i Smit h beyon d th e blurrin g of gender lines , suggest -
ing th e possibilit y o f interactiv e relationships within th e previousl y
solitary pleasure s of commodit y fetishism . This ne w objec t o f desire ,
then, blende d wit h th e risin g aesthetic of rock'n'roll formalis m t o re-
inforce and make overt an already widespread American process of self-
production throug h prope r consumption. The notion that we are what
we consume an d tha t suc h habits of consumption alig n us with som e
groups an d distinguish u s from other s di d not requir e extensive theo-
retical argumen t i n order t o b e accepted by American rock'n'roll fans .
They ha d alway s distinguished themselve s by the musi c they enjoyed.
Thus, dislocated shard s of critical theory began to b e both articulate d
with an d spoken as rock'n'roll common sense.
Throughout 1976 and 1977, American rock'n'roll fan s devoure d th e
latest fanzines an d music papers from Ne w York and London. New Tork
Rocker, New Musical Express, Sniffin' Glue, Punk, Sounds, Trouser Press,
(and later, Slash and Flipside fro m Lo s Angeles) provided lessons on th e
meaning of punk an d how to bu y it. At one point , Trouser Press estab-
lished a "Rockline" that its readers could call three times a week for th e
latest-breaking "Ne w Wav e News." Ad s for recor d companies , cloth -
ing designers, an d other magazine s provided the operating revenue for
these journals of hip. The editorial content had only one goal, the pro-
mulgation o f prope r consumption . Thi s wa s an incredibl y important
task. As Tom Carson put it ,
Difficult a s it i s to sa y now, it' s probabl y true tha t what's goin g o n wil l be o f
large importanc e fo r th e futur e o f rock'n'roll, which is another way of saying
the futur e o f rebellio n in thi s country. . . . Anyone involved, even i n the mos t
peripheral way—anyone who buy s a record—shares some responsibility for the
way things eventually turn out.... It's time to cut out the faking and the sloppy
thinking and the inside jokes. . . . Let's have punk commandoes go out to make
raids on the countr y side, and a half-a-dozen goo d new bands with wit, verve,
and coo l enough t o sprea d the word. I mean, let's scrape the crap off th e wall
and get this fucking show on the road, man. 9
But th e force s o f mas s culture were a formidable adversary. In th e

March 197 7 issue of Ne w Tork Rocker, Alan Betrock critiqued the tigh t
integration among the recording industry and the businesses associated
Punk Rock a t Raul's I 9 5

with it . H e attacke d th e "recor d compan y ads and favor s [that ] kee p
most of the roc k press alive." According t o Betrock , economic depen -
dency on recor d compan y largesse was limiting the critica l capacity of
the rock press. "The vested and controlling interests are only concerned
with fosterin g th e incestuou s nature of the busines s and the product ,
and of controlling what's sold, how it's sold, and where it's sold." After
sounding a call to action , Betroc k somewhat hopefully conclude s that,
"the whol e structur e o f th e mas s media a s we no w kno w i t ma y b e
permanently altered." 10
These quote s illustrat e what Frith has referred t o a s "a people's ver-
sion o f consumerism, th e ide a that record buyer s had a right t o maxi-
mum marke t choice , tha t recor d buyin g should involv e customer ex -
pression rathe r than produce r manipulation. " Displaying an unspoken
intuition tha t the productio n o f subject positions was constrained and
enabled by the available discourses, and the recognition tha t identifica -
tion with th e image s and products of mass culture entailed a commit-
ment that implied a degree of risk, rock'n'roll fan s i n the United State s
began to demand from their musicians a certain independence from the
recording industry . Again in Frith's words,
Independence i n this context seemed to refer primarily to the question of artis-
tic control: the punks . .. assumed an opposition betwee n art and business, with
honesty on one side and bureaucracy on the other. .. . Their music was progres-
sive because it involved the direct expression of the people-as-artists . . . . Punk
messages could be distorted b y the process of commercial production, bu t only
if this process was in the wrong hands.. . .
These assumption s becam e the cor e belief s o f th e alternativ e record-
ing industry that developed in the United States throughout the 19805.
But i n 1977, such independence mean t relativ e isolation fro m the net-
works tha t distribute d cultura l informatio n an d product s acros s th e
geographic mas s o f Nort h America . The rock'n'rol l fa n who di d no t
live in New York or Los Angeles wa s forced to obtain all of his or he r
information a t the closest small independent record store. 11
These store s carrie d the magazine s discussed above along wit h im -
ported British singles and a selection of the growin g numbe r of inde -
pendent American releases. JEM Records, the New Jersey company that
pioneered nationwid e distribution o f imported rock'n'roll record s dur-
ing the seventies, serviced these independent record stores. JEM began
its operations whe n a market developed for British art-rock records for
which American companies had not picked up their options. It catered
to th e independen t specialt y stores that had developed a clientele who
believed in the rock-musician-as-artist ideology. With representatives in
London, JEM could impor t experimental, punk, and new wave singles
as soon as they were released. Within a few years, other recor d import-
ers (among them Greenworld and Important) would develop additional
distribution channel s that woul d becom e criticall y importan t ingredi -
ents in the development of the alternative recording industry, linking the
independent record stores of North America into overlapping commer-
cial networks tha t processe d both produc t an d information. In recor d
stores like Wax Trax in Chicago, Rhin o Record s in Los Angeles, Oar-
folkjokeopus i n Minneapolis, Rather Ripped in Berkeley, and Caper's
Corners i n Kansa s City, fan s bough t records , argue d wit h th e clerk s
about what were the most important releases (and "importance" was the
operative term) , an d posted sign s asking for like-minded musicians to
form bands with. The store that formed the center for all of this activity
in Austin was Inner Sanctum Records.
Throughout 1977 , a s disc o entrance d th e majorit y o f student s a t
the Universit y of Texas , and a s the loca l live musi c scene fought ove r
the possible frameworks in which to perfor m nostalgia, rock'n'roll fan s
would wander into Inner Sanctum and argue about punk rock with Neil
Ruttenberg an d Richar d Dorsett . Inne r Sanctu m Record s wa s where
Austin's punk fans first met each other, first listened to the new record-
ings being released, first tried to integrate elements of this new discourse
into their lives . Louis Blac k was a graduate student in the histor y and
criticism division of the Radio , Television, and Film department at the
university.
When I came back here in '76—'77 I was listening to progressiv e country, and
then gradually, because of Richard Dorsett who was working at Inner Sanctum,
I began listening more and more to punk. Yeah, and I was actually real resistant
at first. Richard and I got to be—I broke up with my girlfriend almost as soon
as I got here—an d I was horrible and miserable and Richard would come over
and go, well, you know, the Dictator s are playing at the Armadillo, you wanna
come? And I'd g o sure, and I'd come and I remember the Dictators cause they
just blew me away . And the n h e made me listen to lonatha n Richma n and h e
made me listen to th e Talking Heads, an d Elvis Costello. Almost all that stuff ,
the first time I heard it, i t was because he told m e it was great. And it took me
a while, it was like resistance, and then I think it was lonathan Richma n when
I finally, you know, I suddenly understood. I suddenly had this revelation, you
know, you go through these revelations, when you realize that music didn't have
to be that mature. 12
Among thos e fan s hangin g ou t a t Inner Sanctum , buyin g records ,

reading New York Rocker, and starting to talk about forming bands, was
a large contingent o f students from the Radio, Television, and Film and
the Communication s departments . Mos t o f thes e individuals—To m
Huckabee, Sally Norvell, Phil Tolstead, DaveCardwcll, Randy Franklin,

Dan Puckett , Bria n Hanscn, Joe l Richardson, Jef f Whittington , Nei l
Ruttenberg, and others—had come to Austin from other parts of Texas
and ha d chose n t o atten d UT's production-oriented communication s
school because they wanted to make movies or work in journalism. They
were entranced by punk rock, this art form tha t seemed so open. Tom
Huckabee was an aspiring filmmaker who soon was drumming for two
of the mos t importan t Raul's-er a bands, the Huns an d the Re*Cords .
For him, "Punk roc k was appealing because it demanded n o skill . We
were all dilettante artists and so an art which made no specifi c skil l de-
mands, which we could immediately pick up and begin performing, was
very appealing. And th e performanc e aspect was the mos t important .
Punk rock was not music to us, it was performance art."13
Many of these communication student s and "dilettante artists " were
sensitive to the spectacle produced in punk performance. They saw the
gap between the technical skills displayed by local professional musicians
involved in progressive country music and the need for an expressive art
form tha t coul d articulat e some of the immediat e local needs, desires ,
and frustrations of younger people in Austin. Soon the y would exploi t
this lack in local cultural production, and , by expanding the gap rather
than closing it and by importing a new set of aesthetic criteria, change
the way music was made in Austin.
Several o f thes e student s wer e writin g abou t pun k musi c an d it s
possible implication s for th e studen t newspaper , the Daily Texan. Jef f
Whittington, i n particular , was transcribing the nationa l and interna -
tional debates into locally comprehensible statements for the readers of
this paper . Looking back , Louis Black remarked on the importanc e of
his writings.
When yo u wer e saying , wh o wa s I reading , I wa s reading Jef f Whittington .
More than anybody else, I was reading Jeff Whittington. And what I liked about
Jeff Whittington was that Jeff was going to rave about th e Ramone s and he was
going to rave about Television but he was also going to rave about the Carpen-
ters. . . . Jeff Whittington was a cult figure. I mean, yeah, everybody would read
him. You waited till Monday to see what Jef f Whittington had to say. 14
Whittington wa s able to describe the rock'n'roll formalism that had

been worked out b y New York punk bands and critics in terms that stu-
dents a t th e Universit y of Texas , in a context o f receptio n dominate d
by alienation from th e famous local music scene, could understand an d
work with. In opposition to the reifications presente d in both progres-
sive country and white blues, punk rock's "roots are pure exhilaration,
pure noise , pur e energy, pure fun. Nothing fanc y abou t it , no t muc h
soloing, n o 'poetry ' for lyrics. And it doesn't muc h matter if the day's
D I S S O N A N T I D E N T I T I E S /9 8
musical convention s aren' t take n to o seriously. " Whittingto n argue d
that "serious" rock fans "miss the point i n assuming that rock and roll is
something that can be captured in a sequence of chords." Rock and rol l
is defined by what it communicates, "roc k an d roll feelings—feelings o f
energy, o f urgency , o f involvement. " These feeling s challeng e people ,
demanding a response, requirin g a demonstratively active participatio n
from the audience. Fo r Whittington, pun k represented a purification of
rock'n'roll, a return t o th e basi c function o f direct communicatio n o f
shared feeling s an d a renewal of th e contrac t betwee n performe r an d
audience tha t demande d a n interactive exchange of immediat e expres -
sions, determine d onl y b y the interdependen t coexistin g moment s o f
consumption an d production . Hi s advocac y of a return t o rock'n'rol l
basics reinvoked the mode of musical production and reception that had
dominated Austi n music during most of the previous fifteen years.15
Louis Blac k wa s als o writin g fo r th e Texan, a s were Nei l Rutten -
berg, Richar d Dorsett , and others o f the Inne r Sanctu m crowd. Their
articles contained shortene d versions of the debates they had been carry-
ing on with eac h other about musi c and culture, debates that had been
sparked by reading the national and international punk press and listen-
ing to punk music. In a review of Jonathan Richman, Black and Dorsett
wrote that
Criticism demands at least the appearance of objectivity, but when talking about
any art/entertainmen t form , i t i s usually only the appearance . Movies, music ,
paintings, dance, etc., must touch us in personal ways; in a sense, isn't that their
purpose? T o becom e obsesse d wit h forma l eleganc e and to announc e an d ar -
ticulate certain aesthetic rules that the object in question must completely fulfil l
in orde r t o b e worthwhil e i s foolish. There ar e forma l consideration s i n an y
genre, but i t is the way one interacts with what is taking place that is finally mos t
important.
In the months whe n the first local punk bands were forming, the Inne r
Sanctum crow d wa s articulating a position o n ho w pun k could mea n
in Texas, educatin g bot h musician s and fan s o n prope r consumption ,
the convention s o f pun k performance , an d receptio n aesthetics . Thi s
was pun k redefine d fo r Austin : a renewe d emphasi s o n loca l partici-
pation an d a guarantee of personal interaction between performer and
audience.16
Another earl y group of punk fans was made up of young local musi-
cians wh o fel t exclude d fro m th e remnant s o f th e progressiv e coun -
try scene . Include d i n thi s group wer e Kath y Valentine, Carl a Olson ,
Eddie Munoz, an d Jesse Sublett. In early 1977, Sublett an d Munoz met
Marilyn Dean and Kathy Valentine who, in Sublett's words , were "tw o

young tough rock'n'rol l chick s who smoke d cigarettes and wore black
leather and looked lik e Keith Richards." They were looking for women
with who m t o form an "all-girl punk band." Valentine had spent som e
time in London an d had brough t bac k with her a sense of excitement,
involvement, an d possibility derived from punk rock. By the end of the
year, Valentine and Dean had hooked u p with Carla Olson and formed
a band called the Violators. They had difficulty locatin g a bass player, so
Jesse Sublett woul d rehears e with them. B y January 1978, Sublet t ha d
booked a gig for the Violators a t a Mexican bar on Guadalup e Street.17
The Sun had been paying very little attention t o any aspects of punk
until th e Se x Pistols announce d tha t thei r tou r o f the State s include d
two night s i n Texas. Then th e Sun ran a story intended to answe r th e
question, "Wha t is punk? Is it an entirely new lifestyle of decadence re-
flecting th e anarch y and rebellio n o f disaffected Britis h youth, o r just
loud, fast musi c played amateurishly by scrawny 19-year-olds indistin-
guishable from their audience?" Clearly favoring the second interpreta-
tion, Sally Jones described a night she spent at a Boomtown Rat s show
in Londo n wher e the pun k fan s wer e really "nice, bourgeoi s 1 9 year-
olds—not dead-en d kids , bu t a bunc h o f harmles s 'rebels withou t a
cause,'" and the musicians were "generally middle-class boys cashing in
on th e Establishmen t money which promotes thei r concerts." Accord-
ing to Jones, sociological analyse s of punk "have entirely misjudged the
weight and seriousness of the revolution." Texans will have nothing to
fear fro m this circus, Jones reassured the Sun's readers , for all it creates
is a "fake anarchy, a fashionable affectation." I8
On Januar y 8, 1978, the Se x Pistols playe d a t a renovated bowlin g
alley in Sa n Antonio called Randy's Rodeo . The da y before th e show ,
they wandered aroun d Austin, going t o movies, slipping into clubs to
drink a beer and smash a bottle, starin g at the students, and making fun
of loca l musicians. McLaren took advantag e of every gathering crow d
to sprea d hi s standar d Se x Pistols promotiona l rhetoric , i n a n effor t
to construc t a n educated audienc e in Texas similar t o tha t the Pistol s
entertained i n England."
Every member o f Austin's fledglin g punk scene drove dow n Inter -
state 35 to Sa n Antonio that night, even those who ha d conflicting en-
gagements. Loui s Blac k was invited to a wedding part y that evening ,
but he went to the show afterward .
Cowboy wa s going to ge t marrie d the sam e night a s the Se x Pistols. S o first
we went t o th e ol d Soa p Cree k u p i n the hill s where he was getting married .
And w e sa w Alvin Cro w an d there was a buffet an d a whole bunch of us, yo u
know, Ruttenber g an d Richar d Dorsett . An d w e all ate an d listene d t o Alvi n
D I S S O N A N T I D E N T I T I E S/ T OO
Crow fo r a n hour. Then w e got i n our car s an d w e drove an hour and a half
south, walked into Randy's Rodeo, and in the back, there's these leisure-suited
people who were , like, obviousl y friend s o f the owne r who ha d t o com e see
what thi s was. The plac e was packed. And the n the Se x Pistols come out o n
stage an d I ha d never seen anything like this. I mean, it was like—it wasn't as
religious for me as it was for other people. When you look back at it, the num-
ber of bands that formed out of that night, you know, in the moment when Sid
took his bass and smashed it into the audienc e and Johnny Rotten goes , "Oh ,
Sid's dropped his bass." Every moment of this, you watched it. There was very
little music. They didn't do a whole lot of songs. It was more like screaming and
yelling and spitting and the audience spitting back. It was just, you knew music
was never going to b e the same . I remember walking in. I don't remembe r a
whole lo t o f concerts. I've seen hundreds, but yo u remember the Se x Pistols,
even though it wasn't even what I would have wanted, which was like a rousing
version of "Anarchy in the U.K." or something like that. It wasn't a galvanizing
musical moment. If anything, it was antimusical. But it was galvanizing at th e
same time.20
Three days later, Jef f Whittington' s review of the concer t appeare d

in the Daily Texan. In it, Jeff tried to puzzle out the reality of the experi-
ence. The band an d the crowd had behaved strangely, creating a feeling
of emotional intensity. "A fairly constant rain of beer cans, paper, cloth-
ing, an d food lande d onstage while the band played." But much of this
behavior seeme d lik e the audienc e was doing wha t i t was supposed t o
do, a s though the rock'n'rol l audienc e i n central Texas was acting self -
consciously lik e punks. "The apparen t volatility of the audience reflected
the popula r stereotyp e o f violence at punk-rock concerts in England—
a stereotyp e whic h ha s little basi s i n reality. " But thi s performanc e of
punk artifice was disturbingly convincing. "There wa s something schiz -
oid about th e event—at times it seemed that cans and firecrackers were
being throw n i n a twisted spiri t o f fun, a t other time s genuin e malic e
seemed to b e the motive . . . . All through the show i t was difficult t o
be sure which emotions, on the par t of the group an d of the audience ,
were real and which were feigned—what was pretense and what was in
earnest." Whittington's reactio n was precisely that desired by McLaren.
The distinctio n betwee n spectacl e an d reality had bee n deconstructe d
to the extent that the most knowledgeable local critic could not discer n
any difference betwee n them. 21
Whittington's story did not mentio n th e event that dominated loca l
television news coverage, the moment when Sid Vicious swung his bass
into th e audienc e i n a n ineffectiv e attac k on a heckler. He wa s muc h
more intrigue d an d troubled b y his own inability to rea d this concert ,
the fac t tha t h e was unable t o establis h a coherent interpretatio n an d
create a singl e stabl e meaning b y which t o explai n the Se x Pistols i n
Texas. Hi s onl y conclusio n wa s that a performance mediu m s o satu -
Punk Rock a t Raul's I TO T

rated in contradictory expectations and so intertwined with systems of
mass communication an d production coul d tak e hold anywhere , wit h
unpredictable results . "One observer stated that the English punk scene
was largely created by London trendsetter s copying what they thought
was happenin g i n a Ne w Yor k scen e that wa s stil l largel y embryoni c
at th e time—an d th e Ne w Yor k scen e onl y flourishe d whe n i t bega n
copying England . A simila r by-the-bootstraps tren d emergenc e coul d
conceivably take place here." Before th e end of the year, Whittington's
prediction would come true.22
Roy Gome z wa s a successfu l Kentuck y Fried Chicke n distributo r
who wante d t o establis h a bar on the west sid e that woul d featur e live
performances by some of central Texas's best Tex-Mex bands. He bought
an ol d ba r centrall y located o n th e dra g an d change d it s nam e fro m
Gemini's t o Raul's . H e hired Joseph Gonzalez , Jr., to manage the bar,
and the tw o of them bega n to boo k band s like Ruben Ramo s an d the
Mexican Revolution, Littl e Jo e y la Familia and Salaman . These band s
had successfu l recordin g career s and toured extensivel y throughout th e
southwest and the midwest, sometimes going a s far north as Michigan.
They represented a popular musical culture with demonstrated audience
appeal, yet which had n o regula r performance sit e on th e west sid e of
Austin. Tex-Mcx musicians operated in an entirely different worl d fro m
that know n a s the Austin music scene. Gonzalez and Gomez wanted t o
bring performance s o f Tcx-Mex music to th e universit y area an d were
convinced tha t thi s projec t woul d b e profitable . Their origina l book -
ing polic y at Raul' s reflecte d a n emerging Chicano cultural awareness
and a political movement tha t had ties both to th e university's stron g
Mexican-American Studies program an d to the growing economi c an d
political importance of Austin's Chicano population. 23
One night a week, Raul's would book non-Tex-Mex acts. These bands
tended to play jazz or other styles of music ignored by the mainstream
of the Austin music scene. On occasional Thursday nights, Project Ter-
ror would play a fusion-humor-jazz stylisticall y similar to some of Frank
Zappa's ensembles . They ha d a gig on Januar y iz, four days afte r th e
Sex Pistols performance in San Antonio. The week before, Jesse Sublett
had talked Josep h Gonzale z int o addin g the Violators to thi s bill . The
Sun announced the event in a small blurb on their "Inside Austin" page,
with th e headlin e "Austi n Goe s Punk. " But Sublet t go t sick , and th e
Violators ha d to cance l this first announced punk show in Austin. The
next open nigh t fo r punk at Raul's was January z8.24
In th e meantime , Sublett , Munoz , an d Bill y Blackmo n too k th e
glitter-blues music they had been playing, sped up the tempos, flattened
D I S S O N A N T I D E N T I T I E S / TO2 .
out th e melodies , reduce d th e lyrica l conten t t o th e mos t elementar y
expressions o f pun k frustration , and the n coate d thi s ban d i n a self -
reflexive protectio n agains t charges of incompetenc e by calling them-
selves the Skunks . If they could clai m that their poin t was deliberately
to make bad music ("Our music stinks!"), then they could ward off criti-
cisms from the local music establishment. Sublett has described the Sex
Pistols' Sa n Antoni o performanc e as "more o f a manipulation thing ,
more of a spectacle than music. " Even when he fel t physicall y excited
and emotionally engaged by the Sex Pistols' album, or by the music that
he was playin g wit h th e Violator s an d th e Skunks , Sublett remaine d
convinced tha t th e simplicit y of punk's musica l structures rendere d i t
illegitimate. The dominant identification of the musicians in the Skunks
had bee n wit h th e flashy guitar wor k an d th e suppl e rhythms of th e
blues scene . I n thei r own eyes , the Skunk s were merely a joke, some-
thing to do, and punk was a fashion, a trend to play with, a way to draw
a new audience. Not intereste d i n exposing the structur e of this spec-
tacle, merely taken by the way in which it energized audienc e response,
Sublett jumped o n the trend. He cut his hair short and rebooked th e
Violators and the Skunk s for January z8th at Raul's. 25
The Surfs promotiona l blur b for this show included a defensive Sub-
lett quote about the musical skills of both bands. "You can be interesting
without being commercially, technically adept. Be short and sweet, fast,
without tha t muc h bullshi t . . . [sic ] sometimes a lead break—that' s
it. We work harde r when we play than most musicians. " Here Sublet t
justified punk' s rock'n'rol l minimalis m by means of a work ethi c an d
an anticommercia l rhetori c designed t o make punk more amenabl e t o
Austin audiences . But i n the sam e article, the women i n the Violator s
insisted o n th e musica l basis o f thei r performance . "It' s a shame th e
punk media doesn't refe r t o th e music at all. It's no t socia l statements;
it's a musical statement," Olson said. "We'll play anywhere people want
to get down and have a good time." While the men needed to distance
themselves from th e contemporary standards, the women wanted to be
taken seriously as musicians. In bot h cases , fun was the object . In line
with th e Sun's positio n o n th e Englis h phenomenon, pun k in Austin
was represented as simply about having a good time.26
Sublett had expected both bands to attract the Inner Sanctum crowd;
that wa s the poin t behin d billin g themselves as punks. While they di d
draw some of the punk fans, the Violators found that a significant pro-
portion o f thei r audienc e consiste d o f the "leathe r girl s crowd . The y
were way into th e Violator s fro m th e beginning. " The wome n i n th e
Violators fel t n o nee d t o distanc e themselves fro m th e musica l impor-

tance o f thei r performance s because there ha d bee n ver y few femal e
musicians in either the progressive country or the white blues scenes in
Austin. Women had been mainly singers in both of these genres. Valen-
tine's an d Olson' s emphasi s o n th e productio n o f fu n throug h thei r
guitar playin g ( a "musica l statement " playe d "anywhere peopl e wan t
to ge t down" ) opene d a new se t of musical pleasures fo r women an d
helped t o establish an overlap between a growing women's musi c scene
and th e rock'n'rol l scen e in Austin. Before th e en d o f the year, Valen-
tine an d Olso n woul d mov e to Lo s Angeles. However , b y that poin t
the Violator s ha d alread y performed the pun k rock deconstruction o f
long-standing barrier s to women's participatio n in musical production
for a n audience of loca l women eage r to hea r women pla y loud musi c
and eage r t o begi n performin g themselves . Thus on e o f th e primar y
and most long-lastin g effects o f the musical statements of the Violators
came from their local performance of new possibilities for identification,
pleasure, and musical production amon g women in Austin.27
From th e first local punk show i n Austin, members of the audienc e
were duplicating the rowdy cup-throwing behavior they had either wit-
nessed or read about occurring at the Sex Pistols' shows. At first, Joseph
Gonzalez did not approve of this crude behavior in his club, and he kept
the punk shows limited to one or two nights a month. In the meantime,
the Armadillo began to book some of the national punk bands that were
touring th e country, drawing some of the new generation of college stu-
dents back into the huge hall. Tom Huckabec was making videos of fans
singing Ramones' song s from the top of nearby hills. Skip Seven and Ty
Gavin formed the Next, and this band began to share the punk nights at
Raul's wit h th e Skunk s and the Violators. Richar d Dorsett wa s raving
about th e Next an d the Dictators with one breath behind the counters
at Inner Sanctum . Jeff Whittington wa s reviewing the Ramones' second
album and the Talking Heads' second albu m in the student paper. Mor e
students bega n to atten d pun k nights at Raul's. Gradually, these night s
became th e centra l event for a growing crowd made up o f Inner Sanc -
tum customers , communication s students , writers for th e Daily Texan
(with severa l individuals filling all three of these roles), gays, lesbians,
and alienated musicians, in a self-defined celebratio n of marginalizatio n
that eventually made sense to the Chicano management of the bar. This
marginalization was experienced at a variety of different level s by each
of the groups . Bu t th e discourse s tha t discipline d these differen t mar-
gins fed on each other, reinforcing the semiotic display of alienation and
refusal tha t grew i n intensity as each group was linked to it. 28
Like folksinging in the early sixties, punk was a musical practice that
differentiated amon g Austin's university students. Throughout the pro-
gressive countr y era , music in Austin eithe r succeede d o r faile d i n at -
tracting students . Amon g clu b owners, student s wer e conceive d o f as
a monolithi c audienc e bloc tha t coul d mean th e differenc e betwee n a
night that made money or one that went bust. Raul's wa s the first club
in te n year s (since th e closin g o f th e Vulca n Ga s Co.) tha t presente d
music designe d t o attrac t onl y a subgrou p withi n th e students . On e
ritual of audience participation a t Raul's marked this distinction. I t in-
volved screaming th e names of hated popular musicians and requesting
the mos t despise d songs . Despise d musi c was commercially successfu l
music, hated becaus e it was the musi c favored b y the undifferentiate d
mass of college students . Pun k at Raul's constructed a pop cultur e elit-
ism. Many punk fans at Raul's were college students who believed them-
selves to b e smarter than most college students (tha t is, more culturally
adept), an d th e evidenc e fo r thei r superiorit y was their appreciatio n
of thi s "smart " musi c mos t colleg e student s coul d no t stand . Withi n
this discourse of distinction, commo n college student musical taste was
associated with the social groups that made up the memberships of fra-
ternities and sororities—the dominant social groups on campus. Thus,
as punk repeated many of the strategies utilized by Austin's folksingin g
students fifteen year s before, i t revived th e honky-ton k setting a s a site
for musicalize d critique.
That summer Phil Tolstead an d Dan Puckett, both students enrolle d
in the College of Communications, bega n to plan their own band. Tol-
stead and Puckett were fans of punk rock. They had been following the
movement i n the pres s and listening to the musi c on th e records , an d
they were frustrated by the absence of "real punks" in Austin. When they
began seriousl y to put their band together, the y were joined by Manny
Rosario, a tough-talking Puerto Rican guitarist, and Tom Huckabee on
drums. Together, th e Hun s wante d to combin e som e o f the element s
they had bee n reading about i n their courses in the university with th e
music an d th e fashion s o f punk, an d to creat e a band that woul d per -
form all of the relevant contradictions at once. It seemed to Huckabee as
though "the Se x Pistols had established an audience for what we wanted
to do. They gave it a name—punk rock." The "manipulation thing" that
Sublett found demeanin g in punk was precisely the meaningfu l aspec t
that attracted these young musicians. The Huns "wanted to be the shock
rock band of the world. We had big ambitions."29
The Huns' first show was scheduled for September 19,1978, at Raul's.
This performance was designed for a specific audience. Just as McLaren
had aime d the Se x Pistols at ar t student s in England , the Hun s wer e

conceptualized a s a spectacle for the pun k rock fans who were student s
at the University of Texas. They printed up and distributed posters de-
rived from Jamie Reid's Situationist-influenced work for the Sex Pistols.
The poster s wer e no t nearl y so sophisticate d a s Reid's recor d covers ,
carrying slogans like , "Legalize Crime," an d "No Police. " But the word
spread throughou t the communications schoo l that this show was not
to be missed. This band was to be Austin's answer to the Sex Pistols and
to all of punk rock. "We wanted to start with a bang."3(1
"At nin e o'cloc k o n Tuesda y evening, Raul' s i s almost filled : it's al-
ready difficult t o find seats. The crow d is heavy with regulars , some o f
whom tak e advantage of the situation to sport hard-core pun k regalia :
safety pins, ripped shirts with hand-scrawled messages, black makeup."
So begin s Whittington' s stor y o n th e "rumbl e a t Raul's. " A s par t o f
the performance, members of the audience "sport" the appropriate cos-
tumes an d prepare for their role in the show. They are "animated, sur-
prisingly loose for a Tuesday night."31
The openin g ac t wa s Col d Sweat , wit h Stev e Chanc y o n guitar .
Chaney's narrative of hi s night a t Raul's emphasize s the animate d an d
supportive characte r of the audience.
Our ban d i s playing ou r set , and I've never reall y played o n a concert stage.
Here w e were, i n a packed club. We play nine songs, completel y incompetent .
At one point we almost completely break down. We didn't hav e it together, and
the crowd, they were like cheering us on. It was like you were on the ropes, and
they were like , come on, com e on, just take the standin g 8 count an d get back
in, you'll finish the round. And that's, it was amazing, you know. They were like
Yeah! And we were like , wow, that's the worst version of "I Fought the Law"
I've ever heard. But they liked it.32
Between Cold Sweat's performance and the appearance of the Huns

on stage , Whittington stood outsid e o f the club, debating wit h othe r
fans th e meanin g o f Devo' s firs t album . Inside , a numbe r o f almos t
stereotypical pun k actions took place. A roadie yelled "Achtung!" into a
microphone; member s o f the audienc e yelled back. Some of the Huns
wandered aroun d th e crow d "exchangin g verba l shrapnel wit h pass -
ersby." When th e ban d reached the stage, Tolstead snappe d i n his best
Rottenesque, "We're no t her e for your entertainment ; you're her e fo r
ours."33
In a manner derive d fro m th e Se x Pistols, the Huns wanted t o con-
front and negate the expectations of their audience. Many of their effort s
at negatio n le d the m int o standar d pun k roc k conventions : th e at -
tempted detournement o f Naz i regali a an d the Getma n language ; th e
almost ritualized displays of antagonism between the band and the audi-
ence. Bu t th e loca l contex t dominated the meanin g of thes e symbolic
gestures. Instea d o f Marci a Ball' s searchin g out th e eye s o f he r fans ,
striving t o sincerel y communicat e heartfel t emotion s an d construc t a
communion of dancing souls, the Huns were working to display contra-
diction an d antagonism . I n contras t t o progressiv e country's pastora l
poetry, pun k rock was a means to express strong negative feelings abou t
their world . "W e ha d rea l fantasies abou t blowin g i t al l up. W e defi -
nitely wante d t o sti r th e shit, " say s Huckabee . Th e Hun s wante d t o
create within Raul' s a vortex of symbolic destruction that would disable
communication, reac h beyon d th e basi c convention s o f musica l per -
formance, an d involv e their audience i n a ritual of self-hate . B y piling
antagonism o n antagonism , throug h a constant disruptio n o f expecta-
tion, the Hun s intende d t o creat e an overwhelming sense of negativity
that would transform all who experience d it.34
But their audienc e was hip to the show. They got it, they knew what
was expecte d o f the m an d the y wante d t o participat e in thi s mutua l
construction o f negativity. The same audience that cheered on the wob-
bling performanc e of the more standard band, Cold Sweat, was willing
to remak e itsel f for the Huns . Lik e the goo d sport s the y were , thi s
already knowin g audience proudly, self-consciousl y acte d lik e punks —
throwing pape r cup s an d bee r a t th e performers , screaming obsceni-
ties, rushin g th e stage—joyfull y performin g their assigned rol e in this
deconstruction o f the traditiona l musical experience. It was good fun.
When Tolstea d san g a few bars of "Puppy Love, " members of the audi-
ence knew that they were supposed to throw ice. During the third song,
fans rushe d th e stag e an d carrie d parts o f the dru m ki t out ont o th e
dance floor, rendering obvious the point that this performance involved
so muc h mor e tha n th e peopl e onstage . Tw o songs later , a group o f
fans dumpe d a full garbag e can onto the stage , spewing smashed an d
torn paper cups, broken bottles, an d a spray of stale beer across the per-
formers. Meanwhile th e Huns playe d songs lik e "I'm Gla d He's Dead, "
about the assassination of John Kennedy, and "You Bores Me," an attack
on the Skunks.
During th e next song, "Eat Deat h Scum," Cit y of Austin police offi -
cer Stev e Bridgewate r entered th e club , ostensibl y answerin g a nois e
complaint. H e stoo d b y th e doo r fo r a few moments, observin g th e
appearance o f chaos aroun d him . I n th e middl e o f the song , Tolstea d
spotted Bridgewater, pointe d hi s ringer at him and, improvising a new
line, chanted , " I hat e you, I hat e you." Slowly , Bridgewate r mad e his
way throug h th e crowd , approachin g th e stag e a s if draw n ther e b y
Tolstead's pointing finger. Tolstead continue d to chant "I hate you, Eat
Death Scum, " a t th e polic e officer , whil e Bridgewater stood tw o fee t

away fro m th e singer , leanin g i n close r and close r toward him . From
Huckabee's perspective, the two appeared to be nearly nose to nose, as
if performing a n odd duet : Tolstea d singin g the authorit y of the per-
former, the police officer silentl y representing the authority of the state.
Inching close r together o n the stage of Raul's, thes e clashing frames o f
interpretative authority could not remain in perpetual equilibrium.
Bridgewater screame d ove r th e music , orderin g Tolstea d t o stop .
With the co p only inche s from hi s face, th e singe r leaned over and, in
another gesture of disrupted expectation, kissed the cop on the lips. This
disturbance o f gende r rule s was more disorde r tha n th e office r coul d
stand. H e snatche d a t the singer' s wris t an d slippe d one handcuf f o n
him. The singer grabbed the microphone with his left hand and shouted
out ove r the P.A. , "Star t a riot. Star t a riot." Two men dressed i n polo
shirts an d gimme caps jumped up fro m th e audience onto the stage to
help th e co p subdu e th e singer . The secon d handcuf f wa s attached as
both of the singer' s arm s were forced behin d his back. Other members
of th e audienc e jumped onto th e stag e platform to hel p thei r friend s
who ha d gotten int o a fight with thes e strangers . The club' s bouncer ,
Bobby Morales, tried to pull the strangers off the stage. The drummer,
bass player, and organist continued to play. The police officer pulle d ou t
his radio and called for assistance. Manny Rosario, the guitarist, echoe d
the gesture of Sid Vicious at Randy's Rodeo and swung his guitar over
his head, smashing the radio out of the officer's hand. The officer whirled
around and , with on e punch, sen t Manny flying through th e air. The
instant he hit the ground, th e guitar player was up and running out th e
back door. Uniformed police officers swarme d into the club, the music
came to a halt, and the audience stood around in shocked dismay, as the
performance was finally completely disrupted.
The polic e arrested six people: Tolstead, Morales , and four fans , in -
cluding Nick Barbaro and Richard Dorsett. All were charged with par-
ticipating in a riot. The two men in gimme caps and polo shirts who had
jumped onstage were revealed to be undercover police officers. They had
radioed in the noise complaint from the club's bathroom. When Bridge-
water called for help from th e front o f the stage, the police departmen t
responded with approximately fifteen units. Within minutes, the polic e
had blocked offGuadalupe stree t and cleared out the nightclub.35
The remainin g Huns—Huckabee , Puckett , an d Joel Richardson —
found themselve s at Bert Crews's apartment near police headquarters.
There the y spen t th e night , callin g lawyers, trying to ge t thei r singe r
out of jail, and trying to find their guitar player. They were furious with
the police , bu t th e iron y wa s that, withou t thei r official intervention ,
the evening's performanc e would no t hav e achieved the band' s goa l of
"stirring the shit." Although thei r intensified display of semiotic contra -
diction had provoked a violent response ou t o f th e audience, up to th e
moment when th e uniforme d polic e office r entere d th e room , the vio-
lence ha d bee n performe d withi n quotation marks , by an audienc e i n
on th e joke, awar e that the y were only helping t o creat e a simulacrum
of a simulacrum—copying London, copyin g New York, learning from
representations foun d in newspapers and on records , analyze d in class-
rooms and privat e discussions. It was all a play of signs and al l in good
fun. Bu t once police officer Stev e Bridgcwater entered the club the ma-
terial effect s o f clashin g loca l code s wer e made immediatel y evident .
Those audienc e member s wh o share d th e interpretativ e fram e o f th e
Huns had been participating in a performance of "violence"; thos e audi-
ence members trained to impos e socia l control quickl y moved t o sup -
press the violence they saw. The Huns and the police together succeede d
in creating a relatively clear demonstration o f the materia l and polyse -
mous natur e o f th e sign , a s well a s the power tha t ca n be brough t t o
bear in order to enforce one specific meaning of a sign when conflicting
social interests ar e involved.
A storm o f interpretative acts took plac e that night an d the next few
days. Manny Rosari o caugh t a bus out o f town an d did no t retur n for
three weeks; the violent expression of police authority carried no ambi-
guity for him at all. Across the street from Raul's, writers for the studen t
newspaper were filing stories criticizing the police for not being cultur-
ally aware. According to the Daily Texan, the police had simply failed t o
understand pun k conventions. Bridgewater was accused of not knowin g
the differenc e betwee n "Life " and "Art." However, th e student writer s
had faile d t o comprehen d th e radica l natur e of the detournement tha t
had bee n achieved . Even as they worked t o reestablis h the distinction s
between symbolic expression and material reality, posters began appear-
ing on th e dra g proclaimin g "N o Huns , N o Fun, " an d showing Stev e
Bridgewater's polic e badge under the caption, "Kill Steve Bridgewater,
Pig, Pig. " Th e cop assigned t o the drag beat arreste d Bert Crew s with
posters in hand, initially charging him with terrorism. The entire thirty-
six-hour-long even t ha d bee n a triumph o f Situationis t intervention .
State authorit y ha d bee n so threatened b y the possibilit y of a differen t
system of cultural meaning that postin g flyers on the drag had becom e
an act of terrorism.36
Joseph Gonzalez was outraged that his bouncer, Bobby Morales, had
been arreste d fo r trying t o brea k up a fight. "Our securit y was tryin g
to brea k it up and [th e police ] clubbe d him . [Th e plainclothesman ]

never identifie d himself. Nobody her e was fighting, it was part o f th e
act." The police action cemented the relationship between Gonzalez and
his young white customers . An editorial i n Thursday's Texan mad e ex-
plicit th e temporar y allianc e between pun k an d Hispanic subcultures .
"If Bridgewater's unwarranted, irresponsible actions reflect the prevail-
ing mentality down a t APD, the n it' s muc h easier for us to understan d
why police billy-clubbe d Chicanos last April during a boat race demon-
stration."37
Three weeks later, in a judicial act of interpretation, Phil Tolstead was
convicted o n a charge of disorderly conduct. Judge Steve Russell based
his verdict o n the opinio n tha t "Tolstea d displaye d assaultive behavior
toward Bridgewater. " The decision of the court was that Tolstead's ges -
tures, hi s singing, an d his kiss constituted assault , justifying the closin g
down of the performance and the handcuffing an d jailing of six persons
from the club. The Huns had indeed given a powerful performance, fa r
different fro m th e traditional display of moral authority or the commu -
nication o f shared feelings. Obviously, punk could not represent merely
a contrasting choic e in the marketplac e of Austin music. The respons e
of the criminal justice system declared that the Huns and their fans had
rudely violated the boundaries of legitimate expression. This rock'n'rol l
truly challenged people. It was not safe to like it; you could get beat with
a bill y club; you could get arrested . The abilit y to derive pleasure from
punk rock gave an instant aura of danger, independence , and power t o
any individual. Clearly different fro m a taste for any other music , liking
punk roc k seemed to produc e momentar y experiences for middle-clas s
Anglo-Texans aki n t o th e everyda y life o f Black s o r Hispanics . Soo n
Raul's was packed every night wit h student s longing for that identit y
streaked with powe r and danger.38
Punk roc k a t Raul's migh t hav e been "performance art," bu t i t was
also music, a music that generate d th e physical energy that distribute d
erotic charges throughout the chambers at the heart of the scene. Young
people picke d u p guitar s an d drum s an d keyboards an d microphone s
and played and sang songs. The songs had chords and melodies and beats
and words. However importan t a n underlying concep t o r a theatrica l
component was to any band's performin g style, the core of this signify -
ing practice was music; the participants were music fans and musicians.39
The musica l aesthetic at Raul' s operate d o n principle s of transgres-
sion an d inversion , derive d fro m th e critica l function o f thi s practic e
in the ver y construction o f the scen e itself. The professiona l musician,
able to provide disinterested renditions of popular songs , was despised.
It was absolutely essential for the pun k performer to provide some evi-
D I S S O N A N T I D E N T I T I E S / JI O
dencc tha t h e or sh e was risking some component o f his or her being ,
was negatin g thei r identit y i n a n interpla y with th e abject , wa s ques-
tioning in some way the construction o f the positio n fro m whic h they
performed. Fo r some , merel y daring t o sin g a song wit h n o obviou s
musical training was risk enough. The much-vaunted musical virtuosity
displayed i n th e progressiv e countr y an d whit e blue s scenes was no t
valued; in fact, musica l simplicity was emphasized as a means of open-
ing the path t o th e stage . Bu t this simplicity remained the quality of a
music powerful enough t o carr y the lyric , rhythmic, and harmonic ex-
pressions of an underlying semiotic disassociation and, at the same time,
to produc e a "freeing situation" capable of sparking the recombinatio n
of represse d element s o f th e huma n i n a search for ne w identities . I n
the scen e that germinate d a t Raul's and soon spread into other venues ,
the performanc e of rock'n'rol l musi c in the carnivalesqu e arena of th e
honky-tonk again became available as an organizing frame fo r the plea -
surable display of the negativit y and contradiction that derive from th e
semiotic production of the subject. 40
A close look a t two song s fro m thi s period wil l map out th e rang e
of the musical and lyrical construction and deconstruction of subjective
possibilities i n this scene. The Huns' "Glad He' s Dead " was performed
at thei r firs t show an d becam e a regular part of their repertoire . They
released it on their own label, God Records, in 1979. The recording dis-
plays the stylisti c debt th e Hun s owe d t o th e Se x Pistols, and in many
ways this song is the "God Sav e the Queen" of the Raul's era. It begin s
with eighth note s on the kick-drum setting a rapid puls e that does not
vary throughout the duration of the song. A distorted rhythm guitar and
bass enter, stabbing on an off-beat a t a D chord, and then pounding th e
remainder of the bar on an A, before beginning the harmonic structure
of the verse: an alternation of measures between the tonic E and an odd
G-sharp major. The harmonic tension produced in this chord structure,
playing off the expecte d transition to the subdominant A, is a relatively
common trait for a great dea l of punk rock, owing a t least partially to
the simplicit y of it s execution. Da n Puckett' s voice screeches the first
lines in a generic Johnny Rotten sneer . "He sol d us all the Ba y of Pigs .
He gave our school s u p to the nigs." "Nigs" receives an additional em-
phatic marker as Puckett squeezes a half-note rise out o f an extension of
the vowel sound. While the guitars shift betwee n the subdominant (A)
and the dominant (B) , the other members of the band chant the chorus
in a monotone background to Puckett's scream: "I'm gla d he's dead, the
fucking red . I helped Le e Oswald shoot hi m in the head. " After thre e
verses attack John Kennedy for his Catholicism, the Cuban missile crisis,
Punk Rock at Raul's I 111

the deat h of Marilyn Monroe, Viet Nam, as well as the Bay of Pigs and
the integration of southern schools, the final verse describes the assassi-
nation scen e and declares, "Lee Harve y Oswald, America's friend." The
song ends with laughter resounding over the whine of guitar feedback ,
while the pick-up switch clicks off and on.
Musically, the song is generic punk rock, from its opening drumbeat,
distorted guita r tones , an d rhythmi c accents to it s closin g feedback .
Lyrically, th e son g stumbles through a n unsubtle assault o n th e Ken-
nedy myth. No t particularl y clever , "Glad He' s Dead " appears o n th e
surface a s only so much outrageous noise. But by imaginatively return-
ing this song to its more common performance context within the scene
at Raul's (where , undoubtedly, the musical and vocal execution would
become mor e haphazard tha n th e recorde d version) , we can begin t o
ask what subject positions are produced within "Glad He's Dead. " How
does this musical text help to establis h a structure of identificatio n for
its fans ?
From the stage of Raul's, surrounded by fans throwing ice and dump-
ing garbag e pails , Pucket t sings the belief s o f th e red-blooded , right -
wing, white Texan male—that traditional identity which punk in Austin
refuses. However , th e first response upon listenin g to thi s son g i s not
revulsion bu t laughter. The inversion of the moral and social order (th e
working-class, racist , reactionar y Texan celebrating the murde r of th e
privileged, progressive , east-coast president) alon g with th e grotesqu e
image of the Kenned y myth produced i n the lyric s (includin g descrip-
tions o f th e presiden t o n hi s knees befor e th e Pope , o f th e exten t o f
his sexua l urges , an d finally of hi s brain s on Jackie' s coat) , create s so
powerful a shock that th e immediat e response can only be laughter—
that bodily recognitio n o f the "contradictory and double-faced fullnes s
of life. " Whe n Pucket t laugh s a t th e en d o f th e song , h e enunciates
that sam e laughte r whic h th e son g provokes . Constructed betwee n a
laughing audienc e an d a laughin g singer , th e identifyin g structur e is
neither th e hallowe d myt h of Kenned y righteousness , nor th e cracker
who claim s to hav e helped Oswal d with th e assassination , but instea d
has become the subjec t of laughter, "an interior form of truth . . . that
liberates fro m th e fea r . . . o f the sacred , of prohibitions, o f the past ,
of power." Thus, "Glad He's Dead " is not s o much a depiction of Ken-
nedy, Oswald, an d th e event s in Dallas than i t is a critique of cultural
authority in two of its most effective local forms: the regional authorit y
of the cracker father an d the national authority of the generatio n tha t
claims the myth of Camelot and the slain president. Both are laughingly
dismissed ove r a scream of electronic feedback.41
A similar critique of power an d authority is maintained in an other -
wise quit e differen t son g b y th e Reversibl e Cords, "Bi g Peni s Envy. "
The Re*Cord s performed o n the sidewalks and in the capitol, as well as
in the clubs of Austin. Displaying their musical ineptitude lik e a badge
of honor , th e Rc*Cord s embodie d mor e completel y tha n an y other
band in Austin th e belief that you do not hav e to be a musician to pla y
punk. A s many of their performance s were with acousti c instruments ,
they ofte n wer e not eve n loud. Rathe r tha n promulgating dange r and
negativity lik e the Huns, the Re*Cords set themselves up as the "court
jesters" of the scene. "Big Penis Envy" was first performed a t the 12.0 6
Club in Austin and was released in 1980 on the band's only album.
The son g begins with a fragile, tentativ e guitar line that searche s for
its notes, i n a n immediatel y evident inversio n o f the masculin e powe r
chords commo n to punk. It then flows into a descending chord chang e
(A—G(|— F(t—E), played to a rudimentary shuffle rhyth m weakly tapped
out o n a snare drum. The recording features alt o and tenor saxophone s
slithering through their ranges, in uncanny imitation of the atonal vocal-
izings of the singer, who begins the song with a rising wail. "Sometimes,
when we make it, I'm scared I'm going to fall right in. I've got big penis
envy, Da-da, da-da, da-da, da." Dada indeed, the singer bemoans his di-
minutive penis, the size of a twig, smaller even than the three-inch tool
of those expert s who insist that size is not important . Throughout this
inversion of the stiff , assertiv e model of masculine authority, vocal lines
waver and tremble , th e guita r limps through it s licks, th e drum s see m
incapable o f regula r rhythms . The sol e lyrica l passag e state d wit h an y
sort of assumed authorit y i s the bridge : " I wish I ha d a penis the siz e
of Alcatraz. Peopl e woul d bo w belo w it , an d it would hav e pizzazz. I
know tha t this is not m y fate, I' m destine d t o b e razzed. Don't say I'm
inadequate, uh-uh, I know it. "
It doe s no t tak e a great dea l of Lacania n trainin g to interpre t thi s
description o f the priso n hous e o f the phallu s and it s effects , bu t i t is
worthwhile t o poin t ou t th e direc t line s the Re * Cords dra w betwee n
their send-up of patriarchal power and their parody of punk rock's musi-
cal aggression. The song constructs a musical arena of weak boundaries,
easily permeated. Th e verse slides into th e chorus , voca l lines overlap,
the tonalitie s o f th e saxophone s imitat e th e whimperin g voic e whil e
constructing tangentia l melodies. When the bridge arrives and all the in-
struments begi n to play in time, the audience affirmatively shout s along ,
"Don't say I'm inadequate , uh-uh! " In "Big Penis Envy" the Re*Cords
perform thei r ow n an d thei r audience' s placemen t i n a Symboli c stil l
constituted b y unequal gender relations, where power remain s visible,

quantitative, phallic. The overt humor of the song, though, deflects the
thrust of the critique displayed in the inversion of the standards of musi-
cal power, enabling any audience to sing along, to laugh along, again in
the "double-face d fullnes s o f life," without assumin g any identity mir -
rored back to them. Nevertheless, the positions constructed in the song,
although double d throug h parod y an d therefore necessaril y unstable ,
enable a questioning of the discursiv e links among power , th e phallus ,
loud guitars , an d th e constructio n o f a n autonomou s subjec t withi n
these symbolic associations.
"Glad He' s Dead" and "Big Penis Envy" mark the pole s of one axi s
of differentiation i n the Raul' s era of Austin punk. The wicked aggres -
sion of the Huns stands in stark contrast t o the self-effacing humilit y of
the Re*Cords . But both performances ar c united b y the laughter they
each evok e fro m thei r audiences . This open-throate d respons e mark s
a contradictor y relatio n t o th e traditiona l construction o f performing
and responding. Throughou t the coming decade , the most committe d
Austin fan s wil l questio n wh y the y car e wha t song s ar e bein g sung ,
why they continue t o g o out. The best bands that Austi n will produc e
throughout the eighties will share this conflicted attitud e towar d thei r
own roles as producers. They will not be able to assume unquestioningly
the cente r o f mora l authorit y constructe d withi n tradition s o f Texa n
music. They certainl y will no t imagin e themselve s t o b e autonomou s
business agent s operating within a free market . Instead the y wil l dis-
tance themselve s fro m th e traditiona l markers of staged authorit y an d
will perform in a self-effacing manne r that many critics will call unpro-
fessional.
The scen e a t Raul' s marke d a burs t o f creativ e activit y that laste d

almost three years. Bands formed, magazines were founded, record com-
panies started , movie s wer e made . Thi s cultura l explosio n wa s bot h
similar t o an d differen t fro m th e initia l progressive countr y moment .
As with th e earlie r period of intens e activity, musical performance at a
specific site was the central activity within a number of overlapping cul-
tural practice s that mutuall y reinforced each other . Musicians , artists ,
filmmakers, and writers, drawn to this liberal oasis in the middle of con-
servative Texas, worked to make sense out of their feelings of alienation
from th e contemporar y condition . Th e magazine s tha t forme d wrot e
about musi c an d music-relate d activities. The movie s tha t wer e mad e
shared themes with and featured actors involved in the music scene. Art-
ists designed posters and record covers. The Austin audience continue d
to demand that its musicians speak directly to them.
But th e differences wer e also significant. Like the folksingers o f th e
early sixties, Austin's pun k musician s distrusted th e commercia l struc-
ture of the established music scene. However, pun k musicians and their
fans di d no t believ e in the possibility of an uncommcrcializcd "authen-
tic" musica l practice. Instead , pun k i n Austi n create d a ne w cultura l
production system that was at first wholly separate from the institution s
of progressive country. This new approach to music was both more self -
critical an d more intellectual, which followed from th e way that pun k
was disseminated across the country , as well as from th e ar t school an d
bohcmian origin s o f th e genre . Correspondingly , thi s movemen t wa s
more distant from Texan traditions and had much closer ties to the uni-
versity than had progressive country. As in London, New York, and Los
Angeles, pun k in Austin was a media-conscious movement with a much
higher degre e o f awarenes s and acceptanc e o f th e powe r o f th e com -
munications industries to affect th e meaning of experience. Rather than
performing nostalgi c paean s to a premoder n Utopia , pun k i n Austi n
celebrated the productive possibilities of late modernism. Punk's do-it-
yourself ethic mitigated agains t any dependence upon th e already exist-
ing powe r structure s i n th e Austi n musi c scene . I f a ban d neede d a
manager, the y hire d th e guita r player' s roommate. I f they wante d t o
record, the y rente d a four-track machine , set u p i n a garage, and lai d
down the tracks. If they wanted to read a story about their friend's band,
they wrote and , often, published it. Thus, an entirely different grou p of
people becam e involved in local music production i n Austin.
Writing for the Texan beside s Whittington, Dorsett, and Blac k dur-
ing the winter of 1978—1979 were Nick Barbara, Robert Draper , Scott
Bowles, Michae l Hall , an d E d Lowry . B y the fal l o f 1981 , thes e indi-
viduals would b e writing an d editing the Austin Chronicle. E. A. Srere
and Margaret Moser began to write for Sluggo magazine, and a year later
Stewart Wise and friend s publishe d the first issue of Contempt) Culture.
The Austin American-Statesman hired E d War d t o cove r loca l music .
All of these peopl e would eventuall y go to work for the Chronicle. Neil
Ruttenberg lande d a slot o n th e university's radio station, KUT , play -
ing ne w musi c lat e on Saturda y nights. That progra m ha s since bee n
run b y a string o f differen t deejays , but it s focu s ha s no t changed . A
new band called Standing Waves formed to open for the Huns' second
show. They would ask their station-wagon-owning roommate (an d suc-
cessful waiter) , Roland Swenson , to manage them. The Waves included
three talented songwriter s and a rhythm section that could actually play
together. Within tw o years, they would become the most popular band
in Austin, with their local independently recorded singles receiving air-

play on bot h AM and FM stations in central Texas. Swenson woul d g o
on to manage Duke's Roya l Coach In n (anothe r bar that featured local
punk and new wave performers), work with Joe King Carrasco, found
Moment Productions , an d forge (wit h Louis Meyers) the most signifi -
cant busines s link between the Austin music scene and the risin g alter-
native recordin g industry : the Sout h b y Southwest Musi c and Medi a
Conference.42
At leas t thirt y pun k band s forme d tha t winter , almos t exclusively
comprised o f students, almos t exclusivel y playing at Raul's . "I t wa s in
the air," says Mcllissa Cobb, who at that time was in the Delinquents. "I t
was the obvious thing to do."43 For a young Kim Longacre, "It was like
this rea l eye-opening experience—that people could actuall y do some -
thing the y believe d in . Lik e to b e weird or something . I t wa s just so
wild."44 Louis Blac k insists that,
I think Raul' s woul d hav e happened without th e Huns bust . I think the Huns
bust kicked it though, pu t i t into fifth gear without going into second, third or
fourth. There wa s that incredibl e first six months to a year, where literally half
the people that were with you in the audience in the first few shows, by the end
of that period, all had bands. I was having so much damn fun. All my life, I had
kind of wanted to b e an intellectual and a writer and know musicians and hang
out an d go to jams and stuff and now I was doing it. And it was like you know, it
was really like what we had, the idea wasn't to make something definitive, it was
to participat e in the whole cultura l process, and we did. Everybod y we knew
were in bands or making movies or writing about movie s and we were talking
all the time. 45
Punk i n Austin wa s not onl y a matter of proper consumption ; i t was

also on e o f wholehearted production . A formalized , stripped-dow n
rock'n'roll music , emphasizin g "pure exhilaration , pur e energy , pur e
noise, pur e fun, " provide d th e contex t fo r a n overwhelmin g do-it -
yourself era of cultural production tha t would establish the institution s
and the discursive modes that would shape musical production i n Austin
throughout th e i^Sos. 46 Durin g th e decad e t o come , man y of thes e
individuals, institutions , an d discursiv e thread s woul d becom e mor e
powerful and , eventually, dialectically integrated with th e individuals,
the beliefs, and the traditions prominent in the previously existing music
scene. But i n the eighties , th e musi c scene could no t b e explained as a
result of "the Austin tendency to group the way they do," but instead as
a desire "to participat e in the whole cultural process."
The burde n o f tradition tha t define d th e popula r histor y of music-
making i n Austi n achieve d a doubled inflectio n wit h th e disruption s
of punk. The antimodern critique of commercialism and work promul-
gated i n the honky-tonk s ha d become i n addition a celebration o f the
possibilities of commercialized, musicalized, signifying practice. Within
this contradictory arena , individual musicians and fan s coul d mutuall y
develop strategies of performance tha t encouraged th e overproductio n
of signs of identity and community along with an overstimulation of the
commodification processes of late capitalism. By the end of the decade ,
music-making i n Austi n wil l hav e becom e a thoroughly postmoder n
practice, with the commodification of identity inextricably interwoven
with the musical production o f subjectivity.

C H A P T E R S I X
The Performance of Signifying Practice
Toward the Production of the Scene

Music scene s develo p i n Austi n ou t o f a confluenc e o f factors . Fo r
decades, th e universit y serve d a s the sol e tolerate d cente r o f negoti -
ated difference . Th e expansio n of th e studen t populatio n durin g th e
late sixtie s increase d the number s of alienate d ye t motivate d youn g
people i n Austin. The universit y still guarantee s a large population o f
young people, a potential pool of musicians and fans eager to investigate
the possibilities o f musical performance. Honky-tonk culture , Austin' s
"tendency to group the way they do," provides an historical context and
a traditional settin g fo r musical practice. The city's celebrated tradition
of liv e music performanc e ensures a high profil e fo r musica l practice,
both in terms of entertainment opportunitie s and for the explorations
of identit y throug h signifyin g practice. As we have already seen, popu-
lar musician s hav e historicall y playe d a n importan t socia l role i n th e
ongoing cultural construction o f the social Symbolic in Texas.
Austin's reputation a s a liberal oasis in a conservative state, as a refuge
for thos e Texans differen t enoug h t o conside r themselves artists, con-
tinues t o attrac t individuals who ar e not wholl y comfortable wit h th e
dominant enunciative positions i n Texan culture. Once in Austin, many
of these individuals have entered into a musical dialogue with the domi-
nant construction o f identity i n Texas. A consistent refrain i n my inter-
views has been statements like, "The group of people I was hanging out
with i n Port Arthur, I guess we considered ourselve s beatniks, and we
were getting a little too fa r out fo r the Beaumont-Port Arthur area. We
heard that Austi n was a lot freer atmospher e an d we moved to Austin ,
quite a few of us at the sam e time, i n 1962.."' Many talented individu -
als now com e t o Austi n simpl y because s o many others alread y have;
an atmosphere o f toleration ha s been institutionalized t o a certain ex-
tent. Ofte n youn g peopl e mov e to tow n simpl y "Becaus e i t i s where
music is. 2
D I S S O N A N T I D E N T I T I E S / Il 8
The nationa l commercia l succes s of th e progressiv e countr y scen e
attracted bot h media attentio n an d recording industr y interest tha t to -
gether stimulated local entrepreneurs to develo p bookin g agencies , re-
cording studios , an d management firms. The do-it-yourself ethi c of the
punk movemen t syncretize d wit h th e alread y dominant roll-up-your -
sleeves entrepreneur mentality to create wholly new institutions of musi-
cal and cultural production. Bu t all of this activity was centered o n th e
public performance of popular music in the honky-tonk arena. And one
of the mos t critica l results of this situatin g conditio n continue d t o b e
the regula r production of scenes.
In th e year s following th e closin g o f Raul's , Clu b Foo t provide d
the hom e fo r th e mor e mainstrea m bands (band s tha t attracte d sla m
dancers were at first restricted to Sunday nights and later banished from
the club); the Continental Clu b hired neo-rockabilly musicians like the
LeRoi Brothers; th e Soa p Cree k employed th e Big Boys on a n experi-
mental basis; and the majority of those bands who might b e called punk
were performing a t nonclubs. Voltaire's Basement was the basemen t o f
a used bookstore, hired out to musicians by the punk fan who was living
there. Scratc h Acid, the Butthol e Surfers , Mea t Joy, Not fo r Sale , an d
other lou d band s smashe d thei r amplifie d midnigh t agains t th e con -
crete wall s of thi s undergroun d cavern . Som e pun k bands playe d a t a
downtown warehous e that had been rented as rehearsal space by an all-
women ban d called the Buffalo Gals . Many novice musicians lived in an
apartment comple x nea r campus called the Colony . Som e night s the y
would open their doors and begin to play, creating impromptu partie s
as their friend s cam e over, attracted by the soun d an d carrying cases of
beer. Eac h o f these site s provided venue s where commercial pressures
were lessened, where newly constituted musicians , inspired by the local
dispersal of the pun k ethic and its effects o n the local musical aesthetic,
engaged i n a flirtatious identification with the abject an d began to play
their own music, thereby initiating that exchange of signs and sweat that
creates a scene.
This wa s the par t o f the Austin musi c scene that I bega n learnin g
about an d working m y way into afte r I moved there in the summe r of
I98z. I had been livin g in Los Angeles, where I had watched th e wes t
coast punk scene develop and had performed with a group of musicians
who wer e bein g referre d t o togethe r a s the Paisle y Underground . I n
Los Angeles, th e territorial , musica l and cultural distinctions betwee n
these tw o style s were precise—the hardening core of punk rising from
the souther n beac h suburb s contrasted starkl y with th e melodi c po p
soaring ou t o f Wes t Hollywood . Very fe w fan s an d eve n fewe r musi -
The Performance o f Signifying Practice I 11 9

cians participate d i n both scenes . My first weekend in Austin, I wen t
down t o the Rit z on 6th Street. It was an August night , far too ho t t o
go int o that non-air-conditione d hul k of a building; so quite a crow d
had developed outside . Afte r a few minutes of hanging out an d watch-
ing the crowd , I sa w a young ma n stroll up with a beautiful bleached
mohawk. Hi s hai r was perfect: his head was completely shaved except
for a one-inch trail down the center of his skull; his mane was probably
five inches long, not waxed into stiffness bu t rather standing up loosely,
effortlessly, an d flowin g back from hi s forehea d as he move d int o th e
crowd. Everyon e else in front o f the Rit z seeme d to kno w him . I was
just standing there, simply admiring his hair, when the most astonishin g
thing happened. The pun k turned a s another young man, whose dirt y
blonde strands straggled past his shoulders, entered the circle of light in
front o f the club. As soon as they caught sight of each other, the pun k
and the hippie shouted enthusiastic greetings and closely embraced. I t
immediately became clear to me that I had a lot to learn about music in
Austin. For the next two years I went to shows at Club Foot and the final
version o f the Soa p Creek ; I went t o partie s i n backyards and bizarre
performances i n Voltaire's Basement; I rea d th e Chronicle an d jammed
with several groups of struggling musicians; and then one night I heard
about a place called Sparky's.
Sparky's wa s the initia l venue from whic h gre w the Ne w Sincerity
scene. Another less commercialized site—lik e the backyard parties, the
Buffalo Gals ' warehouse, an d the Colon y apartmen t complex—wher e
beginning bands could tentatively assert their identities and interrogat e
the conditions that created them, it was one of those places where scenes
develop. Mik e Hall attende d th e first show a t Sparky's , and hi s band ,
the Wild Seeds, became one of the more popular bands of the New Sin-
cerity era. When he talked to me about his memories of Sparky's, Mike
described a subjective, experiential difference betwee n simpl y dancing
and being in the scene.
But you know, th e feeling like, when you're not i n a scene? And I'd g o to bar s
and ther e was, I wasn't even conscious of a scene at all . It wa s like, just going
out t o dance. And al l of a sudden I became conscious of the scene . And the n
you know , wantin g t o g o write, wanting t o ge t m y songs int o a band, want-
ing to ge t th e ban d int o a scene. The dynami c was, that wa s like, there was a
time perio d ther e where befor e tha t I was a completely different person . An d
Sparky's was the thing that did it. Just because everybody started going up there
and hanging ou t at , you know, this place where you didn't kno w where it was
unless someone, unles s you wer e part of th e scene . You know, i t was perfect. 3
Simply knowing abou t this site marked the boundary between th e in-
side an d outsid e o f thi s beginning signifying community . Once Mike
D I S S O N A N T I D E N T I T I E S / IZ O
knew Sparky' s location, when he could driv e up ther e an d attend th e
shows, h e becam e a part o f the scene . Of course , h e would no t hav e
found ou t abou t Sparky' s without alread y being connected, but, curi -
ously, h e remember s his desir e to participat e actively i n thi s scen e as
having been a result of this knowledge. His wish to be a musician rose to
the level of felt desire only after he was already there, a member, a moti-
vated participan t in the cultura l practice of loca l music-making. Once
he becam e conscious of this scene , once he sense d its existence, Mike
was motivated by a powerful drive to produce something, to engage in
an exchange of signs, t o ge t his songs in a band and to mak e his ban d
known i n the scene—a s though he had always already been a member.
I aske d Mike what he thought wa s important abou t thi s participa-
tion.
It was just havin g a deal. Having a thing t o cal l your own. No t jus t yours bu t
your band's , too . I t was having your sound, having your songs, having your, I
don't know, i t was identity. It was identity more than anything else. Looking at
another ban d an d seeing their identity. I don't know, it was just, I don't know.
Just gettin g up i n front of people an d drinking beer. I don't know. It wa s just
a whole new world. I was in law school an d I was trying desperately to ge t away
from la w school. So I threw myself into it . My studies suffered, m y attendance
suffered, bu t I think I found what I maybe deep down wante d to do my whole
life, which is play music. 4
Once in the scene, Mike began producing an identity for himself wholly
within th e terms of this embryonic signifying community—thi s whole
new world of songs, of bands , of drinking beer in front of people—to
which he suddenly, in a matter of one night's recognition, belonged.
Dianne Hardin , a long-time fa n of Austin punk music, described a
similar moment o f self-recognition when I interviewed her.
I was fourteen and this friend o f mine—I had this older friend, and he knew the
Dicks. He was friends with them, and he was really neat. And he used to play like
Devo an d the Clas h and I really liked the Clash . "Clash Cit y Rockers " was like
my first punk rock song that I liked. I remember once we were driving around ,
listening to music or something. Bu t we saw the Dick s in a car. Gary Floyd, re -
member him? And he told me who Gary was and I thought, Wow, that's so cool.
And then almos t every weekend I wanted my dad to drive me down Guadalupe .
So I could se c someone with weird hair. Wow, maybe a mohawk, you know. I
could see something cool. I don't know. Then, since I liked it so much, I wanted
to then do it.
I asked Dianne why she liked it so much. She told me that,

It wa s different, yo u know. I never really felt totall y successful a t fitting in with
normal people. I think, I don't know, I don't know even how hard I really tried.
But I' m sur e I tried t o an extent. And felt kind of burned by it. Because even if
I could do it, there just wasn't much to hold my interest abou t it. And I don't
The Performance o f Signifying Practice I iz i

know, when I starte d hangin g aroun d wit h al l the othe r pun k roc k people , I
found people that, I don't know, it really had something to do with just wanting
to d o somethin g different . With i n a way being an outcast bu t the n bein g ac-
cepted. It was new and different. An d you were sort of bound together because
the other people hated you. I think that might be part of the attraction, too, is
being in a minority. Being in a self-imposed minority. 5
What stands out to me in these stories, and many others like them, is that
the desire to become an active member of this rock'n'roll scen e arises at
a moment o f recognition, whe n the scen e appears a s a signifying com -
munity, marked off from the surrounding world, to which one, i n some
sense, alread y belongs—where th e musicalize d expressio n of semiotic
disruption ha s immediate meaning .
Identification within the Scene

But i t is clear that Speech begins only with the passag e from "pretence " to th e
order of the signifier, and that the signifier requires another locus—the locus of
the Other, the Other witness, the witness Other than any of the partners—fo r
the Speec h that it supports to b e capable of lying , that is to say , of presenting
itself as Truth.6
The mos t interestin g an d vital musicians of Austin are produced a s
such within and by that intensity of fan commitment an d cultural pro-
duction know n a s a scene. A scene itself can be defined a s an overpro-
ductivc signifying community; tha t is, far more semiotic information is
produced tha n can be rationally parsed. Such scenes remain a necessary
condition fo r th e productio n o f excitin g rock'n'roll musi c capabl e of
moving past the mere expression of locally significant cultural values and
generic development—tha t is , beyon d stylisti c permutation—toward
an interrogatio n o f dominan t structure s of identification , and poten -
tial cultura l transformation. The constitutiv e feature o f loca l scenes of
live musical performance is their evident display of semiotic disruption,
their potentiall y dangerous overproductio n an d exchang e of musical-
ized sign s o f identit y an d community . Through thi s displa y of mor e
than can be understood, encouraging the radical recombination o f ele-
ments of the human in new structures of identification, local rock'n'rol l
scenes produc e momentar y transformation s within dominan t cultura l
meanings.
In 1979 , soon afte r sh e moved wit h her famil y t o Austi n from Pal o
Alto, California, high schoo l senio r Ki m Longacrc was introduced t o
the scen e at Raul's.
I me t this friend name d Jeb Nichols who told me what was really good about
music, and I believe d him , and he introduced me to [th e music of] Jonatha n
D I S S O N A N T I D E N T I T I E S / 12.2 .
Richman and Elvis Costello. H e also introduced me to Raul's. And the drinking
age was eighteen, so we'd g o to the clubs. I remember going to Raul's and being
really intimidated. Peopl e were very strange and a lot older than me and seem-
ingly sophisticated i n a real worldly sense. These people, the scene, I mean, I' m
sure alot of i t was self-imposed, but the y seemed to hav e soul. Hardship, they
knew hardship. They seemed so urban. From Austin. Which is really funny. Bu t
to m e it was like this rea l eye-openin g experience—that peopl e could actuall y
do somethin g the y believed in. Like to be weird or something. I mean, it was
just so wild. It was the whole scene. It was the clothes, the attitude. I t was the
men in the women's bathroom . There were no rules. Anything went. You know,
anything went, so long a s it was strange. It was a freeing situation . Know what
I mean? 7
John Crosli n forme d Zeitgeis t wit h Longacr c i n lat e 1983 . H e ha d
already heard about the Raul's scene before he moved to Austin in 1980.
I wa s just at the ag e when I could go to th e clubs and it was really exciting. It
was wild. I was sittin' there in my blue jeans and T-shirt, lookin' at these people
that looke d kin d of strange, actin ' weird. And it was just real energetic. I guess
it was the energy that attracted me. Everybody was jumping up and down.8
Mellissa Cobb grew up i n the Austin area . Sh e performed i n a number
of bands throughout the 19805, but first decided to becom e a musician
during the Raul's period.
Well, it was just like in the air at Raul's. I was just hanging out at Raul's with th e
Witches, wh o wor e whit e fac e an d odd , reall y grotesque makeu p all the time .
They woul d pu t fak e bloo d o n and tattered blac k clothing. Jus t do rea l bizarre
things with the Hun s an d stuff. Late r that fall [ 1979 ], I joined the Delinquents .
It was the obvious thing to do. 9
Marcia Buffingto n als o moved to Austi n during this period, dropping
out of Baylor, a Baptist college in Waco, and transferring t o UT. Marcee
became a booking agent and managed the Austin band Doctors ' Mo b
in 1984 and 1985.
I lived at 28th and High Street . It was cool, I could walk to Raul's. It was really
funny, cu z when I first got here I still had long hair and I'd wear these little sun
dresses. Fucking hell, I was going to Baylor. And I go to Raul's and these people
go, "Oh, yo u really dress ni-ice." It was just kind of strange; I really didn't meet
anybody there until I cut my hair off and started wearing funny clothes . And I
don't think I was the only person that was like that. But you know, people who
felt really , really misunderstood fel t reall y comfortabl e in tha t scene . I t reall y
didn't have a whole heck of a lot to d o with the music except that it was loud,
and it was fast, and it really didn't soun d like music at all. It sure did piss people
off i f you playe d it.10
These description s o f th e activit y a t Raul' s carr y linguisti c marker s
of th e importan t cultura l practic e tha t wa s taking place : "weird " an d
"wild," "strange" and "bizarre, " yet als o "freeing " an d "open." In th e
rock'n'roll scen e tha t wa s developin g a t Raul's , th e socia l structure s
The Performance o f Signifying Practice I 1x 3

The everyday life of a fan. Phot o by Pat Blashill.
that constituted th e very basis of traditional identit y were bein g ques -

tioned. The dominan t meaning s of rock'n'roll performanc e i n Austi n
were bein g activel y resisted. Bein g a pun k i n Austi n mean t "bein g a
man i f you're a woman, a woman if you're a man." Thick makeu p and
"funny clothes " covere d visua l signs of difference wit h a costume tha t
unified the audience, the fans, and the musicians into one "self-imposed
minority." Th e knowledg e o f the secre t locatio n o f one of the site s of
the scene and the parodic, self-consciou s performance of "violence" b y
audiences an d ban d members alike marked the boundarie s of an inner
space where traditional signs and behaviors could take on new meanings
or, i n fact , b e negated . I n th e darknes s within th e clubs , a n uncanny
communion o f the misunderstood le d these young people into a musical
practice tha t combine d a n extraordinarily physical pulsion wit h a n in-
terrogation of preexisting standards of evaluation and a correspondin g
questioning of traditional structures of identification. "
When discussin g he r experienc e i n th e clubs , Ki m Longacr e de -
scribed it as,
more of a physical thing, I think. I was drawn to the music in more of a physical
way. I liked the way it made me feel. I liked the things that it said to me or didn't
say to me. I liked it because it didn't las t long, you know. I mean the Hun s ar e
not reall y listenable. I mean you can't sit down and go, Wow! You have to mov e
around an d be mad or something. You bump into people and be real aggressive.
It was just loud an d brash and, they were just noise.12
Fans at play . Phot o by 1'at Blashill.
Marcia Buffingto n als o emphasized the physicalit y of he r experience in

the scene,
A lo t o f wha t I' d liste n t o bac k then , I' d com e hom e an d m y hips woul d b e
bruised fro m bein g shoved up agains t th e stag e and I'd b e al l sweaty an d ho t
and my mascara would be in my eyes. That was basically for getting your ya-ya's
out. You' d get caught up in it, the physical expression o f having a good time . I
didn't like the music, I don't think, but I sure did feel cool being there.13
The importanc e o f thi s intens e bodil y stimulatio n canno t b e over -

emphasized. Th e "physica l expression of havin g a good time" is an in-
tegral component of experience in the rock'n'roll scene , and the physi-
cality of musicalized experience goes beyon d th e critical importance of
dancing itsel f as sexual expression. The meaning of a musical experience
turns first upon the series of unconscious movements produce d by the
specific articulation s o f rhyth m an d timbr e foun d i n th e music . This
physical interactio n amon g musica l signs an d individua l bodies estab -
lishes th e condition s tha t allo w fo r the allusiv e combinatorial associa -
tions of cultural signifiers o f identity and community. Within thi s fluid
stream of potential meanings , th e audience and the musicians together
participate i n a nonverbal dialogue about th e significance of the musi c
and the construction o f their selves. Gestures of the performer contrib-
ute directl y t o th e meanin g o f the musica l experience, generating an d
being generate d by corresponding physica l response s in the listeners .
While recen t sociomusicologists such as John Shepher d ar e beginning
The Performance o f Signifying Practice I 12. 5

to focu s on thi s physica l component t o musica l meaning, eve n tradi -
tional musicologist s suc h as Leonard Meyer agree that "motor behavior
does pla y an importan t par t i n facilitatin g and enforcin g th e musical
aesthetic experience." 14
These theoretical musicological assertions harmonize with the words
of Austin musicians . George Rief f move d t o Austi n fro m Housto n in
i98z. He describe d for me the physicalit y of musical performance and
the interactio n betwee n th e musician s an d th e audienc e in a success-
ful show .
When it's good and the crowd response is good, it makes you feel great. It's nice
to jus t fee l th e goo d feelings comin g from th e audience . Becaus e of you. An d
you ca n fee l it . I t feel s powerful . I f you're playing, fo r instance, i n a n electri c
band and you got al l this vibration coming from behin d you or from the side of
you and it's pushing at you, it's making you work. And you can see it going into
the audienc e and you can see them responding and they're clapping and they're
dancing or they'r e screaming or they're throwing bottles or whatever. And i t
feels really good. So long as you're not so old and jaded about the whole thing,
it's gonna catch you up. It's gonna psych you in and the enthusiasm's gonna get
up and the adrenaline's gonna flow. You're gonna play better and you're gonna
perform bette r an d that's gonna fire up th e audienc e eve n more , an d it's just
gonna turn into a great show. And it's magic when it happens.15
Kim Longacr e echoe d th e belie f that "Goo d show s aren' t what' s fun ,
magical show s are."' " And Hunter Darby , of the Wannabes, describe d
his experience of a magical show, evoking a music that goes beyond lis-
tening, to a more inclusiv e sensuous reception. "Lots of times, when i t
sounds s o tight, I can't hear my own instrument. I can feel it . I hit tha t
deal wher e I don't hea r anything, except everything feeling, soundin g
like one thing . An d I don't think . I'm no t havin g to think . That feel s
really good."17
Small clubs encourage a n intimacy of interactio n between the audi -
ence an d th e performe r tha t musician s in a rock'n'rol l scen e depen d
on, a s a founding instanc e of a "magical show." Tom Thornton of the
Way-Outs insist s that meaningfu l performances go beyond gettin g th e
notes right .
I think you can play a song perfect, but if you want that kind of communicarion
to g o across , somethin g els e ha s to b e going on. I f I star t getting th e chills ,
then I know things are going good. If I'm not getting a chill, I know the people
in the audienc e aren't at all. I've been hoping to facilitat e tha t process where I
really get a rush out o f it and part of that is looking at the audienc e and seeing
if they're getting into it. It's so much fun. It' s like a good sexua l relationship. 18
Ron Marks , from th e band The Texas Instruments, als o talks abou t
how important i t is for him to see his audience. "It's goo d for me, like I
said, to be able to sec people. Because I can tell that they're into it when
D I S S O N A N T I D E N T I T I E S / T2. 6
Doctors' Mob o n stage . Phot o by Pat BUshill.
they're movin g to the same thing that I'm moving to. I know it's corny ,
but it' s a real charge. I can tell that they're getting off on it, I'm getting
off o n it , we're all coming. It' s great." 19 Rock'n'roll musician s in Austin
consistently narrat e successfu l performance s in such bodily , an d ofte n
sexual, language. Ki m Longacre talk s about singing and responding t o
her audienc e a s a matter o f "gettin g in the groov e emotionally. It' s re -
ciprocal. You pay attention t o wha t i s going on . . . . It's like , it's kind
of lik e coming or something . Like , yeah, yeah, I feel that. Oh, I ge t it ,
yeah, and I give you that. You just kind of go with the flow."20
Conversely, fans to o lik e to see the bands displaying their own plea-
sure. Maki Fife insists that, "one o f the element s that makes for a good
show i s that yo u kno w tha t the peopl e i n the ban d ar e having a good
time, and you know that they are really getting int o the music." Joanne
Weinzicrl modifies this perspectiv e somewhat, "It's whe n the y act like
they're having a good time. They look at each other while they are play-
ing and act like they know what they are doing."21 When Dave Robert s
finds himself in the audienc e during a magical show he notices,
. . . a spreading contagion. You get excited and everybody else does and it sort ot
builds on eac h other. You're talking back and forth abou t how good tha t song
was or, di d you notice that? It's real funny t o see one person get excited about
it and eve n though yo u didn't notice it or weren't aware of havin g noticed it ,
when they call it to your attention you say, oh yeah. And that makes you more
excited and more interested. I think it just spreads like a spark. I really do.22
The Performance o f Signifying Practice I iz y

These musician s and fan s hav e described from thei r own experience
a phenomenon that Freu d discusses in his analysis of group psychology .
"The fac t is that the perception o f the signs of an affective stat e is calcu-
lated automatically to arouse the same affect in the person who perceives
them. The greate r the number o f people i n whom th e sam e affec t ca n
be simultaneously observed , th e stronge r doe s thi s automati c compul -
sion grow. " Thus, eroticize d gesture s o f th e musician s (bot h musica l
and physical), together with the affective responses of the audience, rep-
resent and reinforce libidinal ties among all the participants, continually
reproducing th e momentar y structure s an d the meaningfu l potential s
that constitute th e scene. As Freud insists , "the essence of group forma -
tion consists i n new libidinal ties among th e members of the group." 23
These physically reinforced libidinal ties become the fluid structures by
which th e sign s of identity and community ar e charged wit h affec t an d
made pleasurable. The bodies of the performers (particularly that of the
lead singer) are framed on a stage, where their gestures map out a sexu-
alized field of affect , meaning , an d desire. The vibrations of the musi c
then circulate a n overwhelming eroticis m through dancin g an d listen-
ing bodies , a n eroticism tha t i n turn i s cast upon th e widest variet y of
secondary objects, rapidly translating the libidinal ties of love and iden-
tification into one another an d back again, in the overproduction o f the
signs of identity and the overstimulation o f the senses. 24
These ar c the necessar y conditions fo r the development o f a scene: a
situated swirlin g mass of transformative signs and sweating bodies, con-
tinually reconstructing th e meanin g o f a communion o f individual s i n
a primary group. The carnivalesque atmosphere produce d i n rock'n'roll
scenes—descended from Europea n festiva l traditions, syncretized with
African celcbrativ e practices , commodific d an d mad e readil y available
in th e honky-tonk s tha t hav e traditionally provided th e sit e fo r popu -
lar musical performance in Texas—this atmosphere nurtures situation s
where th e boundarie s betwee n lov e an d identificatio n are neve r wel l
disciplined, wher e eroticism an d narcissism meld i n the searc h for ne w
elements o f identity . As Dave says, "I mean, the more I get into it, th e
more I becom e par t o f the scene , th e mor e I kno w thes e people , th e
more I know th e bands , there' s a new part of me, and it set s me apart
and make s me, Me." Through an exchange of affectively charge d sign s
and knowledge, Dav e was constructing hi s own identity in difference. 25
Precisely how does this production o f identity operate within musi -
cal scenes? How ar c cultural factors incorporated int o the structure s o f
identification tha t constitut e th e scene ? Conversely , how are aspects of
the dominant cultur e repulsed through thi s process of radical yet plca-
D I S S O N A N T I D E N T I T I E S / 12, 8
surable interrogation? Lacan' s thcorization of desire and the metonymi c
chain along which it proceeds can provide a basis for understanding th e
social construction o f the possible positions fro m which a musician or a
fan may speak, may sing, may dance, may desire. For Lacan, desire drives
the searc h fo r identity. The struggle t o develo p a coherent identit y de -
rives from a complex process of developmental interactions between the
primary drive s o f the desirin g bod y an d diverse symbolic cultura l sys-
tems. As this process occurs, desire is transformed into multiple specifi c
desires that , i n turn , ar e inflected, interpreted , displaced , and , finally,
either satisfied o r repressed.
Lacan explain s thi s proces s throug h hi s metapho r o f "th e mirro r
stage." H e define s thi s momen t o f primar y narcissism as "an identifi-
cation . . . namely, th e transformatio n tha t take s plac e i n th e subject
when he assumes an image." The narrative of the mirror stage describes
a mother holding a baby up to a mirror, who then mis-recognizes itself
as precisely that reflected image, representing the identification between
a still helpless infant and an image of ability and wholeness framed i n th e
mirror. Lacan' s intent is to underline the illusory nature of this identifi-
cation and , b y means of this developmental metaphor, t o point towar d
the fundamenta l condition s o f al l identification. Fo r Lacan , al l identi-
fication involve s an illusion of mastery, the mistake n belief that w e can
indeed satisfy our desires through rationa l action in the world. 26
Lacan insist s that all identification rests upon thi s fundamenta l mis-
recognition, which "situates the agenc y of the ego . .. in a fictional di-
rection whic h will always remain irreducible . . . whatever the success of
the dialectica l syntheses b y which he must resolv e as I hi s discordanc e
with hi s own reality." 27 In thi s formulation , Laca n insists tha t despit e
the intensity with which the subject struggles to create a stable ego, thi s
construction continue s t o res t on a n illusion. Nevertheless, this neces-
sary illusion of stability and wholeness enables the ongoing re-creatio n
of an ego and allows this ego to assume the positions fro m which it can
speak. Sinc e identificatio n implies the abilit y to satisf y desire s throug h
cultural symbolic means , eac h identification represents the assumptio n
of a culturally established position o f mastery. Identity, then , i s the con -
tinually constructed produc t o f the interactions of a desiring body wit h
the complex cultural systems through whic h humans conduct symbolic
exchange. Through this continual aspiration toward a series of culturally
established position s o f mastery, one becomes a subject.
Lacan's understandin g o f bot h th e creatio n o f a subjec t positio n
and the abilit y to spea k from that positio n depends upo n th e slippage
in meaning , th e absenc e of guarantees, that results from th e necessar y
The Performance of Signifying Practice I 12.9

symbolic inflectio n o f desire , th e disciplin e tha t enforce s th e separa-
tion betwee n mother and child. All desires—especially those desire s for
meaning an d identity—follow and further complicate the paths created
when oedipa l desire s ar e shattere d agains t th e disciplinar y structure s
of the culture . Laca n describe s the first impact o f this symboli c disci -
pline a s the interventio n o f th e thir d term , th e "nam e o f th e father, "
into the mother-child dyad. This symbolic interruption disturbs the im-
mediate satisfaction o f desire that had previously constituted the child's
awareness. Accordin g t o Lacan' s narrative , the chil d notice s tha t th e
mother's attentio n ca n be called away from th e immediat e presenc e of
the child' s desir e simply through a symbolic gesture. That is , because of
the interventio n o f the "nam e o f the father, " the chil d becomes awar e
of the powe r inheren t in the absen t presence of symbolic communica-
tion. Afte r thi s interventio n of the thir d term , th e desir e of the chil d
is deflected into specific demands that must be articulated symbolically.
Each deman d crie d int o th e nigh t an d eac h satisfactio n momentarily
achieved the n result s in a n illusory mastering o f the symboli c system,
reinforcing the agency of the ego. The illusion of wholeness signified by
the imag e in the mirror represent s the individual's belief that she or he
is in control, th e maste r of her or his own bod y and desires, capable of
demanding satisfaction.
Desire, a preformal, abstract, and unshaped urge, drive s the narcis-
sistic searc h fo r wholeness , mastery , and plenitud e (tha t is , identity) ,
and through this search "desir e becomes bound up with the desire of
the Other." 28 For Lacan , those moment s o f assumed mastery, wherein
the eg o achieve s a dialectical synthesi s with th e Symbolic , involv e th e
mutual interaction o f the symbolically inflected desire s of multiple hu -
man beings. Lacan's (capital S) Symbolic is solely the condensed totalit y
of th e expresse d an d enacte d desire s o f others; i t i s constituted his -
torically on the basis of such momentary dialectical syntheses, throug h
the misrecognition s o f countless individuals . The desire s of absent and
incomprehensible other s the n becom e th e "desir e o f th e Other " an d
the symbolic expression of multiple desires abstracts into the Symbolic ,
the plac e wher e th e subject' s ow n desir e an d identit y ca n b e found ,
(mis) recognized, articulated , an d expressed . A s thes e desire s ar e ex -
pressed and enacted they become part of the discursive and behaviora l
record o f the group; the y constitute the culture.
All identification, then, involves a certain amount of fantasy, an d all
identity i s a project of what Lacan calls the Imaginary (that fictional di-
rection instituted by the fantastic desire for wholeness, indicate d by the
relationship between the infant an d the imag e in the mirror). The dia-
lectical syntheses of which Lacan speaks involve reconciliations (whic h
can be experience d subjectivel y as bot h the momentar y satisfactio n
of demands—tha t is , pleasure—an d a s identifications) with a discur -
sively constructe d positio n withi n a symbolically constituted culture ,
and thus they participate in what Lacan calls the Symbolic. 29 Thus every
achieved identit y exist s withi n an d represent s element s o f bot h reg -
isters—the Imaginar y an d th e Symbolic . The desir e fo r meanin g an d
identity drives the individual along a mctonymic chain of possible "F's—
each of which coul d onl y b e (mis)recognize d from the positio n previ -
ously embodied—wit h each momentary identificatio n marked both by
transformation an d by pleasure i n the individual .
Motivated b y desire, wound through th e desires of every other mem -
ber o f the scene , eac h participan t in th e rock'n'rol l scen e construct s a
self-image, an instantaneous (mis ) recognized identity, formed out of the
knot of these intertwined desires . Obviously, the specific desires of other
participants a s well as the historicall y and discursivel y scdimented resi -
due o f past participant s d o no t for m discret e object s of identificatio n
but instea d functio n as structures of possibility, alway s receding befor e
each member's reach . (Thi s is what is meant by referring to th e "knot"
of other desires.) According to Maki, "We always felt like we were going
towards this one big happy tormented family , but we never got there."3"
The uncertain , ephemeral quality of these momentary identification s
results i n a productive anxiety. Fed b y momentary pleasure s of sensual
overstimulation an d th e occasiona l linkage that promise s completion ,
this anxiet y provides th e psychi c impetus require d t o maintai n a regu-
larity of contact, a constant participation i n the scene. "There was always
that pressur e tha t i f you didn' t g o out , yo u wer e missin g something .
You had t o d o i t regularly. You had to keep in touch, eve n though you
didn't reall y talk t o peopl e an d th e wa y you talke d t o the m wa s just
that smal l talk. But w e were good a t small talk. And i t was fun." 31 Th e
musicians and the fan s who embod y th e rock'n'roll scen e in Austin are
united b y an intensit y o f commitmen t drive n by anxiety. Yet this very
consistency of interaction generates the celebrated structure of this sig-
nifying community throug h the constant patterned exchang e of signs—
"small talk, " clothing, music , dance . Spectator s becom e fans , fan s be -
come musicians , musicians are always already fans, al l constructing th e
nonobjects o f identificatio n throug h thei r performance s a s subjects o f
enunciation—becoming and disseminating the subject-in-process of the
signifying practic e of rock'n'roll music. 32
In order to more fully understand this process of identification in the
rock'n'roll scene, it might be useful t o turn to the neighboring field of

cinema studies. The feminist film theorist Jacqueline Rose has reoriented
the discussion o f cinematic identification around the relations betwee n
the psychoanalytic concepts of the ideal ego and the ego ideal.33 Rooting
her discussio n i n Freud's wor k on narcissism , Rose define s imaginar y
identification as that transformative moment when the distance betwee n
the ideal ego and the ego ideal is momentarily reduced.
The idea l eg o woul d therefor e be a projected image with whic h th e subjec t
identifies, an d comparable to the imaginar y captation of the mirror-phase; the
ego ideal would b e a secondary introjection whereby the image returns to th e
subject investe d wit h thos e ne w propertie s which , afte r th e "admonition s o f
others," and th e "awakenin g of hi s own critica l judgement" ar e necessary for
the subject to be able to retain its narcissism while shifting its "perspective." . . .
The ideal ego will therefore be what the subject once was, the ego ideal what it
would like to b e . . . .3 4
In other words, the individual projects onto the viewed image his or her
own idealize d concep t o f who h e or sh e was in that remembere d mo -
mentary plenitud e o f primar y narcissism Lacan calls the mirro r stage .
The viewed image reflects back a transformed perspective that has been
changed b y it s passag e through th e Other , which i s then introjecte d
as a n eg o ideal . Thus, identificatio n i s a twofold proces s o f yearnin g
projection an d longing introjection. In film theory, this process of pro-
jection, introjection, an d scopic identification is played out on the view-
ing screen , whic h then conceptuall y becomes the plac e in th e field of
vision where the viewer's projected ideal ego meets the film's projected
enunciated subject .
As Ros e insists , this theor y of cinematic identification does no t re -
duce t o a n identificatio n wit h a single objec t that i s introjected; th e
process does not describe a slavish imitation of a character on the screen.
"[T]he subject relies on the Other in the imaginary relation, not to con-
stitute a full identity, but in order to circumscribe a void identified with
the Other's demand." This demand of the Other i s expressed through
the system of meaning (a specific articulation of the cultural possibilites
of the Symbolic ) within th e film. An entire series of multiple identifi-
cations an d desire s hav e collaborated i n the constructio n of this film,
this subjec t position, thi s voi d wit h whic h the spectato r conspire s i n
imaginary identification.
Again, we are brought bac k to the knot o f desires in the rock'n'rol l
scene, where a similar process of projection, identification, and introjec-
tion occurs. By multiple processes of identification "not with an object"
but with multipl e models—" a pattern to b e imitated," abstrac t figures
of possibility, fluid structures—the rock'n'roll scene establishes itself as
D I S S O N A N T I D E N T I T I E S / 132.
such, constructing a signifying community based upon new enunciative
possibilities withi n an d among individua l subjects.35 When Ki m speaks
of givin g t o he r audience , whe n Marce e talks about bein g caugh t u p
in the physica l expression o f having a good time, and when Ro n talk s
about lookin g a t hi s audience an d seeing tha t the y are moving t o th e
same thin g tha t h e is moving t o an d describes this a s "coming", the y
are all referring to the specifi c transgrcssive jouissance that marks the sig-
nifying practic e of rock'n'roll. Within th e shadows , smoke, an d sound
of the nightclub , th e movement s o f fans an d musicians are stimulate d
and patterne d b y the timbra l and rhythmic articulation s of noise int o
sound, affectivel y charge d wit h the eroti c undertones tha t suppor t a n
extreme nonconscious sensivitit y to the transformativ e effects o f signi-
fying practice. As Maki told me, "It was really satisfying to keep in touch
with peopl e an d you would see them again and you would fee l like you
were beginnin g t o b e a part of something. You didn't kno w what tha t
something wa s but even if there was just one point i n one conversation
over th e entir e weeken d tha t clicke d fo r yo u o r on e son g wher e you
really danced, o r someon e remembere d you r name , that mad e al l the
difference i n the world becaus e you were a part of something."36
But wha t i s this somethin g tha t thes e peopl e ar c a par t of ? Man y
scholars have focused on th e importanc e o f rock'n'roll practic e within
youth culture . Larr y Grossberg, Simo n Frith , Angela McRobbie , an d
Dick Hebdige have each structured component s o f their analytical ap-
proaches throug h th e categor y o f "youth. " This literature' s focu s o n
the intersectio n o f rock'n'roll an d youth follow s fro m som e of the im -
portant earl y work b y the Birmingham Centre for Contemporary Cul -
tural Studies. Pau l Willis's ethnographic representation of the culture of
working-class (male ) youth, Learning to Labour, and the Centre' s join t
project, Resistance Through Rituals, established an ongoing concer n with
certain particularl y vibrant cultural practices of young peopl e i n Brit-
ain.37 Unfortunately, the categor y of youth a s used in these studies was
not wel l defined, vaguely representing the period o f years between th e
onset of puberty and the comin g of familial responsibilitie s associated
with full-time employmen t an d children. I think it is important to shif t
the focus of this category. Rathe r than using the terms youth or yout h
culture, then, I wan t t o discus s rock'n'roll practic e within th e socially
constructed conditio n o f adolescence.
Rock'n'roll scenes situate an important signifying practic e of adoles-
cence, which mus t no t b e reduced t o simpl y a biological stage of indi -
vidual development. Instead , I want to argue that adolescence refers to a
psychological condition tha t is brought about by specific social factors.

This conditio n i s characterize d by a n awarenes s of extende d cultura l
possibilities combine d wit h insufficien t powe r to act on these possibili-
ties. Therefore, it recapitulates the drama of the Oedipal crisis, the entry
of the third term . Fo r individuals experiencing this condition, the rol e
of th e Imaginar y i n identificatio n is emphasized t o th e precis e exten t
that the adolescen t experiences an absence o f solidity in the Symboli c
(and, therefore , a n absence of social power). Further, I want t o argu e
that thi s imbalanc e in favo r o f th e Imaginar y i s a direct effec t o f th e
social an d discursive conditions w e have learned to call postmodernity.
David Harvey has described the condition of postmodernity a s a set
of materia l and socia l processe s relate d t o th e increasin g speed o f th e
flow of capital across the globe. Hi s description can be usefully mappe d
onto the psychoanalytic categories and the processes of identification I
have been elaborating .
Postmodernist flexibility . .. i s dominated b y fiction, fantasy, th e immateria l
(particularly o f money) , fictitiou s capital , images, ephemerality , chance , an d
flexibility in productio n techniques , labour market s and consumption niches ;
yet i t als o embodies stron g commitment s t o Being , an d place , a penchant fo r
charismatic politics , concern s fo r ontology, an d stabl e institution s favore d b y
new-conservatism. Habermas' s judgement tha t th e value placed on th e transi-
tory an d th e ephemera l "discloses a longing fo r a n undefiled, immaculat e and
stable present" i s everywhere in evidence. 38
Harvey's postmodernit y consist s o f a flui d socia l structur e tha t pro-

duces a corresponding yearnin g for stability and purity . The conditio n
of adolescenc e conform s t o thes e definin g qualities , resultin g i n an d
from a n undepcndabl c Symboli c an d producin g a n increasin g invest-
ment i n the Lacania n register of the Imaginary. Thus, th e condition o f
adolescence—a heightened awarenes s of the pur e possiblities o f repre-
sentation combine d wit h a n absenc e of social power an d the inabilit y
to enforc e discursively the qualitie s o f these representations—is main-
tained, reinforced , an d prolonged b y the same material conditions tha t
produce postmodernity .
This imbalance between th e possible and the actua l (which is not t o
say the Real ) result s in "open structure" personalities that characteriz e
the subjec t i n proces s o f th e signifyin g practic e known a s rock'n'roll .
According to Julia Kristeva, open subjects have not "structurc[d] them-
selves around a fixed pole of the forbidden, or of the law." They seem t o
represent "the fluidity, i.e., th e inconsistency , of a mass media society "
in that "[t]he frontiers between differences of sex or identity, reality and
fantasy, ac t an d discourse , etc. , are easil y traversed." 39 Therefore , th e
possibilities fo r imaginary identification can be expanded into the realm
of the fantastic , as no la w (that is, no rigi d Symbolic) anchors and sta-
bilizes these identifications. The materia l conditions o f postmodernity
inscribe the fluid instability of adolescence.40
According t o Patricia Meyer Spacks,
The adolescent rejects boundaries, blithely crosses them, refusing to stay put, t o
remain a child, to accep t subservience, to b e predictable. Hi s or her ability t o
avoid restrictions as though non e existed, to leap walls that keep grown-ups in
their place, declares the power of beginnings. On the other hand, the adolescent
lacks mone y an d self-define d socia l status and powe r i n th e worl d o f affairs. 41
Without the access to social power provided by a firm grounding i n the
dominant socia l structure , adolescent s refus e th e categorie s an d stric -
tures that it entails. Thus the potential for imaginary identification with
a tremendou s variet y of normativel y excluded positions i s greatly en-
hanced, an d the powerful subjectiv e feelings that this process engenders
both describe the pleasures that derive from participation in a scene and
explain the capacity of adolescents to dance with "the abject."
Kristeva's concept of the abject represents the limit of tentatively con-
structed identity, where desire, driving the search for plenitude, borders
the repulsed, the reviled, the not-I. The abject represents those portion s
of th e prespcakin g bein g tha t hav e bee n rejecte d i n th e constructio n
of identit y withi n th e symboli c order. 42 Musical , lyrical, an d physica l
expressions located a t the boundarie s of the abjec t (th e repulsed or re-
viled) arc used by the subject to signify itself "neither as a psychotic no r
as an adult," but, indeed, t o represent itself in the most tentative aspects
of identity construction , throug h th e imaginary play of adolescence, i n
the first throes of practice, moving beyond listening , consumption, in -
corporation, to participation, production, singing. 43 To the extent tha t
such identification s establish new cnunciativc positions an d transform
the symbolic, "Adolescence has something subversive about it." 44
Young people in the rock'n'roll scene in Austin continually transgress
these boundaries between I and not-I, in multiple exploratory mission s
into those elements of the human that have been abjectly repulsed from
the symboli c organization o f the surroundin g society. As Marcee de-
scribes it,
A lot of it is about death and skulls and black clothing, and I think that the more
far ou t yo u get without dying , the cooler you are. "Fuck it, you know. I don't
care. Whatever wants to happen to me can happen to me." And yeah, I think it is
real impressive when you manage to have that atmosphere of doom abou t you,
but you don't throw u p in anybody's car and you don't OD a t anybody's party
and yo u don't stagge r aroun d th e danc e floor shitfaced. Yo u don't cry . And I
never did any of those things. I always looked rea l good. Even when I couldn' t
remember where I was. But I smiled and I knew a lot of people. 45

By dancin g o n th e edg e o f th e abject—tha t "vacillating , fascinating ,
threatening, an d dangerou s object " tha t border s thei r frai l identity —
adolescents of many ages reconstruct an unstable structure, a temporary
and fluid reorganization o f the Symbolic—tha t signifying communit y
known a s the scene. 46 Within this scene, through fantasti c identification
with the forbidden, ne w enunciative possibilitie s are formed fo r only a
moment. I n the rock'n'roll scen e in Austin, musicians and fans ar e pro-
duced as the subjects-in-proces s of this signifying practice , through an
ongoing process of identification with newly possible positions of enun-
ciation. But in order for any lasting transformation in the local symbolic
to occur, these position s mus t b e embodied and their constitutive fea-
tures mus t b e expressed i n musicalized statements capabl e of inspirin g
the further identifications of other subjects.
The Blending of Identifications in the Formation of the Band

The first barrier that aspiring rock'n'roll musician s must successfully
negotiate in the drive to perform is finding other musicians with who m
to for m a band. The Austin Chronicle publishes free ad s in a musician's
referral column i n the back of the paper. These ads state the performing
instrument require d an d often list a number of famous bands or record -
ings tha t for m a preferred set of taste s or influence s for th e imagine d
musician. They will also normally attempt to convey concisely some idea
of the attitude s an d ambition s o f the musician s already affiliated wit h
the band. A few examples will demonstrate th e range of requests.
Original Rock Band Needs Bass and Drums. Call if you have similar tastes: Rub-
ber Soul, Tim, Murmur, Aquashow, Damn the Torpedoes, Headach e Machine,
New Day Rising, Blood on the Tracks.47
This ad relies upon the knowledge of the reader to recognize the names
of these album s and imagine a coherent taste that would includ e music
by the Beatles, Bo b Dylan, th e Replacements , REM , Elliot Murphcy,
Doctors' Mob an d others. N o mor e precise informatio n i s needed t o
imply the specifi c musica l style. A second ad, however, expands on th e
musical information .
Bassist seeks Innovative Guitarist to form unique and off-kiltered collaboration .
Inf. include Love an d Rockets, Cure, Screamin g Blue Messiahs, originals only.
Presence, individuality, confidence, and insanity a must. No egos. 48
This a d uses the names of three bands to mark out th e boundarie s o f a
musical style, but then complements that with a set of personal qualities
required, expressin g a demand fo r a self-effacing bu t confiden t musical
innovator. A third a d relie s solely on adjective s to conve y its desires .
"Pounding, Pounding , Poundingl y melted , stained , shredded , bassis t
and drummer needed." 49
Some musicians go to grea t lengths t o tr y to describ e precisely the
character of bot h th e ban d an d the perso n wit h who m the y wan t t o
work.
Percussionist and Keyboard player wanted to work with Laurie Freelove (acous-
tic guitar, singer, songwriter and ex-Nice Girl). I am looking for musically liter-
ate or non-literate musicians with universal musical tastes who value melody and
enjoy rhythmi c eccentricity. If you enjo y workin g out impressionisti c musical
arrangements, don't mind vocalizing every now and then an d love the proces s
of exploring ideas as much a s performing please send me a tape of your work.
Patience, politeness and commitment a must. Send tape, letter, and phone num-
ber t o . . .. Thank you. 50
Even wit h thi s degree o f detail and description, mos t ad s do no t suc -
cessfully locat e th e desire d player . By and large , musician s eschew the
referral column , preferrin g to depen d on personal contacts o r word of
mouth withi n th e scene , an d ofte n simpl y forming band s wit h thei r
friends.
The chie f reason for this reliance on personal contacts i s that a n ob-
jectively determine d leve l o f musica l skill i s not th e mos t importan t
consideration whe n selectin g ban d members . Young musicians in th e
rock'n'roll scene in Austin consider the primar y factor to be persona l
compatibility, a compatibility that goes beyond the mere willingness t o
get along and reaches toward a deeper unity. This explains the emphasis
on personal characteristics in the ads. Since the product o f a rock'n'rol l
band within a scene is a projected identity, "personalities" ar e assumed
to determin e stylisti c variation. Brant Bingamon is a guitarist, singer ,
and songwriter fo r the punk band Pocket FishRmen. He insistently told
me that, "the mos t basi c core trut h o f any band" is that "personalitie s
come first. I always said I'd rathe r have fun playing with somebody tha n
be in a successful band."51 In his band, Pocket FishRmen, the personali-
ties o f the ban d member s "dictat e a certain kind of music. Once Chri s
was in the band, his personality, like, dictated the whole style the music
was gonna have to take. Because he owned a lot of heavy metal and dis-
torted guitar. " Within th e rock'n'rol l scene , musical taste an d musical
ability are not th e surface traits of an individual but must b e directly re-
lated to some elemental truth abou t the person performing. They must
shape, an d i n tur n b e molded by , the mos t basi c longing withi n tha t
person.
This belief is not restricted to punk musicians like Brant. Joe McDer-

mott leads Grains of Faith, a more mainstream Austin rock'n'rol l band .
He chose the musicians in his band on the basis of what he calls a "spiri-
tual texture. "
But I think a s far as textures go, that is more important to me than, I mean, just
the instrument s tha t I wanted t o play with. Lik e I didn't even know tha t Joh n
RatlifF could eve n play piano. I mean I knew that he played. But I never hear d
him, and we invited him into the band before I ever knew he could play. Because
it, it's not jus t a sonic texture. It's sort o f a spiritual texture. And it's a choice.
It's lik e when you paint, you know, you have a palette and Austin is a wonderful
city because you have this huge palette of people. You know, I think a lot of the
texture has to do with just liking the people. I mean that an overwhelming thing
for me with Grains of Faith, and I know that if I was in the audience and I saw
this, I think you could see that we just love each other.52
Heather Moore, the band' s viol a player, intimated a direct relatio n be -

tween her musi c an d her personalit y whe n sh e talked abou t th e part s
she contributes t o the band's songs .
Ok, you write your own part, so of course you're not going to write somethin g
that's too har d for you. You wouldn't think of it. I mean I don't think of things
that ar e too har d fo r me . S o my parts are technically very easy. And m y parts
tend t o be , for one thing, I' m mor e comfortabl e playing lower. I ten d t o stay
down on thos e string s an d I just like them. I fee l mor e comfortable . I fee l like
they're more , I pla y them bette r an d they'r e mor e attractiv e sounding, thei r
sound i s more attractiv e to me . I just lik e those tones , my personal, m y ears, I
think I like those tones better. I must say, I'm not, I don't like standing out. I'm
not used to it. 53
Corresponding to th e belie f that her music must b e directly expressive

of some aspect of her personality, Heather's statemen t links the fact that
she feels uncomfortabl e standin g out t o the fact tha t th e musical tone s
that pleas e her also tend not to stand out.
John Crosli n insiste d that , "th e Reivers ar e a band tha t thrive s o n
personality and not on hot licks or anything like that." In fact, "the most
important par t of the band is our personalities going bac k and forth." 54
Kim Longacrc agreed , "John understands that what a lot of people ar e
attracted t o i n our ban d is our dynamic. And that we have a real intense
relationship—two men an d two women—and that sexua l thing i s just
real attractiv e t o people . An d it's always been there." 55 In th e scen e in
Austin, rock'n'roll musicians clearly do not produce autonomous music .
The music they perform is the result of an entire set of social and cultural
relationships intersectin g throug h th e "personalities " o f the musicians
in the field of musical performance. The audienc e responds no t simply
to a musical stimulus but to this performed se t as a whole.
The loca l language of "personalities " assume s a stability and coher -
ence i n th e psychi c makeup o f th e individua l musicians that conflict s
with my language of subject positions and enunciative possibilities. The
use o f personalit y a s a definin g concep t fo r musical compatibility i s
deeply rooted in the traditional importance place d on sincerity in coun-
try music, and is reinforced by the dominant concept of the autonomous
individual. But I believe that it is possible to translate their language of
personalities int o my language of discourses and subject positions whil e
retaining th e emphasis on sincerity and compatibility.
In performance , th e "personality " o f th e musicia n become s a pro -
jected image ; i t represents a desired identity , a longed fo r completion,
that i s indeed overdetermined b y the movement of desire through social
and cultura l (that is , discursive) conditions, ye t that canno t b e reduced
to these conditions, and that remain s necessarily incomplete, requirin g
the return gaz e of the audienc e to fill in the gaps, to momentaril y cap
off th e desir e fo r pur e being . The imag e of the performe r must b e re-
cognized b y the audience and re-turned through th e affectively charge d
gestures of response in order fo r the projected identity to achieve com-
pletion. Thi s temporar y identit y the n i s a join t produc t o f th e per -
formers i n the band an d their audience , reflectin g combinatoriall y th e
"personalities" of each. 56
But thi s proces s o f identit y constructio n i s complex , fragile , an d
tentative—particularly within the condition o f adolescence fostered by
postmodernity. Any imaginary identity must be renewed with each per-
formance. I t is not buttresse d by a secure position withi n the Symbolic ;
therefore, it must be constantly re-performed. Rock'n'roll musician s are
deeply investe d i n the successful projectio n an d retur n o f this identity.
And when the renewal fails—when the show is merely good, not magi -
cal (th e note s ar e playe d perfectl y bu t yo u don' t "ge t th e chills") —
the musicians can experience a severe anguish. The intense pleasure s of
performing (o f completing wit h th e audienc e a longed for , imaginary
identity) are accompanied by an equally intense pain if the musician and
the audienc e d o no t connec t an d the mutua l projectio n fails . A s John
Croslin pu t it , "I' m rea l downcas t afte r a bad show . Yo u can ge t rea l
neurotic abou t this ; it can make you crazy." 57 The difficult y o f project-
ing this unanchored identity place s severe restrictions on the variety of
discursive elements (tha t is, the personalities ) that ca n be combined in
the members of the band. Therefore, an intcriorized discursive sincerity,
characterized by the longing fo r purity that comes from a n overinvest-
ment i n the Imaginary, is required. "Personalities," then , determine the
band's style, since the ultimate production for a rock'n'roll ban d is a pro-
jected incomplet e identity , yearned for b y both th e musician s and th e
audience.

At this point, the band becomes the unit of identity construction. I n
the words of Mike Hall, "The ide a of a band is being a collection of four
or five people. You wouldn't get the same kind of thing among four or
five other peopl e i n the whole world. That's wha t make s a band. That
nobody else could eve r do what these fou r o r five other peopl e coul d
do."58 In other words, n o other group of people could project the same
particular image, could construct the same partial identity as these fou r
or five individuals. Such identities are constructed an d projected on th e
basis of libidina l ties, the connection s o f desire; therefore, it becomes
very important fo r the musician s in a band to b e close friends. "We'r e
not a rock band ; we'r e a bunch of friends," Heather Moore tol d me. 59
Julia Austi n o f Happ y Famil y metaphorically strengthened th e bond .
"Being i n a band i s like being married," she said. "We're al l of us prod -
ucts of the modern age . We've been through ba d relationships and good
relationships, al l these things . An d we've just learned that we'v e gott a
talk t o eac h other a lot." 60 Kevi n Whitley o f E d Hal l insiste d that , " I
rarely, rarely entertai n notions of being in another band . Because that's
not why I got in this band. I got in this band because of Larry, basically.
Because we ha d thi s really cool relationshi p and w e worked reall y well
together."6'
The libidina l bonds amon g musician s must be tight for a band suc-
cessfully t o projec t a n identit y fo r it s fans . Thes e tic s ar e fragil e an d
constantly threatened . Alejandro Escovedo described the dissolution of
Rank and File , a band he helped form an d played i n for three years, in
profoundly nostalgi c terms.
You know, a good rock'n'roll ban d to me is more than a family. Just that it's you
four, five, whatever against the world. Really . I mean, you know, your own cod e
of speech, the way you guys talk to each other that most people can't penetrate .
When yo u se e a band together, I mean a really goo d band , there's somethin g
there. An d that's kind of what we wanted to be like. With Rank and File, it was
like, you know , originall y w e wanted tha t sens e of camaraderie that w e foun d
while we were sitting aroun d the living room, listenin g to records an d playing
guitars. We wanted tha t al l the time . And it' s lik e you suppor t eac h other i n
ways, you're lik e brothers . You'r e like husbands and wives. You're all of thos e
things, bu t it's just these four guys. It's a real fragile thing. It's rare that you find
a band that ca n really stick it out. Bu t we felt lik e that at first. We all loved each
other very much. Thought that eac h guy had somethin g t o offer . Whether h e
was the greatest guita r player or not didn' t matter . He's our mate and we'll just
stand b y him.62
In Austi n rock'n'roll , the ban d represent s an ideal groupin g o f dis-

cursive elements into a spontaneous collectivity, bound by libidinal tics,
capable o f producin g an d projectin g a coherent identity , an d abl e t o
withstand the disciplinary pressure of the dominant socially constructed
Symbolic. The ban d represents, in miniature, the idealize d community,
carrying into the present the cowboy nostalgia for a prcmodcrn Utopia
that had been signified in the myth of the cattle trail and the cow camp.
If successful, th e ban d projects its collective identity into a respondin g
audience tha t complete s an d extends this collectivity , filling the night -
club with the potential for musicalized communion.
The Songs
Composition method s withi n band s vary , bu t i n Austi n ther e i s
almost alway s an effor t t o includ e th e contribution s o f al l members,
to meld the musical expressions of their "personalities" together i n the
band's songs. While in most bands one or two individuals produce mos t
of the lyrical, harmonic, and melodic content of the songs, almos t every
band expect s each musician to develop her or his instrumental part, t o
contribute t o th e arrangements , to chi p in the idea s necessary to tur n
a chor d char t an d a lyric sheet int o a song. Juli a Austin described th e
benefits that accrue from working up a song.
Well, quit e often someon e will brin g in words and the n we'l l put musi c to it
together as a band. That's really fun, because writing together fo r us is just realty
nice. It reall y works. Sometimes , someon e will come i n with a whole idea, and
that's ok, but i t doesn't giv e everybody the satisfaction of having input. I n ou r
band i t i s really important tha t everybod y i s satisfied. That they'r e al l getting
their creativ e input. An d w e al l need it, cuz we're all like, real creative people.
Even thoug h som e o f u s might b e a little mor e activ e at one tim e or anothe r
than others. I t jus t helps the band i f everybody ha s input into the song. I t just
helps, it's lik e a bonding experience, I guess. And it helps to bond everybody t o
the song and to the band an d to everything. It's also , even for the person who's
just written th e song, it's just really great to put it through that process. 63
John Crosli n i s the chie f songwriter fo r th e Reivers , receiving th e

credit and the copyright fo r most o f their material. But the "personali-
ties" an d the creativ e musical input of the other member s of the ban d
enter int o every stage of a song's construction .
Usually I star t wit h a melod y mor e tha n an y other thing . Bu t i t coul d b e a
rhythm, i t coul d b e anything . A lo t o f i t i s driven jus t b y the wa y we play . A
certain group o f people ca n do certain things together . Ther e ar e certain thing s
about one' s personalit y tha t com e ou t o f the music . Rhyth m i s probably on e
of th e rea l fundamental ones . You'v e just got certai n rhythms insid e you. Bu t
usually what happens is , I'll just bring a song in—chord s and melody—and we
kind o f go ove r who' s gonna sing it and try to work ou t som e harmonies an d
stuff. An d then if it's no t workin g fo r some reason , I'll say, well try this, an d if
it's stil l not working , I'l l g o bac k and try t o rewrit e the song if I fee l strongl y
about it. If not, we'l l just kind of toss it. 64
In th e initia l composition process , John produce s a melodic an d har-

monic structure , which is alread y partiall y determine d by hi s under-
standing of the way the band plays. The "personalities" of the members

place limits o n th e musical structures the ban d can play. Fundamenta l
components o f who the y ar e both constrain an d enable their abilities
to perform certain rhythms, to enact particular sound patterns. The un-
conscious physicalit y of playing an instrument enters into this. 65 Ther e
are certain almost automatic shapes the hand takes as the guitarist picks
up her instrument. The first chords strummed, the first few licks used to
warm u p th e han d ar e always the same . When th e drummer sits down
with th e stick s in her hands, rolling from th e snare to th e toms, punc-
tuating he r arriva l with tw o kick s on the bas s drum, the beaten soun d
is a s distinc t a s a voice announcing , I a m here . I t rarel y varies fro m
rehearsal to sound chec k to the beginning of a show. These musica l sig-
natures symboliz e the physica l relationship between th e musicia n and
her or hi s instrument. Bu t when John talked about a song "working, "
he meant more tha n tha t th e ban d is physically capable of playing the
notes. H e meant tha t the structure he imagined can be enthusiastically,
affectively, enacte d by all the band members, that they can be caught up
in the performanc e of the song, tha t fundamenta l component s o f their
being will be hailed by it and contribute t o its material realization. For
a song t o "work," in the most absolut e sense, it must contain musically
defined moments tha t attract the projection of each musician's yearned-
for completion. This is what Julia pointed toward when she talked about
"bonding" with the song. Only when such libidinal bonding occur s has
a ban d produce d a son g capable of focusin g a projected identit y fo r
its fans .
Not ever y band membe r has to lov e wholeheartedly every song the
band plays. I only mean that for a song to become part of the distinctive
catalog of material that defines a particular band, each musician must b e
drawn ou t o f he r or his self by some element i n the song . There mus t
be a rhythmic moment o f interes t tha t engage s th e drumme r an d th e
bass player. There mus t be harmonic or melodic interaction s that tickle
the inner ears of the guitarists, the keyboard players, the horn and fiddle
players. There must be a lyrical image or a narrative impulse or a melodic
invention tha t draws the voice out of the singer. These subjectiv e inter-
actions wit h th e musica l form constitut e "dialectica l syntheses" with a
symbolic structure, enabling and shaping the projection of an imagined
identity.66 However , thes e synthese s do no t nee d t o b e simultaneou s
moments, overlappin g in a climax of identification . I t i s only necessar y
that each band member recognize some aspect in the song that demands
from him or her the unconscious projection from their individual semi-
otic. This i s a wholly subjective , private experience for each musician,
but it s effects ca n be felt .
Kevin Whitley described the group composition o f one of the song s
on their 1990 album Love (S)Poke(n) Here. This song was written whil e
his band , E d Hall, was rehearsing in the back room o f the hous e the y
rent together.
There's this one song that is fabulous. It's called "Millionaire's House." It's on e
of the song s tha t happened in a free-form jam . It's so weird, it happened at th e
very end o f a free-form jam , we were five minutes from leaving . Some peopl e
had jus t come over. Lik e a lot of people had filtered in, were drinking beer in
the kitchen, making alot of noise and we were all going, oh this is too much , we
can't practice with this, we wanna go drink beer. Well, just as we were about t o
quit, Gary did something simultaneousl y with Larry and I just went, ohmigod,
turn the thing [tape recorder] on. And I did this simplistic ass drumbeat behind
it and it was beautiful. I had never heard Gary play anything like that and what
Larry playe d was so Larry, bu t better . It wa s really cool. It wa s musclely. And
it's just one of those things that happened. And Larry wrote the whole entire
bass line, Gary wrote the whole guitar part and I wrote the drums and the lyrics.
It's a great song. It' s jus t a great song. And it'll be great to us whether nobod y
likes it, because it happened that way. And al l of us get off on it real hard. We all
like to pla y it. And I just think it's a really good song. 67
The value of the son g for Kevin came from th e spontaneity of it s com-
position and the way in which the song materially, sonically, represents
imagined aspects of each of the musicians in Ed Hall: "what Larry played
was so Larry, but better" Kevin's narration of the origin of "Millionaire' s
House," with its description of each member of the band erupting spon-
taneously into the song's composition, depicts the pleasurable imaginary
plenitude of "pure" representation.
"Millionaire's House " arose out o f a group improvisatio n an d rep -
resents a paradigmatic example of the process I a m trying to describe .
But th e importan t maneuve r of subjectivel y identifyin g wit h aspect s
of th e song , propellin g some nonconscious semioti c elements into its
musical construction, an d thereby contributing to it s projected image ,
can occur even when one person write s most of the instrumental parts
before presenting it to the other band members.
Joe McDermott write s the bulk of Grains of Faith' s material in his
home studio . Fo r him, "the process of recording an d songwriting ar e
not very different. I' m not ver y dependent on other musicians for ideas
because, and it's not becaus e I'm god' s gift t o music, it's because that's
the way I grew up. I grew up bouncing scratchy cassette tape recorders
back an d fort h t o ge t somethin g tha t sounde d lik e a band . An d it' s
almost lik e it's on e motio n fo r me , generally , to writ e a song." 68 Be-
cause of Joe's reliance on recording in composition, he tends to bring an
almost completely written song to the other members of the band. Still,
the song is not whole until the other members play it. The more ephem-
eral vet still necessary contribution of the other musicians derives from

what Joe earlier called a "spiritual texture," that tightly woven fabric o f
the "personalities " and the musica l style in the band. The members of
Grains of Faith form a unit of discursive and musical thread s that shape
and color Joe's compositions. "Steve Grimes [the drummer] to me is not
like, really like a different person . He's sor t of, like a logical extension of
my songwriting. And the whole band in a lot of ways is like that. As far
as recording or anythin g else. I think we all feel like we're each other's
hands. It' s lik e we're a great big multi-track machine that we all have a
say-so in or something." 69
When Joe writes a song, he considers not onl y the musicians in th e
band bu t als o th e physica l materia l throug h whic h th e soun d i s pro -
duced.
When you're in a club and it' s dar k and it' s smoky and people ar e drunk, and
there are these huge, massive speakers that everything comes out of, and they're
mono, they're not even in stereo, there's no separation. There's just this big wall.
And if you're eve r gonna ge t through t o anybody in that situation, it has to be
really clean and reall y direct and there have to b e a lot of stops in it where you
can just say what you want to say . Because the realit y of the speake r is that it' s
one thing. No matte r what it sounds like, everything's coming out of this one
piece of paper. And there are different piece s of paper and plastic but it' s all the
same thing an d th e onl y way that you can really separate things i s to separate
them. Lik e if the kic k drum is going here , then sometimes you don't want th e
guitar playin g on to p o f it. I think the thing that I think about most i s where
the holes are and where the hooks are and how I'm gonna translate those. Like,
I guess I think a lot about what's gonna pop out of that big, ugly black column
and stick. And that's really the way I write.70
The music of Grains of Faith is, accordingly, clean and clear, discernable,
understandable, close r t o traditiona l idea s o f quality pop songwritin g
and precise performance than the music of Ed Hall. Joe illustrated th e
results of his method by reference t o one of his songs.
Like "Sea Wall." It starts out and it's just the guitar and it's me singing so there's
absolutely no competition for anything. An d the band only punctuates th e be-
ginning o f it. So for the first part of the song it's just me and the audience. And
they can understand what I'm sayin g and it gets stronger but , as the band gets
stronger, m y voice gets louder and you know, like the chorus, where the ban d
is really humpin', I' m i n my range where I can really yell it out. S o that works.
And the n i n the middl e of the song , everythin g stops. I think a lot of that, I
mean, that song is so funny, there's so many coincidences in that song. Like, it' s
basically a document o f a horrible weekend I had with Kim when things were
falling apart. I was just like, this happened to me and it was horrible and I want
everyone to know about it. Like, on the weekend that we went to the coast we
took a Van Morrison tap e with u s an d a little blu e jambox and lik e we were
listening t o "Craz y Love " an d him singing , "Tur n i t up, a little bit higher." 71
"Sea Wall " is probably the mos t popular song Grains of Fait h play .
The musica l structur e reinforce s th e narrativ e o f a collapsed marriag e
(the "middle of the song" where "everything stops"), a story that is really
only hinted a t in the lyrics . As Joe explains, the song begins softly wit h
just his voice and an acoustic guitar picking out a n ascending affirmativ e
riff connectin g a n alternatin g C and F major chor d pattern . The verse
lyrics ar e affectionate an d warm, Joe's voice is open, full , an d inviting .
But as he sings the perhaps hopeful opinion tha t "it might be the Great
Wall of China," Jennifer Summers adds a harmony vocal that, in its qua-
vering tone and sheer isolation from the rest of the arrangement, evokes
an achin g loneliness. This i s the listener' s first clu e that al l is not well .
When the band comes in at the bridge, as Joe sings "I'm goin ' for a walk
now," John Ratlif f hammers out octave C notes on the piano, affirmin g
the independenc e an d determinatio n i n this portio n o f the lyric . But
just at that same moment Stev e Grimes beats on his half-open high hat,
slapping the tw o cymbal s shut just a s he hits it, a technique that lends
an opening, questionin g fee l to the bridge, limiting the certainty of the
beat. The rhythmic interplay between John's reinforcement of indepen-
dence and Steve' s questionin g o f certainty adds a tremendous subtlet y
to the song, drawing the listener in, encouraging attentive hearing, and
undermining any quick or easy interpretation, just as Jennifer's haunting
background voca l rises above and slightly shifts th e listener's attentio n
away from th e immediat e affirmation o f Joe's full-throate d voice. Her e
in th e hear t o f th e hook , th e ver y clement o f the son g t o whic h Jo e
claims to pay the most attentio n while writing, the contributions of the
other band members, their musical styles and aspects of their "person -
alities," add a necessary tension that sonically and affectively reproduce s
the doub t an d the uncertainty of the "horrible weekend." The dynamic
tension that follows this bridge, as the song breaks down, Joe singing of
the cold , and then rise s back up with life redeeme d by the musical and
lyrical quotes fro m Van Morrison's son g "Crazy Love," i s all produce d
within thos e musically enacted moments of intraband relationship. Ap-
propriately, the song ends with a question i n the lyrics—"I don't know
if it thrills you a t all, to fee l the ocean pushing on th e se a wall"—and a
repeating, unending musical fadeout.
"Millionaire's House " and "Sea Wall" are two very different song s by
two ver y differen t bands . Bu t th e valu e o f bot h o f thes e song s i s ex-
plained b y means of th e specifi c aestheti c they share. This aestheti c is
derived fro m th e way s i n which rock'n'roll i n Austin works as a signi-
fying practice, resulting in the projection, recognition, and return—the
production—of new identities, new enunciative positions.

Aesthetics
From 198 3 until 1986 , Stev e Spink s le d a ban d calle d the Dharm a
Bums. They first performed a s a trio, but eventuall y adde d a keyboard
player and second guitaris t (Jo e McDermott) an d a horn section . The y
were on e o f the feature d bands in the 198 5 "Austin Avalanche of Roc k
and Roll" episode o f MTV's Cutting Edge program . I asked Steve what
distinguished Austi n band s fro m othe r rock'n'rol l band s nationwide .
"Austin musicians , I hate to say the word, bu t I think they're sincere . I
think they really care what they're singing." 72 The immediate project o f
rock'n'roll band s in the scene in Austin is the construction o f an incom-
plete identity that it s audience can recognize an d return. Becaus e this
identity i s constructed throug h th e allusiv e combinations o f persona l
and musical characteristics from each of the band members through the
songs an d performanc e styles in a fashion that escape s their consciou s
intentions, sincerit y remain s th e primar y aestheti c value , th e centra l
element i n ever y evaluative system , operatin g i n the widest variet y of
musical styles.
The prominenc e of sincerity a s an expressive value in Austin musi c
draws on a long tradition in country and western music. In the late 19205
and earl y 19305, a n "effortless informality, " a "personal approach, " an d
an overwhelming "sincerity" characterized the voice of Jimmic Rodgers ,
the firs t commercia l recordin g sta r o f countr y music. 7' Rodger s wa s
"a fello w wh o understood ; wh o ha d 'bee n there.' " And hi s audience
heard this quality in his voice.74 The ability to vocalize sincerity became
a ke y stylistic trai t i n hillbill y (later , country ) music , as it wa s geneti-
cally distinguished fro m urban popular song. Functionally , this generic
marker indicated a distance from an d a distrust o f the duplicitou s rela-
tions that were associate d with cit y marketplaces. The smooth singin g
voice of the urban popular singer metonymically symbolized the smooth
double-talking urba n commercial entrepreneur, the rancher's untruste d
but necessar y partner i n the marketing of rural products. Agains t thi s
symbolized urbanity , a specifi c se t o f voca l tones , melodi c phrasings ,
and personal images was established a s indicators of rural sincerity .
In 1936 , Mrs . Carri e Rodger s encourage d Ernes t Tubb , th e Texa s
Troubadour, to keep singing because "you do have feeling in your voice.
The audienc e know s ho w you fee l abou t th e son g you'r e singing , an d
Jimmie alway s though t tha t wa s th e mos t importan t thin g o f all." 75
Hank William s onc e explaine d the succes s of countr y musi c i n "one
word: sincerity. . . . [The hillbill y singer] sing s more sincer e than most
entertainers becaus e the hillbill y was raised roughe r tha n mos t enter -
tainers. You got t o kno w a lot about har d work. You got t o hav e smelt
a lo t o f mul e manur e befor e yo u ca n sing lik e a hillbilly." 76 Fro m th e
vocal virtuosity of Left y Frizzcl l to the genuine performances of Willie
Nelson, the vocalization of sincerity has indicated a singer who ca n be
trusted and, therefore, the possibility of an audience who can accurately
interpret an d properly respond to the performances. Sincerity, however
signified, has remained the most important quality in successful countr y
singing.
In th e traditio n o f popula r musi c performanc e tha t continue s i n
Austin, th e singer enunciates from a position marke d by a romantic re -
lation to the patriarchal, capitalist Symbolic. Like most romanticisms , it
derives from a distrust o f industrialism , of urbanism, of the contradic -
tions of the marketplace, of all the tenets of modernity. But the romanti-
cism of country and western music in Texas is also specifically rooted in
the mythic origins of the state: the cattle trail and the cow camp as spon-
taneous masculin e communitie s fre e fro m th e contradiction s o f mod -
ern societ y ye t capabl e o f generatin g massiv e personal wealth. There -
fore, th e sincer e performance o f country an d western music in Austin
indicates a doubled an d ironi c articulation of an antimodern romanti -
cism, celebrating the productivity of capitalist modernity while simulta-
neously critiquing th e increasing influence of marketplace duplicity and
"instrumental reason." 77
Punk i n Austi n directl y attacke d thi s specificall y nostalgi c for m o f
sincerity as groups like the Huns and the Reversible Cords layered their
performances with an ironic negation designed to disrupt and dismantle
local traditions of musical communication. Songs like "Glad He's Dead "
and "Big Penis Envy" not only denied their own sincerity but questione d
the possibilit y of any "freedom fro m dissimulation." 78 While traditiona l
sincerity demands th e absence of outside influenc e o r adulteration, on e
of the most significant messages of punk was that such are the condition s
of commercialize d cultura l practice that n o popula r music is free fro m
artifice. Punk , particularl y its British variant, pointed ou t that th e mar-
keting of popular musi c necessarily implie d outside influence . But this
is precisely the point wher e punk in the United States , and in Austin in
particular, differed fro m th e gleefu l machinations of Malcolm McLare n
and th e Se x Pistols. Where McLare n playfull y wallowe d i n the contra-
dictions of the commodified society of the spectacle, giggling on his way
to the bank, punks and postpunk musicians in Austin struggled t o recu-
perate sincerity through a purification of the expressive impulse. The les-
sons of punk in Austin reinforced a Utopian romantic urge for a cultural
marketplace fre e o f deceit, where a sincere expression, a pure reprcsen-

tation, could arise from some essence of the performer untainted b y the
polluting structure s of capitalism and then could be distributed through
direct channels to a populace longing fo r it . If outside influenc e could
not b e eliminated, then sincerit y had to reig n over the interior aspect s
of musical production . Th e do-it-yoursel f ethi c of punk me t wit h th e
powerful populis t traditio n i n Texas ; the resul t wa s an insistenc e o n
the persona l responsibilit y for and significance o f the music one made,
the music one listened to , the music one bought an d sold.79
In talkin g abou t th e special natur e o f musi c i n Austin fo r MTV' s
Cutting Edge program , Joh n Crosli n said , "A lot o f place s people ex -
pect everybody t o be able to play the exact right notes all the time. In
Austin, they'r e jus t lookin ' fo r energy." Ki m Longacre pitche d in , "A
new sound." John continued , "Peopl e wh o like to do what they like to
do." And Garrett Williams, the drummer, summe d up, "You don't have
to be perfect the first time or even the second time, and people will still
like you." 80 Here, the ke y terms in the Austin aestheti c were laid out :
energy, a new sound, a personal investment in one's own music (lik e to
do what the y like to do), and a reduced emphasis on the precisely accu-
rate executio n o f musica l structures. The projectio n o f a n incomplet e
identity, structure d b y the sign s o f sincerity , produced b y and aime d
at a group of adolescents strugglin g t o represent themselves within th e
disabling constraint s of an unstable Symbolic, requires an emphasis on
intention, o n the interior workings of the Imaginary. Precise execution
of a specific form is not only unnecessary but, to a certain extent, reveals
a too concrete concern with the very symbolic structures already known
to b e illusory; i t is far more importan t t o "get th e chills." During one
of ou r interviews , Crosli n insiste d tha t th e interrogatio n o f structur e
partially defines Zeitgeist . "Par t of our thing is that we're not absolutel y
sure o f ourselves. We're really , we question our live s and ou r selves." 81
This questioning i s expressed by a willingness to display risk on stage ,
by overtly longing for the pleasurable and meaningful moments of com-
pletion, b y performin g mor e tha n th e ban d ca n execute . This i s th e
form that sincerity take s in postpunk rock'n'roll. The result of this em-
phasis on sincerity , intention, an d the Imaginary is a performing style
that displays an enthusiasm or an energy that overflows any disciplining
structures. A s Julia Austin sai d to me , "Yeah , I kin d o f lik e a coher -
ent son g performe d with som e imprecision." 82 John Crosli n mad e th e
same point, "I' m a lot less concerned about someon e playing the wrong
chords a s the show just not working." 83
In 1984, Jesse Sublett derisively named the bands associated with th e
Beach scene , the New Sincerity bands. In his eyes, they were flauntin g
their claim to an absence of artifice, championing "content" over "style"
by their manne r of not changing ou t of their daily clothing t o perform ,
by their willingness to tune onstage, by their sloppy, unprofessional per -
formances, and by their attempts to deconstruct th e distinction betwee n
the musicians onstage and the fan s i n the audience. 84 I n effect , Sublet t
was reiteratin g th e pun k objectio n t o an y claim of freedom fro m dis -
simulation. Bu t this dismissiv e label was adopted b y the participant s in
the scen e a s an appropriat e encapsulatio n o f their differenc e fro m an d
similarity to other Austin music. The new sincerity was strictly a matter
of intention.
Once sincerity was defined as an interior quality , the most stabl e sig-
nifier of one's sincerity became each individual's insistenc e on the purity
and genuineness o f he r or hi s own desires. Rather tha n takin g the ex-
pressive form of a specific performance style (like that of Willie Nelso n
or Marcia Ball) , sincerity could only be signified by one's willingness t o
be true to thes e desire s in the fac e of any disciplinary pressure from the
dominant culture (a s expressed, fo r example, through marketplace rela-
tions) t o tempe r them . Thus, any component o f human existenc e tha t
directly confronted th e forbidde n barriers of the dominant cultur e be-
came an arena for the displa y of genuine desires, a place to signif y one' s
sincerity, and , therefore , a field for aesthetic expression. Once sincerit y
is conceived o f a s an aspiration , a n intention , a longed-for elemen t o f
misrccognition, only then can the tight links betwee n specific musica l
styles and specific ways of living, links believed to b e direct an d almos t
immediate, b e understood as double expressions of the same aesthetic .
Here is Hunter Darby's articulation of that doubled aestheti c expres-
sion.
Cuz see, alternative music is pretty much, seems like to me, represents a lifestyle.
Not alway s being safe. Lik e the way people take it to differen t extremes . Just
in what they say. If they think they can say something, they'll say it. Or i f you
wanna like , fucking drin k yourself to death , well, you'll have friends wh o wil l
say don't do that, but if you wanna get trashed one night, no one's gonna hold
it agains t yo u the nex t day. For me, personally, I don't like music that's safe. 85
When aske d to describ e his lifestyle, Hunte r narrated an idealized rep -

resentation, applyin g this aesthetic of abject sincerity.
So, I get up about one, twelve or one. And I'll go down to Circle K every day—
the lady knows me. I'll get a beer. I'll drink that beer. Then I'll go and I might
go to class. And hang out for a while. And I'll go and check in at work. I'll have
another drink a t work . Texas Tavern. A bar , that helps. Maybe I'll lik e check
around, see , go visit, I'll see people all the time on th e street. Go walking, I'll
run int o people. Then, if it's a practice night, I'll go to practice. We practice like
four nights a week, three to four. That'll go to like, from seven to eleven o'clock.

So it's sort of lik e a job. And hang out with some of those guys for a while and
maybe someone will say, you'll find out i f anyone's gonna do somethin'. If you
feel like doin' somethin', you'll go out to the Cannibal cuz they have those cards
for th e musicians . It's great, if you've played enough shows there, if you get t o
know people , the y giv e us these cards . I t make s i t free , th e hangout , an d w e
fucking support that place by drinking. Plus if you're ever low, you can probably
get a drink or something. So I go see bands. That's my main thing. I like going
to se e the roa d shows. I'll take a chance on anything . Lot o f times, like even if
you haven't really heard them. And you go down there to meet, hang out an d
talk with some people. Maybe go like, run around. Like last Thursday was great.
We went down and saw, went to the studio and recorded and then got out earl y
and went to see , I was gonna meet Alex down a t Young Fresh Fellows an d we
went down there, and I hadn't seen those guys in a while so we grabbed them
and went down to the Hole in the Wall and played down there again. 86
Whether o r not thi s accurately represents Hunter's daily routine, i t
does indicat e a blending o f th e detail s of hi s existenc e with a specifi c
aesthcticized notion of the meaning of everyday life and its articulation
with hi s musical practice. Hunter run s around, meetin g people , drink -
ing, mayb e not goin g to class , working wit h hi s band i n the evening ,
getting into his favorite bar for free, listenin g to musicians from ou t o f
town, and extending the night a few precious hour s through a sponta-
neous extra performance at the Hole in the Wall. The actions of the day
are unified b y his rejection o f any constrictions on th e spontaneit y an d
immediate pleasure of every moment. H e is constantly meeting people ,
always running around and always moving, unless he is at band rehearsal
or i n the studio . An d thes e moment s o f work, "sort of lik e a job," are
glossed over in the telling of his day.
This is Hunter's romantic picture of his own life o n the edg e of th e
abject, tha t barrie r between th e accepte d an d th e forbidden , marke d
for hi m b y alcohol, constan t motion , an d a specific musica l quality: an
incomplete articulatio n o f noise . Nonsaf e musi c fo r Hunte r i s music
"with a little more distortion tha n can be played on the radio." The clean
sound hear d o n th e radi o i s opposed t o th e dirt y sound o f alternative
music, an d thi s dirt y soun d i s a result of distortion , o f a noisy, mor e
complex audi o signal . Nois e mark s the edg e of popular (tha t is , com -
mercially successful ) music , an d nois e i s signified tonall y throug h th e
overproduction o f harmonics . The edg e o f the acceptable—tha t place
where Hunte r finds personal an d musica l pleasure—is define d b y th e
socially constructed categorie s of saf e popula r musi c and a safe way of
life. The sign of Hunter's sincerity is the noise, the disorder, the insisten t
instability, one hear s in his music and finds in his life. 87
Sincerity remains the primary organizing value of the aesthetic even
on this edge of abjection. It produces the "punk attitude towards things"
avowed by Kevin Whitley of Ed Hall.
We're antimusician . We don't conside r ourselves musicians. We consider our -
selves peopl e wh o pic k up instrument s an d make noises that g o together . . . .
And so , we're kin d o f antimusician, that, quote , kind of musician. We're anti-
establishment, b y means o f th e fac t tha t w e don't reall y lik e ho w ou r parent s
live. We want t o d o somethin g that' s no t quit e tha t geare d toward stability , I
guess. I guess it' s mor e roote d i n rebellion, I imagine. Because I can't, I don't
know, parents , the y ge t to a point an d they'r e just making it. I don't know , I
guess it' s a time of life . I don't really understand it. I can't feel anything like that.
I don't feel it. 88
Because Kevi n canno t fee l wha t hi s parent s feel , thei r "tim e o f life "
makes no sens e to him . Hi s "rebellion " is simply the resul t of a sincere
acknowledgment of his inability to identify wit h the way his parents live.
Kevin shares Hunter's taste for noise and disorder. He does not fee l any
value in stability, so his life and his music must express an "antiestablish-
ment" and, becaus e of the histor y of the loca l music scene, "antimusi-
cian" punk attitude . Rathe r tha n rejectin g sincerity , th e pun k attitud e
in Austin depend s upon it. As Kevin said, music is "a medium to hav e
an effec t o n peopl e b y opening yourself u p t o wha t you'r e doing an d
how it' s affectin g you." 89 In the musical aesthetic of Austin rock'n'roll,
the subversive negativity of punk is enabled by a positive insistence on
sincerity.
For nonpunk musicians , the valu e o f sincerity is articulated in other
directions. Kim Longacre no longer
understand[s] th e peopl e who pu t themselve s on the edg e al l the time . . . . I
think tha t tha t wa s the attractio n of Raul' s an d it' s not , it' s no t s o much re-
belliousness—although you are rebelling—it's more the, I don't know, it's like,
hating yoursel f or something . I think you fal l int o thi s thing tha t you'r e reall y
attracted t o thi s evilness, this scariness, and it's like, I never knew I could b e so
bad. I certainly feel lik e I went around tha t block a couple of times. But I don't
think tha t whe n I played anybody looked at me like I'm a bad girl, you know?
And that was when I realized this other thing, that something has to be organic
or it's not worth shit.90
Instead of a life on the edge of the forbidden, sincerity promises Kim the
possibility of an organic integration with her music and a freedom fro m
masquerade, a freedom tha t was played ou t i n the scen e a t the Beach .
And there was a burgeoning scene, you know. The Dharma Bums were starting.
We were starting. An d there started to be this network of people who really had
this different attitude. They weren't i n it for anything but the good time. There
was no pretense . I t was just, we're gonna ge t together, we'r e gonna play , we're
gonna hav e a good time . We're gonn a b e nice , decen t people . It' s true . An d
the whole scene evolved in a similar way. It seemed like this real socialist thing.
It was real organic an d not lik e anybody sat down an d wrote th e rule s out. I t
was great. . . . But bands started comin g through—lik e Love Tractor, REM —
and they were normal people. You know, I mean, they were college kids. They
wore norma l clothes. They weren' t tryin g to b e outrageous. They wer e good

musicians. They had something interesting to say. They weren't being smug or
complaining. They were like poetic. It was the weirdest thing. It was very inter-
esting that they could be so mundane and melodic. And they were nice. They
didn't hav e thi s sta r qualit y about them . What was magical abou t i t i s that i t
could be mundane. And that you could look normal. You didn't hav e to wear
makeup.91
This statemen t describe s a notion o f sincerity much closer to the tradi-
tional value . The freedo m fro m makeup , the willingness to loo k "nor-
mal" (tha t is, not dressed-up) , the absence of any star aura, the comfor t
of th e mundan e an d everyday , th e positiv e organicis m o f apparentl y
rule-free socia l interaction, an d the reduce d emphasis on "badness," al l
of these qualitie s point t o th e importanc e of a direct relatio n betwee n
the lif e one lives and the music one makes.
A similar foundation o f sincerity underlies Kim's evaluatio n o f he r
own performances .
Sometimes when we play, it's heaven up there, you know. When it all just comes
right through and it's effortless. It's just this voice coming out. You're not trying
to do anything, you're just singing. And that's how I want it to be. But it's hard,
it's like trying to be sincere. . . . I don't want to make it too important , but it
is. I think it could utilize all the facets of your being to sing. I think it's like the
connection between heaven and earth in a lot of ways. And it shouldn't be a big
deal and peopl e shouldn't make i t one. When you make i t a big deal, then it's
acting. And then it's not real . It's not part of your life, it's not movement, it's a
statue.92
For Kim' s singin g t o b e real and moving, not actin g and not a statue,
it must effortlessl y com e out o f her life . Only then doe s her singing use
"all the facet s o f [her ] being." The identit y projected by any band tha t
played at the Beach, or that continues to work within this aesthetic, has
to b e the sincere "organic" produc t o f an unadulterated articulation of
one's life. As Marcia Buffington put s it, "I like to listen to actual human
beings that are having actual emotions that I have either had in the past
or am having now."93
Joe McDermott's "definitio n of a real songwriter is like a person wh o
can put ou t a record that mirror s life. That's th e aestheti c of anythin g
good. If it really speaks to you, and it mirrors life. I think that's good."94
Here, the key to aesthetic quality can be found in reception. Whether or
not on e succeed s as a real songwriter cannot be determined before the
moment o f performance. For Joe, the song must speak to the audience,
but they must do the important work of responding to the identity pro-
jected i n th e song . " I fee l lik e I' m puttin g a catalyst ou t fo r the m t o
feel thei r own things." 95 However, Joe cautions, thi s joint productio n
must not be distracted by the conscious imposition o f abstract principles
of art.
I don' t fee l lik e there's a good crossover poin t betwee n ar t an d rock . I thin k
that rock can be art the same way that baking bread can be art. And it almost, I
think for rock to be art it almost has to be selfless, in a way. I guess the point I'm
making, it's like sex, it's not up to the sexual partners to decide whether they've
just made art or sex, it's up to somebody else. The Rolling Stones were in bed
to fuck. And it was art, but they weren't trying to make art. They were trying to
make babies.
This commen t i s motivate d b y th e sam e insistenc e upo n sincerit y as
an Imaginar y guarante e operativ e i n a culture with a n unstabl e Sym-
bolic. Any effort t o make "art," to struggle t o fit one's expressions into
a specific se t of communicative criteria, would indicat e an allegiance to
untrustworthy disciplinar y structures an d interfer e wit h th e ultimat e
aesthetic value of sincerity . If Jo e i s to projec t successfully a n identit y
that mirror s th e lif e o f his audience, the identity has to originat e fro m
deep in his center. "It's kin d of a job of just being severely in touch wit h
yourself. It's a hard job."96
Sincerity is the qualit y most highl y valued in Austin's rock'n'roll aes-
thetic, fro m punk to mainstrea m folk-rock. It s presence guarantees the
validity of a musical style and, by extension, of a way of life . It s impor -
tance is enhanced by , and in turn enhances, the intimate emotional con -
nections betwee n musician s and their fans. Accordin g to John Croslin ,
this intimacy can be heard in the music.
Austin is a real emotional town—the scene is. And our music is that way, I think.
It's real hard to explain. I just think Austin, this scene is famous for just, I don't
know what the right word is, but i n the beginning, when the Beach was goin'
on an d everything , and everybody knew everybody, it seemed rea l famous, fo r
everybody would go out an d do acid and you would talk in this way to people,
that you reall y didn't know that well, that you might not ever talk to your par-
ents. I don't know if my being aware of that means anything to anybody outside,
but that aspect of the scene, I think, is in our music. 97
In effect , th e value associated with sincerity is so great that, b y itself, i t
assures that eve n th e mos t extrem e and abjec t longin g fo r identit y can
be heard and found pleasurably meaningful.
Daniel Johnston and the Fetishization of Sincerity

I am a baby in my universe, I'll live forever.
I am a baby in my universe, I'll live forever.
Ooh, I'm only twenty-two, I'll live forever .
Ooh, I'm onl y twenty-two, I'll live forever. 98
In th e winte r o f 1984—1985 , Danie l Johnsto n move d fro m Sa n
Marcos, Texas , wher e h e ha d bee n livin g wit h hi s sister , fort y mile s
up Interstat e 3 5 to Austin . H e rente d a tiny one-room apartment , got
The Performance of'Signifying Practice I 15 3

a job cleanin g th e lobb y a t th e McDonald' s closes t t o th e university ,
and bega n t o han d out , to almos t everyon e h e met, cassettes ful l o f
songs he had written ove r the past two years. These cassette s had bee n
primitively recorded unde r dismal conditions: a portable mono cassette
recorder wit h it s built-in condenser microphon e se t up o n a chair in a
garage, whil e Danie l sang and beat out th e chord s of his songs o n to y
instruments. Thes e tape s were duplicated using equally primitive tech-
nology: the master tape playing on one portable machine while anothe r
recorded th e copy . The xeroxed covers were illustrated with Johnston' s
own drawings of the ghosts and demons tha t haunted his imagination ,
and the song titles were written out b y hand. On the tapes, hi s squeak-
ing voic e i s ofte n barel y audible ove r a wheezin g chor d orga n o r a n
awkwardly plucked acousti c guitar . Occasionally, a metronome can b e
heard ticking in the background, hopelessly attempting t o discipline the
rhythm. An d o n on e song , "Desperat e Ma n Blues, " Danie l sing s hi s
lyrics over a recording o f a big ban d instrumental . If you walke d int o
the McDonald's a t Dobie Mal l looking as if you might be a musician, if
you wor e blac k or slouche d i n a certain way while you ordere d frenc h
fries, an d particularly if you were a woman, Daniel would hand you on e
of his tapes.
One o f th e first people t o receiv e and liste n t o Daniel' s musi c was
Kathy McCarty. While enrolle d a s a liberal arts honors studen t a t th e
University of Texas, Kathy quickly became involved in the music scene,
playing in a band calle d Sinquanon , late r leadin g the Buffal o Gal s an d
dropping ou t o f school . I n 1984 , sh e and Bria n Beattie put togethe r
Glass Eye, an ensemble which, from its inception, wa s intended t o dif-
fer fro m the prevailin g musical styles in Austin. Glass Eye immediately
stood ou t fro m most o f the band s i n town simpl y by including a syn-
thesizer i n thei r instrumentatio n an d b y allowin g sound s othe r tha n
those mad e b y a guitar to dominate their arrangements. Beatti e played
a fretles s bas s that he use d to set up melodic undertone s acros s which
McCarty splashe d spars e an d unclothed guita r chords . Scot t Marcu s
produced uncommo n dru m patterns with a John Bonham-like aplomb,
and Stell a Weir decorate d th e edg e o f the band' s soun d wit h delicat e
chords an d runs on her synthesizer. Their songs refuse d t o buil d to the
standard rock climax of a lead guitar break, while their lyrics varied from
atmospheric evocations of something-not-quite-right t o precis e narra-
tives of vivisection an d disease. After Kath y listened t o Daniel' s tapes ,
she invite d hi m t o a few of the band' s rehearsals , where they worke d
up on e o f hi s songs . I t soo n becam e a focal poin t o f Glass Eye' s per-
formances. After finishing one of their darker numbers, the band would
drop their instruments , clap their hands over their heads, and all shout
together the sing-song chorus, "Get yourself together or fall apart. Make
your mind u p or let yourself down."99 Often, Glass Eye's audience would
sing along .
Word bega n t o circulat e about thi s savant songwriter. Danie l con -
tinued to give tapes to people who met him on the drag or who searched
him out whil e he was at work. Other band s in town began to play some
of hi s songs . Stell a Weir gave a copy o f th e tape s t o a frien d o f hers ,
Mellissa Cobb. Mcllissa was in an avant-folk-punk band , Mea t Joy , bu t
was beginning t o work with me on a more pop-oriented project, Black
Spring. On e afternoon , Melliss a called me on th e phon e an d tol d m e
that I ha d t o liste n t o thes e songs . "You'v e got t o hea r thi s guy . Hi s
songs ar e so beautiful. Uh, I hope you'll like them." While on the phone ,
I did not understan d the hesitancy in her voice. But that night I took a
six pack of Busc h to her hous e b y the airport , an d while we sat on th e
floor i n front o f he r jambox drinking the beer , we listened to Hi, How
Are You, over an d over, tryin g to understan d what h e was playing and
why th e song s fel t s o meaningful, so moving, despit e th e ver y simple
song structures , th e abysma l recordin g quality, an d th e chaotic , inept
performances.
The first song tha t Melliss a played for me was "Walking th e Cow. "
And a t firs t al l I coul d hea r was this beat . There wa s this sound , lik e
someone hitting a n empty cardboard bo x with bot h hands, almos t o n
every beat , swervin g int o an d ou t o f time, th e hand s hittin g th e bo x
together, then someho w becomin g separate d in time bu t late r finding
each othe r an d the bea t again , dominating perceptio n lik e two heart s
dominating sound i n a womb, washing over all other sounds , beatin g
separately fo r onl y a momen t befor e linkin g bac k up i n dyadi c unity.
That was all I heard the first time I listened to the song. And it made me
angry. How wa s I supposed t o liste n to the son g when , i n addition t o
all the other problems , i t was buried by this undisciplined, unregulated
throbbing?
"Well, it's interesting, " I said.
Mellissa's face fell . "Yo u don't like it?"
"Let's listen t o i t again." And so we did, and I tried to filter out th e
hollow beating , t o liste n to th e tones, th e words, th e voice, th e song .
What I heard was a Magnus chord organ—tha t plastic toy that middle-
class parent s woul d bu y during th e winte r solstic e i n order t o spar k a
latent musical interest in their children, but that alway s ended u p i n the
basement o r th e garage or a closet by summertime, untouched an d de-
spised. They simpl y were not musica l instruments. But something was

forcing music from this chord organ. The plastic reedy tones, completely
lacking depth or resonance , were being squeezed out o f their box by a
manic intention. When I listene d even more closely, i t was that inten -
tion tha t I heard . I heard him mash the buttons , furiously , agai n ou t
of time, or in some weird time of his own, not th e time that I knew as
rhythm no r quit e th e tim e of the beatin g box, but som e other, clash -
ing time, its own arrhythmia . I heard fingers reaching for button s o n
a chor d organ , smashin g the m dow n int o thei r holes , agains t th e re -
sistant plasti c substance below. And I could hea r chords; for, after all,
it was a chord organ , on e button an d instant harmony, bu t I couldn't
recognize them . I t wasn' t tha t the y were out o f tune; yo u cannot play
out o f tune on a chord organ . I t wasn't tha t they had odd voicings or
complex structures; chord organs play built-in simple triads. I think that
what confuse d me was the contras t between the intensity , the physical
ferocity, o f the performe r and the collapsed , empty , and almost unim-
portant tones that were produced. That contrast was so intriguing tha t
I wanted to listen to the song a third time.
And thi s tim e I hear d hi s voice . That sam e contrast betwee n th e
physically pulsing, nonconscious intention and the resultin g restricted,
quavering tone was in his voice. It was a strangled voice that only hinted
at the ide a of a melody, but i t hinted at a melody that was simple, intu-
itive, and, yes, beautiful, jus t as Mellissa had said. Finally, on thi s thir d
listen, I got it. I understood tha t this recording only worked when the
listener reached out, in an extreme effort o f the imagination, to identif y
what had to b e there. And something ha d to b e there in order t o jus-
tify th e risks this singer was taking. He was too eas y to ridicule : a poor
singer, incompetentl y playin g very simple songs o n a toy instrument .
But i t was the forc e of his desire to push beyond the structural impos-
sibility o f thi s bod y producin g a singing voice an d thi s chord orga n
producing music , an d th e strengt h o f al l these wild intention s work -
ing together within the bares t precision and organization o f an almost
rhythm, tha t produce d th e mos t pur e an d genuin e displa y of imagi -
nary sincerity I had ever heard. I looked up at Mellissa and smiled. She
beamed back at me, and I got out my guitar to try figure out how to play
"Walking th e Cow." While we listened to it again in repeated fragments,
rewinding th e tape every few seconds, I trie d t o penetrat e the surfac e
sounds to hear the forgotten chord structure, and Mellissa wrote dow n
the words. "Trying t o remember, but my feelings can't know for sure. /
Try to reach out, but it's gone. / Lucky stars in your eyes. /1 am walking
the cow." 100
During th e remainde r of the evening, we listened to th e res t of th e
songs. Som e were only torn up and scattered scraps of ideas. "I Pictur e
Myself with a Guitar" an d "Running Water " ar e not muc h more tha n
a choru s lin e sun g ove r an out-of-tune guitar or a dripping faucet . " I
am a Baby" doe s no t contai n muc h more, bu t i t seems to encapsulat e
lyrically the centra l power of Johnston's songwriting. With the line , "I
am a baby in my universe, I'll liv e forever," Johnston sing s the imagi -
native power o f the infant' s misidentification wit h plenitude . The nex t
line, "Oooh, I'm only twenty-two, I'll live forever," collapses the adoles-
cent emphasis on possibility back into this same misidentification, as the
promise o f wholeness an d eternal potential imagine s a pure extensio n
of this internalized relation. Daniel Johnston's tape d songs demonstrat e
the contradictions o f the mirror stage—the illusions, the misidentifica -
tion, the overinvestment in the Imaginary—while insisting on the value
of sincere intention a s a semiotic supportive power capable of sustain-
ing one's everyday struggle against the overdetermincd constrictions of
the sociall y constructed Symbolic. The naiv e romanticism expressed in
his songs align s perfectly wit h the ambition s of the burgeonin g Beach
scene, an d thi s alignmen t explain s the tremendou s succes s of Danie l
Johnston i n this scene over the next year.
Mellissa and I were not the only musicians in town learning Daniel's
songs. Th e Rhyth m Rats , Doctors ' Mob , an d Zeitgeis t soo n joine d
Glass Eye and Black Spring in performing more polished selections from
the Johnston oeuvre . At the same time, Daniel discovered that Waterlo o
and Record Exchange would sell his tapes on consignment; he no longer
needed t o giv e them away . Glass Eye talked him into performing some
of hi s song s betwee n set s at one o f their show s a t th e Beach . He di d
not hav e his chord organ and so played only three guitar songs. Bu t he
debuted a new number, "Marching Guitars," that Alejandro Escovedo's
band, the True Believers, soon began playing. For a while, it seemed as
though ever y band that playe d at the Beach included a Daniel Johnsto n
song in their repertoire . He began to pla y with other bands , at parties
and a t clubs. But he never looked at his audience, he never played more
than five songs (normall y he only did three) , an d he alway s ende d hi s
short se t with a bow an d a quick dash off the stag e into the darknes s
where he could hid e while everyone, both fan s an d those who thought
he was just a bad joke, clapped and screamed for more.
The summe r of 198 5 was the summe r that MTV' s ne w music pro-
gram "Th e Cuttin g Edge" came to tow n t o tap e a feature o n Austin' s
New Sincerit y scene. Along wit h Glas s Eye , the Tru e Believers , Zeit-
geist, th e Wil d Seeds , Doctors ' Mob , th e Dharm a Bums , an d othe r
bands, Daniel Johnston made it into the final edit. At one point the host,

Peter Zaremba , introduce s Daniel as a "man about town.. . . Everybody
knows wh o h e is." Daniel looks u p at the camera for less than a second,
then, wit h hi s eyes focused on th e ground i n fron t o f hi s feet an d hi s
body anxiously rockin g bac k and forth, he holds u p a copy of hi s tape
and says, "My name is Daniel Johnston an d this is my tape. It's calle d Hi
How are You, and I was having a nervous breakdown while I was record-
ing it." 101 This abjec t publi c confession of emotional instabilit y woul d
soon anchor the narrative that explained Daniel's unique songs. Late r in
the program, he revels overtly in the brief joy of fame. With a close-up of
his face superimposed ove r a map of Texas, a more relaxed and comfort-
able Daniel says, "This i s to Davi d Thornberry fro m Danie l Johnston .
Dave, her e I am on MTV, holdin g u p my tape, Hi, How are Ton. They
recorded m e tonight. I'm o n MTV. Remembe r me ? We used t o watch
MTV bac k home ? I' m o n MTV , David. " '° 2 Danie l does no t obe y th e
rules o f cool tha t restrai n all the othe r amateu r Austin musicians. H e
can admi t ou t lou d tha t bein g o n MT V i s sincerely the mos t excitin g
thing that has ever happened to him. During a backyard barbecue scene,
intended t o show something o f the everyday life of musicians in Austin,
the camera briefly focuse s on Daniel talking to two other Austi n musi -
cians. H e look s u p a t the camer a and says, "How ar e you doin'? We're
just havin g a casual conversation. O n nationa l TV."103 Puncturing th e
intended illusio n tha t the video crew is documenting a casual everyday
gathering o f this group of friends, Danie l reveals the constructed nature
of th e experienc e represente d b y the program . Bu t h e i s s o intensel y
happy about i t that the scene makes the final program. I t is a thrill to b e
pretending to have a normal conversation for the video crews of MTV ;
it i s so muc h mor e excitin g than th e pretende d norma l conversation s
that occur everyday. Finally, Daniel Johnston i s shown performin g one
song, "I Liv e My Broken Dreams," i n front of a screaming audience at
Liberty Lunch . Indeed , as he moved from sweeping lobbies in McDon -
ald's t o performin g his broke n dream s o n nationa l television, withi n
six head y month s Danie l Johnsto n experience d th e mos t rapi d ris e t o
celebrity and fame the Austin music scene had ever witnessed.
Instant stardo m fo r this open personality. Throughout the remainder
of the year, Daniel continued t o perform, but the story of his 1983 ner-
vous breakdow n circulate d a s an easy explanation for the directness of
his songs, and he became an overt object of torment, derision, and spite.
Although h e wa s vote d bes t songwrite r i n th e 198 6 Austin Chronicle
Music Awards, Johnston's world was collapsing around him. The adula-
tion tha t he had received for his starkly direct expressions of an unstable
Symbolic reinforce d symptom s that soo n turne d destructiv e for bot h
Johnston himself an d those aroun d him. Daniel Johnston bega n to live
out hi s obsessions wit h death, with the putrid nature of his own body ,
and wit h hi s inability to wi n the lov e and sexual attention o f women ,
themes tha t had bee n the abject focus of so many of his songs.104
Lost i n a confusion produce d b y the lovin g adulatio n o f hi s audi -
ence and the support o f his fellow musicians, yearning for a love that h e
had no t experience d bu t tha t h e was sure existed, Daniel began t o ha-
rass some o f the wome n who ha d expressed sympathy, understanding ,
and affectio n for hi s song s (and , b y extension, for hi m a s well). As he
alienated mos t o f the peopl e who ha d befriended hi m a year earlier, he
grew mor e desperat e fo r the suppor t an d attention tha t hi s songs ha d
produced. Hi s naive rejoicing in the spectacle of fame became a wallow-
ing demand for attention. Daniel' s overinvestment in the Imaginary and
his corresponding detachment fro m an y stabilizing Symbolic—the very
internal relation s that ha d empowere d hi s performances and made his
songs s o emotionally effective—le d hi m to the discmpowered and psy-
chotic conditio n of bein g a twenty-two-year-old-baby in the universe ,
undisciplined and uncontrolled, screamin g for attention, an d unable t o
see beyond th e pure reflection of his own desires. In the winter of1986-
1987, Danie l Johnsto n move d bac k to hi s parents' hom e i n West Vir -
ginia, leavin g behin d a n Austin music scene that ha d see n itself i n hi s
mirror.105
An Imaginary Conclusion
In thi s chapter , I have tried to describ e the processe s and the prin-
ciples b y which th e rock'n'rol l scen e in Austin durin g the middl e an d
late 19808 produced musicians , bands, and songs; an d I have attempted
to identify the dominant aestheti c value that unified a variety of musical
styles an d way s of living . I hop e t o hav e made clear th e psychosemi -
otic processe s tha t ar e involved in the production , projection , return ,
and introjectio n o f identitie s an d th e correspondin g creatio n o f ne w
enunciative positions within the discursive and musical structures of the
local culture. The signifying practic e that occurs in the rock'n'roll scen e
in Austi n involve s a n adolescen t inscriptio n o f possibility , performe d
within a tradition o f musica l expression tha t valorize s sincerity as th e
primary determinant o f aesthetic worth. Th e resul t of this interactio n
is a doubled emphasi s on th e fluidit y of the psychoanalyti c operations
that Jacque s Lacan characterized as Imaginary. Daniel Johnston's per -
formance of fetishized sincerity represented the extreme boundaries be-
The Performance of'Signifying Practice I 15 9

yond whic h thi s aestheti c coul d no t stretc h eve n as they widened th e
range of possible positions just short of that boundary.
The cultura l functio n filled by the publi c performance of popula r
music i n nightclubs o r honky-tonk s involve s a radical interrogation of
the limitation s o f th e dominan t culture , a n interrogation tha t occur s
unconsciously, i n th e creativ e processes o f identificatio n tha t I hav e
described. Musi c is a particularly noncognitive expressiv e system, con-
ducive to th e imaginar y projection o f inarticulable desires. Because of
the ver y physical qualities of music, becaus e of the wa y it nonseman -
tically transform s an d materiall y vibrates tissues and bodies , th e per -
formance o f organized soun d provide s the crucia l symboli c structur e
through which musicians achieve their "dialectical syntheses" and pro -
ject their incomplet e an d yearned-for identities. Because of the intens e
reenactmcnt o f th e imaginar y identification s of th e mirro r stag e ex -
perienced during adolescence, an incredible array of new possibilities is
opened within the local culture, both musically and discursively. Within
the unstable conditions of a postmodern Symbolic , the performance of
rock'n'roll musi c allow s fo r tentativ e exploration s o f thes e embodie d
subjective possibilities. Those elements of the human that have been ex-
cluded fro m the dominan t structure s of meaning—Kristeva's abject —
become appealing means whereby the adolescent signifies and produces
an identity. The aestheti c value of sincerity—derived from the desire for
the pur e relation s of the Imaginary—i s guaranteed through th e over t
and recognizabl e displa y of persona l risk , a display that reiterate s th e
desire fo r purity and genuineness. But the new structures of identifica -
tion, created by the intense emotional interactions of fans and musicians
during musica l performances in the clubs, disappear like the ephemera l
images o n a darkened movie screen if they fail t o gai n an access to th e
world outside the clubs.
Sincerity ca n b e performe d i n th e contex t o f a scene , wher e th e
overproduction an d affectiv e exchang e of signs result in a flow of par-
ticipatory experience . Here, i n thi s rive r of transformativ e imaginary
identifications, th e code d display of sincerit y is enough t o guarante e
the meaningful qualities of any performance. Within the scene , any ex-
pression o f the desire for pure being, however lacking in the stabilizing
familiarity of symbolic coherence, can be recognized. The nonmusic of a
Daniel Johnston ca n be heard, recognized, and returned because it so in-
sistently yearns for this nonsemantic meaning. But outside of the clubs,
beyond th e scene , the loca l codes that signif y sincerit y cannot suppor t
the meanin g o f an y song, of an y rhythm. A greater, mor e elaborate d
articulation with the Symboli c must occur before any musical or lyrical
statements o r identificator y structure s enounce d b y fan s o r musician s
can be understood beyond the immediate audience of the always already
knowing. I t i s to thes e more elaborat e articulations, to the inscriptio n
of identity, tha t we must now turn.

C H A P T E R S E V E N
The Inscription of Identity

in the Music Business
Very fe w musician s i n Austi n ca n suppor t themselve s throug h thei r

musical work. Most have other employment, a day job, that makes addi-
tional demand s o n their time and energy, diverting som e of both from
their musica l work. A particularly strong tensio n result s from these de-
mands, addin g t o the pressures to "make it" in the music business. The
monotony an d lo w pa y of mos t da y jobs signif y th e lac k o f intrinsi c
rewards foun d i n th e modernize d workplace . B y contrast, th e appar -
ent freedo m o f the lif e o f the musician—th e abilit y to se t one's hour s
and to follo w spontaneousl y one' s desire s in the searc h for pleasurable
meaning, a s well a s the immediat e reward s experience d i n successfu l
performance—looms as a Utopian image of the way life and work migh t
be structured .
As rock'n'rol l musician s in Austin develo p thei r musi c i n th e pur -
suit o f thi s Utopia n image, the y mak e their wa y through a loca l sys -
tem of music-making. They find that they must becom e abl e to projec t
their identit y beyon d th e confines of the immediate scene. Gatekeepers
in the system—influentia l fans , critics , booking agents—wil l more ac-
tively promote the band's performance s once th e band has successfull y
translated thei r projecte d identit y int o a set of musica l signs tha t ca n
be understood apart from the local performance context. A band's first
tour is an important ste p toward developing this ability, but, eve n more
importantly, the y hav e to mak e successful recordings . Althoug h thes e
musicians have been initially focused on the projection of an identity i n
performance tha t thei r fan s ca n re-cognize and return , they soon find
that, in order to obtain the more prestigious and well-paying bookings,
the favorabl e write-up in the local paper, or the combination o f gossi p
and streettal k known as a "buzz,," they need to inscrib e their projecte d
identity o n tape . This proces s o f electroni c abstraction demands tha t
D I S S O N A N T I D E N T I T I E S / l6 z
theV discipline the pure desires of their adolescent Imaginary to fit with
the commercial, technological , an d ideological structures of the record-
ing industry . Chasin g afte r thei r Utopia n visio n o f meaningfu l work ,
their concep t o f th e en d goa l o f thei r practic e shifts fro m bein g abl e
to "no t hav e t o work " t o bein g abl e to "mak e a livin g i n th e musi c
business." This shift, experienced by every successful musician i n town,
requires multiple dialectical syntheses with a Symbolic enforced by the
technologies of late capitalism.
The Day Job: To Not Have to Work

The da y job s tha t suppor t Austi n musician s are ofte n th e sort s o f
part-time or temporary jobs held by college students. Like most college
towns, Austin has a wide variety of loca l businesse s that bot h cate r t o
student consumer s and prefer t o hir e the relatively cheap labor of part-
time studen t workers . Thes e worker s ar e believe d t o shar e th e taste s
and the values—the consumption culture—o f the intended market, and
they keep payroll costs down. Most of the student workers either leave
town or change job s annually. Therefore, the y do not acquir e much se-
niority, an d thei r wage s sta y low. The mos t significan t saving s for th e
employer, however, derive from th e fac t that these employees work les s
than ful l time . Part-tim e student workers receive reduced benefits , an d
the tota l wage package becomes much smaller. Many restaurants, book
and recor d stores , an d clothin g an d foo d store s i n Austin take advan-
tage o f thi s pool o f chea p labor . In return , employers allo w a greate r
flexibility i n schedulin g and dres s and deman d a slightly lower leve l o f
attentive performance from their student workers. It is expected that the
students' mai n concerns lie elsewhere—ostensibly, with their studies —
and tha t th e exigencie s of exams or paper s might requir e a temporar y
work absenc e that other student employee s could cover. 1
Over the past twenty years, this labor market exchange of low pay and
few benefit s fo r flexibl e schedule s and minima l performanc e demands
has move d beyon d th e poo l o f studen t worker s t o includ e group s o f
nonstudents who hav e similar outside interest s and requirements . The
large group of artists, dancers, and musicians in Austin has tapped int o
this system, and businesse s that cater to this nontraditional populatio n
have begun t o adop t simila r hiring practices and employment policies. 2
Discarding the ter m "hip, " this populatio n i s becoming know n a s the
"alternative community" tha t supports and is supported b y "alternative
businesses."3
One exampl e of a n alternativ e busines s i s Whcatsville Food Coop .
Founded i n th e seventie s as a small cooperative purchasing enterprise,
Inscription o f Identity i n the Music Business I 16 3

Whcatsvillc ha s grown int o a multimillion-dollar grocery business . I t
provides bul k an d package d grains , organic and traditiona l fruit s an d
vegetables, and the assortmen t of teas, herbs , spices , yogurts, cheeses,
and bea n curds that characterize s postsixties food cooperatives. Mem-
bers join through a small capital investment or through volunteer work,
and nonmembcr s pa y a fixed percentage more tha n th e shel f price o n
all items. The people who work here move slowly, but they smile a lot.
The stor e i s haphazardly organized an d somewhat inefficiently stocked .
It i s not uncommo n fo r long-time members t o ventur e int o the bac k
stockrooms searchin g for items the y cannot find on th e shelf . The ac t
of shoppin g i n th e Wheatsvill e Food Coo p reject s passiv e consump-
tion an d indicate s a certain dietary and ideological difference fro m th e
American mainstream, clearly marking the shopper's ow n "alternative"
status.
Walking int o Wheatsville , one ofte n hear s tape s o f musi c selecte d
by th e employees , typicall y song s b y the Velve t Underground, Han k
Williams, th e Gratefu l Dead , Bessie Smith, Camper Van Beethoven, or
Siouxsie an d the Banshees . The employees wear an odd blen d of cloth-
ing styles , mixing signifier s o f sartoria l difference fro m th e las t thre e
decades. Blonde hai r in dreadlocks will tumble onto a tie-dyed T-shirt
over skin-tigh t blac k jeans an d comba t boots . A cashie r migh t wea r
tights under a short solid-black dress decorated with wooden bead s and
a peac e sign . A shir t wit h th e sloga n "U.S . ou t o f Centra l America "
will peek out fro m withi n a black leather jacket, both worn beneat h a
shaved head.
Several o f th e musician s an d fan s wh o participate d i n thi s stud y
either have in the past, or currently do support themselve s by working
at Wheatsville. Mike Hall and Dianne Hardin both worked a t the deli
counter. Kevi n Whitlcy stock s the grocer y shelves, and Jud y Jamison
manages th e fron t end o f the store. Jud y is a fan of Kevin' s band, E d
Hall, an d many other Austin bands as well. She thinks that Wheatsville
is a "cool place to work," an d that make s it easier for her to hir e "cool
people" to work there.
It i s kind o f b y design, cu z I thin k these cool peopl e come t o han g ou t wit h
other cool people. I know when I hire someone, I want to like the person. And
so I hire the people that I like. I also have to think about how the customers are
gonna react to this person, blah-blah-blah. That's part of it. But I think we tend
to hir e people w e like, an d it's nea t to work in a place where everyone is, well
not everyone , there's always an exception, but a lot of the people are people you
hang out with too. 4
Judy hangs out i n the rock'nrol l scene; the "cool people" she hires in-
clude musicians and fans . Kevi n Whitley thinks that Wheatsville is "an
ok plac e to work . I f I reall y nee d it , like , if the band' s gonn a tou r o r
something, I can get a week off." However, i t does no t correspon d t o
his imagine d idea l o f meaningful work. "Bu t I stil l hate it . It' s jus t a
stupid job." 5
To a certain extent, the da y job ha s become a necessary component
of th e musician' s lif e i n Austin . A s one o f the regula r columnist s fo r
the Chronicle put it , "We've been to packed clubs, with hundreds mor e
stamped hands hanging outside, and the next day the leader of the head-
lining band asks us if we want mustard or mayo on that #7. The Day Job
is as much a part of the Austin music picture as Fender guitars , mouss e
and th e colo r black . The Da y Job keep s it al l in perspective . It erases
rock stars . It keep s you honest." 6 Ten years afte r Han k Alric h decrie d
the impossibilit y of quality musicians making a living in Austin, musi-
cians continue to flood the town and continue to work meaningless jobs
during th e da y in order t o b e able to pla y music at night. 7 But regular
nonmusical employment limit s the energy and time one can devote t o
music, and it does make touring difficult .
Alejandro Escovedo doesn't find his job at Waterloo Records too dis-
agreeable. "I don't mind it really. Sometimes I wish I could just sit here
[at home] an d write songs all day. But I would rather work at Waterloo
than pla y a lot of gigs I don't want to play. Although sometimes I wish
I coul d jus t b e out o n th e roa d again . I reall y miss that."8 A positio n
at a record store , especiall y at one of the majo r independen t stores like
Waterloo, i s a relatively prestigious an d sought-after da y job. Waterloo
Records i s one o f the daytim e centers of the scene . The stor e compile s
and display s a list o f th e week' s best-sellin g local product . Musicians ,
industry professionals, and fans dro p int o the store regularly. Waterloo
has long been on e of the more popula r sites for record releas e parties ,
where bands or record companies pay for a keg or two of beer, the band
performs a short set , and the store tries to sell all the copie s of the new
release they have in stock.
During a local tap e releas e party in th e sprin g o f 1990 , i t was Al's
duty t o chec k the ag e of those requestin g th e fre e beer . H e an d I sat
around th e ke g and grumbled abou t th e ban d tha t wa s playing. The y
were a n acousti c trio wh o san g happ y songs an d had draw n int o th e
store about seventy-fiv e well-dressed fans who had parked clean new cars
in the store's lot—a far cry from the near-metal, trainwreck noise and the
glistening, damage d fan s o f Al's most popular band of the eighties, th e
True Believers. "I don't know, man, all these happy kids and this hippie
folk shit, " he said. "It ain' t rock'nroll , that' s fo r sure." The nex t week,
though, the new tape by Twang Twang Shock-a-Boom was number one
on th e Waterloo hit list.
Inscription of Identity in the Music Business I 16 5

Most o f Al's day s are spent workin g a cash register, answerin g th e
phone, and stocking th e shelves. It is part of his job to keep up with cur-
rent record compan y release s as well as the national trend s reporte d i n
the trade and entertainment papers. Like most successfu l contemporar y
record stores , Waterloo feature s compact disc s and cassett e tapes. Bu t
Alejandro works i n the vinyl department, selling new and used albums .
People bring in old record s t o sel l once the y have replaced them wit h
compact discs , an d h e ha s been abl e to complet e hi s Jimmie Rodger s
and Bessi e Smit h collection s relativel y cheaply. A few other musician s
work a t Waterloo, bu t Al says that the owner, Joh n Kunz, does not like
to hire them. Musicians do not alway s show u p on time, and too ofte n
they want extended leave s to go on tour.9
Of those Austin musicians I interviewed, only Joe McDermott's in-
come is derived completely from his musical activities. To a large extent,
Joe's economi c succes s come s fro m hi s abilit y t o marke t himsel f a s a
children's entertaine r to a specific segment of Austin's population. "Th e
parents who love me are like typically very liberal Democrats. Thirty-five
years old. It' s almos t lik e typecasting. They either work for the univer-
sity or fo r the government, yo u know, some kin d of hip politica l job. "
Joe earns enough money by singing his kids' songs at private parties and
by selling tape s of this music at children's stores like Over th e Rainbow
to pa y his bills. Even though he does no t conside r hi s children's song s
to b e "real music," he feels lucky. "In a lot of ways, I'm exactl y where I
wanna be because I don't have to have a job."I0
Over the Rainbow cater s to the same demographically and politically
defined group—Austin' s liberal professional-managerial class—that re-
sponds t o Joe' s kids ' music . The sho p i s owned b y an ex-UT Englis h
professor wh o i s also the fathe r o f Heather Moore, the viola player in
Joe's "real" band, Grains of Faith. During the week, it is common to find
Kim Longacre workin g behin d th e counter a t the store.
I work every day of the week. And I get off work and go play in Waco and drive
home and go to work the next day and get [my son] Max and, you get sick! It's
really hard an d I sometimes think , actually , it's neve r been, "Is this worth it? "
It's alway s been like , "Man I hate this job at Over the Rainbow . Why do I have
to do this?" And I resent having to work a second job. But in some ways I really
do lik e it . I fee l lik e it' s keepin g me hones t o r something . Well, i t als o limits
you with th e amoun t o f time. You constantly doubt if you had enough time t o
practice that. Do you really have enough tim e to know the songs?"
John Crosli n work s a t Half-Pric e Books , a use d bookstor e acros s

Guadalupe Stree t fro m Wheatsville. H e feel s muc h th e sam e ambiva-
lence toward hi s day job that Ki m expresses about hers . The bookstor e
provides a relatively relaxe d workin g atmosphere; John run s th e fron t
cash register and chooses th e music played over the sound syste m in the
store. Hi s bos s love s John's ban d and allows him some flexibilit y i n his
weekly scheduling. But , in return, Joh n had to promise not t o take the
Reivers on any extended tours for at least a year. "Well, you know, i t was
part of the deal, cuz she had been burned by me the last time. I quit o n
her befor e when we went out to support th e last record." Nevertheless,
John has come to depend on the security that the day job provides whe n
he makes business plan s for the band . "It make s it a lot easier to mak e
a good decision. Cuz you can have all the integrity in the world and if
people don' t like it, well, don't quit your day job." n
Byron Scott is the lead singer and chief songwriter for Do-Dat, one of
the longer-lasting funk bands in Austin. He also waits tables at Waterloo
Ice House. Byron describes the catch-z z situation in which many local
bands find themselves. "We should b e out o n the road more, bu t we'v e
all got da y jobs. It's n o excus e but it' s har d to ge t past a certain point.
If you're not makin g enough mone y to quit your day job, how can you
afford t o g o o n th e roa d fo r a n extended time?" 13 Ro n Mark s o f Th e
Texas Instruments echoe s tha t complaint . "Th e mos t frustratin g thing
about al l of this is not being able to go get a good job because I'm prob -
ably going to have to lose it when I go on tour. If I was making enoug h
money from music to live, I'd have some more free time to put back into
music. I' d reall y like to d o that." 14 The da y job i s almost always a low-
pay, low-performance retail or restaurant job. The paychecks from such
employment barel y cover rent , food , drink , an d transportation. Con -
sequently, musician s move fro m on e temporar y job t o another , ofte n
lasting only as long as it takes to organize an d finance another tour .
Ideally, th e da y job function s as a necessary means to it s own end .
Brant Bingamon outline s th e motivations an d goals of many rock'nroll
musicians in Austin.
Um, i n two years , i f I was real lucky, maybe, ok this i s out o f sight luck that,
what I want to b e doing is not having to work. I think that's about the earlies t I
can foresee that happening is in two years. And that's, of course, with the huge
success of one album. You're not gonna make it by playing live gigs in this town,
although you might in some other towns. But the whole idea of music is to, lik e
the end is, playing and making money and not having to work. That's the extent
of my ambition. So that can only be achieved through the recording end.13
In Austin, or any of the other major musi c cities in the country, the live
music played i n the clubs , in the scene , is performed by young peopl e
who shar e a powerful desire to "mak e it." A s Brant so neatly put s it , a
very important goa l is playing music and making money and not havin g
to work. While musician s in Austin d o work on their music, this wor k
does not constitut e a "job." For these young people, music has become

the symboli c structur e that enable s sincere expression. To "make it" is
to construct , throug h one' s ow n hard work and sincere intentions, a n
economically self-sustaining socia l real fre e fro m symbolic constraints ,
especially from the pett y daily routines of a job. The fantasy of popular
musical success imagines freedom from material restraints.
The loca l image of the self-determine d produce r is derived from th e
Texan tradition of the independent honest worker. A populist discourse
structures even the most Utopian fantasies of work. In the words of the
Way-Outs' Tom Thornton, "Ideally, I would like to make enough money
to ea t off of this. . . . What I would reall y like, more than anything else,
is to b e in the grocer y stor e an d know that I bought my food becaus e
I a m playing music . But, on th e othe r hand , I hop e tha t i t neve r be-
comes just a job."16 When music becomes just a job—motivated purely
by instrumental reason—it is no better than a day job. While the day job
keeps the musician "honest" and honest work is important, meaningful
work is work with its own drive, its own purpose. Rock'n'roll musicians
in Austin aspir e toward th e lif e of successful independen t producers in
control of their work , abl e to express sincerely and spontaneously thei r
desires i n th e performanc e of tha t work . To thi s extent , th e driv e t o
"make it" is an active expression of a Utopian desire.
This idealize d productiv e capacit y is one o f th e indelibl e elements
inscribed i n the identitie s projected by every band . Therefore, even at
this basic level of fantasy, economic motives permeate rock'nroll music.
Success for even the mos t radica l "rebellious" band s is conceived o f as
freedom fro m th e constraint s of the da y job, fro m th e socia l constric-
tions that interfere with sincerit y and spontaneity in any job. But free -
dom fro m th e da y job mean s "making it " i n th e musi c business . The
hope of som e leve l of professiona l success weaves together contradic -
tory impulse s an d a variety of musica l styles. As Kevin Whitley o f E d
Hall puts it,
You know it's weird, the farther along it goes, you get these little signs, that it
might, you might just jump this incredibl e echelon . And the n yo u think tha t
way a little bit—God, what if we did? What if we were to hav e enough money
to no t hav e to fuckin g work? Where this was our work? Just like we want it t o
be. I know all of us want that. We want that.17
The populist discours e of the independent entrepreneu r able to pro -
duce wealth throug h the swea t of his or he r bro w an d the sincerit y of
her o r hi s belief s contribute s t o th e idealize d imag e projecte d i n th e
performances of rock'nroll musician s in Austin. It is important that th e
projected imag e indicate s a certai n independence fro m th e recordin g
industry; an y success must be on th e band' s own terms , otherwise it is
just a job. And i n turn, thi s independenc e represents for the fans , an d
for the popular music scene at large, a turning of the complexities of the
capitalist production an d distribution system to the needs and desires of
the loca l community. Bu t still , a certain degree of professional success
must b e achieved or th e impac t of the band' s effort s i s significantly re-
duced. Thus, the commercial structur e of popular music not only effect s
the transformation of music into commodity bu t als o contributes t o its
symbolic power in the production an d communication of local identity.
One o f the first necessary steps toward professional success is going out
on the road.
The Tour
A narrative of the band' s first tour, with the band members loadin g
all the equipmen t into a van, living together fo r weeks, driving all day
or all night, finding the clu b in a strange town, playin g for people they
do no t know , an d finally sleeping on couches in the homes of the local
scenesters, has become a n important componen t o f the popularl y con-
structed myt h of the rock'nrol l musician . The model fo r the new wave
band on the road was set by the publicity that surrounded the first U.S.
tour by the Police. The Police were a band made up of an English univer-
sity instructor and two professional musicians from London. They were
managed b y the drummer' s brothe r an d were signed t o a brand ne w
record company just started by another brother. According to the story,
the thre e member s o f th e ban d an d on e roadi e ( a technical assistan t
usually familiar with the electronics and mechanics of the band's equip-
ment) drove themselves and their equipment from gig to gig, across the
country i n a station wagon . The ban d was booked int o smal l clubs in
media center s and college towns, and , a t every stop, th e Polic e played
brilliantly t o packe d houses . According to the myth, this self-managed
independent tour broke the Police nationally, setting them on their way
to international stardom.
The succes s of this tour seemed to offer a simple and straightforward
pattern tha t an y band could follow . Although th e Police myth inspire d
many Austin bands, it left out several crucial details. The recording com-
pany that the Copeland brothers had set up, IRS, had a national distri-
bution arrangemen t throug h A& M records. They hire d Jay Boberg t o
head their promotiona l department , signalin g their intention t o focus
on th e specifi c submarke t of college students. 18 The Copeland brother s
were experienced publicists and managed to fill the clubs in each town
with critics and other local opinion leaders. The tour was never intended
Inscription o f Identity i n th e Music Business I 16 9

to make money. The Police were well financed, they were able to eat well
and sta y in hote l rooms . Th e stor y o f the ban d hittin g th e roa d wit h
only a station wagon was simply part of the publicity effort to lend street
credibility to the band's image . It was tremendously successful .
The first punk-era new wave band ou t o f Austin to tr y t o liv e th e
Police myt h was the Skunks . Their traveling initially consisted o f play-
ing i n Dalla s an d the n drivin g to Ne w Yor k wher e articles written b y
Ed War d an d publishe d i n th e Ne w Tork Rocker ha d mad e i t possibl e
for the m to obtai n bookings. 19 The Standin g Waves soon followed th e
Skunks, an d a regular exchange of band s took plac e between the Ne w
York an d Austi n rock'nrol l scenes . Rolan d Swenson , manage r o f th e
Waves, moved his band to New York for a year, in an effort t o establis h
them a s a nationa l act . Ran k & Fil e was a ban d mad e u p o f experi-
enced musician s who ha d toure d extensivel y wit h thei r earlie r band s
from California—th e Nun s an d th e Dils , and so they were constantl y
on th e road . Bu t the band s tha t gre w u p i n the Sparky's-Beac h scene
contained mostl y younger, inexperienced players who had never toured
before.
John Crosli n remember s returnin g fro m th e first tour b y Zeitgeist .
We were really the first band to try anything like that out of our group of bands.
And we took off i n our statio n wagon an d just had the most incredibl y adven-
turous, I-can't-believe-wc-made-it-back , sor t o f thing . Bu t a s soon a s we go t
home, we immediately went down t o the Beac h and saw TI or somethin g an d
everybody went , wow , what's it lik e to be on tour ? We were tellin' everybod y
these storie s and reall y diggin' i t you know. 20
The first few tours of any band arc exciting times , as each band tests out
their materia l on audiences who d o not alread y know them. They pro -
vide an opportunity t o practice with great intensity every night, to learn
some of the conventions o f entertainment, and to discover the difficult y
of projecting and completing identitie s with individuals who do not eat
at th e sam e hamburger joint s and do no t drin k the sam e beer or han g
out i n the sam e clubs. Bands find out whether or not they can play the
same songs i n the sam e order, smil e in the sam e places, and mov e an d
nod their heads together withou t borin g themselves and, consequently,
their audiences. If the van breaks down, or the club owner refuses to pay
the band becaus e the ten people who came in to the bar did not drink ,
or tw o o f the band members get so sick they can barely play, the ban d
has exactl y reproduced th e stereotyp e o f lif e o n th e road . Ever y ban d
returns fro m their first tour much tighter, muc h more "professional" i n
their approach t o performing than they were before .
Bands also learn whether or not they can live together. Mellissa Cobb
Glass Eye on tour . Phot o by Pat Bkshill.
remembers he r first trip t o Ne w Yor k wit h he r first band, th e Delin -

quents.
We had a truck, a big old truck, and we had al l the equipment on th e bottom ,
put boards on top of that and then mattresses on that. So we like all had to sleep
in the back of the truck. It was really bad. We stayed in KOAs. It was awful. An d
like, Andy, the guitar player, had really bad breath. And he'd lay on his back and
sleep with his mouth open. And i t would b e awful , th e air , cooped up i n th e
back of that truck.21
"You're not reall y a band, man, until you go on the road, " says Alejan -
dro Escovedo. 22 Simply surviving a tour, managing the band's resources
well enough t o be able to get to each show on time, playing every show,
even i n empt y clubs , and returnin g home withou t th e ban d breakin g
up represent s the achievemen t of a certain professionalism. It i s an im-
portant aspec t of livin g the life o f the rock'n'rol l musician , bestowing
a certain seriousness on one' s efforts . Eac h bare-bones tour complete d
adds it s store o f specific anecdota l details to th e overarchin g myth an d
more completely stitches each member of the band into the position o f
the workin g musician . Touring i s a necessary step toward "making it, "
expanding a band's audienc e beyond the local scene and demonstrating
an appea l broad enoug h t o justif y t o recor d companie s the utilitarian
expenditure of recording the band.

Recording
Playing live is just, like, something you learn to do . It's not th e end. The en d
really is the studio. We've got t o the poin t now where, actually, we made a big
study of playing live , an d we feel tha t we've got t o th e poin t where we do i t
sort o f ok . I f we played a little bi t better , we'd probably b e better a t it . But,
you know , you're not gonn a make it playin g gigs. S o at that poin t recording
becomes extremel y important. I se e recording an d playin g live a s two totall y
separate things. And they don't, the only thing that is the sam e i s that you're
playing the same songs. But you're not eve n playing them the same way.23
Live music has long bee n a minority taste within the public of enter-
tainment consumers . I n th e 19x05 , th e recordin g industr y discovere d
that fan s o f oldtime y fiddlin g contest s woul d happil y bu y recorde d
versions o f Fiddle r Joh n Carson' s material. 24 Even during hi s lifetime,
Jimmie Rodgers' s record s wer e hear d b y mor e peopl e tha n eve r saw
him perform. 25 Mos t rock'nrol l musician s learn how t o pla y b y study-
ing recordings , learnin g th e riff s an d th e voca l styles of their favorit e
precursors.26
For al l the emphasi s I have put o n the important condition s o f and
transformations tha t occu r i n live performance—the production , pro -
jection, and introjcction of partial identities—recordings are an equally
important mediu m for popular music. As one means whereby the enun-
ciative positio n musician s project in performance can be represented ,
recordings ar e the auditor y inscriptio n of a band's performe d identity .
In addition , th e commercia l structur e o f rock'nroll , externalize d a s a
system o f commodity exchang e but internalize d a s the driv e to "mak e
it—to not have to work," encourages local musicians to concentrate on
recordings: th e dominant industrialize d commercial medium o f popu-
lar music.
Throughout the 19805, as Austin became more and more identified as
a center for the "music industry," the number of commercially available
local recordings increase d each year.27 Between the years 1981 and 1984,
musicians associate d wit h Austi n release d a n averag e of thirty-thre e
albums, eleve n EPs, sixtee n singles , an d three tape s per year . Between
the year s 198 6 an d 1989 , Austi n act s release d a n averag e of sixty-six
albums, eight EPs , fifteen singles, and eighty-three tapes per year. 38 The
number o f extended-pla y record s an d single s staye d relativel y steady ,
reflecting the decline of interest in the recording industr y for these for-
mats. While th e numbe r of long-play recording s (includin g both vinyl
and compac t dis c releases) doubled durin g th e eighties , the mos t dra -
matic increase took place in the number of cassette tapes released.
Only 2 , recordings by Austin artists were available on tape in 1981: th e
Reactors' "Readjustments" an d "Pool z" by the Pool. In 1989,149 tapes
by Austin artist s were released. 29 Most o f these tapes were the produc t
of independen t recordin g activit y by the band s or b y small companies
associated with , o r ru n b y friends of , the bands . Often these indepen -
dent tapes wer e demo (demonstration ) tape s that faile d t o attrac t suf-
ficient interest fro m th e recordin g industr y t o gai n a contract fo r th e
band. Demo s are supposed t o provid e short an d clear examples of th e
band's music. They serv e a function analogous to a thirty-second tele -
vision commercial ; the demo is intended to highlight the band's musi-
cal strengths, give an idea of the band' s image , and impress the band' s
value upon its potential buyer—the record company. Each band's demo
competes wit h thousand s o f other tape s for the attentio n an d suppor t
of the industry . As the first blatant transformation of the band' s iden -
tity int o a reproducible commodity , th e dem o mus t presen t itsel f as a
bargain. Ideally , it shoul d offe r th e maximu m musical pleasure for th e
professional listener in the minimum amount of time. The recording o f
a dem o tap e i s often th e firs t experienc e for each ban d i n th e studio ,
simultaneously their first attempt to translate their identity into a wholly
auditory signal and their first confrontation with the industry's demand
that they effectively commodif y that identity. When a band's dem o doe s
not win a recording contract , th e band, or friend s o f the band, marke t
the demo tape in order t o recoup some of the recording costs , and per-
haps to ear n a positive review in the local press and increase the band's
visibility in the loca l scene.30
The desir e t o mak e records, s o much a part of concept o f "makin g
it," encompasse s no t onl y a n economic an d socioideologica l goa l bu t
also the desire to inscribe , to leave behind a mark, to etch a trace in the
history of rock'n'roll music . As Mike Hall put it ,
But I mean th e whole thing of making, of recording, you know, I mean, that' s
the thing that lasts forever. That's the thing tha t is, I mean, live musie I think is
really great. And there' s s o many great clubs in town an d you can always go see
live music. Bu t it' s th e record s that last . Any band ca n get a gig if they're any
kind of decent. Bu t making records . . . [sic]31
This belie f was voiced in one way or another by every musician I inter-
viewed. Fro m th e standpoin t o f musicians in Austin, makin g record s
has becom e a primar y objective ; that i s how a ban d make s it s mark .
Putting togethe r a band, practicing , writing songs , playin g live, even
touring, ar e all subsumed unde r th e goa l of recording th e band' s ma -
terial, seeing i t turned int o material objects that can be found in a store
and hearin g i t com e ove r th e radio . Thi s minima l leve l o f success —
the electronic inscriptio n of one's identity and the corresponding com-

modification of one's music—requires the complete participation in the
systemic operations o f the recording industry.
Once recording become s an acknowledged goa l of the band, a larger
set of economic an d generic constraints begins to influence every aspect
of the band' s approac h to their music, their style, their presenc e in th e
scene. Genetically, the heterogeneou s identitie s produce d an d promul-
gated i n nightclub performance s must b e disciplined, edited, whittle d
down int o shape s that ca n be communicated wholl y throug h th e ear,
encoded electronically i n recordings . While a successful recordin g stil l
must projec t thos e partia l identities , i t mus t d o s o throug h a singl e
sensory channel . Therefore, th e band's distinctiv e marks must b e exag-
gerated, the musica l evidence of distinction enhanced , much a s a logo
or a trademark mus t stan d ou t o n an y mass produced ite m displaye d
in th e market. 32 Secondly , recordin g i s expensive, testing th e financia l
resources an d plannin g capabilitie s of an y fledgling band. A minima l
project, say , recording thre e songs on an eight-track analog machine in
one twelve-hour block , can cost between $400 and $600—a serious in-
vestment whe n one' s da y job pay s minimum wage—and th e resultin g
tape will not b e of releasable quality. It can only serve as a demo tape , as
a step toward "gettin g a deal," the financing necessary for making a real
recording.
The expens e of recording can be rationalized in two ways. It can be
conceived of as an investment that is intended to pay dividends—a utili-
tarian wage r on th e band' s professiona l career. If the recordin g i s no t
designed fo r the ears of the professional gatekeepers of the industry, the
expense can become pure nonproductive expenditure , a vanity record -
ing.33 I n Austin , i t i s very difficul t fo r rock'nrol l musician s t o justif y
nonproductive expenditure . Paying for one's own recordings, arranging
for their mass reproduction, an d distributing the results to fans throug h
noncommercial channel s is not playin g the game.
Mellissa Cobb paid for her own band's recording, Ho i Polloi' s 1989
tape, Out Standing in the Field.
Like these cassettes. I paid to have 'em made and I just pass 'em out. I know it's
a vanity press, and I don't care. You know, it's nice to have a tape. I know it's a
vanity press, and I don't think of it as anything more. I don't think of it as we're
makin' it here b y havin' this. It's a nice tape, you know? It's not gonn a ge t us a
record deal. And it doesn't matter. 34
Mellissa's repetitiv e defens e o f he r ow n motivation s contain s a n im -

portant testamen t t o th e powe r o f the commercia l impetus i n Austin
rock'n'roll. When Ho i Pollo i gav e away thei r tap e an d assume d thei r
recording cost s a s pure expenditure , i t wa s equivalent to announcin g
that the y were no longer tryin g to "make it. "
Whether o r no t on e i s trying t o ge t a deal i s a critical distinctio n
within th e scene . I t separate s th e seriou s band s fro m thos e wh o onl y
play for fun. As Mike Hall told me ,
A lot of it has to do with whether you're trying to get a record deal. . .. It really
affects everything . How you're dressed. How you, what gigs you take. Whether
you just take gigs on weekends so you'll be taken seriously . Who you want t o
open for you, all these things. It depends on if you're trying to get a record deal
or if you're just playing. 35
Only thos e band s wh o ar e trying t o ge t a deal will be taken seriously
by certai n othe r music-relate d businesses . Band s fin d tha t ther e ar e
individuals whos e attentio n the y nee d t o attract , certai n standards o f
achievement tha t the y wil l nee d t o match , an d tha t thes e peopl e ar e
only willing to pay attention an d evaluate the band's achievements if the
band i s clearly playing th e game . The exten t t o whic h a band wil l b e
taken seriousl y by these peopl e i s directly relate d t o th e exten t o f th e
band's professional ambition an d how clearly this ambition is displayed.
Steve Spink s describe d som e o f th e constraint s tha t affec t bookin g a
serious band .
If you want to b e a headlining band, you gotta act like a headlining band an d
try no t t o pla y during the week. You try to g o for the weekend gigs, which is
fine. But you don't make any money that way, and you hav e to refin e your act
on stage on Saturday night at eleven o'clock, and it's not a good time to do it .
It's too much pressure. And boy, people that you really want to impress, like the
critics mainly, that you wanna have help you out, they're always there at those
gigs, it seems like.36
The pressur e imposed on each performance by the attendance of loca l
gatekeepers i s intensified by the fact that recordings are the most signifi-
cant key to establishin g a band's importance , and establishing a band's
importance i s the key to recording .
Once in the studio , rock'nroll musician s find themselves in an envi-
ronment ver y different fro m the distracte d heterogeneit y o f the night -
clubs. The physical arrangement of the machines and the furniture, the
changes i n a band' s soun d a s a result o f th e technology , an d a corre-
sponding set of practices and beliefs that accommodate this technology ,
all produc e specifi c constraints o n th e proces s o f inscribin g a band' s
identity o n tape . A romance o f technology dominates . Machine s con -
trol th e destin y o f the sound . The y captur e the physica l vibrations o f
the music an d translate them int o electromagnetic pulses—eithe r digi-
tally or on analo g tape . The more expensiv e the studio an d the fancier

A Butthol c Surfer i n th e studio . Phot o by PM Rlashill.
the machines, the "better" the sound quality and the greater chance the
finished recordin g will have of successfully competing for listeners with
the thousand othe r recording s finished that day . Commercial consider -
ations influenc e ever y decision made , fro m choosin g which studi o t o
use to denning the band's sound, its recorded identity.
One of the mor e expensive studios in Austin is Arlyn, located in th e
Austin Oper a Hous e Musi c Complex. It was built in 1985 using equip-
ment and materials that had previously been used in Austin's two majo r
recording studio s o f th e lat e seventies , Pecan Stree t an d Third Coas t
Studios. A young engineer who had been working as an intern at Lone
Star Studio s wa s brought ove r t o hel p wire the plac e together. Onc e
Arlyn was operational , Stuar t Sulliva n was hired a s an assistan t engi-
neer. Stuart was not paid well, but in return he was allowed to work on
projects of his own whenever the studio was not booked. Almost every
musician in this study has recorded at one time or another with Stuar t
Sullivan at Arlyn Studios. He had engineered the first recording of Mike
Hall an d th e Wil d Seed s while stil l at Lon e Star , an d thi s experienc e
gave him some contacts in the burgeoning Beac h scene. Stuart used his
access t o th e recordin g studi o t o provid e man y of th e ne w band s i n
town wit h bargain-rate twenty-four-track demo tape s and himself with
hours of engineering practice. Thus Stuart's engineering skill developed
within a quasi-professional contex t o f after-hour s recordin g o f band s
D I S S O N A N T I D E N T I T I ES /17 6
that were still developing their sound. Most rock'nroll musicians, espe-
cially those a t th e beginnin g o f their careers, ar e woefully ignoran t o f
studio technology; the y often fee l a t the mercy of the engineer . Thei r
status as not-quite-professional players often complicate s the powe r re-
lations durin g a recording session, with th e enginee r bein g b y far th e
most comfortabl e perso n i n the recordin g environmen t a s well as th e
master of the machines. As Stuart was also still learning his craft, he was
flexible in his approach to each band's material.
The contro l roo m a t Arly n i s softl y li t b y smal l spotlights , leavin g
most area s in shadow . The engineer sits in a high-backed swivel chair,
covered i n cracke d vinyl, in fron t o f a glowing contro l boar d display-
ing dials, switches, faders, an d buttons, each of which can dramatically
alter the soun d i n the room. Different speaker s can be switched on and
off, individua l instruments can be isolated from al l the others or else re-
moved fro m th e soun d mix, specific ranges in pitch can be highlighte d
or reduce d i n emphasis . Looking u p fro m th e boar d yo u se e a plate-
glass window , an d through th e windo w i s the mai n recording room ,
where the musicians perform. A large pair of speakers hangs symmetri-
cally on each side of the window, and a smaller pair of "mixing" speakers
rests atop the board . To Stuart's lef t sit s a portable rack of "outboard"
equipment, includin g digita l dela y machines, sound compressors , an d
various other electronic devices for manipulating sound. The actua l re-
corders—both digita l an d analo g with variable tracking capabilities—
sit in a closet off to th e side . Another cracked vinyl chair swivels before
the board , wher e the producer o r the relevant band member sits while
discussing th e countless decision s that mak e up each recording sessio n
(for example , th e singer , i f they ar e working on a vocal track). Along
the wood-paneled wal l behind th e control roo m run s a padded benc h
on which sit band members who are not recording at that moment, an d
anyone els e who migh t b e attending the session . The benc h feels lik e a
church pew with it s straight back , and when yo u are sitting o n it , th e
control boar d look s lik e an alta r across which appears a vision o f th e
musicians at work in the main room .
The drumki t i s set up i n the middl e of the mai n room. Drum s ar e
the most difficult instrumen t to record. They represent the strictest chal-
lenge to recording technolog y because they collapse the widest dynamic
variance into the smallest passage of time. When recording drums, there
is no sound, and then there is the BEAT , and then there is no sound. The
flexibility of the plastic inner membranes of microphones and the sensi-
tivity of the electromagneti c surface s o f analog tape are severely tested
by this intense contrast. The number and position of the microphone s

used t o captur e th e dru m soun d varies , depending o n th e technique s
and preference s of the produce r an d the engineer. Bu t a typical setup,
one ofte n use d b y Stuart Sullivan , would includ e a mike for th e hig h
hat, one underneath the snare, one for the ride toms, one for the floor
torn, one in the bas s or kick drum, and two or three hanging overhead ,
not only to capture the cymbals but also to record "the room." A good
room is an essential ingredient in the production of a big drum sound.37
Arlyn has a good room. This means that the walls and the ceiling are in
the proper shape s and are of the appropriate materials such that they re-
verberate bac k to the overhead microphones th e necessary volume and
tonal depth. A "big" drum soun d i s produced whe n th e placemen t o f
the microphones i n a good room an d the relative volume of the soun d
recorded onto the si x to eigh t channel s afforded t o i t (ou t of twenty-
four o r thirty-six ) capture the dynami c attack of the initia l bea t com-
plemented b y the tona l resonanc e of a chamber large enough t o ech o
back th e lon g soun d wave s that compris e th e drumbeat . To a certain
extent, a n engineer an d a studio ar e ranked by their ability to produc e
and recor d a big drum sound , an d the qualit y of the dru m soun d has
become on e of the most important signifier s of the money expended on
the recording and, therefore, of the "quality" of the tape.38
With s o much attention focused on the drum sound, even an experi-
enced producer or engineer in a familiar studio will take an hour or more
placing th e microphone s an d setting th e level s o n th e contro l board .
The drumme r sit s on he r or his stool, tappin g away at whatever drum
the enginee r indicates . N o othe r musician s need b e present, and the y
usually do not show up until an hour or so after the recording session has
officially begun . When the guitarists arrive, their amplifiers are set up in
small booths adjacent to the main room. Microphones ar e placed inches
from th e speake r and th e doo r i s shut. A long cor d an d headphone s
allow th e guitaris t t o stan d i n the mai n room an d visuall y and physi-
cally interact with the drummer during the recording of the basic tracks.
Stuart like s to recor d tw o bas s channels: one takes the signal from th e
instrument straight into the board, the other mikes the sound from the
bass player's amp. This amplifier , lik e those of the guitarists, is set up in
a small room of its own. Most engineers prefer to have the singer stand-
ing in a different room , so that this "scratch" vocal will not "bleed" into
the overhea d dru m microphones. Bu t some bands, especially younger,
less experienced bands, work off of sometimes unconscious visual cues
among th e ban d members . In thes e cases it become s necessar y for all
the ban d member s to actuall y stand i n the sam e room while they lay
down th e basi c tracks . Since Stuar t developed his own workin g style
while recordin g mostl y inexperienced bands, this nee d t o stan d i n th e
same room no longer appears to him to be a problem. In fact, he expects
it and has worked ou t a microphone placemen t system that minimize s
the bleed.
The most important objective in the recording of the basic tracks is to
capture the rhythm of the song, the skeleton upon which are layered all
other parts of the song's body. The emphasis on the quality of the drum
sound is intensified by an equally demanding attention t o the time inter-
vals marked out b y the beats. To the musician, engineers and producer s
seem obsessed b y the precision of the rhythm track. Again, this follows
from th e romanc e with recordin g technologies , whic h have developed
an increasing capacity to measure the intervals of time. Over the decades
during which rhythm has been recorded, the assumption that clocks are
the appropriat e measure of the time marked out b y musical rhythm has
resulted in a standard of recording quality that renders a song's beat sub-
servient to digital watches. The slightest variance from precisel y regular
timing i s sufficient t o scra p the take. The fac t tha t drum patterns mark
out th e rhyth m of a specific bod y ha s been los t i n the enforcemen t o f
this abstrac t precision . As a result, "producer s neve r like your rhyth m
section," and tremendous effor t i s expended attempting to fine-tune the
song's rhythm, to bring it in line with that abstract standard.39 Of course,
the standar d ha s bee n s o well enforced through th e recording s o f re-
cent decades that idiosyncratic rhythms now sound incompetent t o th e
fan's ear , and most rock'n'rol l drummer s have internalized a clockwork
accuracy as a goal of their own performance. 40
Once th e bone s o f the rhythm have been laid down, th e res t of th e
song can be adde d on . If , during th e basi c tracks, the bas s player kept
time with the drums, tightly wrapping the sinews of a hinted underton e
around thos e precise intervals, then the bass part will be kept and only
faulty individua l notes wil l be punched in . This evaluatio n is a crucial
one, fo r in most rock'n'roll music , in fact in almost every western music
with Africa n roots , th e interactio n betwee n th e bas s an d th e drum s
is wha t determine s th e "feel " o f th e song . Th e mor e closel y the tw o
rhythms map onto each other, the "tighter" the feel, bu t this tightnes s
can also be heard as "stiffness." The more they vary, the "looser" the feel ,
which can also be heard as "sloppiness." The basic feel of a song's style, of
its musical body, is produced i n the (mostl y rhythmic but subtl y tonal)
relationship between the bass and the drums. If all concerned agre e that
the take has captured th e right feel for the song, then Stuart will isolate
the bas s part over th e speaker s in the control room, an d everyone will
listen fo r an y notes that ar c improperly played . The bas s playe r migh t
Inscription o f Identity in the Music Business I 17 9

have hit a wrong not e o r simpl y failed t o depres s the strin g wit h th e
necessary force, creating a buzzing hiss instead of a forceful, clea r tone.
These small mistakes are corrected by the bass player playing along with
the par t alread y recorded, usuall y standing in the contro l room , whil e
the enginee r "punches " th e "record" button , turnin g tha t functio n on
and off for periods of a second or less, covering up the bad notes. Stuart
is proud of hi s ability to punc h int o the smalles t gaps in the recorde d
musical passage, leaving behind no audible trace of the correction.
Up t o thi s poin t i t has been the engineer' s job t o recor d ever y ele-
ment a s cleanly, as clearly, an d a s much i n lin e with curren t recordin g
conventions a s possible. The deligh t fo r engineers, th e wa y they tak e
joy i n their work, derive s fro m thei r ability to operat e recording tech -
nology, combine d wit h th e "transparency " of the encodin g machines .
According to Stuart, the most important quality of a piece of recordin g
equipment i s "silence. We go fo r high fidelity, we aim toward silence. "
According to the ideology o f engineering, the recording process should
add nothing to an d subtract nothing fro m the sound produced b y the
instruments. I t should be impossible to discriminate between the soun d
of a n acoustic guita r as it is strummed in the contro l roo m and th e re -
corded soun d o f an acoustic guitar played back over the speakers in the
control room. However , whe n Stuart described the value of an expen-
sive control board, th e emphasis fell on "sonics."
The qualit y of sound. The circuits [of this board] are better. They are designed
in a way that the characteristics you get out of their equalizers and compressors
are termed more musical or deemed easier to listen to. It is, the only people that
deem this are the peopl e that rent and buy the machine. If a lot of people rent
and buy it, then it is deemed to be better. There are certain objective measures.
You can hook them up to oscilloscope s and look for distortions, and so, fro m
that point of view, there are definitely technical standards that they have reached
that are very high too. But the bottom line is that it sounds great.41
The boar d sound s great to the engineers and producers whose job i t is
to discriminat e among an d use such boards. The bes t equipment i s as-
serted t o be the quietest, producin g th e minimum distortion, bu t "th e
bottom line is that it sounds great." The sound of the board itself, rather
than its silence, determines its value. The traditional recording standard
of "fidelity " assume d a n original performance to whic h the recordin g
is faithful, bu t a s recording become s increasingly sophisticated this re -
lationship o f fidelity has reversed. Mor e an d more , th e recordin g be -
comes th e origina l work , an d al l subsequent "live " performance s are
attempts t o emulat e its sound. 42 Therefore, th e soun d of the boar d (a s
well as the techniqu e of the engineer ) play s an important determinin g
role in defining the sound o f the band.
D I S S O N A N T I D E N T I T I E S / l8 o
If a band is recording multiple songs with basically the same instru-
mentation, Stuar t prefers to record all the basic tracks first, as this mini-
mizes setup time. The parts that ar e closer to the surfac e of the song—
the guitars , th e keyboards , th e vocals—ar e al l re-recorded later , afte r
acceptable basi c tracks with th e righ t feel hav e been achieved . At tha t
point th e mai n room i s completely rearranged , the drum s ar e packed
away, and the guita r amp s are moved into th e center . For these instru-
ments, th e emphasi s o n rhythmi c precision is vastly reduce d an d th e
attention i s focused instead on the "sound," the tonal qualities that dif-
ferentiate this band from al l the other band s playing three-chord songs
in four-four time . Here is where the specific identity of the band under-
goes it s most significan t translatio n from a n image projected in a het-
erogenous environment to the specifics of an auditory signal. Obviously,
much of this work has to have occurred already before the band entered
the studio. Certain elements of the sound must always already exist. But,
in th e studio , only thos e aspect s of the band' s specificit y tha t ca n be
encoded usin g the availabl e technology com e to determin e its musical
identity. Much as the syntax of one's native language changes the mean-
ing of translated poetry, the circuit s in the recordin g studio transfor m
the sound of any band in the translation from performance to recording .
Here, the multiple characteristics (musical, personal, physical, ideologi-
cal) tha t defin e th e band' s soun d ar c discovered, isolated , exaggerate d
or reduced in intensity, "mixed," and translated into the sonic texture of
the band's recorded material.
The sound of a band is constituted b y the specific tonal characteristics
of each recorded instrumen t and the ways in which these individually re-
corded track s are blended together ove r the "feel" of each song. Within
the aestheti c syste m expressed by rock'n'roll i n Austin, individual play -
ing styles are directly reflective of the "personalities" of the players. For
instance, the attac k of an individual guitar sound, the specific forc e an d
angle with which the pick strikes the strings, conveys a partial image of
the player, as do the patterns the left hand forms on the frets: the specifi c
scales fro m whic h riff s ar e drawn, the favorit e voicing s of each chord .
This style has been learned by the player through studying the recorde d
guitar sounds o f other players . The musical tastes and pleasures of that
individual guide this process, but thes e tastes are always formed in th e
social and cultural context of fandom. Young guitar players struggle t o
emulate the "cool" sounds that come out of their stereos, but the evalua-
tion o f "cool " is always a social process, involvin g the consciou s an d
unconscious choices of the playe r and her or his fellow fans , alway s in-
corporating nonmusica l components int o thos e decisions . The soun d

developed b y a young guita r playe r partiall y reflects th e processe s o f
identification tha t occu r amon g al l musician s an d fans . Th e choice s
made abou t th e degre e an d qualit y of distortion—whether i t b e pro-
duced thoug h a n old overheate d tub e amplifie r o r th e transistor s o f a
foot pedal—ma p out specifi c relations within and among technologies,
social norms , an d dissonance . These relationship s ar c alway s partially
structured by immediate economic considerations—the relative cost of
the technological alternative s being only the most obvious—and repre-
sent solution s to th e problem s of how to achiev e a musical expression
of cool (or the projection of an idealized identity) under a specific set of
constraints. Fo r example, the influenc e o f the guitar sounds o f Johnny
Ramone, Peter Buck, or even Keith Richard s ha s far more t o d o wit h
the visual and social images—the projected identities—of the Ramones
or REM o r the Rollin g Stones , an d the relatively cheap technology re -
quired t o produc e eac h sound , tha n i t doe s wit h an y purely musical
factor. A similar set of variables and cultural considerations affect s th e
choices made by keyboard players.
The vocals are the final element added into the recording. As we have
seen, tremendous care is taken with the precision of the recorded dru m
track an d with th e individualit y of the soun d o f the band . These tw o
concerns ar e combined i n recording th e vocals. The uniquenes s of th e
vocal track , th e imagin g o f a specific bod y i n th e grai n o f th e voice ,
contributes th e mos t immediat e auditor y signifie r o f the band' s iden -
tity. Much o f the eroti c power that generates the libidinal tics between
performer an d fa n is conveyed through th e qualit y of the vocal. When
a fan sings along with a favorite record, the quality of the identification
at work ca n be heard i n the exten t t o which the fan voices mor e tha n
the words an d the melody, emulatin g the stylistic touches, thos e sign s
that indicat e the physica l nature of singing—the gasping intake of air,
the nonverbal vocalized moans, sighs, and slides. These arc the elements
of a vocal track that mus t b e at the same time unplanned and precisely
executed. They are what individuate a style from its influences.
And i n Austin , th e influence s ca n b e overl y dominant . A mascu -
line image of the gruff , strong , almost-dangerous, out-for-a-good-tim e
cowboy, communicate d through the combination o f Lefty FrizzclP s or
Ernest Tubb's honky-tonk singing style with a style reconstructed from
the recording s o f blue s masters like Howlin' Wolf, Muddy Waters, and
Bobby "Blue " Bland , indicate s th e dominan t styl e o f mal e vocals i n
Austin. Ki m Wilson o f th e Fabulou s Thunderbirds an d Joe El y mark
the contemporar y boundarie s o f thi s style . These tw o me n hav e wo n
the bes t mal e vocalist category i n the Austin Music Awards seven ou t
D I S S O N A N T I D E N T I T I E S / l8 z
of te n years . The feminin e version o f thi s style—th e toug h yet abject
and damage d "chick " singer , first inscribed in Austin singin g practic e
by Jani s Joplin—maintains a n equally strong hol d o n th e voca l style s
of women i n Austin. Angela Strehli, Lou Ann Barton, and Marcia Ball
all vocally project this image . The bes t female vocalist award has bee n
won by one of these women every year but one. Even those who whole-
heartedly rejec t thes e stylisti c images—fo r example , Kevin Whitley of
Ed Hall or Kathy McCarty of Glass Eye—find their resistance shaped by
the dominant stylistic discourse. On record, the different style s of both
of these singers represent deliberate inversions of specific aspects of the
dominant. Whitley' s high-pitche d wail s an d McCarty's rigi d anticmo -
tional coolness signify b y their opposition t o the norm, bu t still require
their audienc e t o b e familia r wit h th e expecte d techniques. When th e
singer goe s wildly and shrill y off-key o r remain s still an d affect-les s o n
record, where there are multiple opportunities t o modify or exaggerate
the singer' s performances , the deliberatenes s of the contras t wit h th e
dominant clearl y resounds.
Often a band's first visit to a studio i s also the first time the various
players have really heard their musical style. Here, singers, guitarists, and
keyboard player s find an opportunity t o rethin k the relationship s tha t
constitute thei r style and, through th e increased possibilities offered b y
the enhance d technologies , alte r or adapt certain components of thei r
sound. Managin g thi s translation i s the centra l and critical function of
the producer. The producer should b e familiar with th e band and with
the studio, aware of the strengths and limitations of both. A producer
too familia r wit h th e ban d wil l be unable to distinguis h whic h o f th e
specific persona l an d musical characteristics of the ban d ca n be passed
over and which should be emphasized. John Croslin is acquiring a repu-
tation fo r bein g on e o f the bette r youn g producer s i n Austin, bu t h e
docs not attemp t t o produc e hi s own band, the Reivers . "It's rea l hard
for m e a s a producer t o captur e the band . It's har d fo r me to loo k a t
my friends an d say , this i s the essenc e of Garrett, thi s is the essenc e o f
Kim, ho w can I brin g that out?" 43 Conversely, producers who ar e to o
attached to a certain set of recording techniques and, therefore, not sen-
sitive to th e uniquenes s o f each band, submerg e the band' s particula r
identity under th e surfac e of their own style. 44 The producer's rol e is to
encourage the band to take full advantag e of the new possibilities of the
studio, while emphasizing enough o f its characteristic sound so that its
projected identit y is transformed into a recording.
However, whil e producers necessaril y are concerned wit h recordin g
identity, their skills ar e measured i n competition with other producers

by their ability to produce a quality recording. John Croslin has thought
a lot about producing .
The scop e o f the job i s really big, but it' s really simple too. Because when you
listen to a song as a producer, you go, why do I wanna listen to this? And you de-
cide and you make that, whatever i t is, clear. If it's a song about pain , you wan t
to underscor e that; if it's a song about awkwardness , yo u make i t a little awk -
ward, and you want the listene r t o understan d it . I really love al l the technica l
stuff about it. I just really get off on a well produced record . It' s really thrilling
for m e to hea r all these soni c things they'r e doing now. They're really wild an d
great. I mean, it' s just amazing ho w great a record ca n sound. On a great pro-
duced record , everythin g make s sense. I t goe s somewher e an d it's there for a
reason. It makes sense, an d it's all taste. After all, there's onl y so many ways you
can mix records. You can bring out the dark aspects, you can bring out the funny
aspects, you can make it a quiet song, or a loud one, you can bring the drums up.
But when it's well produced, whatever i t is that you go for is the righ t thing to
go for. And it's right in the context o f the record, in the context o f what they're
playing on the radio , an d in the context of what someon e a t home, listenin g o n
the headphones, would hear.45
This quot e make s clea r th e qualitativel y differen t standard s use d t o

evaluate the job of the producer. For each song, John is concerned with
perceiving and highlighting its central emotional message. However, he
delights in the "wild" "sonic things they're doing now," and the context
within which he evaluates his own work remains the competition wit h
other recordings—ho w this record sounds on the radio or on the home
stereo.
During the spring of 1990, John Croslin was working with the Austin
band the Wannabes, recording a demonstration tape at an inexpensive
local studio, Austin Tracks. The Wannabes are, in John's words, "a drink-
ing band," in the tradition of the Faces, the Who, and the Replacements,
or Austi n band s lik e the Cowboy Twinkie s an d Doctors' Mob . Thei r
musical style is derived from th e "indie" recordings of Husker D u an d
the Replacements , an d their imag e fits easily into the Austin tradition
of wanton drunke n sincerity . In th e scene , th e Wannabes project th e
image of a band that flaunts its adolescent refusal of entertainment stan-
dards an d musica l professionalism. In th e previous chapter, their bass
player, Hunter Darby, described his own beliefs about the necessary re-
lationship between a band's musical style and its lifestyle. Hunter prefer s
music that i s not "safe " and trie s to lea d a not-safe lif e a s well, valuing
spontaneity, risk, and intoxication over order an d predictability. How-
ever, the recording studio rewards careful planning and punishes sloppy
performances, a s i t mus t concentrat e al l o f a band' s projecte d iden -
tity into a n auditory signal. The ears become the sole medium throug h
which the band's identity can be perceived; no visual aspects of the stage
show ar e communicated, n o physica l stimulus deriving from th e pres -
ence of other fan s ca n be guaranteed. The overstimulatio n of libidinal
fantasies resultin g i n imaginar y identification must tak e place without
the importan t amplificatio n of visual signals. Therefore a greater em-
phasis fall s o n precis e musical performance, which i s a dangerous re -
quirement fo r a band that espouse s the value of an alcohol-fueled rush
through life and song .
However, the studio can be made a very safe environment. "Mistakes"
are easily corrected, and , with sufficien t patienc e and attention, a note-
perfect performanc e can be constructed. John's job, as the produce r of
the Wannabes' first demo tape, was to convinc e them tha t the y would
make a better recor d (tha t is, a record that mor e effectivel y projecte d
their image) if they did not drin k in the studio, if they concentrated o n
the accurac y and precisio n of their musica l performances, an d i f they
thought about recording as an entirely different way of playing. As John
told me,
The Wannabe s ar e a ban d tha t reall y lik e Huske r D u an d th e Replacements .
They are people that love the guitar sound on the Husker Du records or the pro-
duction on Let it Be or lack thereof. It kind of snuck up on them, then, when we
went in the studio and started being real careful about the way things sounded.
I thin k they were kind of going, hmm, well, shouldn't this be spontaneous? I
mean, it's really weird because they're a drinking band and I've made it real clear
I don't want an y drunkards i n there trying to play . And it's uh, that was kind
of a shock t o them . I'v e kind of ha d to educat e them or do m y best t o poin t
out, I said, look at Let it Be, look at Pleased to Meet Me. That's a great contrast.
On Please to Meet Me th e drums are there, it sounds good, the performances are
real strong . Let it Be, they're ok. The song s are great, maybe better, on Let it
Be, but they'r e not presente d in the way that someone in Des Moines is gonna
understand. You know, it's not gonna entice them to make the effort t o listen to
those songs.46
John use d th e exampl e of records by the Replacement s that were very
familiar to th e Wannabes—pages , so to speak , fro m thei r rock'n'rol l
primer—in order to explain the difference betwee n a record that is well
produced an d one that is not. I n this context, John's criterion for a well
produced recor d become s whether "someone i n Des Moines i s gonna
understand." In other words, a well produced record musically projects
an imag e that can be parsed outside o f one's loca l scene—in this case,
beyond th e Minneapolis home of the Replacements.
One o f John' s goal s i n recordin g th e Wannabes , then , wa s to cap -
ture th e anarchic , intoxicated, adolescent impulsiveness of the ban d i n
a precise, sober, musically encoded wa y so that someone i n Oklahom a
City (fo r instance) woul d wan t to liste n t o an d could understan d th e
results. Many bands who hav e achieve d a significant degre e of success

playing i n the club s of the Austi n scen e never survive this translatio n
into recording. Onc e th e nonmusical aspect s of their performances are
stripped awa y and the random accident s of their musical styles are disci-
plined into recognizable scales, chords, and rhythms, nothing of interest
remains.
In the case of the Wannabes' tape, John concentrate d on the quality
of th e guita r soun d i n orde r t o tak e advantag e o f alread y generically
encoded signifier s fro m the rock'n'rol l tradition . The recorde d guita r
sounds o f Huske r D u an d AC/DC ar e the referenc e points . O n thei r
records o f the mideighties , th e guitar s of Huske r Du , playe d by Bob
Mould, produce such a roar of overtones that the basic tonal quality be-
comes an unrelenting distortion , yet a hint of the chord structure can be
heard at the upper edges of the ringing harmonics. The image the band
projects i s one o f self-conscious anxiety driving th e individual s i n th e
band, a sort of intelligen t powerlessness , an acute attack of adolescen t
angst. AC/DC, on th e othe r hand , produc e a more clea r guitar soun d
with a razor-sharp metal edge. This soun d i s associated with the visual
image of the band's lead guitar player, Angus Young, who hyperactively
performs i n a school ca p and young man's shorts. Young's juvenile cos-
tume is contrasted with th e shar p anger conveyed by the tonalities and
the precise performance of the guitar work. The total effect of the image
is a humorous projectio n o f boyis h impulsivenes s combine d wit h ag -
gressive masculine mastery.
By attempting t o locat e the guitar sound o f the Wannabes on a con-
tinuum betwee n thes e tw o pre-existing styles, Croslin hope d t o repre -
sent some of the Wannabes' projecte d identity in strictly audible term s
that an audience unfamiliar with the image of the band, yet familiar with
the tona l signifier s of rock'n'roll , coul d interpret . A s Crosli n insists ,
"You gott a d o som e o f the wor k fo r the listener . It's irresponsibl e t o
expect, it' s kin d o f a contradiction t o mak e a statement with th e pro -
duction of the record to say, we expect you to get into it, you to do the
work an d figure out th e song or the band , even if it's not presente d in
a very clear way. I think you've got to do your best to make it right, t o
give a darn about ho w it's on there." 47
In order t o appropriat e the referential value of these signifiers, Joh n
retained the multitracked guitar roar of Husker Du's records at the same
time that h e cleaned up the core of the sound and added multiple over-
dubs, sharpenin g th e clarit y of th e part s i n lin e with AC/DC' s style .
By insisting o n the precis e performance of these multiple and complex
parts, an d by adding a mist o f tonal distortion , Joh n manage d t o rep -
resent som e o f the adolescen t attitud e of the Wannabes i n an audible
and comprehensible fashion. The complexity of the guitar parts and the
volume a t which the y were recorded produce d ringin g harmonic s that
clashed at the edges of the sound. The increased complement o f "noise"
in the guita r soun d itsel f made up fo r the decrease of the "noise" that
had previously derived fro m sloppy performance.
Before thi s recordin g session , th e Wannabes' guitar soun d ha d no t
been a focal point of their performance. But in their performances after
this session , the y pai d greate r attentio n t o th e intricacie s of thei r ar -
rangements. Ironically , the successful reproductio n o f their complex re-
corded sound demanded a reduction i n alcohol consumption when they
performed. An d thus , a s this on e componen t o f thei r previously het -
erogenous identity wa s translated into a strictly musical expression, th e
Wannabes wer e shifte d a little close r to becomin g professiona l musi -
cians. The proces s of recording itself , the translation of the band' s pro -
jected identit y int o a n auditory signal , regardles s o f th e relativ e com -
mercial or aesthetic ambition s of any individual or band, demand s tha t
the recording artist speak the language of already recorded acts , that the
band projec t it s identity withi n the terms of the discours e of commer -
cially recorde d rock'n'roll . The forc e o f that demand , an d th e expense
required to carr y it out, driv e many of Austin's rock'n'roll musician s to
transform thei r goals . Once having recorded, "making it" clearl y shifts
its meaning fro m "not havin g to work" to "making a living in the music
business."
Making a Living in the Music Business

The wisest words I ever heard about bein g in the music industry were by Dar-
den Smith . You'v e gotta go through tha t period whe n you're full-tim e music .
And no matter what i t takes or how hard it is, if you don't make that crossover ,
you're no t i n th e musi c industry . And peopl e nee d t o accep t that. The y can' t
go around sayin g I'm i n this when they're not. It' s lik e if you're working in the
travel agency eight hours a day, and your idea of managing a band i s drinking
beer at their rehearsals, then you've got a serious problem.48
There's not to o man y people makin g a living in the musi c business i n Austin.
Well, it depends o n what you wanna call living. Where they can exist as well as
they could i n a regular job environment . There's not tha t dar n many. There's a
lot that are doing i t and doing without t o be able to be in the business. 49
You can't become just a scene band. It's a trap. And you gotta think in the busi-
ness sens e an d you gott a ge t th e hi p out o f it . Becaus e there's n o suc h thin g
as a hip business . You can be cool an d all that on th e scen e you know, bu t yo u
gotta d o thos e gig s wher e peopl e ar e gonna com e se e you—the peopl e wh o
aren't gonna step into the Continental Club. And those people are just as legiti-
mate a s the othe r people . They'r e jus t a s interesting. An d the y usuall y hav e
moew money. 50
Inscription of Identity in the Music Business / 18 7

I'm ver y successful i n my estimation. When we first started out, we didn't ex-
pect anything bu t a gig at the Beach. I always took it real seriously, but I never
thought of it as a career at all. So the fac t that I'm making a living at it, or nearly
making a living at it, is pretty wild in itself. It's kind of funny, we sit in our bed-
room or control room or whatever and do something and eventually people g o
yeah, I like that, and come and buy it. To me, that's bein g a success. To be able
to d o somethin g tha t you feel good about and you put i t up there and people
buy it. They may not be buying it in droves but they're buying it enough for me
to mak e a living at it. That's being i n business for yourself and making a living
at it . There can' t b e anything more satisfyin g tha n that , career-wis e anyway.51
I thin k I wanna pla y th e gam e and I wanna play it the bes t I ca n and yeah, I
do wanna win. Winning woul d b e for me, and I thin k fo r the whole ban d a t
this point , woul d b e making records a t our leisure. I think I would lik e to b e
able to tak e vacations and, I don't know, have a good savings account fo r [my
son] Max for college. And I'm probably gonna want to get married again. And
take vacations and, you know, the more I think about it, and this has really been
something that's been on my mind heavily lately, it's like I decided that the onl y
way at this point tha t I can approach this business is to do it as if I were a car-
penter and, just, I want, I want a week's vacation every year paid. And I want a
house and I want to take care of my family and I want to cat dinner on Sunday
in the afternoon with mashed potatoes.52
In orde r t o "mak e it, " t o mak e a living throug h music , i n order t o
support your family , t o earn vacations, to make something yo u believe
in an d successfull y sel l it , th e musicia n mus t acced e to th e structura l
organization o f th e recordin g industry . The band' s projecte d identit y
must become a commodity trade d for gain, not a gift exchanged in social
communion. Th e musi c mus t becom e th e objec t o f a craft, distance d
from th e yearning, pure desires that once impelled the young musician .
The object itself must be evaluated by a comparison with other objects ,
abstracted an d alienated from th e huma n processes involved in its pro-
duction. No longe r ca n the Austin musician approach her or his music
as a Utopian critique o f modernity, commercialism , or th e da y job b y
simply allowing one' s adolescent desire s spontaneously t o ru n free . I n
order t o be effectively disseminate d through th e distribution syste m of
rock'n'roll, thes e desires must be disciplined to fit the structures of the
recording industry. This disciplin e constrain s impulses, channeling the
musician's unconsciou s effort s int o th e reproductio n o f th e commer -
cial system s o f lat e capitalism . The soone r a musician recognize s thi s
structure an d adapt s his or her desires to fit within it , the greate r th e
possibility of a successful caree r in the commodification o f identity.
We're still doing what we want to do basically; it's just that we're making it easy
for othe r peopl e t o lik e i t too b y learning how t o pla y better an d b y writin g
songs tha t are fun and eas y and accessible . And we do tha t by making the m
simpler, making them les s obtuse. Lyricall y and musically. Making them basic ,
making them simple , making them les s intellectualized , les s lik e we're pulling
some sort of an art-trip on people. That's the last thing I wanna do. 53
The performanc e o f musi c i n Austin, a communal celebratio n an d
imaginary critique of cultural values, has been merged with a harsh com-
petitive syste m of commodity production . There are so many musicians
in Austin, eac h wanting to leav e behind their da y job, each wanting t o
make a living through thei r music, each leaning out further for the brass
ring of pop success, that the struggle to survive as a musical unit requires
an increasingly sophisticated approac h to the music business.
This transformatio n is not simpl y a matter of supply and demand, o f
classical economics applie d in the sphere of cultural production; rather ,
it is the result of a strategic response to the total modernization of Texas,
of Austin, an d o f music-making itself. Ten years before, music-making
in Austin wa s the cultura l practice that embodie d an d expressed a cri-
tique o f modernit y an d blatan t commercialism . However , loca l musi c
institutions—the Armadillo , th e Soa p Creek , Peca n Stree t Studios —
were unable to adap t to the increasing articulation of music-making in
Austin with nationa l (an d international) flows of entertainment capita l
and demands . When th e succes s of the progressiv e country movemen t
attracted mor e musician s to tow n tha n the club s could support , thos e
who wante d t o mak e a living in the music business left town . A s these
professionally ambitious musician s moved away, they left behin d a void
that wa s quickl y fille d b y ne w musician s eage r t o participat e i n thi s
important loca l cultural practice.
The earlie r exodus o f musician s was itself a contributing facto r t o
rapid institutionalizatio n o f th e pun k movement i n the earl y eighties .
That is , the reshapin g o f music-makin g in Austin i n conformit y wit h
national industria l norm s wa s the resul t o f specifi c strategi c decision s
made b y individual s wh o ha d witnesse d th e collaps e o f progressiv e
country and were determined not to allow such a collapse to occur again.
These individual s believe d tha t th e onl y wa y to protec t Austi n musi -
cians, and those businesses that lived off the effort s o f those musicians ,
from th e cycle s of pop fashio n an d th e vagarie s of adolescen t desires ,
was to establish in Austin the infrastructure o f a "music industry. " The y
set ou t t o reorganiz e th e wa y music was produced i n Austi n s o tha t
a mor e predictabl e and consisten t leve l of capital would flo w through
local music-relate d businesses . As a result o f thei r efforts , mor e musi c
businesses ar e thriving i n Austin than ever before, more musician s are
competing more intensel y for goals that ar c harder to reach , and it has
become muc h mor e difficul t for the musi c made by young peopl e in

Austin to perform its Imaginary function. The standards used to judg e
national commercia l musi c ar e now applie d t o th e dem o tape s mad e
by ever y youn g band . An d th e implici t bargai n offere d t o musician s
by the musi c infrastructur e in Austin now imitates that o f the nationa l
recording industry. Th e industr y profit s th e most from mass stardom ,
therefore nothin g les s will do, eithe r fo r loca l industr y figure s o r fo r
local musicians. Ho w this transformation occurred , the strategies and
the procedures used to achieve it, form the substance of the next chapter.
C H A P T E R E I G H T
The Commodification of Identity
The Austin music scene emerged into self-consciousness during the pro-
gressive country boom, when entrepreneurs like Eddie Wilson and Mike
Tollcson combine d wit h journalist s like Chet Flipp o an d Jan Rei d t o
create the myth of the Armadillo. Although it constituted the dominant
meaning o f music-making in Austin for almost a decade, tha t myt h by
itself failed to organize, promote, an d control the material conditions for
the continued sustenanc e of live music in Austin. The progressive coun-
try alliance, based on a nostalgic celebration of the premodern, presocial
origins o f Texas itself, effectively appeale d to th e entrepreneuria l spirit
of local music industry figures. But it failed to mobilize the loyalty of the
musicians who performe d this embodied celebration, the capital of the
national recordin g industries, or the pleasure s of young people whos e
entertainment taste s continued to provide the basic financial support of
the music scene.
As the 1980 5 began, music in Austin bor e little resemblance to tha t
performed durin g th e heyda y of the Armadillo. Non e o f the star s o f
the progressiv e countr y perio d continue d t o pla y regularl y in Austi n
in th e ne w decade. Mos t o f the club s that ha d fostered the ol d scen e
had disappeared . Befor e th e en d o f 1980 , th e Armadill o itsel f woul d
close its doors forever . The student s from th e University of Texas were
either attending huge touring concerts at the university's Special Events
Center, where they spent their entertainment allowance on non-Austin
performers, or the y were participating in the pun k scene at Raul's an d
Duke's Roya l Coac h Inn . An d th e contradictor y natur e o f thi s ne w
scene, its simultaneous disavowa l and celebration of commodification ,
the pleasure it produced through invertin g all the locally effective code s
of musical meaning, rendered it incomprehensible to the holdovers from
the progressive country scene.
At th e beginnin g of the Raul' s period, there were abou t ten bands
The Commodification o f Identity I 19 1

playing pun k roc k in Austin , whic h necessaril y implicated fifty com -
mitted member s o f the scene . Add into the mi x their boy/girlfriends ,
their roommates, an d a handful of writers who misrecognized their own
budding talents in the efforts o f these aspiring musicians, and the post -
progressive countr y Austin rock'n'roll scen e sprang into existence about
120 strong . A t thi s initia l point, th e pun k scen e wa s merely anothe r
manifestation o f "th e Austi n tendenc y t o grou p th e wa y the y do." 1
Honky-tonks continued to provid e th e sit e for signifying practice, an d
popular musi c continued t o be the central cultural form around whic h
this practic e was organized. Ther e had alway s been many concomitan t
music scene s i n Austin, eac h with it s own hierarch y of musicians an d
fans, eac h wit h it s temporar y site s i n differen t nightclub s i n differen t
neighborhoods acros s th e town . The pun k scen e a t Raul' s bega n jus t
as th e fol k scen e ha d a t ThreadgilP s an d th e hippi e scen e a t th e Vul-
can—as another intoxicate d celebration of identification an d subjective
transformation, o f the construction o f one's identit y out of musicalized
fragments of the past.
In each of these successive scenes, a core group of musicians and fan s
found the y coul d reproduc e th e structur e o f their scen e for a year or
two simpl y b y participating—by drinking beer at other bands' shows ,
writing sincer e rave reviews describing how wonderful each band mad e
everyone feel , an d strugglin g t o lear n ho w t o writ e song s an d pla y
music. Bu t becaus e o f the flux and tension tha t creat e the condition s
necessary fo r a scene, n o scen e ca n eve r last very long . Eac h effor t a t
self-representation—every performance, every flyer, every review, every
tour, every recording—participates in the struggle to codif y an d stabi-
lize the possible meanings that the scene can produce. Once these mean-
ings have reached a certain level of stability, once it becomes possible t o
identify th e qualitie s that defin e the multiple overlapping relationship s
among the bands and the fans that constitute an y scene, then those defi-
nite meanings n o longe r functio n within musicalize d signifying prac -
tice. The music , becomin g simpl y music, collapse s back into itself—a n
aesthetic for m to be appreciated within its own set of genetically gener-
ated expectations . An d the scene moves elsewhere. Punk in Austin had
built itself upon the fossilized ruins of progressive country.
In th e earl y eighties , severa l individual s whos e involvemen t i n
Austin's rock'n'rol l scenes had bridged the seventies and the eighties ini-
tiated a new period of introspection , analysis , and self-promotion tha t
produced description s o f the musician's ar t an d rol e in the local com -
munity alon g wit h socia l and economic prescriptions for encouragin g
their continue d presence . The chie f goal o f thi s project was to clearl y
define the meaning o f music-making in Austin and to link that meanin g
to a set o f material condition s tha t woul d reinforc e an d promot e th e
reproduction of that specific vision.
The Texas Music Association

In 1981 , a few music busines s professionals met i n Dalla s to creat e
the Texa s Music Association, th e first music trade organizatio n i n th e
state. This association was founded i n order t o reviv e the saggin g for-
tunes o f Texa n music businesses . It wa s intended t o provid e a n orga -
nizational an d communications networ k that would benefi t the agents ,
publishers, managers , an d othe r suppor t personne l wh o wer e active
in Texa n music—businesse s tha t ha d bee n strugglin g eve r sinc e th e
national recordin g industr y lost interest in progressive country. Accord-
ing to Rolan d Swenson , presiden t o f the Austin chapter during 1990 ,
the TMA was initially modeled o n Nashville's Country Musi c Associa-
tion. "Yeah, it was kind of like there was this promise durin g th e early
to midseventie s that countr y wa s really kind o f making Austin int o a
music center and al l that stuff . An d when that more or less fell apar t in
the lat e seventies for whatever reasons, I think people thought, after a
while, they just wanted to stir something up musically." As Swenson pu t
it, "this organization wa s started a s a desire to conjur e i t back again." 2
One of those striving to "conjure it back" was Mike Tolleson, one of
the original partners in the Armadillo's efforts a t world conquest. Tolle-
son was president of the statewide organization from 198 3 to 1985. Dur-
ing an interview in 1990 he drew a direct line of development betwee n
his efforts i n the seventies and the goals of the Texas Music Association.
"In th e eighties, " Tolleso n insisted , "we began to try to form an indus-
try ou t o f what w e had done in the seventies. " The Austi n chapte r of
the TM A wa s founde d i n i98z, an d a local musicia n and graduat e o f
the U T Financ e department name d Ernie Gammage was elected presi-
dent of th e loca l soon after . Gammag e had playe d bass and sung fo r a
number of bands throughout th e seventies and the early eighties. Most
of these band s were professional entertainment ensembles that covere d
both oldies and the popular hits of the day. In the seventies, Gammage
had helped to organiz e th e Austin All-Stars, and in the eighties h e was
best know n for hi s work with Erni e Sky and the K-Tels , bot h group s
devoted t o th e performanc e of othe r peoples ' music . With th e Texa s
Music Association providin g th e origina l institutional focus, Tolleson
and Gammage began to work together to shif t th e promotional effort s
of various Austin music businesses from highlightin g the achievements
of individua l artists , or eve n a particula r musica l style , to advocatin g
The Corn-modification o f Identity I 19 3

a musi c industr y i n general. No t particularl y committed t o an y cur-
rently popular music and certainly unaffiliated with any scene, Gammagc
and Tolleso n strov e t o avoi d the ris k of aligning with passin g trends ,
choosing instea d to concentrate on attracting national and international
entertainment capita l to Texas and on developing methods t o promot e
commercial ventures that could profit from all trends.3
The Chronicl e of the Scene

The first successfu l busines s that had grow n ou t o f the pun k scene
at Raul' s wa s the alternativ e biweekly paper the Austin Chronicle. The
Chronicle was starte d b y six individuals who ha d bee n writing fo r th e
student newspaper , Th e Daily Texan, working a t a university-run film
series, CinemaTexas, and hanging out a t Raul's, listening to and think-
ing about the Huns, the Next, the Skunks, and generalizing about pun k
in Austin as a musical expression of possibility. Joe Dishner, Ed Lowry ,
Nick Barbara, Louis Black , Sarah Whistler, an d Jeff Whittington , th e
original member s o f th e editoria l board , ha d develope d th e busines s
plan an d th e editoria l stanc e fo r th e Chronicle b y February 1981. The
paper bega n with $80,00 0 i n start-up money (considerabl y more tha n
the Armadillo bega n with), and the founders were able to buy cheaply
much o f the equipmen t tha t ha d sa t unused sinc e the Su n had folde d
over two years before. 4
A prototype issu e was sent to prospective advertisers during the fol-
lowing summer . I t include d a "Lette r fro m th e Publishers " tha t ex -
plained both the rationale and the motivation for the paper's existence.
We fee l that there is a clear nee d i n ou r tow n fo r suc h a magazine—a seriou s
publication dedicated to Austin art s and entertainment—a magazine whic h can
pull togethe r al l o f th e varie d facet s o f th e community , an d bot h infor m th e
public o f al l the event s goin g o n aroun d tow n an d commen t intelligentl y o n
those events. . . . We feel tha t we have importan t contributions to make—ob -
servations o n th e loca l scen e an d insight s int o the stat e of entertainment a s a
major par t of our culture. . . . Our editorial stance can be summed up as follows:
entertainment reflect s moder n culture . Wha t we do fo r fu n goe s wa y beyond
being pure fun; i t also mirror s th e values and biases of American society . Good
entertainment writing should be informative an d fun to read, but it should also
make you think. This magazine wil l attempt to ge t beneath th e surfac e of loca l
and national entertainment and talk about issues whic h ar e important to al l of
us living i n Austin.5
As can be seen from thi s letter, the goal of the Chronicle was to unite a
community throug h interpretations of various cultural events, written
representations o f the cultural practices they enjoyed.
"But," the letter continues ,
lofty ambitions don' t ensure financial success. We are acutely aware of the finan-
cial issues involved in starting such a publication, and of Austin's long histor y
of ill-conceived, under-capitalized, and consequently short-lived entertainment
magazines. We do no t pla n to repea t thos e mistakes ; we are making a definite
commitment t o become a permanent member of the Austin community. To that
end, w e thin k w e hav e created a n extremely attractive format for loca l adver-
tisers. . . . For advertiser s interested i n reachin g the peopl e who suppor t th e
arts in Austin, the peopl e who spend mone y on dining and entertainment, th e
Austin Chronicle wil l b e th e mos t visible , cost-efficient mediu m available . . . .
The Austin Chronicle is dedicated t o bringin g all of Austin closer together. We
are convinced tha t thi s is a service the cit y needs, and that the Austin Chronicle
will make Austin a better plac e to live. 6
This statemen t mark s the most significan t difference , no t onl y betwee n

the Chronicle and the Sun, but between the antimodern moment o f pro-
gressive country and the postmodern momen t of Austin punk. Since the
Chronicle wanted t o becom e a permanent membe r of the Austi n com -
munity, i t recognized that , i n order t o survive , it had to define , shape,
and packag e aspects of that communit y fo r its advertisers. "We inten d
to expan d thi s bas e o f suppor t [thei r readers ] . . . t o stimulat e new
interest b y our dynamic coverage and promotion. We are convinced that
there ar e a lot more peopl e ou t ther e who would tak e more interes t in
local events i f they only knew about them , an d kne w why they might
be interested. We plan to tell them why." Enthusiastically disseminating
an "advocacy position," the writers for the Chronicle acted a s local pro-
moters fo r th e events brought t o their attention. The magazine carried
weekly listings of musical, cultural, and culinary events held throughou t
the area , and musi c writers lik e Margaret Moser an d Jef f Whittingto n
filled their columns with the heartfelt insistence that their readers attend
and appreciate nearly every show in town. By expanding the community
of those who supported th e arts in Austin and by uniting them around a
specific set of cultural interpretations, the Chronicle helped to construct
a community o f consumers and an orthodoxy o f taste.'
In 1982, the magazine published its first reader's poll of favorite local
music, followin g th e traditio n establishe d locall y by th e Sun, I n hi s
introduction to the tabulated results, Whittington wrote, "In a city with
such a phenomenal amoun t o f musical activity, it is only fittin g tha t as
many as possible o f our bes t music-maker s be recognized ; i n the nex t
two pages , we hav e listed as many winners as we could withou t start -
ing t o loo k lik e a phon e book." 8 Th e larg e numbe r o f categorie s i n
the pol l reflecte d this inclusiv e intention. Th e 197 7 readers ' pol l pub -
lished b y the Sun had included winners in twelve categories. The Sun's
final poll the next year registered victor s in sixteen categories, includin g
best players on individua l instruments for the first time. The Chronicle's

first poll significantly expanded the group of "winners," celebratin g th e
achievements o f loca l Austin musician s an d musi c busines s personne l
in twenty-eigh t differen t areas . The followin g year's poll, publishe d i n
March 1983 , contained fifty-on e categories . Ninetee n eighty-thre e was
also the year that th e pape r established it s Texas Music Hall o f Fame ;
the Chronicle inducte d te n member s on thi s first ballot, includin g Jo e
Ely, Butch Hancock, Van Wilks, and the Fabulous Thunderbirds. Stevie
Ray Vaughan was elected to the "Hall of Fame" based solely on his local
performances, before he had ever released a record of his own. The Hal l
of Fam e created b y the Chronicle and its readers formed anothe r majo r
representation o f the meaning of music-making in Austin.
As th e us e of extensiv e listings of event s an d the expansio n o f th e
music pol l categorie s indicate , th e Chronicle define d a new , inclusiv e
Austin communit y throug h representations of the diverse cultural (and
especially musical) practices of its readers. By promoting thes e activities
and encouraging it s readers to participat e in them—through intensiv e
coverage o f the loca l scene in interviews and reviews as well as the list-
ings and the readers' poll—the Chronicle also contributed to the creation
of such a community, organized around the cultura l practice of popu -
lar music . Th e financial stabilit y of th e Chronicle depende d upo n th e
economic power of this community a s consumers. B y constructing thi s
potential marke t fo r thei r advertisers , the magazine' s publisher s wer e
necessarily alignin g themselve s wit h thi s community' s economi c for-
tunes as well as with business projects designed to exploit commerciall y
its cultura l expressions . I n th e prototyp e give n t o prospectiv e adver -
tisers, the publisher s declared, "Over th e past decade, Austin ha s been
the fastes t growin g cit y i n Texas. . . . Our communit y ha s grow n i n
diversity as well, and no existin g publication has been able to kee p u p
with this dynamic growth." The Chronicle intended no t only to keep up
with this growth, but to contribute to the meaning of growth i n Austin,
to emphasize the cultural practices of certain groups, and to contribut e
thereby to the meaning of Austin itself. 9
Transformations in the Local Economic Context

Nineteen eighty-fou r wa s the yea r tha t Austin' s economi c growt h
peaked an d bega n t o fal l back . A total o f 36,700 jobs were create d in
the cit y that year. Unemployment sa t at 3.1 percent. Income pe r capita
in the Austin municipal statistical area was $13,769. For the first time,
however, the cost of living in Austin exceede d th e national average. In
fact, it had become more expensive to live in Austin in 1984 than it was
to liv e in Dallas , Houston , or Sa n Antonio. Thi s increas e was chiefl y
due t o th e ris e i n housin g costs . Th e averag e price for home s sol d i n
1984 was $ioz,ooo, a 16 percent increase over the average price the year
before. Smalle r but stil l significant increase s in the rental price of apart-
ments and office an d retail space took place, reflecting a real estate boom
driven by a belief i n continued economi c growth.10
This fait h had bee n sustained by fifteen years of steady economic ex-
pansion. Th e Austi n Chambe r o f Commerce , whic h fo r decade s ha d
focused on guaranteeing the presence of sufficient servic e professionals,
turned it s attention i n the sixtie s to lurin g "attractive" industrie s suc h
as electronics manufacturing . Promoting Austi n as a "friendly city," th e
Chamber wante d t o dra w industrie s tha t woul d appreciat e its "com -
munity of contented people. " Durin g the late seventies, these "hi-tech "
industries becam e the focu s o f progrowth efforts amon g Austin's busi -
ness leaders. Although i t had never been a center for oil production o r
refining, Austin experienced a growth in service jobs during the seven-
ties tha t wa s fuele d b y the increase d profits i n the state' s mos t visibl e
industry. Austin' s loca l manufacturing, while never the larges t compo -
nent o f th e region' s economy , ha d als o bee n growing . From 197 5 t o
1980, the average annual rate of growth in manufacturing jobs in Austin
was i6.z percent. These manufacturin g jobs mostly involved assembly-
line computer chi p production. "
It was, however, a national population shift from the northeast to the
southwest tha t helpe d creat e the condition s fo r th e rea l estat e boom.
Austin's growt h durin g th e earl y eighties was overstimulated by a deep
recession in the northeast an d the upper midwest, as the nation's tradi -
tional manufacturing base was forcibly downsized. Thousands o f unem-
ployed manufacturing workers moved to central Texas, attracted by the
previously created hi-tech assembly jobs. In the first half of the eighties ,
jobs in this sector continued to increase by an average annual rate of 7.0
percent.12
But the most astonishin g growt h i n jobs during the first half of this
decade too k plac e in construction . Job s in thi s sector increase d by an
average o f 18. 7 percen t pe r yea r during th e earl y eighties . With loca l
banking institution s providin g plentifu l financin g fo r an y rea l estat e
project, Austin' s downtow n skylin e was transformed from a series of
retail establishment s dominate d b y the capito l to a range of towerin g
postmodern offic e buildings . The mos t significan t increas e in job pro -
duction outside of construction durin g thi s perio d coul d b e found in
service (particularl y health) an d the conglomerat e category of finance/
insurance/real estate. The jobs in these service sectors were also riding
The Commodification of Identity I 19 7

the rea l estate boom . Economi c growt h i n Austin during thi s perio d
was driven b y speculation, b y the fait h tha t th e growth—initiate d b y
the ris e in energ y prices in the seventies , sped up b y a diversification
in the local economy—and finally thrown int o overdrive by a transfor-
mation i n the national economy, would never slow down. Civi c leaders
believed that Austin' s intrinsic "quality of life " ha d lured new "smart"
industries t o tow n an d tha t thes e growt h industrie s would continu e
to brin g ne w "smart " peopl e an d ne w dollars t o th e area . I n 1970 ,
Travis County contained 295,516 people. In 1980, the population had
increased to 419,573 ; by 1985, it stood at 527,120. From thi s point on ,
however, the growth rat e decreased tremendously. The 1990 population
has been estimate d a t 576,407, a cumulative increase of only 9 percent
over five years.13
The hug e growt h i n populatio n an d i n incom e pe r capit a i n th e
Austin are a fro m 197 5 t o 198 5 sustaine d element s o f th e honky-ton k
economy, even as the percentag e of incom e available for entertainment
decreased and the entertainment tastes of college students changed. As
early as 1976, club owners in Austin had discovered that, in the absence
of a powerful musical performance of cultural identity, the majorit y of
college student s woul d jus t a s soon danc e to record s a s listen to loca l
musicians. Although th e increas e in the numbe r of students attendin g
the University of Texas had not matched the population growth durin g
this period , Austi n remained a young town . Total studen t enrollmen t
rose fro m 42,59 8 in 1975 to omy 48,14 5 in *98i, and it remained very
close to 48,000 throughout muc h of the eighties. However, two-third s
of the adult s moving t o Austin in the early eighties were under thirty-
five. These young adult s continued t o visit the honky-tonks and night -
clubs of Austin, and the averag e life spa n of these businesses remained
steady at about three years, more or less equivalent to the length of a col-
lege generation o r the duration of a popular musical trend. In 1984, the
economy o f musical practice in Austin, as it had fo r decades, remaine d
strictly tied to the economy of the honky-tonk.14
The Chamber of Commerce nnd the Construction

of the Austin Music Industry
Early in that year, while economic growth was at its peak, the Austin
chapter of the Texas Music Association, led by Ernie Gammage, initiated
a dialogue with the Austin Chamber of Commerce that the Association
hoped would result in a mutually beneficial relationship. The apparently
unending flow of capital streaming through centra l Texas—symbolized
by the cranes hovering ove r downtown construction—ha d not escape d
the notice o f the TMA, and they wanted to work with the Chamber to
attract some of that capita l to the region's musi c businesses. Live music
improves the "quality of life" in Austin, Gammage argued, helping to at-
tract new businesses to the area. Therefore, he concluded, music-making
in Austin deserve s the support of the busines s lobby. However, befor e
he could buil d thi s coalitio n wit h th e Chamber, Gammage first had t o
convince th e Chambe r tha t musician s were no t antibusiness radicals ,
that the y wer e not weirdos , hippies , and punks, but instea d were inde-
pendent but dependabl e busines s people.15
The Texa s Music Association an d Gammage drew their primary evi-
dence fo r thi s argumen t fro m a master's thesi s writte n fo r th e Com -
munity an d Regiona l Plannin g progra m a t the Universit y of Texa s by
Phyllis Krantzman , "The Impac t o f the Music Entertainment Industr y
on Austin, Texas." Ostensibly, Krantzman's study "focused on those per-
sons who ear n a portion, but not necessarily all, of their income playing
music of an y popula r variety. " In 1982 , Krantzma n maile d survey s t o
250 musicians, 80 percent o f whom were members of the local Ameri-
can Federation o f Musicians . Her final sample consisted of seventy-six
returned surveys , fro m whic h sh e compile d a profil e o f th e "averag e
Austin musician. " Accordin g t o Krantzman' s research, the averag e age
of musicians in Austin i n 1983 was 33.7 years; 50 percent of these musi-
cians had a college degree ; 5 3 percent of them were married, 43 percent
had children , an d almost 9 0 percent wer e registered to vote. They ha d
devoted 1 4 year s o f thei r live s t o playin g music, an d mos t o f Krantz -
man's respondent s ha d lived in Austin between 7 and 12 years. Accord-
ing t o Krantzman' s survey , then , th e "averag e Austi n musician " ha d
come to th e cit y during th e progressive countr y boom (betwee n 197 1
and 1976) , had achieved enough success to have benefited from joinin g
the union, and had settled dow n i n the early eighties and begun to raise
a family . Gammag e recognize d himsel f and hi s friends i n Krantzman' s
vision o f th e Austi n musician , an d thi s becam e th e representatio n o f
Austin musicians taken to the Chamber of Commerce: " a mature group
of responsibl e citizen s wh o ar e serious, dedicated , an d committe d t o
their work." In fact , rathe r than representin g popular musician s of any
(meaning every ) variety , Krantzman' s researc h effectivel y focuse d o n
older musician s who ha d alread y been professionall y successful, mos t
likely through playing progressive country music. 16
When Gammag e approache d th e Chambe r fo r support , h e foun d
a surprisingl y positiv e receptio n i n th e perso n o f Davi d Lord . Th e
Chamber had hired Lor d t o head the Austin Visitors and Conventions

Bureau, the branch of the Chamber devoted t o increasing tourism. The
Chamber of Commerce i n Austin had traditionally propounded a slow-
growth policy , onl y recruitin g businesse s that woul d servic e the stat e
government an d th e university . Bu t b y the mideightie s th e Chambe r
had developed int o a fast-growth, prodevelopment advocate , similar to
the Chamber s of Commerce foun d in other cities. One of the areas tar-
geted b y the Chambe r fo r growth wa s tourism. Davi d Lord's job was
to "market Austin as a desirable place to visit," and to do that he had to
"decide what it really is that makes Austin special." The Austin Visitors
and Convention s Burea u had alread y been usin g Austin's musi c scene
to attrac t convention s an d tourists. But the information they were dis-
tributing wa s base d on th e las t nationall y famous momen t i n Austi n
music, progressiv e country . According to Erni e Gammage, "They had
a planned vacation trip that they tried to sell to other cities, where you
could com e dow n t o Austi n an d go to on e o f the club s i n town an d
watch th e native s dance with their hat s and boots on. " Havin g bee n a
thoroughly professional entertainer for decades, Gammage was acutely
aware that progressive countr y music was no longer an effective dra w in
the town of its origin. Any attempt to market Austin as a musical tourist
attraction woul d have to expand its focus. 17
Prompted b y Gammage, Davi d Lord settle d on music as his "hook,"
his "marketin g symbol. " No t onl y was Lord convince d tha t a n active
music community contribute d t o Austin's visibility as a convention cen -
ter, but h e soon imagined a more extensive relationship. In fact , i t was
Lord wh o conceive d th e tota l economi c developmen t approac h tha t
would dominat e futur e discussio n amon g Austin's civic , financial, an d
music business figures. Lor d wa s aware of the prid e that so many Aus-
tinites too k i n loca l musi c a s wel l a s the importan t rol e tha t musi c
played in the imag e the res t of the natio n hel d of the city . The succes s
of the publi c televisio n program Austin City Limits, with it s ability to
broadcast nationall y a n image of Texan musicians, contributed t o th e
effective linkage between a geographical location, an identity associated
with that location, an d the cultural practice through which this identit y
was produced. I t was David Lord' s insigh t to turn music-making into
more tha n a "hook" to attract conventioneers. H e recognized tha t any
set o f symboli c values held s o dea r b y a local population coul d for m
the basi s for a set of businesse s devoted t o th e productio n an d sal e of
commodified representation s o f that identity. In an article published in
the Austin Business Journal, Lord shifte d th e argument from th e impac t
of music-making o n touris m t o it s influence o n genera l economic de -
velopment, thereb y grabbing the attentio n o f th e entir e Chambe r o f
D I S S O N A N T I D E N T I T I E S / 2.O O
Commerce. "Musi c as a business fits in with several goals of the Cham -
ber," Lord wrote. "It fosters economic growth by, among other things,
promoting cntrepreneurshi p an d th e formatio n of a ne w busines s as
well a s attracting convention s an d tourists t o th e Austin area . It pro -
motes a superior qualit y of lif e fo r al l Austin citizens by encouragin g
artistic an d cultura l development. " I n fact , "see n a s a n industry , th e
music busines s is just abou t perfect." 18 Thi s articl e marked the publi c
announcement o f growin g effort s t o develo p thi s on e specifi c mean -
ing of music-making in Austin. Like Gammage and Tolleson, Lord was
not intereste d i n promotin g an y specific musica l style, bu t instea d h e
was concerne d wit h publicizin g th e se t o f loca l musi c a s a whole —
the image o f Austin a s a place where music was made. Lord reshape d
Eddie Wilson' s an d Mik e Tolleson' s flamboyan t visio n o f a n Austin-
based $5o,ooo,ooo-a-year software, arts , and entertainment laboratory
into that o f a diversified an d more complexly structured "opportunity
economy" that would provide an industrial infrastructure within which
entrepreneurs could invest, work, and profit. Fo r the next several years,
serious cultura l forces were brought t o bea r in an effort t o enforc e thi s
articulation, t o reduc e the chaoti c flux of meanings and practice s that
had bee n music-makin g in Austin to a set of dependable, stable , and ,
most importantly , loca l signifiers whos e value would remai n relatively
fixed and tha t could , by virtue of this stability , effectivel y compet e fo r
the global flow of entertainment capital. "
Gammage, Tolleson, an d Lord spent the early months of 1984 build-
ing the framework fo r future effort s t o promote the alliance of busines s
and music. Musicians were to be presented to the business community as
"good risks for loans," and the popular image of the Chamber was to be
transformed fro m that of a strictly probusincs s developmen t advocat e
to that of an organization concerned with "the quality of life" in Austin.
In the debates betwee n prodevelopmen t figures and neighborhood ac-
tivists, quality of life, "a catch phrase for environmental protection, cul-
tural dynamism , neighborhoo d integrity , and economic stability," had
become a key issue. By supporting music , the Chamber appeared to b e
working fo r th e qualit y of lif e i n Austin, rathe r than agains t it. I n th e
terms of the developing rhetoric, businesses associated with local music
already contributed t o th e "qualit y of life" in the city, but the y neede d
help buildin g a n "infrastructure" in order t o develo p a "clean growt h
industry" int o a full-fledged "opportunit y economy. " The Chambe r of
Commerce would provid e that help. 20
With th e encouragemen t o f Tolleson , Lord , an d Gammage , th e
Chamber funded a series of studies of local music businesses. The largest

of thes e studie s wa s conducted b y the Austi n Musi c Advisory Com-
mittee. This committe e was formed in November 1984 after Gammag e
introduced David Lord to Jeff Whittington. With his unflagging advo-
cacy of al l types of loca l music, Whittington seeme d to b e the perso n
in the local press most sympatheti c to the goals of the Chamber. Lor d
impressed Whittington wit h hi s apparently sincere concern abou t in-
creasing opportunitie s fo r Austi n musicians to mak e a living, and h e
persuaded Whittingto n that th e Chamber of Commerce was trying t o
find way s t o hel p loca l musicians . Whittington wa s abl e t o convinc e
other member s o f th e Chronicle staf f o f the legitimac y of th e project ,
and he used his influence t o talk other individuals , many of whom ha d
worked thei r way into th e music business by means of the punk, do-it -
yourself ethos, into cooperating with the task force.21
Ed Ward' s approva l also contributed legitimac y to th e project . Al-
though h e was no longe r writin g fo r th e Austin American-Statesman,
Ward wa s probabl y stil l th e mos t influentia l critic i n town . Havin g
written for Rolling Stone, Creem, and other nationally distributed yout h
culture magazines , Ward was one o f the first generation o f nationall y
known roc k critics . He was hired in 1979 by the loca l daily to provid e
an outsider's perspectiv e on Austin music. In his columns for the paper
and i n articles for regional magazines like Third Coast and Texas Monthly
or nationa l magazines like New Tork Rocker, Ward wrote abou t national
and international music trends as well as local music, and he consistently
advocated strengthenin g th e connection s between the musi c made in
Austin and the national recording industry. As early as November 1980,
Ward had written, "The same problems that contributed to the demise
of th e progressiv e country scen e a few years bac k ar e still around : n o
competent managemen t firm s wit h nationa l connections , n o decen t
studios, an d a n insidious chauvinis m which declare s that havin g aspi-
rations abov e th e Austi n bar circuit means selling out." To Ward, th e
anticommercialism of Austin musicians was neither an effective critiqu e
of work no r a n important aspec t of their antimodernism , bu t instea d
indicated a n unprofessiona l attitude . Fo r him , success in th e club s in
Austin was a very limited success . Ward felt tha t th e responsibilit y o f
the rock critic was to search out an d support the best musicians in their
attempts t o becom e trul y popular and that the appropriate measure of
popularity was national recording sales. 22
Along wit h Gammage , Tolleson, Ward, and Whittington, th e com-
mittee included L. E. McCullough o f the Austin Music Umbrella, Louis
Meyers and Mark Pratz of Lunch Money Production s (booker s of the
Continental Clu b an d Libert y Lunch) , Rolan d Swenso n o f Momen t
D I S S O N A N T I D E N T I T I E S / 2.O2 .
Productions, Andy Murphy of Panda Productions, Ro b Klei n of Side-
track Production s (eac h of thes e productio n companie s encompasse d
artist managemen t an d recor d production) , Susa n Jarret t o f Austi n
Record Distributors , Phylli s Krantzma n (whos e master' s thesi s pro -
vided th e dat a Gammag e use d i n hi s origina l argument s befor e th e
Chamber), and Carolyn Phillips of the Chronicle.
In line with Lord's and Gammage's concept of an opportunity econ -
omy, buildin g o n Tolleson' s an d Wilson's early-seventie s dream o f a n
arts laboratory, the Austin Music Advisory Committee viewed the music
scene i n Austi n throug h a n industria l len s tha t brok e th e proces s o f
music-making into a series of discrete interactions—a comple x system
of commodity productio n an d exchange in which musicians were only
one component an d fans were merely consumers. The concept of a music
industry wa s not th e inventio n of this committee; rather , i t was a rhe-
torical device commonly use d in the recording industry to blur the dis-
tinction betwee n music-makin g and commodity production . Billboard
magazine, a trade publication dealing with recordings, radio, jukeboxes,
live entertainment, and television, considers it s job to be reporting busi-
ness trend s i n th e musi c industry. Recordin g compan y executives like
to thin k o f thei r companie s a s elements i n a musi c industry, respon -
sible not onl y for the recording s availabl e in the marketplace but for all
popular music. 23
The mode l fo r thi s concep t wa s the motio n pictur e industry . Bu t
there wa s a critica l difference betwee n "th e industry " i n Lo s Angele s
and the rhetoricall y constructe d "musi c industry. " The motion pictur e
industry, with all its attendant peripheral businesses, did indeed materi-
ally produce movies. However, n o radio personality, no record distribu -
tor, no agent, not even a record company owner forms a necessary link in
any system that produces music. Instead, they are part of the system that
produces, distributes, and promotes recordings. The production uni t in
the field of musical entertainment tha t i s analogous t o th e motion pic-
ture industr y is the recordin g industry . This industry does produce an d
market cultural products, bu t these arc commodified representation s of
music, not the whole substance of music itself.24
An entir e schoo l o f cultura l sociology ha s als o contribute d t o th e
construction o f a musi c industry . Th e reductionist , albei t powerful ,
metaphor o f th e "cultur e industry, " devise d b y Max Horkheimer an d
Theodor Adorn o a s a wa y o f understandin g mas s culture , inspire d
a variet y of sociologica l analyse s of th e industria l productio n o f cul -
tural objects . Pau l Hirsch' s 196 9 study , Th e Structure o f th e Popular
Music Indus fry, applie d a systems perspective toward understanding th e

complex o f overlappin g organization s tha t produc e popula r records .
Hirsch's wor k provide d the basis for many other sociologica l analyse s
of th e materia l productio n o f recordings . Fro m R . Serg e Denisof f 's
Solid Gold: The Popular Record Industry (which , despite it s subtitle, con-
tains many references to "the music industry" in the quotes from recor d
company personnel), to Richard Peterson and David Berger's article on
"Cycles i n Symbo l Production, " t o Simo n Frith' s table-clearin g work
Sound Effects, th e operations o f the recording industry and it s complex
integration with other mass media have offered a viable base from which
to understand th e production o f popular music. However, i n their focus
on th e systemati c production an d exchange of recorded commodities,
these studies eac h reduce the human performance o f musical sound t o
the practices of the recording industry, thereby contributing to the reifi -
cation of music and the ideological dominance of the concept of a music
industry. In addition, the fact that so much of the work of the critic and
the schola r of popular music revolves around the analysi s of recordings
contributes t o the conflation of the production o f music with the pro-
duction o f records. The importan t recognitio n tha t twentieth-centur y
popular musi c has alway s bee n commerciall y mediated (an d tha t thi s
commercial mediatio n has its productive effects) ha s resulted in a confu-
sion between two very different sphere s of production. While the com-
mercial basis of popular music cannot be ignored, too often the study of
the recording industr y has stood in for the study of popular music. This
distinction need s t o b e maintained in any discussion of Austin music.
For ove r twent y years, commercial popular music in Austin had bee n
produced within th e contex t o f a honky-tonk economy . The industri -
alization o f music-making in Austin transformed local musical practice
and, in the process, changed Austin music.25
On Novembe r 16 , 1984, just a t the tim e that AMAC was forming ,
the Chronicle published a special issue called "Austin Music: Behind th e
Scenes." Th e issu e profiled writers, agents , deejays , promoters , recor d
retailers and distributors, club owners, the "influential, creative, success-
ful an d powerful " i n th e "Austi n musi c industry." These peopl e were,
according t o th e article , the "reason s certai n musicians and band s sell
more records, get into more clubs and make more money." Forty-fou r
"personalities" were discussed in this issue, including eight of the thir-
teen members of the Austin Music Advisory Committee.26
For AMAC, th e meaning of the term "music industry " wa s precise.
In the words of Ernie Gammage,
There ar e fou r necessar y ingredient s t o a full-fledge d musi c industry. Every
industry ha s it s researc h an d developmen t function. W e hav e tha t i n spades.
It's the club s and the musicians , the songwriters. But all industries also have a
production function, distribution, and marketing, and finally, the point of sale,
where you reach the consumer with the product. . . . Here in Austin, we grow
the oats , and the res t of the countr y takes these oats, these raw materials, and
turns them into Cheerios. We have to establish our own means to turn our oats
into Cheerios.27
Echoing th e traditional Texan populist concern about outsiders control -
ling the industria l exploitation o f the region's natural resources, Gam-
mage, an d th e committe e a s a whole, argue d fo r th e developmen t o f
local means of exploitation. Within this framework, the performance of
music in th e nightclub s a s well as the writing o f songs becam e simply
research for the production o f commodities. The fans in the clubs would
function mor e o r les s a s focu s group s d o fo r marketin g firms . Th e
actual "product " woul d no t reac h the tru e "consumer " unti l afte r i t
had bee n produced , distributed , an d marketed o n a mass scale. Thus,
AMAC's version of the music industry conceptualized an infrastructure
that woul d guarante e th e transformatio n of oats—song s an d musical
performances—into Cheerios—saleabl e recordings. The committee in -
tended to organize a local music industr y tha t could be rationally ana -
lyzed an d efficientl y an d profitabl y ru n fo r th e mutua l benefi t o f al l
concerned. Th e Austi n Music Advisory Committee hope d t o shif t th e
economy o f Austin music-making away from it s traditional association
with honky-tonks an d live performances to one with th e modern pro -
duction o f recordings, t o smoot h th e industrial production o f musical
Cheerios.
The committee approache d its study of the music industry by setting
up a series of fact-finding caucuses to investigate the specific concerns of
musicians, agents an d managers, concert promoters, instrument retail -
ers, radio personnel , recor d producers and promoters, recor d retailers,
recording studi o personnel , an d thos e workin g i n video. Eac h caucus
was staffe d b y two o r mor e member s of the committee wh o wer e per-
sonally, an d ofte n professionally , interested i n th e issue s affecting tha t
business. A total of thirteen meetings took place. The attendees a t each
meeting were "essentially asked to construct a wish list: what would you
most like to see happen to the music business in Austin?"28
By construin g thi s conglomerat e o f divers e busines s interest s a s a
music industry and by focusing their information gathering and report-
ing through tha t framework, the committee consolidated the rhetorical
construction o f a unified industr y that could claim to be the producer s
of the musi c made i n Austin. All of those who stoo d t o profi t ha d t o
be included . Althoug h eac h of the businesse s represented i n th e title s
of the caucuses really produced and marketed different and , often, com -
The Commodification o f Identity I zo 5

peting cultura l products and services—recordings, television programs ,
nightclub entertainment , concerts , radi o programs—the Austin Musi c
Advisory Committe e reshape d these businesse s into a single industria l
system. By calling this syste m the music industry, the committee repre -
sented these various businesses as the parties responsible for the musi c
made in Austin. Finally, having conceptualized th e production of music
along moder n industria l lines , th e committe e coul d mak e a cas e fo r
attracting investmen t capita l into th e opportunit y econom y o f music .
In May 1985, the AMAC released its report, "Austin Music: Into the
Future." The industrial paradigm built into the organization of the cau-
cuses shape d th e findings of the committee . Accordin g t o th e report ,
the committee "turne d to the local industry with thre e goal s in mind :
to identif y and describe the Austin musi c industry's curren t status ; t o
identify an d defin e problem s facin g th e industry ; t o develo p possibl e
solutions and recommendations for those problems."29 This report con-
tained the mos t extensive attempt t o define the new concept calle d th e
Austin musi c industry : th e "entir e networ k o f businesse s [that ] ha s
grown around Austin' s musician s and the venues where they perform .
The su m of these component s form s th e Austin musi c industry" (i) .
The repor t emphasize d th e economi c importanc e o f this summation .
"The musi c industry offers Austi n its most fertil e groun d fo r develop-
ing an 'opportunity economy,' simply because so many of the necessary
ingredients ar e already in place" (ii).
An opportunit y econom y begin s wit h a n abundan t loca l resource . Throug h
mutual cooperatio n an d planning , this resourc e i s developed t o it s maximum
potential; entrepreneurshi p an d diversificatio n ar e activel y encouraged . A s a
result, th e communit y derive s a home-grow n industr y whic h substantiall y
broadens it s fiscal base—leaving it better prepare d to sustain economic fluctua -
tion—and yet that industr y remains sensitive and responsive to local needs and
conditions. Austin' s musi c industry is ideally suited for thi s approach. (11—13 )
The abundan t loca l resource , th e "oats"—musicians , thei r songs , an d

their performances—coul d b e developed t o thei r maximu m potentia l
only throug h th e effort s o f a home-grown industry . And supportin g
this industr y woul d hel p the community sustai n economic fluctuation .
However, the mos t "exciting " result of this suppor t woul d b e the de-
velopment o f the local music industry "to its full potential, whic h coul d
grant Austin its share of the national industry's multi-billion dollar busi-
ness" (7). This was the economic goal that justified the construction o f a
music industry: Austin' s rightfu l share of a multibillion dollar business.
Music could becom e the city's new growth industry. 30
The rhetorica l forc e o f th e musi c industr y concept clearl y wa s in -
D I S S O N A N T I D E N T I T I E S / X o6
tended t o d o mor e tha n convinc e financial leaders tha t music-relate d
businesses offere d legitimat e investmen t options. When th e repor t de -
clared that , "du e t o th e . . . lac k o f funding , th e industry' s ancillary
components—record companies , productio n facilities , etc.—hav e no t
developed a t the same pace [as have the city's musicians]," it emphasize d
the resul t of this underdevelopment: man y of the city's musicians have
been "forced t o leave Austin" (9 ) in an exodus of talent that threatene d
the very identity of Austin as a music-making center.
In 1963 , Janis Joplin was driven from Austi n by the publi c taunts o f
University of Texa s fraternity members . Sh e moved t o Californi a an d
became forever identified with the city of San Francisco. Post-ho c my-
thologizing has turned that event into the equivalent of the Boston Re d
Sox trading Bab e Rut h t o th e Ne w Yor k Yankees ; the cit y has neve r
forgiven itself . Each musician that move s awa y to "mak e it" leave s be-
hind a slightly more bitter town. Shiva' s Headband moved west in 1969.
Doug Sahm moved from central Texas to recording centers in California
and back multiple times over a period often years . Scores of musicians
abandoned th e sinkin g progressive countr y ship durin g th e seventies .
In the early eighties, Christopher Cross, Charlie Sexton, and even Willie
Nelson move d away . When Hank Alrich noticed the exodus of Austin's
professional musicians in 1977, he blamed it on the presence of too many
amateur pickers . Bobby Bridge r noted th e sam e phenomenon i n 1978
and pleaded fo r Austi n musician s to creat e their own "counter cultur e
music thing" tha t would allo w them t o make it without leavin g home.
After seven more years of watching musicians learn to play in Austin and
then leave town, the members of AMAC insisted that the most effectiv e
way to ensure the continuation of the Austin identity as a center for live
music was to direct investment capital toward the developing infrastruc -
ture o f a music industry. No longe r shoul d "Ne w York , Nashville and
Los Angele s . . . receive credit fo r talents that were nurtured an d ma -
tured in Austin, simply because the music companies in those citie s are
positioned to treat their talents as a business" (9) . Austin had to becom e
able to turn it s own oats into Cheerios. 31
With music-makin g in Austi n define d a s an industria l activity , an d
with th e developmen t o f a n industria l infrastructure proposed a s th e
means by which to satisf y the needs of all of the musicians, fans, recor d
producers, engineers , agents , nightclu b bookers , an d radi o deejay s i n
town, th e repor t offere d a se t o f genera l recommendations fo r solv -
ing the problems o f this industry. Each of its general recommendations
focused on promoting "greate r cooperation" betwee n the "music indus-
try" and other sectors of Austin's economy. In the eyes of the committee.

Austin's institution s (whic h went unnamed), its financial businesses, its
tourism businesses , as well as the various businesses already dealing with
music, were each to b e made more aware of the benefit s of working i n
concert.
Beyond thes e general recommendations, th e committee offere d a set
of specifi c proposal s fo r th e organizatio n tha t ha d funde d th e study .
AMAC recommended tha t the Chamber of Commerce create a full-time
music/entertainment development liaison officer; sponsor an Austin dis-
play a t majo r musi c industr y conventions ; hel p develo p musi c trad e
conventions i n Austin; an d encourag e th e developmen t o f a n annual ,
nationally recognize d Austi n music exposition (2.0) . B y the en d o f th e
decade, these goals had taken slightly different forms , but eac h of the m
had bee n achieved . Bot h th e stat e of Texas and the cit y of Austin had
appointed musi c liaison officers . Th e Sout h b y Southwes t Musi c an d
Media Conferenc e had developed int o a major trad e convention an d a
nationally recognized musi c exposition, and representatives from Sout h
by Southwest wer e attending almost every major music convention.
The Cutting Edge: Televising the New Austin

The first visible outgrowth o f the Chamber's efforts to bring togethe r
the musi c communit y wit h loca l busines s interests was the lurin g o f
MTV's "Cuttin g Edge " progra m t o tow n t o produc e a featur e o n
Austin's newer bands. Sponsored b y I.R.S records, "The Cutting Edge"
appeared one Sunda y night a month o n MTV. Typically, the progra m
aired videos b y bands associated with the growing "indie" or "alterna-
tive" music movement, intersperse d with interviews with or live perfor-
mances by these bands . Fo r th e "Austin Avalanche of Roc k and Roll,"
the focu s instead fell on the musica l activity associated with one town .
The show' s host , Pete r Zaremba , an d th e productio n cre w came t o
Austin for a week in the summer of 1985 to tape live performances, local
color shots , an d extended interview sequences with severa l of Austin' s
more popular performers. 32
The organizatio n o f thi s productio n wa s a classi c example of th e
Chamber's strateg y at work. Although th e bands featured on the sho w
were almost exclusivel y acts that would appea l to th e program' s "alter -
native" audience , thi s wa s a n effor t tha t involve d a wid e rang e o f
music-related businesses . An employee of the Chamber, Gloria Moore,
coordinated th e cooperatio n o f local tourism businesses , obtaining ac-
commodations at the Driskil l Hotel and air travel from America n Air-
lines. Local restaurants like Mexico Tipico an d Virginia's Cafe provide d
D I S S O N A N T I D E N T I T I E S/ Z O8
food and , in return, sa w their establishments displayed in the program .
Two o f th e mor e popula r clubs , Libert y Lunch an d the Sout h Bank ,
gladly donated their spaces as sites for the performances. Peter Zaremb a
was taped runnin g out o f Waterloo Records with his arms full of vinyl.
The video equipmen t wa s provided locally by Third Coas t Video. Be -
cause of the donated supplies an d accommodations, this episode of the
program coul d b e produce d almos t a s cheapl y as those sho t i n Lo s
Angeles.
In th e meantime , E d Ward had used hi s connections i n Los Ange-
les to convinc e Car l Grasso, producer of the show , tha t th e rock'n'rol l
scene i n Austi n deserve d th e attentio n o f hi s program. The Chronicle
persistently promote d thi s episode of "Th e Cuttin g Edge " as both an
important recognitio n o f th e vitalit y of th e loca l scene an d a not-to -
bc-missed opportunit y fo r som e o f the town' s musicians . In orde r t o
appear on the show , a band's demo tap e had to make it past the ear s of
either E d Ward or Joe Nick Patoski before bein g passed on to Grasso ,
who made the final decisions. In line with AMAC's goal of updating th e
nation's imag e of the music made in Austin, none of the city' s rhyth m
and blue s musicians and non e o f it s country performers appeare d o n
the program . Instead , almos t al l of the band s cam e from th e Sparky's/
Beach performance nexus , the act s referred t o a s New Sincerit y bands.
During the program, segues between bands featured close-ups of the
state flag, while the sho w functione d as a promotional vehicl e fo r th e
city a s a whole. Th e rapi d economic growt h o f Austin wa s an under-
lying theme pervading the entire program. Live shots of the bands per-
forming wer e intercut with sequences shot fro m th e tops o f new offic e
buildings downtown . Camera s place d ato p constructio n crane s pro -
vided panoramic views of the surrounding hill country as Peter Zaremb a
intoned, "They say that ninet y people a day move to Austin . Sign s of
growth ar e everywhere." He went on to recite one of the concerns raised
at th e AMA C caucuses . "Changes ar e not alway s welcome , however .
Some of Austin's best clubs have disappeared." But music fans, and those
generally intrigued b y Austin need not worry. "Through it all, the bands
survive." Austin will continue t o have the best of all worlds. The music
that expresses Austin's specia l character will not b e transformed by the
influx of new people and the rampant construction of postmodern offic e
buildings.
Austin's abilit y to retai n its identity in the midst o f growth becam e
the topi c o f a n extended conversatio n i n th e progra m betwee n Pete r
Zaremba and musician Joe King Carrasco. As the two crossed the Con -
gress Avenue bridge in a convertible, driving out of downtown wit h the
The Commodification of Identity I 10 9

state capitol frame d behin d them, Carrasco asked, "I guess you've see n
this town change , huh?"
Z: Yeah, a little too much .
C: Yeah, too much, too many high buildings . Bu t I think the cool people are
still here in town. The musi c scene's stil l happening .
Z: Bu t the y ge t diluted , yo u know ? I mea n the y com e her e becaus e it' s
unique, but then they wanna ge t rid of the uniqueness .
But Carrasc o appeare d unconcerned . Beneat h the towerin g construc -

tion cranes lay "the last bastion of Austin soul," Red River Motors .
C: This is the final hold-out of what Austin is all about, in terms of everythin g
that made i t . .. [sic]
Z: The aesthetic .
C: Yeah . To me, if this plac e ever goes, then Austin's gone. This is the most
important thing for m e in Austin. Cu z Austin wa s old car s and Cadillacs , an d
that's what this plac e i s all about.
In additio n t o ol d car s an d Cadillacs, the program' s representatio n of

Austin's "soul " foregrounded th e contributions o f Mexican-Americans
in a n interestin g way . As the tw o musician s drove aroun d town , Za -
remba describe d Mexica n culture a s "more tha n a tile o n th e wal l o f
Austin; it's the glue tha t holds [Austin] together." Carrasc o delivered a
brief historical narrative about the development of conjunto music and,
for his performance scene, replaced his regular band with two Mexican-
American musicians . But this tribute t o th e influenc e o f Lati n culture
was bizarrely intercut wit h shot s o f Carrasco and Zaremb a bathing in
Barton Springs, a beautiful natural pool of which the city is quite proud .
After frolickin g in the clear water, accompanied by a group o f children,
the tw o pal e musicians rose out o f the pool, cleansed. Perhaps unwit -
tingly, the editors o f the program presented all too clearl y one aspect of
Austin's identity. Austin's "soul" is still available, if anyone wants to visit
it, and friendly guides such as Carrasco can be found, but no tourist will
have difficulty washin g i t off before she or he leaves.
For th e purpose s o f the Chamber , a t any rate, the specifi c conten t
of Austin's sou l wa s unimportant. Al l that mattere d wa s the assertio n
that a soul stil l existed an d that musi c remained the mediu m throug h
which i t was best expressed . The conversatio n betwee n the tw o musi -
cians ende d wit h Carrasc o repeatin g Davi d Lord' s "hook"—th e con-
nection between Austi n an d it s music. "You know musi c is importan t
for Austin, " Carrasc o said, "because everybody that I meet tha t know s
Austin, they know it because of its music. And the people who live here
have go t t o remembe r . . . you've reall y got t o nurtur e it. You've go t
D I S S O N A N T I D E N T I T I E S / 2.I O
The Austin Avalanche of Rock'n'Roll: MTV's "The Cutting Edge" tapes the Austin music
scene (The Reivers with Peter Zaremba singing "Sweet Jane"). Phot o by Pat Blashill.
to tak e good car e of it. " Economi c growt h wil l not threate n Austin' s
identity as a place for music-making. In fact, those responsible for bring-
ing "The Cuttin g Edge " recognize the importance of "nurturing" th e
music. Austin's "soul" and its bands will survive.
When MT V aire d the program that fall , fan s wh o didn' t hav e cable
rushed ove r t o the homes of friends wh o did. Video cassette recorders
were plugged in and turned on as Austin's rock'n'roll audience hoped t o
find themselves among th e sweatin g and dancing throng, capture d o n
tape and nationally televised. Fifteen act s performed during the "Austin
Avalanche of Roc k an d Roll. " Doctors' Mob fan s giggle d a s the ban d
made jokes about thei r hair. Dharma Bums fans sighe d while the ban d
surged throug h thei r cover of "This Ain't the Summe r of Love." Glass
Eye fans smirked when Brian's brow furrowed over the neck of his bass.
Zeitgeist an d the True Believers received the most space of all the young
bands in the final edit. They were the subjects of extended interviews in
addition t o thei r performanc e shots. Bu t everyone who was watching
stopped and wondered a t the attention th e program gave to an acoustic
duo wh o playe d guitar and sang closely interwoven harmonies accom -
panied by a beat box wearing sunglasses. None of the regular fans of the
scene had ever heard Timbuk 3 before their appearance during the "Cut -
ting Edge" taping at the South Bank. They were not regular performers
at the Beach ; they had not playe d with the Texas Instruments at a back-
The Gam-modification o f Identity I z n

yard party; they did not seem to know any Daniel Johnston songs. With
their se t snuc k in befor e those o f the Wild Seeds , Glass Eye, and th e
True Believers, they had appeared out of place, lost among the younger,
harder rockers. And here they were again as the program aired, playing
an admittedly clever tune, i n an understated, almost folky, style.
Timbuk 3 was the one act to receiv e a major recordin g contract afte r
their appearanc e on th e "Cutting Edge" program. Their debu t albu m
for I.R.S . sol d ove r thre e hundre d thousan d copie s i n 1986 , an d th e
single, "The Future's so Bright (I Gotta Wear Shades)" was a top-twenty
hit. Pa t and Barbara MacDonald ha d considerably more pop musi c ex-
perience than most of the young musicians who played the Beach. They
had alread y gone throug h severa l tours ; the y had alread y made pro-
fessional recordings . Although the y had just moved to Austin i n 1984,
they displaye d many of the sam e professional virtues that had worke d
for Michael Murphey fifteen years before. They already knew that song -
writing wa s a craft tha t rewarded dedicated effort. They arranged thei r
material in such a fashion that listeners could not hel p but notice their
intelligent lyrics. Instead of hanging out at the Beach or drinking beer at
the cool parties—rathe r than engaging in the maelstrom of the scene—
Timbuk 3 spent thei r tim e polishin g thei r material , developing thei r
aptitude fo r recording, an d working i n the studi o unde r th e guidanc e
of one of Austin's more durable music figures, Ed Guinn.33
Within a year, another Austi n band was signed b y a national label.
Year Zer o ha d no t eve n appeare d o n "The Cutting Edge. " They ha d
never attracte d fan s fro m th e Ne w Sincerit y scene. Muc h lik e Tim -
buk 3, Year Zero worked to develop business connections with record -
ing industr y figures even a s they were spending $30,00 0 recordin g a
demo tape. Once the tape was finished, they delivered it to the attorne y
handling th e busines s affair s fo r th e hugel y successful Va n Halen. Ac-
cording t o criti c Rober t Draper , "Within a few weeks, Year Zer o was
swamped wit h offers. The band fit the industry's mol d perfectly: young
and creative, but also studio veterans with a proven willingness to spend
their ow n money. " The remainde r of Austin's young musicians—par -
ticularly those wh o inspire d the most adaman t fandom at the Beach —
were dismissed b y record industr y representatives as "not quite devel-
oped." The astonishin g contras t between the success of Yea r Zero and
Timbuk 3 in dealing with the recordin g industr y and the failure o f th e
more popular scene bands to garner major label attention initiate d some
rethinking among thos e involved in Austin's rock'n'roll scene. 34
D I S S O N A N T I D E N T I T I E S / 2.12 .
Pushing Toward an Industry
The need for rethinkin g wa s emphasized when the Texas legislatur e
voted to follow Federal incentives and raise the drinking age in the state
from ninetee n t o twenty-one . On Septembe r i, 1986 , th e majorit y o f
the college-age market for live music in Austin could no longe r legally
drink bee r in the city's nightclubs. According t o a bartender in one of
the city's clubs, the implications of this change were far-reaching.
Any analysi s of what z i will mean to Austin music can't forge t the beer. It' s
the bee r that sweetens ou r ears an d cools our critica l natures enough to liste n
to new music. It's bee r that dulls our impatience enough to suffer throug h four
bad bands to listen to that one good one. It's beer that may give a band the con-
fidence to pla y i n public and i t is in beer that the ban d is generally paid. Most
important, it's bee r and its 400—700% marku p that pays the bill s to kee p th e
stage open. Without beer sale s there is simply no margi n for profit i n the ne w
music clubs in Austin.35
While Austin' s colleg e student s coul d stil l enter most clubs , an d while
most could stil l devise some strategy for achieving intoxication, the fac t
that the y wer e legall y prevented fro m spendin g mone y on bee r i n th e
clubs strippe d awa y a significan t percentag e o f th e scene' s economi c
support. While not th e sole determinant, the change in the legal drink-
ing age significantly exacerbated the difficulties o f operating within the
honky-tonk economy . Loui s Meyer s and Mar k Pratz had successfull y
booked shows a t Liberty Lunch an d the Continenta l Club since 1983.
Before th e chang e i n th e drinkin g age , the y regularl y operated wit h
30 percent of their show s losin g money. According to Meyers , "under
those condition s i t wa s possible to kee p o n producin g act s an d eve n
show something of a profit." This profit cam e from beer sales. After the
age change, they began losing money on 70 percent of their shows. By
summer 1990, Meyers no longer booke d nightclubs ; instead he focused
his effort s o n managin g band s an d codirectin g Sout h b y Southwest .
According to anothe r SXS W codirector, Roland Swenson , "raising th e
drinking ag e was a rea l seriou s blo w t o th e clu b business . The onl y
people tha t ru n club s now [1990 ] ar e just craz y peopl e wh o can' t d o
anything else." 36
During th e nex t fe w years, th e lesson s extracte d fro m Timbu k 3' s
and Yea r Zero' s national recordin g contract s combined wit h th e grad -
ual applicatio n of the industria l strategy initiated by the Austi n Musi c
Advisory Committee and the depression of the honky-tonk economy t o
transform th e structur e of music-making in Austin. The Austin "musi c
industry," initiall y represented b y the fifty individuals and institution s
profiled by the Chronicle in 1984, mushroomed to include the more than
The Commodification o f Identity I 2.1 3

six hundred music-relate d companies listed in the. Austin Music Industry
Guide for 1990. To a certain extent, this guide was designed to promote
the succes s of AMAC's industrialization strategy. The cover illustratio n
depicted a guitar that was also a wrench turning a record that was also a
bolt. The editors intended to impress their readers by the sheer weight of
the Industry Guide's pages . The listing s represente d a significant expan-
sion in the number of industry categories implied by the AMAC caucus
titles, indicating that the network of music-related businesses had grown
even more inclusive . For instance , all the newspapers in the stat e were
listed, as well as every radio station, television station, record store, an d
instrument repai r sho p i n town . Severa l individuals liste d themselve s
under multipl e categorie s as different businesses . However , consider -
able rea l growth i n th e numbe r o f music-relate d businesse s ha d als o
occurred. Th e numbe r of record labels in town increase d from twenty-
two a t th e en d o f 198 4 t o forty-thre e i n 1990 . B y 1989, ever y majo r
record labe l had established a representative in Austin. The correspond -
ing increas e in billable contract hours produce d a dramatic rise in th e
number of lawyers considering themselves to be part of the music indus-
try. I n 1984 , the Chronicle profile d onl y one lawyer , Mike Tolleson. I n
the 199 0 guide, twelv e individual lawyers or firms were listed. Bu t th e
largest increase in listings occurred in that vague area the Industry Guide
called "Promotion, Booking & Management." Whil e the 198 4 "Behind
the Scenes " articl e described twelve individuals whose activitie s fell i n
these areas , the Industry Guide listed fifty-six different organization s de -
voted to promoting, publicizing, booking, an d managing the activities
of musicians in Austin.37
The dramati c increase in this type of business was directly related t o
the shif t i n the economi c basis of music-making in Austin. The declin e
in the honky-tonk economy, initiate d by changes in sound technology ,
had bee n exacerbate d by both th e chang e i n the drinkin g age and th e
pressures o f a contracting economi c context . This economi c pressur e
reinforced a growing mora l conservatis m in young people , wh o no w
frowned o n the spontaneou s an d intoxicated attachments that fee d th e
fantastic identification s of a scene . Fewe r an d fewe r adolescen t Aus-
tinites wer e gatherin g togethe r i n th e nightclubs , listenin g t o locall y
focused musicians, and celebrating an identity mutually constructed ou t
of contemporary contradictions . Dancin g an d drinking, druggin g an d
fucking, wer e n o longe r th e dominan t characteristic s o f th e "Austi n
tendency t o grou p th e way they do." With th e excitemen t o f a scen e
dwindling away , the actual experience of listening to music in the clubs
was becomin g muc h les s pleasurable , much les s appealing . Audiences
could no longer be depended o n to produce spontaneously the yearning
response tha t define d a magical show. The numbe r of individual s pro -
moting and publicizing musica l activity in Austin increased in order t o
fill a gap left , no t onl y b y the decreasin g siz e of audiences, bu t b y th e
corresponding decreas e both i n the intensity of engagement fel t and ex-
pressed by these audiences an d in the excitement and satisfaction felt by
the musicians. The creation of magical gigs, the production o f meaning-
ful experience s that fans and musicians would remember and talk about,
now bega n t o requir e professiona l stimulation . Show s ha d t o b e pro -
moted, publicized as special, their significance based, not on the comin g
together o f a community o f fan s an d musician s mutuall y performin g
an identity, bu t instea d on som e rare characteristic of a specific band , a
stylistic trait exaggerated an d marketed as a fetishized commodity . An d
managers ha d t o stimulat e an d rewar d caree r ambitions i n musicians ,
reinforcing th e tendency t o se e each gig not simpl y as an opportunit y
for "gettin g the chills " but rathe r as a step toward a recording contract .
In Novembe r 1985 , afte r th e publicatio n o f AMAC' s repor t an d
the telecastin g o f "Th e Austi n Avalanch e o f Roc k an d Roll, " Loui s
Black wrote ,
Lately I've been hearing otherwise rational people going on—in fact have heard
myself goin g on—abou t ho w Austi n i s lackin g th e necessar y musi c business
support structure. Which means, essentially, that Austin is lacking lawyers, man-
agers, agents, promoters, or, in other words, our music scene is suffering because
all we have are musicians, clubs and listeners . This is madness.38
Nevertheless, b y the en d o f the decade , music-makin g in th e club s o f
Austin ha d bee n transforme d int o on e subbranc h of a nationall y ori-
ented musi c industry .
Despite th e recessio n i n the region' s economy, despit e the fac t tha t
the growt h in populatio n and the increas e in jobs had stumble d to a
halt in 1986 and had no t full y recovere d by 1990, this new sector o f th e
local economy had achieve d a new level of visibility and influence. The
extent o f this influenc e was displayed durin g th e city' s mayoral race in
1988. I n a forum sponsore d b y the Texas Music Association, th e thre e
leading candidate s agree d that , "Austin' s musi c industry should pla y a
significant part in the city's economic developmen t plans." The eventual
mayor (and ex-president of the Chamber of Commerce), Le e Cooke, in-
sisted tha t Austin should continu e t o "make [th e development o f music
into big business] a critical strategy."39
In 1989, the Austin Music Industry Council wa s established as an in-
dependent institution to foster the continued allianc e between Austin' s
music-making communit y an d it s busines s community . It s boar d o f
The Comma dificationo f Identity I 2.1 5

directors included lawyers, financial consultants, musical instrument and
record retailers , and band managers; its president was Ernie Gammage.
That year , the Council , th e Texas Music Association, an d th e Cit y of
Austin worked togethe r wit h th e Nashvill e branch of Billboard maga -
zine to creat e a "spotlight" issue of the magazine, focusing on the way
music was currently being made in Austin.
In th e middl e o f Billboard's regula r issue for September 9,1989, ap-
peared a special twelve-page section of photographs, editoria l copy, and
advertisements o f "one o f the majo r country music capitals." Together ,
the section was intended to represent an inclusive view of Austin's music
industry, bu t th e photographs , th e articles , and the ads all emphasized
the developmen t o f a n infrastructure o f industr y bureaucrats . Photo-
graphs showe d Erni e Gammage , Mik e Tolleson , loca l manager s an d
lawyers, representatives of the Austin Convention an d Visitors Bureau
and the City Council celebrating the production of the issue with attor-
neys, publicists, and advertising directors from Nashville. Austin writers
contributed the expected stories about Austin musicians, record labels,
and clubs , bu t als o include d a feature o n Austin' s "ne w ban d o f pro -
fessionals"—the agents , managers , and attorney s recently drawn int o
music businesses. This articl e made the point tha t "the 1980 5 have wit-
nessed th e emergenc e of a brand new crop of self-taught Austin-based
managers and agents who arose from th e local music milieu after work-
ing their wa y slowly up th e musi c business food chain. . . . The resul t
is .. . a thriving industry infrastructur e uniquel y suited t o th e Austin
economic and cultura l terrain." The titl e of the lea d article, ostensibly
about loca l talent, utilize d th e no w commo n natura l resource s meta -
phor about musicians—calling them "a cool-flowing natural spring"—
and enthuse d tha t "there' s a strong loca l industry rallying aroun d th e
sound." De-emphasizin g hi s own rol e as a critic, Michael Point wrote ,
"The write-ups and rave reviews [about musicians] are all well and good
but it' s the buzz from industry insiders that means the most sinc e that
translates the compliments int o terms of dollars and cents."40
The cop y was surrounded by the advertisements that footed the bill
for this special section. Management companies, publishing companies,
law firms, record companies , recording studios, even a bootmaker an d
a medica l docto r bough t spac e in thi s issu e i n orde r t o declar e their
support fo r th e Austi n music industry. Perhaps the mos t startlin g ad,
however, feature d a vertica l half-page photograph , a close-u p o f th e
driver's side front fende r an d headlight of a 1950^ sedan (cf. Carrasco's
definition o f Austin soul) . Printe d acros s the bumpe r of the ca r were
D I S S O N A N T I D E N T I T I E S / 2.1.6
the slogans , "Lif e i s great. High tech is HOT! Th e musi c is awesome .
Austin i s rippin'}" Across th e botto m o f th e pag e were th e corporat e
logos of the companie s wh o ha d paid for the advertisement : Advance d
Micro Devices , CompuAdd, Dell, IBM, and Motorola .
The stor y behin d thi s a d demonstrate s th e impac t o f th e indus -
trial strateg y fo r music-making in Austin. Through hi s connections a t
the Chambe r o f Commerce , Erni e Gammag e ha d develope d a busi-
ness relationshi p wit h a manager of one o f th e city' s compute r firms .
Rock'n'roll mean t virtuall y nothing t o this person , bu t Gammag e was
able t o convinc e hi m tha t loca l music mattered t o hi s workers. As he
told me , "Ther e i s this gu y I dea l with al l the tim e ou t a t one o f th e
hi-tech companies . H e knows that music is important t o his people o n
the assembl y line, mostl y becaus e I a m always talking to hi m abou t i t
and showin g hi m studie s that mak e that point . S o he aske d me wha t
he coul d d o fo r Jo e 6-pack wh o love s Austin musi c an d work s i n hi s
plant." Rathe r tha n as k the neares t "Jo e 6-pack " what h e woul d lik e
management t o d o for him, thi s executive solicited Gammage's advice.
I said that the best thing you could do for him would be to buy a large ad in this
special section of Billboard tha t shows how muc h your company love s Austin
music. That would be the best thing in the world you could do for him. It would
really boost morale because that would help to draw national attention to that
music, an d dra w national money to tha t music, and increase the development
and promotion of that music he loves.
Reacting within an assumed context of a single music industry in Austin,
Gammage coul d unhesitatingl y insist that the best thing thi s employe r
could d o for the morale of his music-loving employees would no t b e to
hire local musicians to pla y for company parties, nor to financ e a regu-
lar company nigh t out a t a local nightclub, no r to pip e the recording s
of local musicians into the company break room, but instead to bu y an
advertisement i n a music industry trade publication declaring solidarity
between Austin' s tw o growt h industries . Proudly , Gammage finished
the story , "S o my friend go t togethe r wit h a bunch of hi s friends and
this is the ad. " H e hel d it up fo r me. "And i t is efforts lik e this that ar e
bringing togethe r the music community and the business community in
Austin. The last time I went out there to visit, the ad was hanging in the
lunch room." 41
The Billboard spotligh t issu e represented th e publi c announcemen t
by Austin's musi c businesses to the national recording industry that th e
city had succeeded in establishing the necessary infrastructure. By 1990,
Mike Tolleson coul d say , "To my mind, critical mass has been attained .
We have achieved ou r goa l tha t we began with in the earl y days of th e
The Commodification of Identity I zi y

Armadillo Worl d Headquarters , whe n th e Fillmor e Eas t an d th e Art s
Laboratory were the models. Austin has a full-fledged musi c industry."42
The Alternative Music Network

Although th e concep t o f Austin' s musi c industr y wa s planne d b y
older roc k entrepreneur s an d it s structure was initiated b y the Cham -
ber of Commerce, th e structure itself was originally operated mainly by
individuals who had been drawn into music-related businesses through
a dissatisfaction with th e oligopolistic practice s of the national record -
ing industry . To a large extent, these peopl e ha d bee n among Austin' s
early fan s o f pun k rock . Punk' s critiqu e o f the recordin g industry , it s
insistence that the corporate structure of the recording industry had re-
sulted in boring music, convince d them that aesthetic value in cultural
products wa s a matter of individua l responsibility. As Simon Frit h has
described it,
Punk opposed commercial music in two ways. First, it denounced multinational
record companies with a version of the assertion that "small is beautiful"—punk
music was, authentically, the product of small-scale, independent record and dis-
tribution companies . Second, pun k demystified the production proces s itself —
its message was that anyon e could do it . One effec t o f this was an astonishin g
expansion of local music-making, but the most important strand in its develop-
ment was a people's versio n of consumerism, the ide a that record buyers had a
right t o maximu m market choice, that recor d buying should involv e customer
expression rather than producer manipulation... . Such consumerism led to th e
creation o f an "alternative" productio n system. . . . The punk s . . .assumed an
opposition between art and business, with honesty on one side and bureaucracy
on the other. . .. Punk messages could be distorted by the process of commercial
production, bu t onl y if this process was in the wrong hands. . . .43
Punk in Austin gave its participants the idea that "people could actu-
ally d o somethin g the y believe d in . Lik e to b e weird o r something. "
After pun k opene d th e doo r t o do-it-yoursel f production, i t becam e
possible "to participate in the whole cultural process." And sincere par-
ticipation wa s the only way to guarantee the promotion o f good music.
Through belief s lik e this , individual s such a s Roland Swenson , Loui s
Meyers, Brent Grulke, Jo Rac DiMenno, member s of the Chronicle staff ,
and man y others becam e involved in the attemp t t o develo p an alter-
native set of music businesses in Austin. They believed that thes e busi-
nesses would, b y virtue of thei r small , intimate, an d persona l nature ,
avoid the hypocrisy rampant in the bureaucracy of the recording indus-
try. Suc h beliefs were in line with the ideolog y share d by the indepen -
dent musi c businesse s that ha d sprun g up al l over th e countr y i n th e
wake of punk rock . As Craig Lee, a Los Angeles punk critic, wrote i n
D I S S O N A N T I D E N T I T I E S / 2-l 8
Slash in 1980, "whatever 'punk' was, it meant being brutally honest, not
compromising, no t sellin g ou t t o th e bes t offer , no t accommodatin g
any but your own standards." An insistence upon personal integrity and
a firm belief i n the legitimac y of one's honestl y held an d boldl y state d
tastes were the principles that would distinguish alternativ e music busi-
nesses from the corporate values of the national recording industry. 44
Independent label owners often enter the recording business as fans.
Within a n industrially organized syste m of commodity production , the
most obvious way to promote an d share the music that excites these fan s
is to for m a record company. In a 1988 article for the Daily Texan, Bruce
Sheehan, owner o f Jungle Records , describe d th e basi c motivation fo r
independent recordin g companies . "One thin g abou t Austin labels, we
put out musi c we like." Tom Roudebush o f Analog Records concurred ,
with adde d emphasis : "A n independent labe l wouldn't usuall y release a
record i f they didn't really believe in it." However, no independent labe l
in Austin has its own distribution network , its own way to connect com -
mercially with othe r fans . Independen t label s in Austin and acros s th e
country depend on colleg e radi o an d the alternativ e distribution net -
work. A s the articl e insisted, "Austin's independent labels unanimously
agree that thei r primar y weakness is dependence on distributors t o see
their produc t i n recor d store s outsid e o f Austin. " Independent labe l
owners are fans concerned with promoting th e music that genuinely ex-
cites them. Therefore , independen t recor d companie s rel y on persona l
contacts, develope d withi n a context o f shared enthusiasm and taste, t o
spread the word about their musical productions. By fostering the circu-
lation of this excitement, alternativ e music businesses hope to overcome
the reifyin g distanc e o f th e marketplac e and construc t a postmoder n
community o f shared tastes.
The Austi n labe l Rabid Ca t wa s relatively well connected int o th e
national alternativ e network. Co-owner Stace y Cloud said, "We've go t
—I would say—excellen t pres s and radi o contacts. We get a lot o f air-
play." Severa l o f Rabi d Cat' s release s b y th e Texa s Instrument s an d
Scratch Acid had bee n liste d on th e playlist s published in Rockpool an d
the College Music Journal. "Everybody keep s telling u s our record s ar e
great. S o we keep doing them." To a certain extent, the small rewards of
sharing meanings, tastes , and enthusiasms—of spreading a communit y
of fans—can b e motivation enoug h fo r an independent labe l owner t o
keep functioning. 45
With her husband, M.C. Kostec, Kate Messerowns 50,000,000,000,
000,000 [Skadillion] Watts of Power in the Hands o f Babes [known as
50 Skid], a small, wholly independent record company . Kate and M.C .

run th e label out o f their home in Florida. Their releases are nationally
distributed through Dutc h East India Trading, one of the many compa-
nies that bega n providing independent record stores across the Unite d
States with hard-to-fin d Englis h and American punk records. Through
the wor k o f artists like Jad Fair of Hal f Japanese and Maureen Tucker,
50 Skid has had some significant success in the alternative charts and o n
college radio. Recordings b y both of those acts were ranked in the Col-
lege Music Journal to p five. In 1990, 50 Skid was working recording s by
the Austin bands Happy Famil y and Pocket FishRman. Kate described
for m e som e o f the characteristic s of the "indie scene," the alternativ e
music network.
This scene, the indie music scene, is difficult t o crack and even harder to survive
in. If you're in this business, you've got to lov e it or I don't know what you'r e
getting out o f it. It's a really hard market. Your success is so limited, you've go t
to b e realistic about it . You have to enjo y i t or it'l l driv e you insane . And I've
seen some people that it has totally destroyed. But I really think there is more of
a golden rule in the indi e scene. More of , like, a certain humanism, that i s real
important. Cuz like , if it's not, why are you i n it? Trust i s real important. An d
it's a small scene. But, i f I had t o pu t a figure on it , I' d sa y that 75 percent of
the peopl e i n this business would not g o for your weakness, like they would i n
the corporat e world . Competition seem s to b e modified som e i n that respect.
But there are some wicked mean people in this scene too, who will go for your
weakness and totally manipulate you if they can. But trust is just real important
in the indie scene. Otherwise you're negating your whole reason for being in it.46
The whole reason for Kate and M.C. to become involved in the indie
scene was, "We really thought it was important for Jad's and Maureen' s
music to get out there, and it was important tha t they get paid for that.
And we thought we could d o that . We had access to thi s money . An d
we were trusted, the person wit h this money trusted u s with it , s o we
thought thi s i s something goo d we could d o with thi s money." Pen n
Jillette, of the magical comedy duo Pcnn and Teller, provided the start-
up capita l fo r 5 0 Skid. "Penn i s a huge Velvet Underground fan , an d
Mike an d I ha d bee n runnin g th e Velve t Undergroun d Appreciatio n
Society. We all loved Half Japanese, and we felt that Maureen deserved to
record." Pen n trusted Kat e and M.C. to do "something good " with the
money; tha t something goo d was to get music by these two artists "out
there" and to make sure that these musicians were paid for their work .
The links between the initial capital and the resulting commodity in the
marketplace were based on relationship s of trust an d of shared taste. 47
Fifty Skid' s involvemen t with Austin music developed out o f a simi-
lar se t o f relationships . Margare t Moser, th e first music columnist fo r
the Chronicle, was a famously infatuated John Cale fan. An early member
of th e Velvet Undergroun d Appreciatio n Society, sh e mad e sur e tha t
D I S S O N A N T I D E N T I T I E S / Z2. O
Kate and M.C. receive d a regular subscription to the Chronicle and cor-
responded wit h the m abou t Austi n music . Once he r recor d compan y
began, Kat e bega n t o kee p closer trac k of th e scene . Sh e like d wha t
she rea d abou t a n all-women band, Chlorine , bu t tha t ban d brok e u p
in 1987.
In lat e 1989 , 5 0 Skid receive d a n unsolicite d tap e fro m Jef f Tarta -
kov. His company, Stress Worldwide Communications, handle d Danie l
Johnston's affair s an d ha d manage d th e Reversibl e Cord s i n the earl y
eighties. Jeff' s reputatio n in the nationa l alternativ e networ k was un-
ambiguous; his integrity was unquestioned. He only promoted unusual
artists whos e work woul d no t appea l t o everyone , bu t i n who m h e
wholeheartedly believed . The tape was a rough dem o of a new band in
Austin, Happy Family . Jeff ha d become Happy Family' s manager afte r
hearing th e ban d pla y twice, an d h e recorde d th e dem o during a live
show at a barbecue restaurant.48
As soon a s Kate opened th e packag e and read Jeff's cove r letter, sh e
had made up her mind. "Jeff sent us the tape and that was ten points up
for Happ y Famil y then, but when he mentioned Chlorine , that was it."
Happy Family's bas s player, Julia Austin, had bee n on e o f the singer s
and songwriter s i n tha t ban d Kat e ha d rea d abou t i n th e Chronicle.
"They wer e signe d befor e I eve n hear d th e tape, " sai d Kate . "That's
really bad , bu t it' s true . Sometime s yo u jus t hav e t o g o o n you r in -
stincts, you know." Although clearl y the performances on the tape had
to suppor t it , Kate' s decisio n was made on the basi s of a few words i n
the Chronicle an d he r familiarit y wit h th e pas t work o f Jef f Tartakov .
Such a decision necessaril y assume d trus t an d share d taste . Thu s th e
indie recordin g caree r o f Happ y Famil y bega n becaus e of thei r man -
ager's reputatio n an d knowledge. But it was not tha t Jeff was a shrewd
predictor o f commercial success, able to harves t raw resources and de-
liver the m t o th e refinin g processe s of a recording company . Rather ,
he placed Happy Family, a band with limited commercial potential bu t
considerable power t o spea k to a specific audience , with a record com-
pany that had already displayed the ability to cater to that audience. No t
only did Kat e have to trust Jeff's judgment and share some of his taste,
but Jeff had to trust Kate's taste and her ability to market Happy Family
appropriately.
Fifty Skid' s plan for marketing Happy Family was to exploit the net -
work of personal contacts and shared taste by which independent music
businesses operate.
Jeff and I will predict who we know that will like it. We'll send tapes to them, like
in Ne w York , a t Dutc h East. The Indi e Brill Building—61 1 Broadway. That's
The Commodification o f Identity I 2.2. 1

where Roug h Trad e is , where Venus records is, 4 AD, Matador . We hear tha t
the Indie Brill Building is brimming with Happy Family.. .. Anyway, to market
this record, we find specifi c people that we already know will like the record and
start th e persona l networ k flowing. We try to exploi t that t o the fullest , that' s
really how it works. . . . But there does hav e to be some hook, something tha t
catches the network' s attention . Cuz I get fifteen to twenty-fiv e record s a week
in the mail and there comes a time when you have to make a decision about what
you will listen to no w and what you will shelve for later. You have to conside r
how valuabl e is your time an d ther e i s a ton o f stuf f ou t there . The marke t is
flooded, an d attention is a valuable commodity.49
In othe r words , Kat e hope s t o continu e th e networ k o f informatio n

flow about Happy Famil y that began with Jeff's letter . But first she has
to "hook" the attention of those in the network.
For Kate, Happy Family's hook evolved out of their connection wit h
Chlorine. Ye t fo r th e peopl e wh o wor k a t th e Indi e Bril l Building ,
the nature of that connectio n ha s to b e made more explicit. What at -
tracted Kat e to Chlorine , an d what underlie s her affectio n fo r Happ y
Family, i s "that woma n thing. " Three o f the fou r songwriter s i n th e
band ar c women : th e lea d singer , th e guitarist , an d th e bas s player .
Their presenc e onstage—tha t visual and physica l aspect tha t i s so dif-
ficult t o captur e i n the recording studio—joyfully flaunt s th e imag e of
unconventional wome n wh o ar e comfortable with thei r bodies , wit h
their independence , an d with the power of their electric guitars. While
their song s ten d to describ e relationships from th e femal e perspectives
of th e writers , fe w of thei r lyric s blatantly foreground gender issues.
The power of their performance instead depends upon an identification
with thei r projectio n o f an unconventional feminine mastery. As Julia
Austin tol d me, "It's sor t of plain, it's not a complicated issue. You just
see women i n a band and you're jus t glad." 50 Kate echoed thi s feeling.
"If a band has a woman in it, I am a lot more likely to listen than if it is
just another boy band."
But, Kat e insisted , " I als o hate all that feminis m shit. S o we don't
want t o mak e a big deal out o f it. But we can't ignore it. " Rathe r than
foreground gende r issue s in her promotion o f Happ y Family , Kate in-
stead intend s t o focu s o n "thei r uniqu e soun d tha t ca n be described .
They don't sound like a lot of those other bands that are out there." No t
only do the y feature fou r differen t songwriters , bu t "they have this ho t
woman guitar player." Kate hopes that the identity projected b y Happy
Family i n performanc e can be heard o n thei r recordings . I n orde r t o
facilitate tha t specifi c hearing , Kat e will supplemen t thei r recording s
with a set of key s to interpretin g them. The print a d that 5 0 Skid uses
for Happ y Family' s album , Lucky, feature s a crude lin e drawin g o f a
D I S S O N A N T I D E N T I T I E S / 2.7.2.
naked woman' s torso , breasts , and bell y swollen wit h pregnancy , an d
the slogan "Happ y Famil y just wants your love." 51
In he r promotiona l effort s withi n th e network , Kat e must verbally
communicate he r enthusias m abou t th e identification s she has forge d
with them—identifications indicated by the advertisement. But she can-
not spea k to o clearly . A too-specific descriptio n o f the pleasure s tha t
they provide her would limit the possible interpretations and identifica -
tions othe r listeners might , throug h thei r individual longings, nee d t o
find in th e band' s music . Instead , sh e can only mention a symptom, a
fetish, a hook—this hot woman guitar player, full-bodied songwriters—
and hope that, through th e shared discourse about these symptoms and
their band, the alternative network will discover Happy Family's mean-
ing, a meaning that Kate feels, but that she cannot speak.
The belie f of the alternative music network is that through such per-
sonal channels—fro m Jef f t o Kat e to th e peopl e Kat e knows i n Ne w
York—the specific meaning of Happy Family, the band's unique soun d
and possibilitie s fo r identification , will pas s undistorted . Whe n Kat e
calls Dutch Eas t distributors an d talks about ho w great Happy Family
are, she is not "selling " them , instea d she is honestly promoting a n act
she truly loves. Because the people at Dutch East know Kate and share
some o f he r musica l tastes , the y trus t he r an d fee l som e excitemen t
of their ow n abou t th e band . This enthusias m can then b e passed on ,
transformed somewhat , translate d slightl y by each communication, t o
personally known buyer s for retail stores across the country. This spark
of enthusiasm, passed along by recordings, promotional kits, telephone
wires, and face-to-face conversation s is what music people call a "buzz."
The buz z takes the excitement of pleasurable identification with a band
and translates i t into words, spoke n and written. By depending heavily
on thi s buzz , whic h require s for it s efficac y th e individualis t values of
trust and shared taste, the alternative music network hopes to avoid the
inauthcnticity of the marketplace ; th e buz z become s the guarante e of
good music, of aesthetic quality.
The Buzz
Gossip, rumor , confessionals , dreams, assertions, and desires—such
are th e stuf f o f th e buzz . Verbal expression s tha t hin t a t th e specifi c
meanings o f indescribable , musicall y supported, imaginar y identifica -
tions flow through the networ k o f fans, musicians , writers, managers ,
agents, an d publicists. While no t alway s true, th e content s o f the buz z
must b e genuine, th e speake r must b e sincere. I t i s only this sincerity
The Comma dificationo f Identity I 22. 3

that differentiates buz z from hype , the sharing of taste from the selling
of schlock. Th e buz z stimulate s th e productio n o f fantastic identifica-
tions, defines th e possibl e meanings of a band, and sets the condition s
for magica l shows . The mos t dramati c increas e in music business per -
sonnel i n Austin ha s come i n those region s tha t materialize , massage ,
and magnify the buzz—agents, managers, and publicists.
Jo Ra e DiMenno is an independent publicis t and occasiona l book -
ing agent for several Austin bands. When I asked her to, sh e succinctly
defined he r rol e i n the musi c industry. " I wann a create a buzz. That's
pretty much what I do. That's what my job is. To create a buzz."52 Jo Rae
moved fro m Houston to Austin in 1986. She had been a booking agen t
and a writer i n Houston , producin g a newslette r fo r nightclub s an d
writing feature s about the out-of-tow n act s she had booked. By 1988,
she had established (wit h J.D. Foster ) th e DiMenno/Foster Agency in
Austin, booking the final few shows for the True Believers and workin g
with new acts like the Alejandro Escovedo Orchestra, David Halley, and
the Barnburners.
In 1990, J.D. left the agency and Jo Rae shifted the focus of her wor k
to publicity . "I'm tryin g t o advertis e mysel f more a s a publicist," sh e
told me. "Because I want to be paid a flat fee for services. I don't wanna
get paid a percentage o f their [th e performers'] shows." Th e shif t fro m
booking agen t t o publicis t change s J o Rae' s connection s wit h bands ,
paralleling th e changin g focu s o f Austin music-making . No longe r i s
she their lin k to specifi c nightclu b gigs. Fo r bands , her function i s less
immediately tangible but, she insisted, no less significant .
I've definitel y always been on this wave of helping people. You help each other
out. An d I'm very into that . But I'm als o getting ver y into the other par t of it ,
to where I want to make, it's time that I make some money for what I' m doing.
Because it is valid. And it's worth somethin g to people . When you first try ou t
sometimes, it' s like , oh yeah , I'll d o that . Oh , I' m workin g with bands ! An d
there's thi s whole thin g that i s set up on, I don't know. It' s lik e one time wit h
Alejandro, w e had a very good tal k abou t this . I just said , Alejandro, did yo u
ever sit down and think that wha t I'm doing , I want to ge t ahead just like you
do? I want to b e out there just like you do. So it was like, what I'm doing i s just
as important a s what he is doing as the musician and songwriter. And but, I had
to make that point to him. Very heavily. . . . Because I feel like, when I publicize
someone, I try t o creat e something. They've go t it there an d you take it. And
it's alread y created but the n yo u tak e it an d move it an d chang e what peopl e
know abou t it . An d there' s a certain way, when yo u do that , you ar e creating
something. Yo u know. You're not creating that person, but you're helping .
The "it " J o Ra e speak s of—"They'v e go t i t ther e an d yo u tak e it" —

is he r act' s projecte d identity . I n thi s reflectio n on he r work , sh e de -
scribes i t a s a process o f taking that identity , moving it , an d changin g
what peopl e kno w abou t it . Sh e takes elements of the band' s identit y
and spreads them through the information networ k through which the
buzz flows. Through he r selectio n o f elements an d o f the person s t o
whom she describes these elements, Jo Rae contributes to "creating tha t
person." This is the creativ e aspect to publicity : the sligh t transforma-
tions i n th e conten t o f the buzz , the hel p given to th e musician s an d
songwriters i n the discursiv e constructio n an d dissemination o f thei r
projected identity .
When I aske d he r t o describ e a particularly successful instanc e o f
her work , sh e narrate d th e transformatio n of Davi d Halley' s imag e
from tha t of another wes t Texas folkie songwrite r t o that o f an Austin
rock'n'roll musician.
Ok, what I do i s I get on th e phone, like with David Halley's tape. David was
always associated with the Lubbock thing pretty much. So we wanted to change
that. What he really wanted to do was be a True Believer. He saw them one day
and went out and bought a Marshall amp the next morning. So I started getting
on th e phon e an d telling people that J.D. an d Davi d were working together .
I ha d tried t o alway s establish a relationship with Ed Ward and been generally
blown off . Bu t afte r I gave him David's tape, everything changed. Cuz he liked
the tape . And I think that he realized that I wasn't a, I don't know, a groupie
or a bimb o o r whatever . We get alon g great now . We [J o Ra e an d J.D. ] just
made tons of tapes, and I have a huge list of everybody I gave that tape to. Then
David did a show with Syd Straw at the Cactus. And it was with J.D. an d Rich
[Brotherton]. So, again, I knew that Ed Ward likes Syd and a lot of these writers
like her. I invited just a bunch of people to the Cactus. And let them know about
the show before it was gonna happen. Way before. And they get off to that. The
Syd show was very successful. I was really happy with it. We all worked hard o n
it. An d th e pres s thing wa s great. Griff [th e manager of the Cactus ] sai d tha t
from tha t show, ther e were more press people there than any show he has ever
done at the Cactus. So to me, that was a good night. I mean it was a happening.
I don't really care for her [Syd's ] stuff that much, but I think it was still a great
show. Because it's a show that a lot of people will remember.
Jo Ra e helped Davi d Halley transform the identit y he projected b y
emphasizing t o her contacts that David was working wit h J.D. Foster ,
who a t tha t tim e wa s also playing with th e True Believers . After th e
demo was finished, Jo Rae sent out copies of the tape to fans of the True
Believers an d kep t trac k of thei r reactions . Then sh e chos e a specifi c
show t o publicize , when Halley was booked t o ope n fo r Syd Straw—
a singer who appeale d to man y of the same people in Austin who liked
the Believers. Jo Rae made sure that she told everybody on her list about
this show and arranged for them to get in free. She packed the club with
people alread y yearning fo r tha t identity , prime d the m wit h advanc e
knowledge about David's performance, an d helped t o construc t their
experience of David Halley's transformation. In effect, sh e manipulated
The Commodification of Identity I 2.2.5

the condition s tha t constitute a scene. The evidence of her success was
that "it' s a sho w tha t a lot o f peopl e wil l remember, " tha t people —
specifically, writers—still talk about. Sh e effectively created a buzz.
In her work with local journalists, as she attempts to stimulate a buzz,
Jo Ra e often take s advantage o f the fac t tha t these writer s hav e devel-
oped a taste for secret knowledge. One thing that sets a journalist apart
from his or her competitors i s knowing som e tidbit abou t a n act before
the other writers in town know. Derived from the value of scooping the
competition and sustained b y the sociology of this information-trading
profession, th e tast e for secret knowledge operate s even when th e ma -
terial i s "off th e record. " Accordin g t o J o Rae, "On e of the way s you
create a buzz is to cal l somebody u p and tell them something an d the n
tell them it's off the record . S o they can't us e it, bu t the y can still talk
about it. That starts the gossi p mill." The trick t o creating a powerfu l
buzz, on e capabl e of shaping the meaning s produce d i n a scene, i s t o
stimulate this flow of information at a particular rate. The ability of each
publicist to construc t thi s buz z is dependent on her or his contacts, o n
the personal relationships she or he has developed within the scene. "I've
got a real good phone list. I just get on with these people," J o Rae said.
But the hierarch y of social relations in the scene must be respected. E d
Ward mus t b e contacte d personally . Jody Denberg [ a local deejay an d
writer] has to b e kept informe d about al l of Jo Rae's acts . "And there' s
certain peopl e tha t I will definitely no t tel l anything to of f the record .
Because sometimes i t has wound u p in print. The writer-publicist trust
thing, once it's broken, I'll just call somebody else. "
As a publicist, then , J o Ra e inserted hersel f into th e flow of infor -
mation, int o th e productio n o f the buz z about Davi d Halley . Bu t she
was stil l workin g withi n a context o f fandom; J o Ra e love d th e Tru e
Believers and was excited by David Halley's move to electric guitars and
drums. Th e shif t i n hi s approac h mad e immediat e sens e to her . And
this understanding wa s the basis of her specific contribution t o Halley' s
transformation: becaus e she subjectively responded to his new identity ,
she coul d communicat e genuin e enthusias m abou t it . The excitemen t
derived fro m her subjectiv e response to thi s musical change combine d
with a pleasure she found in her own work. Halley' s shif t wa s a good
hook. I n Austin, where the combination of west Texas country and east
Texas blues maps out s o much of the musical territory, this bit of infor -
mation could b e enough to send real sparks along the buzz network.
Trust an d persona l relationship s hol d th e alternativ e networ k to -
gether, an d these are based on values believed to conflict with th e cor -
porate structure . Jo Rae was adamant about this aspect of her job.
D I S S O N A N T I D E N T I T I E S / 2.2. 6
Right now , I have to work with band s I like. It is a must. I don't think I could
work for a [major] record company, because then I would hav e to work with a
lot of crap that I don't like. I don't wanna get involved with any of those guys :
Giant, Chrysalis . Cuz they're all , they're all , I mean, Rough Trad e is probably
the bes t one . It' s al l so stupid though . Th e setu p is really stupid . I ge t s o ag-
gravated with the people who run record companies. I think they're idiots and
I think they'r e evil . I don't know, the record companies all look lik e this 1984
thing. I t al l looks lik e tha t t o m e now. I hat e to b e so negative. Bu t it' s no t
enough t o discourag e me completely becaus e I stil l believe. I believ e in wha t
I'm doing and the people that I work for. 53
In the fal l of 1990, Jo Rac DiMenno maintained that so long as she can
remain independen t sh e will b e abl e to promot e band s sh e genuinely
likes. Only under these conditions could she retain her integrit y while
continuing to stimulate the buzz. Her integrity is the key to her success;
her connections have to b e able to share her enthusiasm, to believe her
when she calls them on the phone, excited about a new song by an un-
known singer. "Yes, I do still love it or I wouldn't be doing it," sh e said.
"It's weird , I really like doing it, a lot. I enjoy th e publicity part. Cuz I
like to talk on the phone, so it's lik e the perfect job for me. And I like to
talk to people."
While Jo Rae found something stupid in the setup of record compa-
nies and wanted to avoi d that taint, Brent Grulke, former musi c editor
for th e Austin Chronicle, sa w his own rol e a s more complicit with that
structure. "In orde r to make money, particularly out of rock'n'roll, you
have to b e willing to wor k in a way that allow s you to mak e money, I
guess. You have to work with the system to a certain extent." 54 Echoing
an argument from Simo n Frith's Sound Effects, Bren t went on ,
The musi c wouldn't exis t in any of the forms we know it, if it were not fo r th e
industry. I think rock'n'roll, you have to view it as a, as, as, so wrapped up and
tied to capitalism that you can't separate the two. The story of rock'n'roll an d of
rock'n'roll success is the story—and the failures—is the story of capitalism. And
so, you make records. And you sell records. It's a product. You turn music into
a commodity . An d yo u tur n yoursel f into a commodity. And th e secon d yo u
get onstage, yo u want to get paid for being onstage and the second you decide
that yo u want t o mak e a record you'r e tie d int o that process . To some extent .
To the exten t tha t you get tie d in, and to th e exten t that integrit y comes int o
play in that, it' s a daily battle. The decisions that you make right here and now.
And yo u mak e some ba d ones, I think, you know. And you make some good
ones. You try to think that over all, I think that, by and large, people that do the
business end still, I think that th e vast majority of them have a genuine love of
music. But I think that that gets sidetracked a lot of the time.
While Bren t wa s willing t o wor k i n a way that allowe d hi m t o mak e
some money from rock'n'roll, he still wanted to make "good decisions"
so that his genuine love of music would not b e sidetracked. Good de-
cisions ar c conceive d individualistically ; the y aris e whe n th e availabl e
The Commodification of Identity I -LX-J

choices involv e matters of personal integrity. For instance, the persona l
integrity of a rock writer is directly related to her or his perceived stance
of independenc e within th e recordin g industry . However, ever y roc k
writer is dependent eithe r directly or indirectly upon the largesse of the
recording industry . During a meeting of the music editorial staff at th e
Chronicle's offices i n September 1990, Brent told his writers that,
Record companie s do not sen d us ten copies of a record becaus e they think we
are goin g to assig n i t t o te n differen t writer s and prin t te n differen t reviews .
They expect us to supplement our minuscule salaries by selling these. You've got
to learn the way the business operates.55
In othe r words , a certain amoun t o f mutua l interes t an d unspecified

cooperation between th e Chronicle and recording companie s i s normal
and no t especiall y remarkable. However, a writer's persona l integrit y
is believed t o b e distinct fro m th e integrit y of the industria l structure
within whic h sh e or h e mus t work . A writer's integrit y come s t o b e
defined a s a space of individual , autonomous musica l taste marked ou t
from th e dominan t interest s of the recordin g companies, indicate d b y
an idiosyncrati c passio n fo r certai n acts and signifie d b y an individua l
writing style .
Perhaps th e mos t successfu l negotiato r o f th e contradiction s face d
by a music writer i n Austin during th e perio d o f industrializatio n was
Michael Corcoran . Fro m 198 5 through 1988 , Corcoran wrot e a regular
column tha t managed t o be wholly engaging, personal, and thoroughl y
about th e experienc e o f bein g a rock'n'rol l fa n i n Austin , Texas . H e
managed to distinguish betwee n his personal engagement i n his writing
and hi s personal engagemen t i n his fandom. H e create d a public per-
sona, "Corky, " who live d out th e fantasies an d the frustration s o f a fan
whose personal subjective involvement in—whose identification with—
the scen e wa s total. H e the n develope d a writing styl e based upo n a
detachment fro m thi s character, thereby producing a n ironic narration
of Gorky' s experience s o f fandom . The reade r was never quite sur e if
Corky was making fun of Austin music, or if Corcoran was making fun
of Corky, i f Corcoran reall y loved Zeitgeist or the True Believers , or if
that wer e som e quir k of Corky's. Was it Corcoran o r Cork y wh o hel d
Charlie Sexto n personall y responsible for betrayin g Austin musi c one
month and sa w him a s a young victim of the recordin g industr y a few
columns later ?
"Sometimes I jus t physicall y cannot writ e abou t Austi n Music, "
Corcoran wrot e once . "I' d rathe r write abou t Austi n Calligraphers ,
Austin Hairdresser s o r Austi n Speedbumps , anythin g bu t tha t god-
damn Austi n music . Jeez , fewe r word s wer e written abou t th e Civi l
D I S S O N A N T I D E N T I T I E S / 2.2. 8
War."56 Corcora n coul d neve r appear simply sincere, althoug h hi s in -
volvement with the scene demanded a certain sincerity. His writing pre-
sented a postmodern pastich e of the devote d fa n of Austin musi c an d
the professional writer, often in the same column.
One column , publishe d o n Februar y 2.7,1987, included thi s typical
"Corky" passage:
I'm abou t t o embar k o n m y latest entrepreneuria l effort : th e Musician' s Tri -
athalon. This test of endurance will show jus t who is our fittest musician. First ,
participants mus t drin k a case of beer on a n empty stomach . I t will be a brand
of beer that costs less than Budweiser. Then they must pla y an hour-long set in
front o f si x people, an d retur n fo r a n encore whe n on e o f them claps . Finally,
contestants must knock on the bedroom window of a girl they recently blew off,
tell her their "true" feelings, pass out durin g foreplay , wake up before she does,
take her last pack of cigarettes an d leave undetected. The first musician to mak e
100 sandwiches th e next day will be declared the winner.
and it concluded wit h this passage,

I'm no t defendin g drugs . They nearl y ruined me . But it's time that truth cam e
back in vogue. Beware of those who tell you the answer to questions they weren' t
born with. Learn t o differentiate between th e voice of experience and the voice
of advertising. Realize that a scared i5-year-old knows a lot more about abortion
than Nancy Reagan does . Don't just say no because they gave you a button that
says it. You're the onl y one who know s what's insid e you. Suc h a responsibilit y
is often mor e than som e peopl e can handle, and they turn t o the Adolf Hitlers ,
Charles Mansons , Jim Joneses, pimps , organize d religio n an d drug dealers an d
sell awa y their lives . But those o f you who regar d freedo m o f thought and ex-
pression as a sacred right will come to realize that in searching for the thing you
can't name you will find life's greatest gift. 57
Did thi s romantic plea for sincerity and personal responsibility as moral
imperatives com e fro m th e fa n o r th e writer , o r di d i t eve n matter?
Michael Corcora n wa s abl e t o negotiat e th e contradiction s betwee n
being a genuine fan, caught up in immediate personal relationships with
performers an d othe r fan s i n Austin, and bein g a professional writer ,
distanced fro m his subjects by various commercial mediations, throug h
the masquerad e of Corky. His integrity was no longer persona l but in-
stead becam e identified with hi s writing; s o long a s musicians and fan s
spent the week talking about whatever Corky was talking about, he was
doing his job both as writer and as fan—stimulating the noumenal exis-
tence of the scene. His music/gossip columns helped construct the buzz
even as they made fun of the gossip network an d ridiculed the cultura l
practice that wa s now dependent o n writers such as himself to hel p its
participants hear the difference betwee n the voice of advertising and the
voice of experience.
As alternative music businesses in Austin proliferated, the individuals
involved i n them legitimated their work by appealing to thi s threefol d
The Commodification o f Identity I Z2 9

structure o f values. The people with whom the y worked had to be able
to trus t them ; the y had to maintain their persona l integrity. They ha d
to retai n a genuine lov e of music and the ability to verbally communi -
cate their enthusiasm. Finally, they had to contribute to the overarchin g
meaning o f music-making in Austin through the effectiv e performanc e
of their own work, in the creation an d maintenance of the buzz. The ide-
ology of the alternative music network in Austin insisted tha t s o long as
its participants continue d t o bas e their operations o n this legitimatin g
structure of beliefs , th e collective action of all these individuals woul d
result i n the production o f good music. The hypocrisy of the corporate
recording industry (whic h was revealed in the poor aesthetic quality of
the recording s i t released) would be avoided even as the focus of music-
making i n Austi n change d fro m liv e performance s in nightclub s an d
honky-tonks t o the industrial production o f recorded commodities .
South by Southwest
The triumvirat e o f values that underlie s th e industria l structur e o f
music-making in Austin—the importance of trust and individual integ -
rity, the importance o f each person contributing to the ongoing mean-
ing of this music through he r or his work, and, above all, the insistence
upon th e importanc e o f one's own genuin e lov e for music , expresse d
through one' s taste—i s no w celebrate d annuall y in the sprin g festiva l
called th e Sout h b y Southwes t Musi c an d Medi a Conference . Ever y
year sinc e 1987 , SXS W has constructe d a festival settin g where thos e
who hav e risen i n the alternativ e music network can reaffirm th e values
that initiall y inspired the m and , throug h focusin g thei r attentio n o n
unsigned bands playing in crowded nightclubs, celebrate the network's
origin in punk an d postpun k rock'n'rol l scenes . Through it all , SXSW
revels in the pleasure s of the buzz, as hundreds of managers, publicists,
promoters, bookers, fans , an d musicians spend their days drinking an d
gossiping i n th e enclose d spac e of a hotel lobby , describing , sharing ,
and comparing thei r identifications , ecstatically announcing thei r tastes
and pleasure s i n th e evaluatio n o f eac h night' s bands . Crossin g th e
boundaries betwee n th e roles of fan and of business person, participants
in South by Southwest reinforc e the industria l structure tha t mediate s
this distinction. 58
South b y Southwes t wa s firs t conceive d o f a s a branc h o f Ne w
York's New Music Seminar. The New Music Seminar was an outgrowth
of Mar k Josephson' s Rockpoo l organization , anothe r attemp t t o co -
ordinate th e activitie s o f th e man y new postpunk independen t musi c
D I S S O N A N T I D E N T I T I E S / 2.3 0
entrepreneurs. Th e first, NMS, a single "day-long agend a of panel dis-
cussions" designed to inform and instruct these beginning music profes-
sionals, took place on July 14, i98o.59 Located in New York, NMS bene-
fited fro m th e concentration o f corporate a s well as alternative recor d
company an d radio personne l i n the area . It quickl y grew more exten-
sive and sophisticated . B y 1990, the Ne w Music Seminar had become ,
in the words of Rolan d Swenson , "continuing educatio n fo r people i n
the music industry." 60 Drawing thousands o f registrants, NMS becam e
an important foru m integrating the mainstream recording industry and
the alternative network.
In 1986, the Austin Chamber of Commerce bega n to court th e New
Music Seminar. With the encouragement of David Lord and Lee Cooke,
the Chambe r coordinate d a package presentation o f Austin musicians
and Austin musi c business professionals for NMS. They sponsore d a n
"Austin booth " at the conference where national record industry figures
could find a compilation tap e of Austin musicians, copies of the Austin
Chronicle, and informatio n abou t recordin g services , nightclubs, man -
agement firms, and other professional services available in the southwes t
capital. They als o flew Joel Weber to Austi n t o discus s setting up a re-
gional versio n o f th e Ne w Musi c Seminar to b e hel d i n Austi n tha t
would bot h deal with regional issues and return to the information-for -
industry-beginners approach of the earl y NMS meetings . Planning for
the Southwester n Musi c Seminar advanced to the stage where the first
meeting, to b e held i n the sprin g o f 1987, became part of the package
promoted at the Austin booth during the summer of 1986.61
That October , Weber an d Josephso n decide d tha t the y woul d no t
be able to coordinate thi s additional event. Immediately, Roland Swen -
son an d Louis Meyer s convinced Loui s Blac k and Nick Barbara o f th e
Chronicle that the initia l groundwork fo r such a meeting ha d bee n laid
and that, if they carried through on the already existing plans, the semi-
nar woul d b e a success. The Chambe r agree d t o continu e thei r sup -
port for the projec t and, throug h th e Austin Conventio n an d Visitor s
Bureau, contributed valuabl e advertising dollars. The first promotional
material was mailed out i n November, and, by January, it was clear that
the conference would take place.
The first South b y Southwest Music and Media Conference was held
on Marc h 14,1987. Like the first New Music Seminar, it consisted o f a
day-long series of panels discussing the problems of those first entering
music-related businesses. Approximately seven hundred registrant s par-
ticipated, includin g representative s from eigh t majo r labels . But ther e
was a significant distinctio n between Austin's meeting and it s model i n
The Corn-modification of Identity I 2.3 1

New York ; this wa s the proud emphasi s the regiona l conferenc e gave
to fou r night s o f performances by area bands . The conferenc e was set
up s o a s to co-occu r wit h th e annua l Chronicle Musi c Awards night,
and two-thirds o f the 150 bands performing in the nightclubs over that
weekend were local. "The rea l success of SXSW was in the musical out-
put," Cork y insisted in his first column after the initial conference. "On
stages all over town we repeatedly kicked New York's ass." Subtitling his
column "SXSW: Th e Fina l Word," Cork y spread the buz z about Two
Nice Girls , the Wagoneers, an d other loca l bands, bragging abou t th e
positive receptio n nationa l recordin g industr y figures had given to th e
town's musicians. By emphasizing the value of local music performed in
the clubs, Sout h By Southwest pai d tribute to the original honky-tonk
setting of the Austin music scene eve n as it trained local entrepreneur s
how to operate within the new industrial structure.62
This focus on unsigne d musician s and new recruits for musi c busi-
nesses has continued t o distinguis h SXS W from th e New Music Semi-
nar. As SXS W has grown fro m seve n hundred registrant s meeting fo r
one day in 1987, to two thousand registrants meeting for three days and
four nights i n 1990, the specifi c value of Austin's meeting has remained
its "intimacy " an d it s "grass-roots orientation. " Accordin g t o Rolan d
Swenson, "We've always tried to focus our conference at the people who
were just coming int o the industry." 63 Such an orientation concentrate s
attention o n th e lin e betwee n amateu r an d professional , between fa n
and industry worker, between unsigned local performer and contracte d
entertainer—between thos e who ar e and those who ar e not makin g a
living in the music business. South by Southwest has become "a premier
regional musi c showcase," bringing recordin g industr y personnel int o
contact wit h aspiring musicians living and playing in the middle of the
country.64
Within th e confine s o f this four-day period , i n the relativel y out-of-
the-way cit y o f Austin , nationa l recordin g industr y employee s spen d
their night s actin g like fans again , racing from clu b to club , anxiously
struggling no t t o mis s the bes t bands , urge d on b y the excitemen t o f
hundreds of fellow celebrants als o engagin g in this ritualisti c reenact -
ment o f thei r adolescence . The interaction s a t SXS W appea r almos t
disturbingly intimat e to those individuals whose dealings with their co-
workers are so often mediated by long-distance telephone calls and fax
machines, market considerations and profit calculations—the desperate
instrumentality of the cultura l marketplace. At SXSW, they can be fan s
together again , mutuall y discovering ne w band s an d participatin g in
face-to-face discussion s about their meaning.
During th e 199 0 conference, the panels wer e organized bot h alon g
industry categories , like "The A& R Department," "Management, " an d
"Indie Labels, " an d aroun d specifi c issues , lik e "Whithe r Rock " an d
"Controversy."65 The A&R panel was well attended. I t alway s is. A&R
representatives are the talen t scout s for the recordin g industry . N o re -
cording contract i s signed without the approval of the company's A& R
department. Accordin g t o Roland Swcnson ,
A lo t o f people—especiall y musicians—they'v e neve r see n a n A& R person .
They didn't know, the y had heard about them , the y knew they were suppose d
to b e playin g in front of them, bu t the y had never seen one or talke d to one .
They didn' t know what the y looked like . The main thing i s that we get twelve
of them in one room an d put them on stage so that everyone can look at them.66
During the 1990 A&R panel, a long line formed in front of the audience
microphone, a line made up of frustrated musicians , who wanted to d o
more than look at these representatives. They wanted to know why their
acts were not being offered contracts . These musicians wanted a specific,
detailed explanatio n of what "the typica l A&R guy is looking for. " N o
such answe r wa s given. Instead , representative s fro m Columbia , Gef -
fen, A&M, MCA, an d other majo r companies insisted that they depend
wholly o n thei r ear s and rel y on thei r tastes . The persona l integrity o f
A&R representative s require s that the y respon d solel y to thei r "gut";
they have to "ge t off " t o the music; they have to hear a hit, a "uniqu e
sound," something "undescribable. " And, the panel insisted, musicians
had better find a good manager.67
The managemen t panel , chaired b y Carlyne Majer, describe d thei r
role a s the ke y liaison between art an d business, a necessary link in th e
production o f that "fiv e minute s of pleasure" that i s a "hit song. " Ac-
cording to the panel members, the manager has to be trusted no t onl y
by the artists but also by the record company. The worst part of their job
is when "th e trus t an d th e friendshi p drift away. " Once tha t happens ,
then th e goal s o f the musician , th e manager , an d the recordin g com -
pany are no longer mutual , no longer a product o f social consensus, bu t
instead ar e positions take n in negotiations betwee n parties with differ -
ent interests. Managers hate that. Interestingly, no questions were taken
from th e audience during this panel.
Instead o f describin g a particular aesthetic quality, speakers during
the "Indi e Labels " pane l contende d tha t the y loo k fo r a "work ethic "
in bands. Musicians have to b e "willing t o work their butt s off , maybe
put ou t thei r own records, organize their own tour, and create a buzz. "
While indie label s "offer a full rang e of market services," bands should
not "assum e that everything will be taken care of." Nevertheless, bands
The Commodification o f Identity I 2.3 3

will find a significant differenc e with independent labels. These reps in-
sisted that thei r companies are staffed b y fans who seriousl y care about
the musi c the y releas e and th e musician s they work with . Thi s asser-
tion appears to mirro r the reliance of major labe l A&R representatives
on thei r "gut. " But th e differenc e turn s o n th e siz e of th e company .
In major labels, the A&R department might operate at cross-purposes
to th e marketin g department. I n small , independent companies , som e
part of the identit y of each employee is affirmed b y the commercial suc-
cess of its recordings. When an independent company works one of its
records into a hit, this represents an apparently objective, market-driven
legitimation o f the tastes of each person working there.
Every employee from ever y branch of the recording industry attend-
ing SXSW'9 O claimed a commitment t o th e promulgatio n o f "goo d
music." The refrai n constantl y echoed i n the panels was that "there i s a
tremendous amount of crap out there" and only through the persona l
efforts o f eac h individual involved can th e alternativ e music networ k
ensure the production an d promotion o f good music . Good music was
defined b y its abilit y to produc e "five minute s of pleasure" for th e lis-
tener. Ever y individual working i n the recordin g industr y has learned
the value of reassuring every musician that she or he is capable of pro -
ducing "goo d music. " Th e assumptio n share d b y all is that everyon e
involved i n thi s overarchin g industria l structur e i s intereste d i n dis -
tributing as much good music as possible to as many people as possible.
Good music reaches people through sellin g records. That is success. An
individual works her or his way up the recording industry hierarchy to
the exten t tha t her or his taste is predictive of such success. Thus, good
music—that musi c which produce s pleasur e in thes e professiona l lis-
teners—becomes that music which can be sold to the largest number of
people.
In additio n t o frustrate d musicians , hundreds o f ambitiou s musi c
business initiate s attende d th e dail y panel discussions, gathering thes e
small tidbits o f utilitarian information about th e operation s o f the re-
cording industry . Aspirin g entrepreneur s and musician s strolled bac k
and fort h betwee n th e pane l rooms an d the lobby, thei r eye s glowing
and thei r dream s stoke d b y the presenc e of so many who ha d already
accomplished what they one day hoped t o achieve.
The resultin g atmospher e i n the hote l lobb y approximate d tha t i n
the club s at night. Th e anxiet y of incomplet e identitie s swirle d abou t
the intoxicate d celebrant s of an absent past. Rumors of recording deal s
spread excitedly over slowl y sippe d margaritas . Participant s displaye d
their blac k leather costumes of alienatio n and (in)difFerence . Onl y th e
sunlight pourin g throug h th e atrium , an d the abilit y actually to hea r
the circulatin g conversations , gav e evidenc e that thi s conferenc e was
not a site of perpetual liminality , but only its postmodern simulacrum .
Here i n th e lobby—no t i n th e pane l room s no r outsid e th e hotel —
managers an d agent s presse d flyers and copies of demo tape s on thos e
whose nametag s reminde d the m of someone. Writers from cosponsor -
ing alternativ e weeklies hovere d abou t th e edge s o f grouped convers -
ants, sniffin g out the gossi p tha t woul d lea d thei r storie s bac k home .
Unsigned musicians, overcome with anxiety, drank too much and passed
out on the couch by the lobby entrance. And record company executives
smiled while they fended off the advance s of those they did not already
know an d made nervou s promises to atten d ever y musician's showcas e
that night .
In it s annual meetings, Sout h b y Southwest demonstrate s the com -
plete modernizatio n o f music-making in Austin, Texas. The musi c fes-
tival allows recording compan y executives to ac t out their remembere d
fantasies of fandom, while the panels and the activities in the hotel lobby
work t o disciplin e musician s into th e expectations and assumptions o f
the nationa l industry . Throughout th e weekend, these multiple dialec-
tics o f desir e an d fantas y ar e stimulate d an d manage d b y th e leader s
of Austin's ow n burgeonin g musi c industry, who, i n th e ver y perfor-
mance o f this function , reinforc e and construct thei r ow n importanc e
and success as an industry.
When I was not attendin g panel s during SXSW'9o , I was standing
along the railin g o f the balcon y overlooking th e lobby . From ther e I
watched an d overheard the ceaseless weaving of the material from which
the meanin g o f musi c i n Austi n wa s being fashioned . Friends, long -
time Austin scenesters who had perfected thei r style in the nightclubs,
expertly worked th e crowd below , shaking hands and exchanging busi-
ness cards. An old frien d I knew fro m Lo s Angeles, now a n A&R vic e
president fo r Rhino Records, tol d me how much he loved the Reivers .
Members o f the Wishniaks, an alternative pop ban d from Philadelphia ,
stopped by to promote their show. Large men with dangerous haircut s
stood t o m y right , speakin g onl y German . Behin d me , deejay s fro m
KTSB, the cable radio station run by students at the University of Texas,
excitedly taped "station ids" by alternative stars. By Saturday afternoon ,
the buzz in the lobby had spun itself up through the always green leaves
of the indoo r trees , pas t th e balcon y where I stood, to fill the centra l
atrium with the whirring echoes of rock'n'roll's multivalent desires.
Kathy McTee an d Luk e Torn rod e up th e escalato r fro m th e lobb y
and stoo d nex t to me . Kath y slippe d three Rollin g Rocks ou t o f he r

extra large purse, opened on e for herself and handed the other two t o
Luke and me. We leaned over the railing, drinking cheaper bottles of the
same beer they were selling downstairs, and marveled at all the activity.
"Last year," Luke said, "Robert Christgau gave the keynote speech. He
told all these bands that none of them were going to make it. Nobody is
doing that this year." 68 "Nah," Kathy said, "this year, they're all getting
tips on how to succeed in the music business or else die trying." "But,"
Luke interjected, "that's what makes the music so great at night. Eac h
of these bands thinks that this is their best opportunity to get a deal, to
make it, and so they knock themselves out onstage, playing better tha n
they have ever played in their lives. That's what makes South b y South-
west so great. All these bands playing their hearts out. And we get to go
to the clubs and listen to them play out their dreams."
The thre e o f u s ha d arrange d to mee t tha t afternoo n i n orde r t o
attend th e conference' s las t panel, entitled "Controvers y i n the Musi c
Industry." Simo n Frit h was to b e the chai r and , s o far as Kathy and I
were concerned , h e was the bigges t sta r of the conference . The roo m
was beginning to fill up, so we found chairs near the back and sat down.
After only a few minutes it became apparent that there would be no real
controversy here. Everyone on the panel agreed that stickering was bad,
the bes t respons e to offensiv e speec h was more speech, an d the mem -
bers of 2 . Live Crew were basically stupid but n o sherif f shoul d arres t
them. Comple x question s abou t representatio n in music or the politi-
cal effects o f the industrial structure were not raised. Controversy could
be managed an d mediated insofar a s everyone worked together towar d
reproducing an d expanding opportunities i n the industrial production
of music. Vital to thi s structural reproduction wer e the values of "fre e
speech" and "free markets." The final statement from the floor was made
by Ty Gavin, an original member of the Raul's scene, whose band, th e
Next, had excited and inspired many of those now coordinating Austin's
music industry. Gavin's jet black hair hung down past his shoulders and
he cocked one hip as he said, "All this talk has made me think about three
words. One is art, one is entertainment, and I, I, I forget the third. . . ."
The panel waited patiently while Gavin struggled to recall what he had
wanted to say. Finally, he came up with it, "Oh, yeah , now I remember.
It's responsibility , that's it. "
Gavin's final word, "responsibility, " successfull y collapse d a n entire
set of social relationships among the individuals inside as well as outside
the room—across the river and the freeway, into South Austin and East
Austin, or eve n beyond th e cit y limits—into a personal and economic
interdependence with the current structure of music-making in Austin.
In the context of South b y Southwest's pane l on controversy, all positive
values were defined in terms of the current conditions o f music-making.
The industrializatio n o f music-makin g in Austi n ha s successfull y cre -
ated a decentered structur e tha t facilitate s the economi c exchang e of a
variety of goods and services. Within this structure, three individualis t
values—personal integrity, the importance of personal taste, and a per-
sonal contributio n t o th e meanin g o f Austin music—hav e constitute d
an ethic of responsibility that i s enacted through the mutual reproduc -
tion of this industrial structure. That is, all of the individuals involved in
the structure , throug h their individua l interactions, reproduc e a t each
moment the structure itself . The structure, though we can isolate it and
talk abou t it , doe s no t exis t apar t fro m thes e individua l interactions ,
even a s the individua l actions ar e themselves motivated b y desires an d
values created by the structure .
Thus, performance i n the club s actually has become a process of re-
search an d development intende d to create improved recordings. A tre-
mendous increas e i n the numbe r of managers, publicists , writers, an d
agents ha s becom e necessar y in orde r t o reinforc e an d reproduc e th e
signifying dynamic s o f a scene on a scale much large r than Austi n ha s
ever experience d before . An d durin g th e sof t sprin g night s o f Sout h
by Southwest , the result s of all the wor k of Austin's musi c industry is
on display ; al l the club s in town ar e indeed filled with "goo d music. "
Throughout this annual festival, hundreds of musicians play for twent y
minutes each to packe d crowd s ful l o f individuals eager to participate ,
even i f onl y fo r a moment, i n th e art , entertainment , an d internall y
focused responsibilit y o f the Austin music scene.
No on e fro m th e pane l o r th e audienc e offere d an y respons e t o
Gavin's summatio n o f controversy , Sout h b y Southwest, an d Austi n
music. S o Frit h thanke d th e musicia n an d dismisse d th e conference' s
final panel. Kathy, Luke, and I headed for the clubs. 69

C H A P T E R N I N E
The Continuing Importance of

Musicalized Experience
One Friday morning in September 1990, at about 10: oo A.M., I got o n

the North Lamar bus, heading into downtown. There were a few seats
scattered throughou t th e bus , but , followin g habit, I heade d fo r th e
back. Not unti l after I sat down did I notice a white man about my age
with lon g hair sitting a couple of rows up. A pad of staff pape r lay on
his lap, and he was busy scribbling scales and drawing chord structures
across its lines. From the sea t in back of him , a black man leaned over
and asked what he was doing. They bega n to talk , and I started trying
to eavesdrop on the conversation.
"This is what I do on the bu s everyday. I ride the bu s an hour an d
a half everyday, and I can't hardly work out this stuff at work, so that's
what I do on the bus."
"So what is that, is that jazz or what?"
"Well, actually , I first heard it on a Led Zeppelin record, but yeah, a
lot o f jazz guys will use this. It's a melodic minor scale. You know Le d
Zeppelin?"
"No, man , but I do play. And I'm always strugglin' to get better, you
know. Are you a teacher?"
"I've taugh t guita r fo r th e las t nineteen years, ever sinc e I wa s fif-
teen. I'm the music director at the Austin Guitar School now. You know,
down a t the Opry House? I generally have students all day long, or else
I'm workin g on the books o r something, so I just don't have the tim e
to do the studying I need to do to keep improving my own skills."
"So like, i f I wanted t o like , get bette r you know, lik e to wor k o n
my reading and stuff, like , do you know any books that would hel p me
with that?"
By this point, I was not the only rider listening to this conversation;
the entir e bac k of th e bu s was paying attention. A Chican o ma n was
leaning over from acros s the aisle. The older African-American ma n sit-
ting nex t t o m e took hi s cap of f an d tilte d hi s head i n orde r t o hea r
better. I shifted over i n my seat so that I could tak e notes an d listen at
the sam e time . Th e guita r teache r noticed tha t h e had a n audience by
this point, and he began t o speak louder.
"You see, this is the only way I can ever learn anything myself. When
you hear something tha t you like, try to play it and then write it down."
He looke d u p t o mak e sur e we al l got thi s point . Head s nodde d all
around. "An d a s soon as you lear n something yo u don't reall y under-
stand, you need to write a song with it . Don't learn anything else, just
play this one thing and play around with it for a couple of weeks. Write a
song that forces you to use the new scale. The trick is to only play notes
that ar e in the key . So with thi s progressio n tha t I'v e go t here , wher e
the A minor resolve s out of this E major, you throw i n your G sharp on
the way up this scale. See how it works? Sometimes it takes me weeks to
learn a new scale , and I have to reall y force my fingers to mov e i n new
ways. And then after I get this scale down in A minor, I change keys and
do i t all again until I can play it in any key I want. And that's ho w yo u
learn it, by applying it. Just reading books doesn't help. You gotta work
at it. "
The ma n sittin g nex t to m e pointed a t the corne r of an instructio n
book in the teacher's lap . "That's a pretty good book, though. "
"Yeah, I use the Mel Bay books with a lot of my students. But it's n o
substitute fo r practicing." Again, everyone nodded .
"How muc h you charge, man?" asked the first questioner.
"Usually abou t $2. 0 fo r a half-hour lesson. Bu t I' m no t takin g an y
new students righ t now . I f you come on dow n t o the school , though ,
we hav e a lot o f othe r teacher s who ar e reall y good." With this , Ted
Hall handed ou t his business card to the five of us who had been listen-
ing in the bac k of the bus . We all looked a t each other an d smiled, each
of us clutchin g a business car d and imaginin g ourselves masterin g th e
melodic minor scale in all the keys of the universe. 1
We were al l male, and , sinc e we were all riding th e bus , non e o f u s
was rich, but stil l we embodied mor e differenc e tha n usuall y interacts
on th e buse s o f Austin. W e ranged i n ag e from th e lat e teens o r early
twenties u p t o abou t fifty. Besides Ted Hall and myself, there was one
younger whit e man , tw o blacks , and one brown. We were al l sharing a
conversation abou t music and learning and the importance of practice.
Sometimes i t seems as if everyone plays guitar in Austin.
But no t everyon e i s part o f th e scene . I n al l reality, ther e ar e many
The Importance ofMusicalized Experience I 2.3 9

music scenes in Austin. There are a group of musicians who play mostly
in th e women' s bars , occasionall y crossing ove r an d playin g Libert y
Lunch or the Cactus Cafe. The blues scene has been mostly confined to
Antone's. With the death of Stevie Ray Vaughan, the crossover potentia l
of the blues , its ability to attrac t mainstream listeners, has been greatly
diminished. There is music on th e east side an d sout h o f the river , as
there ha s alway s been. Bu t east-sid e rapper s an d south-sid e Tex-Me x
musicians rarely venture over into the west-side performance sites, being
hired onl y fo r specia l occasions lik e South b y Southwest o r Aquafest.
Acoustic musician s play the fol k clubs , mostly th e Cactu s Caf e i n th e
student union o n campus or Gruene Hall outside o f town. What coul d
be called rock'n'roll itself has split into heavy metal, alternative music,
and a more traditional rhythm and blues and rockabilly-centered style.
The marketin g strategies o f the recording industr y have permeated
the organizatio n o f liv e musi c performanc e in Austin . I n effect , th e
Austin music scene now consists of these more specialized genres, eac h
marked off from th e others by marketing demographics that follow the
outlines of race, class, gender, an d age—each with its own number one
and its own steady sellers. This splitting of the Austin music scene is not
a random resul t of postmodern fragmentation . These ar e well planne d
subdivisions, designe d for maximum visibility and market performance.
Each of these smaller insider scenes gains its glamor from th e faint -
est blus h o f possibilit y of fam e o r riches—th e treasure s dispensed b y
the dominan t recordin g industry , seemingly at random, t o a very few
of those who play . Thus i t was Stevie Ray Vaughan and stil l is Jimmie
Vaughan o r th e Thunderbird s who giv e lustre to Antone's . Tw o Nice
Girls bring excitement t o Chances . Dangerou s Toys inspires the aspir-
ing metal gods who pla y at the Bac k Room. Darde n Smit h and Nanci
Griffith remin d thos e acousti c guitarists sitting a t tables in the Cactu s
that th e lin e dividin g fol k an d countr y i s policed b y record compan y
executives i n Nashville. Eac h musicia n who gain s the attentio n o f th e
industry raises the glamor quotient for her or his market-enforced genre,
drawing mor e attention an d more money, then, t o the other player s in
their scene. This is what success in the music business means.
When people—musicians , journalists , sound technicians , bookin g
agents, fans—no w spea k of the scene, they mean the activit y surround-
ing thos e successfu l musician s who hav e attracted suc h attention , o r
who ar e believed t o b e on th e verg e of doing so , and ar e in the pro-
cess of shifting the marketing mainstream of youth-oriented music. The
scene now only happens some nights at the Cannibal Club and the Hole
in the Wall and the Continental Club and Liberty Lunch. These are the
D I S S O N A N T I D E N T I T I E S / Z 4O
nights when th e insider figures come out and the buzz attracts an audi-
ence large r tha n thei r alread y committed fans , whe n th e scene—wit h
its transformativ e exchang e of sign s an d sweat—i s stimulate d b y th e
efforts o f industr y personnel. A s the eighties edge d int o the nineties ,
the scene in Austin began to require the promise of making it—the per-
formed possibilit y of moving beyon d one's class position into a sphere
of apparent freedom—in orde r to attract the yearning desires of an ado-
lescent audience. But this reconfigured scene is no less real than any that
came before it. The scene remains an historical construct that shifts an d
changes i n response to the consciou s and unconscious concern s of th e
individuals wh o creat e i t b y their presence , thei r actions, thei r tastes ,
beliefs, and desires, changing in turn the dominant musical styles.
Popular musica l practice i n Austin , Texas, gre w ou t o f a residua l
honky-tonk culture , where the contradiction s o f modern lif e coul d b e
displayed in a heightened sexualize d fashion and a romantic antimodern
critique could b e mutually performed by musicians, dancers, listeners,
and drinkers. This honky-ton k culture, in turn, was a commodificd de -
velopment o f th e carniva l tradition. The carniva l was a regular festiva l
of release, tied to th e rhythms of the seasons and seasonal work, where
hierarchies of everyday life an d the values upheld i n the dominan t ide -
ology could b e inverted and the daily practices and pleasures of the low
could b e celebrated. I n Texas, the cowboy's agricultura l work provide d
the contex t fo r the carnivalesque practices associated with the towns at
the end of the cattl e drive. In suc h towns, danc e halls provided music ,
drink, an d se x for a price, creating a n enclosed aren a where a carniva-
lesque atmospher e coul d becom e a permanent limina l possibility. The
cowboy could bu y his festival of inversion and could extend his celebra-
tion of release for as long as his money would hold out. Thus the danc e
hall a t th e en d o f th e cattl e trai l was the first site for th e commercial-
ization o f the carnivalesque in the western United States and marks the
beginning o f honky-tonk culture. 2
With th e urbanizatio n o f Texas' s populatio n an d th e concomitan t
modernization o f it s varied cultures an d peoples , th e honky-ton k be -
came th e sit e fo r th e display , critique, and negotiation o f the cultura l
tensions that accompanie d thes e rapid changes. Rather tha n simply in-
verting the dominant hierarchies to celebrate their excluded lower levels,
honky-tonk cultur e activel y critiqued thos e hierarchies : the increasin g
rigidifications of class, the absorption an d submersion of ethnic cultures
within th e socia l mainstream , an d th e strain s inflicte d on traditiona l
family life by urbanization an d modernization. Through the sale of alco-
hol an d th e presentatio n of dance music in a relatively free atmospher e
The Importance of Musicalized Experience I 2,4 1

conducive t o th e transgressio n o f rigi d socia l rules , th e honky-ton k
offered a readily available, commodified version of carnivalcsque release.
As hundreds o f honky-tonks sprang up along the city limits and county
lines acros s Texas—meetin g places and mediatio n site s for urba n an d
rural, ric h an d poor , mal e and femal e (onl y rarely , however , crossin g
racial lines)—the meaning of these differences wa s played out throug h
musical performance . Musicians an d audience s together woul d danc e
and sing and play songs tha t represented their experience of pleasure in
an increasingly complex and regimented world . I n so doing, the y per-
formed togethe r th e possibl e meanings an d identities offere d b y their
contemporary popula r culture.
As the capital of Texas , Austin has long bee n th e meetin g groun d
for th e large state's diverse interests and cultures. As the location of th e
state's largest university, the city has also been the temporary home for
many young peopl e particularl y interested i n the questionin g o f disci-
plinary structures and the construction of their own identities. Students
from the University of Texas first became integrated int o the local tradi-
tions o f honky-tonk music-making at Thrcadgill's bar. A t Thrcadgill's ,
these students incorporated the critical practices of honky-tonk culture
and selectivel y adapted the m t o th e socia l and ideologica l issue s tha t
concerned them . The y turne d th e antimodernis m o f honky-ton k cul-
ture t o thei r ow n nee d t o for m activel y a n identit y specificall y othe r
than that apparentl y create d for them by the newly evident powers of
mass culture. Singing fol k song s learned from record s signified a more
active relation to the possibilities of modern culture than that indicated
by simply dancing to rock'n'roll records. Their selectivity could result in
some striking absurdities, however. Folksinging became the music of the
local civil rights movement even as the leaders of the alread y integrated
folksinging grou p decide d t o dela y effort s t o desegregat e ThreadgilP s
bar. But the central aspect of honky-tonk culture adopted b y these stu-
dents wa s the activ e use of musical practice to represen t the meanin g
of being a young person coming to terms with the dominant culture in
Austin, Texas.3
Throughout the sixties, young members of a growing middle class of
(mostly) white Texan s moved t o it s capital. These young peopl e cam e
from newly urbanized families, with their lives only recently reorganized
around th e rationa l rhythm s of time-work discipline and marketplace
competition. I n the midst of their adolescent searching for the meaning
of bein g youn g Anglo-Texans , i n th e proces s o f constructin g identi -
ties fo r themselve s ou t o f the element s of popular culture available to
them, the y foun d tha t th e traditio n o f honky-ton k culture provided
the condition s an d the method s for an active and pleasurable critiqu e
of these organizin g structures . The "Austin tendenc y to grou p th e way
they do"—to gather togethe r i n nightclubs to listen , dance , an d drink
while their friend s playe d guitars and sang—developed in new ways as
the young peopl e o f Texas adapted element s of honky-tonk cultur e t o
their own purposes. 4
Many members o f this folksinging group became professional musi-
cians. Bu t the loca l meaning o f their professionalis m was not a t all the
image of the glib, smiling entertainer singing for the masses. In the late
sixties and early seventies, turning t o th e life of a professional musician
meant tha t a young perso n wa s willing to foreg o th e competitio n i n
and th e reward s of a demonized wor k world for a life "relatively free o f
hassle." Choosin g to becom e a musician in Austin mean t t o rejec t th e
modernized, highly disciplined workplac e and to insis t o n the validit y
and worth of spontaneously followin g one' s own desire s in a persona l
pursuit o f pleasure. Through their use and transformation of this tradi-
tion, musicians like John Clay, Ed Guinn, and Powell St. John helped t o
construct a n ideology of anticommercialism that insisted that the musi-
cal experience itself—the physical and psychic pleasures of identification
and release that it produced—was of primary importance. I n effect, th e
well-lived lif e wa s simpl y a lif e o f music-making . By becoming musi -
cians, young Texan s coul d "no t hav e to work" ; the y coul d fre e them -
selves from th e disciplin e of capitalist work culture and achieve a more
"natural" or "real" relation to the world aroun d them. 5
The ke y to achievin g thi s mor e rea l relatio n t o thei r cultura l con -
text was emotional sincerity . By insisting on th e sincerit y of their feel -
ings and , therefore , th e validit y of thei r unspeakabl e desires , young ,
almost-professional musician s wer e abl e t o critiqu e th e rigi d struc -
tures o f everyda y life i n thei r conservativ e state. Thus, an aestheti c o f
musical performanc e that prize d recognizabl e sign s o f sincerity devel-
oped a s th e traditio n o f honky-ton k cultur e was progressivel y mod -
ernized. Throughou t th e earl y seventies , modernizin g pressure s o n
music-making in Austin grew more intense, even as the desires of young
musicians t o no t hav e to work i n the modernize d workplac e came in-
creasingly to be expressed in their performance practice. Thus, thi s aes-
thetic develope d a highly elaborated structure . When young musicians
confronted th e commercialize d worl d o f popula r musi c performance
with their desires to not have to work, the resulting contradictions wer e
aesthetically resolved i n a musical style that was emotionally ver y effec-
tive in live performance but remained resistant to the inscriptive process
of recording .
The Importance ofMusicalized Experience I 2.4 3

During th e seventies , members of the Austin Interchangeable Ban d
could pride themselves on their ability to perform while intoxicated any
song in any style with no rehearsal. This ability both increased their own
local market value—enabling them to work with no notice for a variety
of band leaders—and signified thei r dismissal of the importance of the
labor marke t t o musica l performance. Their audience s coul d liste n t o
them backing up Michael Murphey, Tanya Tucker, or Jerry Jeff Walker
and interpret in their loose, mocking performances the rejection of the
commercial role they were filling. Although they were musicians for hire
with skills developed throug h caterin g to mainstream tastes in the more
commercially oriented clubs in town, the Austin Interchangeable Band
transformed th e anticommercia l ideology of Austin's folksingers into a
performance styl e that emphasize d intoxicate d looseness, spontaneity ,
and a tongue-in-cheek attitude toward their own professional status . In
the studio , this performance style and the attitude it represented wer e
typically lost in any efforts to produce coherent and disciplined recorded
music. Only o n rar e occasions, suc h as Walker's Viva Terlingua, coul d
the contradictory meaning s of this version of Austin's musical aesthetic
be recorded .
These musicians, who performed the locall y focused parody "I Jus t
Wanna B e a Cosmi c Cowboy " onl y t o se e that parod y adopte d a s a
theme son g by their audience, had prefigured just such an ironic rever-
sal in their own selective adoption o f elements of honky-tonk culture in
their modernized, commercialize d musical practice. The transformation
of the progressiv e country scene, from anticommercia l presentation o f
the pastoral hymns of a premodern society, to the commercially oriented
performance of aggressive "outlaw" masculinity, represented the return
of what had been repressed within honky-tonk culture itself. Those ele-
ments tha t th e folksinger s had refuse d t o acknowledg e i n honky-ton k
culture—the easy violence, the ugliness of constant drinking , the sullen
refusal t o comprehend th e complexitie s of modern life , th e desire for a
fast buck , th e racism , the sexism—ros e to th e to p a s music-making in
Austin left the liminal performance arena of the honky-tonk and entered
the mainstrea m it had once critiqued. Once the progressive country af-
fective allianc e and the identitie s associate d with it had bee n markete d
beyond th e limina l performance arena of the mid-Austi n honky-tonk ,
the meanings of this identity were cut loose from their moorings. Drift -
ing beyond the control of this original group, the selective refusal of ele-
ments o f the honky-tonk culture could not b e maintained. When radi o
disc jockeys promulgated a meaning o f progressive country limite d t o
the mass-cultur e celebration of Anglo-Texa n roots a s signifie d solel y
by the swee t soun d o f a steel guitar, th e critica l force o f this musically
projected identit y had been eviscerated.
Although some musicians, fans, writers, and even club owners strug-
gled into the late seventies to reinforce the original impetus and mean-
ings o f the progressiv e countr y alliance , the group originall y attracte d
by the initial synthesis was no longer large enough t o support economi -
cally the honky-ton k performanc e of an antimodern, anti-mass-culture
critique of work. During the late sixties, "Everyone was making a living.
We were musicians . No on e ha d a day job; ther e was no nee d for day
jobs." Bu t b y 1977, "Yo u [couldjn' t fin d a band wh o [was ] making i t
in Austin." Within th e span of fifteen years , the bulk of the baby-boo m
bulge had moved through it s college years. The first post-World War II
generation, th e first generation o f Texans forced to come to terms wit h
the state' s urba n an d modern condition , ha d moved throug h an d be-
yond th e stag e of adolescent identit y construction. N o longe r wa s the
undergraduate populatio n a t th e Universit y of Texa s increasin g wit h
every year . Furthermore , eve n th e mor e thoughtfu l an d alienate d o f
the ne w student s tha t wer e matriculating wer e no longe r s o insisten t
on markin g their differenc e fro m mas s culture . They were more com -
fortable workin g withi n it , expressl y using it s terms an d it s methods
to represen t the meaning of their lives. These cultura l changes exacer-
bated economi c pressure s on the structure of music-making in Austin,
further estrangin g th e concern s o f musician s an d clu b owner s fro m
the adolescen t nee d o f thes e youn g peopl e t o creat e thei r identities .
The musica l an d performanc e style signs used b y progressive country
musicians t o signif y sincerit y and anticommcrcialism were interprete d
by these younger student s a s indicators of commercial and ideologica l
dominance. Instead of suggesting a refusal of the constraints of commer-
cial musical practice, the ubiquit y of the Austin Interchangeable Ban d
merely represented contro l of the local musical marketplace. The music
itself could no t b e sincerely performed by the younger musicians , and
the identities it offered coul d not be sincerely incorporated. Progressiv e
country was no longer a way to actively negotiate adolescent identities. 6
But th e us e o f musica l performanc e a s th e signifyin g practic e a t
the cente r o f a process of identit y construction, situate d in the limina l
honky-tonk aren a and critical of the structure s of modern society , sur-
vived as an active tradition beyon d th e collapse of progressive country .
By 1978 , Austin wa s unquestionably "wher e the musi c was" i n Texas,
and youn g Texan s attracte d b y th e physica l and psychi c pleasures o f
musicalized experience continued t o move to the capital despite the fact
that the city's most well-known musical style did not speak to them. The
The Importance o f Musicalized Experience I 14 5

School o f Communication s a t th e Universit y of Texa s drew student s
interested i n the power of electronic media to influence the meaning of
everyday life . A styl e of musi c that ha d bee n develope d i n th e urba n
centers of the United State s and Great Britain—a punk rock that use d
simplified musical forms to explode and exploit the contradictions a t the
heart of the commercialized society of the spectacle—appealed both t o
the younger musician s in Austin who felt isolate d by progressive coun -
try's musical virtuosity and to the media students, who were fascinated
by this spectacle and at the same time wanted to control it, to manipulate
rather than b e manipulated by it.7
Much a s the nationa l tren d o f folksingin g too k o n a specifi c loca l
shape i n Austin , s o di d th e internationa l tren d o f pun k rock . Bot h
of these styles emphasized th e mutualit y of musical production, usin g
simple son g form s tha t require d littl e musica l training an d a perfor -
mance style that blurre d the musician/audience distinction. Both styles
insisted on th e importanc e o f musical practice as a means of differenti -
ating among colleg e students . Bot h were selectively amalgamated wit h
the older honky-tonk tradition in a syncretization that continued to em-
phasize the displa y and critique of modern lif e in an active, intensified,
sexualized fashion. By means of this amalgamation, punk rock in Austin
took o n man y o f th e theme s an d form s o f th e romanti c honky-ton k
critique o f modernity, eve n as it strove to confron t an d contradict th e
expectations of its audience in a storm of negativity.
In Austin , "goo d music " ha d alway s bee n define d through a n aes-
thetic base d in performance, had traditionally been locally focused, and
had dealt with issue s of concern t o young people growin g u p in Texas.
The Huns ' "Gla d He' s Dead " was good musi c i n the sam e way that
"Desperados Waiting for a Train" had been good music ten years before,
and in the same way that "Wild Side of Life" had been good music for a
previous generation. Al l three songs addresse d the problem o f comin g
to term s wit h th e dominan t meaning s (promulgate d b y popular cul-
ture) o f lif e a s a working- o r middle-class, white, (usually ) male Texan,
and the difficulties o f constructing an identity within those boundaries .
The greate r fascinatio n of punk rock with the image s an d processes o f
mass culture—th e appearanc e of character s fro m televisio n program s
in local punk songs, th e audience' s requests for hated "popular" songs ,
the eagernes s with whic h bands like the Huns sough t an y sort o f pub-
licity—indicated th e greate r influenc e o f mass culture in the everyday
struggle t o create adolescent identity .
Outside of Austin, pun k rock was a critique of corporate capitalism
that blende d a musical aestheti c with a n incomplet e political philoso-
phy. Through its radical rejection of the mainstream rock music sold by
the majo r recor d companies , pun k rock magnified an adolescent ange r
that derived from the insight that the world was not as it should b e and
then laid the blame for this discrepancy at the feet of those corporations .
Because of the importanc e o f musical practice in the formation of ado-
lescent identities, th e perceived aesthetic quality of rock'n'roll musi c and
the perceived quality o f the identities projected b y that music becam e
the standar d b y which t o judg e the cultura l politics o f any individual
or institution. The "future of rebellion in this country" was believed t o
be determine d b y the marketplac e performance of "hal f a dozen ne w
good bands."8
Small, independen t recor d companie s led the wa y in th e recordin g
of American punk rock, and these recordings were distributed through
independent channel s that delivere d their product s t o specialt y record
stores catering to the serious rock'n'roll fan . Fans of punk rock believed
these businesses were concerned with the spread of "good music" and ,
therefore, of good politics. As Simon Frith said, a sort of "small is beau-
tiful" ideology develope d that encouraged the entrance of young entre-
preneurs int o a divers e variety of music-relate d businesses. B y taking
over roles in the system of commodity production and distribution, fan s
of punk rock believed that they could guarantee the production and dis-
tribution o f "good music." And good music was experientially defined
simply as that music which projected a set of incomplete identities wit h
which these fans could pleasurabl y identify. 9
When pun k roc k took roo t i n Austin clubs that ha d not previousl y
presented youth-oriente d music , i t invite d th e participatio n o f man y
who ha d fel t exclude d fro m th e entrenche d progressive country musi c
support systems . The opennes s signifie d by the simpl e musical form,
and th e ideolog y o f independenc e from previousl y existing businesses
that wa s associated with thi s form, encouraged thos e who wanted "t o
participate in the whole cultural process." Since the production of music
in Austin was undeniably a commercial affair, th e "whole cultural pro-
cess" include d a wide rang e o f entrepreneuria l opportunities, eac h of
which wa s rapidly filled by individuals who wanted both t o guarante e
the sprea d of "goo d music" an d to "mak e a living i n the musi c busi -
ness."10
In Austin, this do-it-yourself ideology of punk rock blended with th e
populist traditio n o f the small , independent, loca l farmer battlin g th e
impersonal structure s o f nationa l corporations . An d th e critiqu e o f
the modernize d workplac e that ha d long bee n one of the chie f foc i o f
local music-makin g melde d with th e anticorporat c ideolog y of punk.
The Importance o f Musicalized Experience I 2.4 7

The belie f held b y many of Austin's musician s and members o f it s hip
community i n the lat e sixties and early seventies that th e well-lived lif e
was one devoted to the pleasurable expression of one's desires in the ex-
perience o f musical performance resurfaced in a slightly different form .
Rather tha n offerin g th e possibilit y o f not havin g to work , th e com -
mercial condition s o f musical performance offered th e opportunity t o
"make it " i n the musi c business. Although th e goa l was the same—t o
develop a way of livin g an d workin g fre e fro m artificia l barrier s an d
responsive t o th e spontaneou s expression s o f desire—th e pursui t o f
this goa l was now restricted . The practic e of music-making i n Austin
was now see n a s a business. Lik e any other business i n Texas, it could
make yo u ver y rich, very quickly. Only b y becoming ver y ric h withi n
the operations o f various music businesses, and, particularly, within th e
highly profitable national recording industry, could the goal be achieved
of a life relatively free o f hassle. The difFerenc e between boom and bust
was a matter o f luc k and th e marke t valu e of one' s tastes . Therefore,
"There's a lot that ar e doing it, and doing without, t o be able to b e in
the business." 11
The first steps taken by these enthusiastic entrepreneurs entered them
into the already-existin g structures of the honky-tonk economy. Club s
like the Soa p Cree k and the Armadillo, persona l managers like Carlyne
Majer, an d weekl y paper s lik e th e Sun offere d th e model s fo r music -
related businesses . Music fans who wanted to participate in the cultural
process o f constructin g adolescen t identitie s withi n th e contex t o f a
musicalized critiqu e of social structures found that the y could becom e
club managers, band managers, or writers. The first group of music sup-
port personne l associate d wit h pun k rock at Raul's too k on just thes e
roles. Rolan d Swenso n becam e th e manage r o f th e Standin g Waves ;
Louis Meyers began to book Liberty Lunch and the Continental Club ;
Louis Black and Nick Barbaro started the Austin Chronicle.
As musical practice in Austin became industrialized, it no longer fea-
tured a n emotionally powerfu l antimodern critiqu e of work that could
be experience d throug h th e identitie s projecte d i n performance . In -
stead, it incorporated int o its methods an d images the ideolog y o f th e
Texan entrepreneur. As the structure of music-making in Austin shifte d
its bas e fro m th e honky-ton k econom y t o th e complex , fragmented ,
yet interactive musi c industry, a pattern developed i n the interpersona l
relationships of those working i n this new industry. Even as these per-
sonally based business relationships continued to operate by the deepest
values espoused b y musical practice in Austin, sincerit y and th e desir e
for a lif e relativel y fre e o f hassle , the y sociall y enforce d a n entrepre -
D I S S O N A N T I D E N T I T I E S / £4 8
neurial attitud e tha t soo n permeate d al l aspects of participation i n th e
industry. Music-makin g i n Austin ha d becom e th e mean s for a larger
group of people t o make a living. Their sincere concern with spreadin g
good music blended easily with their sincere concern for their own eco-
nomic well-being. Musician s themselves migh t continu e t o sin g song s
that attacke d th e profi t motive , bu t the y wer e forced to adop t a dis-
ciplined attitud e towar d thei r ow n wor k i f they wer e t o b e allowe d
to advanc e through th e industria l system of music-making enforced by
local gatekeepers . The competitiv e practice s and structure s of th e re -
cording industry imposed a specific discipline both on the performances
of the musicians an d on anyone identifying with the wish to "make it. "
It took ten years for the national trend of folksinging to become effec -
tively integrated int o local musical traditions and to create the nationally
famous musica l style of progressiv e country. The integratio n o f pun k
rock into Austin musical culture took five years. The music of the Ne w
Sincerity bands, an amalgamation of punk with country and blues roots,
organized aroun d a traditional aesthetic of sincerity in songwriting an d
performance, ros e to national awareness more quickly, at least partially
because of the promotional effort s of this growing group of music busi-
ness people. The members of this larger group saw their individual self-
interest serve d through th e mutual promotion o f Austin music. Thus,
the industrializatio n o f music-making in Austin developed a s an appar-
ently natural outgrowth o f the welding of punk's do-it-yourself ideology
onto the already-existin g core beliefs of local musical performance, ma-
terially sustaining the practic e of loca l music-making while shifting its
meaning. Th e experienc e an d the aspiration s o f musica l performanc e
turned fro m "playin g music" an d "not havin g to work" t o "makin g i t
easier for other people to like it" and "being in business for yourself and
making a living at it."12
Nevertheless, within thes e more comple x and interactiv e economic
structures o f industrialize d music-making , where live musica l perfor-
mance has become research for the production o f cultural commodities ,
the practic e o f adolescen t identit y constructio n continues . Musician s
still see k to projec t incomplete identities through performin g more—
more tha n the y can sing, mor e tha n they can play, more tha n the y can
know—and th e magica l show i s still evidenced by "the chills"—thos e
moments whe n th e audienc e re-cognizes and re-turn s that identit y i n
their affective gesture s of response.
Because o f it s powe r t o unif y bod y an d min d i n a physical experi-
ence of promise and excess, musical practice acts as a structured process
of subject production. The musicalized experience itself i s produced b y
The Importance of Musicalized Experience I 14 9

the processe s of identification described by psychoanalysis, by means of
those aspect s o f soun d that , movin g a t the edg e o f noise , just escape
codifying structures , an d result in an experience of excess, a promise of
more. Through her or his active longing for completion, the adolescen t
of ever y ag e makes a n intuitive lea p beyond th e informatio n given i n
any musical performance , selecting an d collectin g particula r element s
of rhythm, pitch , harmony, noise, an d linguistically encoded ideology
with th e unconsciou s precisio n o f desire. Through th e necessar y mis-
recognition of a yearning Imaginary, these elements are re-cognized and
re-turned bac k to th e musician s in a mutual performance of collective
identity. I t is just these moments of completion, of transformation, that
render musicalize d experience meaningful. The musi c neve r mean s i n
and o f itself , but onl y as a means for this mutual projection and intro -
jection.
Participants i n an y scen e recognize thi s experienc e a s the basi s o f
musical pleasure. I n Austin, the pleasur e of identification with a musi-
cally projected identity has been most closely associated with performed
sincerity. Sincerity lies at the basi s of the formation of bands, the com-
position of the group' s songs , th e performance of its material, and the
identity it projects. Sincerity, too, i s why these projected identities are so
immediately incorporated into the subjective experiences of the partici-
pants i n the scene . The psychoanalytic processes of adolescent identity
formation an d th e resultin g aesthetic value of sincerity are responsible
for bot h th e radica l potential o f commercial popular musica l practice
and its susceptibility to dominant ideologies .
In Texas , the collectiv e impetu s of any community forme d throug h
musical practice is undermined b y an intense focus o n individua l plea-
sure an d individual gain. Suc h a community ca n only b e understood as
a conglomeratio n o f individuals . Thus, th e industrializatio n of music-
making in Austin was achieved with a minimum of struggle. There were
no position s availabl e from whic h to counter th e economic argument s
of the pro-industry forces. So long as the goal of even the most sincerely
committed music fans an d the musician s themselves remained focused
on the increased distribution o f "good music," there could be no prin-
cipled objectio n to the replacement of the failing honky-tonk economy
by the industrialization o f local music.
The basi s on whic h goo d musi c in Austin wa s traditionally evalu-
ated wa s an aesthetic of performance tha t acknowledge d th e powe r o f
musicalized experience in the production o f adolescent identities. Music
abstracted fro m the conditions o f that experience—tha t is, recorded i n
a studio and sol d t o a record company where it becomes a commodit y
competitively exchanged—is no longer susceptible to such an aesthetic.
The aestheti c simply becomes a precondition fo r the production of the
commodity. The abstractio n of a commodity ou t o f this collectiv e ex-
perience represent s the reificatio n of identifkator y pleasur e divorce d
from the contexts that produce that pleasure. Thus, the physical-psychic
powers o f music encoded o n recordings simply open th e listening sub-
ject t o a n interplay between th e projecte d image sonically encoded o n
the disc and the structuring forces dominant i n her or his everyday life.
These tw o field s intersec t i n th e fetis h o f th e recordin g itself , whic h
stands i n as a symptom o f the competitive fires of capitalism. When the
goal of musicalizcd experience is transformed from th e antimodem cri-
tique of not havin g to work, to the postmodern goa l of making a living
in th e musi c business , th e interpretiv e structure s tha t shap e identit y
formation hav e been dramatically changed.13
Music-making in Austin now focuses on recording s rather than live
performance. Liv e performance is now treate d as one aspec t of a com-
plex industry oriente d t o th e production an d circulation of commodi -
ties i n th e pursui t o f wealth . The identit y formatio n that take s place
in musicalized experience within the remnants of the honky-tonk aren a
therefore tend s toward a greater reproductio n o f this industria l struc-
ture an d it s concomitant ideologies . A t the sam e time, however, ther e
is always an excess produced throug h musicalize d experience. This ex-
cess escapes the encodin g structure s of everyday life an d represents the
possibility for the return of the repressed, those elements of the huma n
overlooked i n the enforcemen t o f industria l organization. I n th e inex-
pressible nature of collective musical pleasure can be found an implicit
promise o f something more , a potential tha t exceed s the competitiv e
struggle fo r individual gain.
Because o f it s traditiona l settin g i n th e honky-ton k aren a an d th e
residual powe r o f tha t antimoder n tradition , music-makin g in Austi n
still contain s a possibilit y fo r th e collectiv e productio n o f resistance .
While th e industria l productio n o f musical commodities continue s t o
rely upo n th e "researc h an d development " tha t occur s i n th e clubs ,
musicalized experience and its potential for radical critique of everyday
life throug h it s creation o f dissonant identitie s wil l stil l b e produced .
The Utopia n desire t o transfor m the industrialize d condition s o f lif e
in postmoder n Americ a wil l continu e t o b e projecte d i n th e perfor -
mance of popular musi c in Austin's nightclubs . An d on the buse s tha t
carry Austin's worker s t o thei r daily battles within thei r own industri -
alized workplaces , musi c an d th e importanc e o f musica l practice wil l
continue t o stimulate conversations, providing mean s to cross the divi-
sions within contemporary society , and possibilities of imaginin g new
performances of identity .
The Importance of Musicalized Experience I 2.51

Notes
Preface
i. Ki m Longacre wa s a singer and guitarist in one of the mor e importan t
Austin band s o f the 19805 , th e Reiver s (originall y Zeitgeist) . Sh e was sixteen
when sh e moved wit h he r famil y fro m Pal o Alto, California , to Austin . Thi s
quote is from the first of several interviews I conducted wit h her, June a,1989.
z. Erni e Gammag e ha d playe d in severa l band s i n Austin throughout th e
19708 and 19805. In the mid-eighties he became involved in the effor t t o create
the "infrastructure" o f a "music industry " i n Austin. At the time I interviewed
him, July 13,1990, he was president of the Austin Music Industry Council .
3. Se e George E. Marcus and Michael M. J. Fisher, Anthropology a s Cultural
Critique: An Experimental Moment i n the Human Sciences (Chicago : Universit y
of Chicago Press , 1986).
4. B y the term "cultural acts," I am expanding John Searle's notion of speech
acts t o encompas s nonverbal , nontextua l performance s and artifacts . See hi s
Speech Acts: An Essay on the Philosophy o f Language (London: Cambridg e Univer-
sity Press, 1969) . The adjectiv e "decentered," of course, empties Searle's speech
actor—in sympathy with Derrida's critiqu e ("Signature, Event, Context," Glyph
i [1977]—but I will fill up this actor with fragments of surrounding intereste d
speakers by the end of this book .
5. Thi s too-brie f discussio n of some of the dilemmas posed b y postmoder n
ethnography wa s prompted b y the following : a talk by Michael Taussig, "O n
the Mimeti c Faculty, " delivered at a conference on "Cultural Studie s No w an d
in the Future," University of Illinois, Urbana, April 5,1990; Stephen A. Tyler,
"Post-Modern Ethnography: Fro m Documen t o f the Occult t o Occult Docu -
ment," in James Clifford and George Marcus, eds., Writing Culture: The Poetics
and Politics of Ethnography (Berkeley : University of California Press , 1986); an d
Clifford Geertz, "Blurred Genres: The Refiguration of Social Thought," inLocal
Knowledge (Ne w York : Basi c Books , 1983) . I tak e th e metapho r o f cultur e as
an interpretable web from Clifford Geertz , "Thick Description : Toward a n In-
terpretive Theor y of Culture, " Th e Interpretation o f Cultures (Ne w York: Basi c
Books, 1973) . The metapho r o f muddling border s comes fro m Juli a Kristeva ,
"Throes of Love: The Field of the Metaphor," Tales of Love, trans. Leon Roudie z
(New York: Columbia Universit y Press, 1987), 268.
6. Joh n A. Lomax, Cowboy Songs and other Frontier Ballads (Ne w York: Stur-
gis and Walton, 1910).
Notes t o Pages ix—xiii I 2.5 3

i. The Imaginary Tourist
i. A reality sandwich at the Hole in the Wall consists of a chicken fried steak
patty covere d wit h slice s of jalapen o peppers , smothered wit h melte d cheese ,
with mayonnaise and lettuce on a hamburger bun. If ordered extra-real, it comes
with extra jalapenos. An unreality comes pepper-free .
z. Hill y Krista l operated a bar i n the Bower y that feature d country, blue -
grass, and blues music (CBGB). In 1975, Tom Verlaine asked Kristal if his band,
Television, coul d play one weeknight for the door. Kristal said yes, and the Ne w
York punk scene had a home.
3. Th e differenc e i n loca l attitudes toward pun k rock fan s ca n b e see n b y
comparing examples of rock journalism before and after the Raul's incident. See
Sally lones, "He y Punk.\" Austin Sun, Decembe r z , 1977 , pp . Z3 , 17; Carlyne
Brady, "Sex Pistols in Austin," Austin Sun, January zo, 1978, p. n; "Rock Clu b
Raid Leads to Six Arrests,"Daily Texan, September zo, 1978, p. i; leff Whitting-
ton, "Pun k Rock : Sur e it's Noisy but i s it Art?" Images, Daily Texan, October z ,
1978, p . Z4 . I wil l examin e these an d othe r article s in mor e detai l i n a late r
chapter.
4. Th e influenc e of bot h Cowbo y an d Richar d Dorset t wa s described fo r
me by Louis Blac k in an interview, September 17,1990.
5. lod y Denberg describes the origins of Waterloo Records in "Austin Meet s
its Waterloo," Austin Chronicle, Novembe r z6 , 1982 , p . 8 . The stor y o f Geof f
Cordner's relations with loca l musicians and his job a t Sound Exchange (the n
Record Exchange ) ca n be found in Lawrence Lee, "Wrestler Records, " Austin
Chronicle, September z6,1986, p. z8.
6. Franklin' s ar t ha s been discussed i n many places. See Jan Reid, Th e Im -
probable Rise o f Redneck Rock (Austin : Heidelber g Publishers, 1974), pp . 47—
65; Archi e Gree n wrot e a numbe r o f article s about poste r ar t i n Austi n fo r
his "Commercial Musi c Graphics" series in the John Edwards Memorial Founda-
tion Quarterly. "Midnight an d Other Cowboys, " n: 39 (Autumn 1975); "Kerry
Awn's Soa p Cree k Saloo n Calendars, " 16:57 (Sprin g 1980); "Michael Adams' s
Honky-Tonk Paintings, " 18:67-6 8 (Fall/Winter 1982.).
7. Jef f Nightbyr d describe d Gentl e Thursdays fo r m e i n a n intervie w o n
September 18,1990 . Steve Chancy described his participation in Arts and Sau-
sages an d contraste d i t with th e preaching s of Sister Sarah in an interview on
March 8,1990.
8. Thi s tale of the origin of Austin can be found in many local histories. See
T. R. Fehrenbach, Lone Star: A History of Texas and the Texans (New York: Collier
Books, 1968 , 1985), pp. Z59—60 ; Anthony Orum , Power, Money an d th e People:
TheMaking o f Modern Austin (Austin: Texas Monthly Press, 1987), pp. i—z . See
also Writers' Program of the Works Project Administration in the State of Texas,
Texas: A Guide t o the Lone Star State (New York: Hasting s Hous e Publishers ,
1940), p. 169.
9. Orum , Power, p. xiii.
10. Writers ' Program o f the WP A, p. 171. Fehrenbach, in his inimitable, en-
lightened, an d understandin g way , attributes the antisecessionis t votes i n th e
counties aroun d Austi n t o th e high percentag e of German farmers; Lone Star,
p. 346.
11. Writers ' Progra m o f th e WPA , pp . 170-71 . Fehrenbach , Lone Star,
p. 602. .
iz. Orum , Power, p. 30.
13. Jame s Winton Bohmfalk , "Th e Austi n Chamber of Commerce: A His -
Notes t o Pages i—j I 25 4

tory of the Organization and its Uses of Propaganda," Masters thesis University
of Texas at Austin, 1968 , p. 19. Drum, Power, p. 15.
14. Orum , Power, pp. 37—5 7 & passim; Bohmfalk, "Austi n Chamber, " pp .
36-38.
15. Bohmfalk , "Austin Chamber," p . 24.
16. Ibid. , p. z6 .
17. Ibid. , p. 27.
18. Se e Anonymous, "Groover' s Paradise, " Time, September 9, 1974 ; Jac k
Hurst, "The Pickin' s Pickin' up in Austin," Chicago Tribune, Wednesday, March
31, 1976 ; Kare n Thorsen , "Ha s Austi n Upstage d Nashville? " Oui (Januar y
1976): 77-78 , 125-26 ; "queer-minded " i s i n Kay e Northcott , "Th e Lif e &
Death o f th e Cosmi c Cowboy, " Mother Jones (Jun e 1981) : 14-21 , 48 . Many
descriptions o f th e cultura l significance o f the musi c scene i n the seventie s i n
Austin dra w on Ja n Reid' s evocatio n of differen t generation s of Texan s danc-
ing togethe r i n the magica l confines o f the Armadillo. He first used th e ter m
"counter-culture concer t hall " in Th e Improbable Rise o f Redneck Rock (Austin :
Heidelberg Publishers, 1974), p. 2.
19. Fo r a discussion of the local origins of the progressive country style see
Hugh Culle n Sparks , "Stylistic Developmen t an d Compositional Processe s o f
Selected Sol o Singer/Songwriter s in Austin, Texas" Ph.D. diss. , University of
Texas at Austin, 1984.
20. Se e David Menconi , "Music, Media , an d the Metropolis : The Cas e of
Austin's Armadillo World Headquarters," Masters thesis, University of Texas at
Austin, 1985, for a loving history of this institution. At the Armadillo's closing
many eulogies appeared across Texas. Two examples are Ed Ward , "An Arma-
dillo, S o Survival-Minded, Succumbs," Austin American Statesman, August 26 ,
1980, p. C5; and Pete Oppel, "The Armadillo : An Old Acquaintance Not t o Be
Forgot," Dallas Morning News, December 31,1980.
21. Thi s story has been told over and over again in journalistic and scholarly
accounts of the Austin music scene. The best version, because the most personal,
is in Reid , Th e Improbable Rise. Other version s can be foun d i n Archie Green,
"Austin's Cosmi c Cowboys, " i n Richar d Bauman an d Roge r Abrahams , eds.,
And Other Neighborly Names: Social Process and Cultural Image in Texas Folklore
(Austin: Universit y of Texas Press, 1981); Bil l Malone, Country Music U.S.A.,
rev. ed . (Austin : University of Texas Press, 1985), pp. 396—98 ; see also North -
cott, "Life & Death"; Thorsen "Ha s Austi n Upstaged Nashville?"; and Hurst ,
"The Pickin's. "
22. Fo r description s o f th e origin s o f th e Oper a Hous e se e Louis Black,
"Tim O'Conno r and the Austin Opera House." Austin Chronicle, May 29,1987,
pp. 22-23 ; J°nn T. Davis, "10 Years of fun an d games, wet stages, dry humor ,
good times, bad times at the Opera House," Austin American-Statesman, June 5,
r987, pp . Bi , 813 . Corett a Taylo r report s th e negotiation s betwee n Austi n
Community Colleg e an d the Oper a Hous e i n "Orchestrating a Move," Austin
American-Statesman, June 14,1990, Neighbor Section, pp. 1,3.
23. R . U. Steinberg and John Slate, "East Austin: A Planned Community?"
Austin Chronicle, December 9,1988, p. 16.
24. Orum , Power, p. 16.
25. Quote d in Steinberg and Slate, "East Austin."
26. Writers ' Program of WPA, pp. 174-75.
27. Cit y plan quoted in Orum, Power, pp. 175—76 .
28. Ibid. , p. 176.
29. Writers' Program o f the WPA, p. 168.
Notes t o Pages 7-12 / 25 5

30. Fo r a detailed description of the development of rural blues in the cotton
fields o f Texa s see William Barlow, Looking Up at Dawn: The Emergence o f Blues
Culture (Philadelphia : Temple Universit y Press, 1989) , pp . 56—78 . Littl e his-
tory has been done on the blues activity in East Austin before the immigratio n
of white blue s musicians from Dallas in the 19605 . Tary Owens ha s produce d
an ethnographi c vide o abou t contemporar y blac k blue s performanc e in Eas t
Austin.
31. Steinber g an d Slate, "East Austin," p. 16.
32.. Kevi n Whitley, interview s with th e author , Marc h 13 , 1990 , an d Sep -
tember 13, 1990.
33. Se e Sparks, "Stylistic Development," pp . 2.7 , 37—39.
34. Enrollmen t figures were obtained from the Office fo r Institutional Stud-
ies at the Universit y of Texas at Austin.
35. Clu b listings from the Austin Sun, May i, 1975, and May 28,1976.
36. Dowel l Myers , et al. , "Quality o f Life : Austi n Trends 1970-1990," Re-
search Repor t b y the Communit y an d Regional Plannin g Program, University
of Texas at Austin, June 1984, p. 34.
37. Ibid. , p. 16.
38. Kell y and Rit a ar e fans I met an d talked to a t a Reivers show, March z ,
1990.1 interviewed Josh Ellinger, a fan of the Reiver s and other Austi n bands,
on March iz, 1990.
39. Ki m Longacre, fro m a n interview with the author, June z, 1989.
40. Joh n Croslin, interview with the author, June i, 1989.
z. Constructing the Musicalized Performance of Texan Identity

i. Joh n A. Lomax, Cowboy Songs and other Frontier Ballads (New York: Stur-
gis an d Walton , 1910) . Pag e number s fo r furthe r citation s wil l b e give n i n
the text.
z. Joh n A . Lomax , Adventures of a Ballad Hunter (Ne w York: Macmillan
Co., 1947) . "The letter s G.T.T. were applied in connection with those who had
'Gone to Texas' to escape justice" (Federal Writers Project of the Works Project
Administration i n the Stat e of Texas, Texas: A Guide to the Lone Star State \ New
York: Hastings Hous e Publishers, 1940], pp. 39—40) .
3. "Introduction " to Hele n Chil d Sargen t an d Georg e Lyma n Kittredge ,
eds., English and Scottish Popular Ballads (Boston : Houg h ton Miffli n Co. , 190 4
and I93z ) pp . xi—xxxi . Pag e number s fo r furthe r citation s wil l b e give n i n
the text.
4. Se e Gene Bluestein, Th e Voice of th e Folk (Amherst : University of Massa-
chusetts Press, 1972, pp. 1-15. Also see Eric Hobsbawm and Terry Ranger, eds.,
The Invention of Tradition (Cambridge : Cambridge University Press, 1983).
5. Joh n A. Lomax Cowboy Songs and Other Frontier Ballads, 3 d ed. (New York:
Macmillan Co. , 1938) , p . xviii ; Bluestein , Voice, especiall y pp. 91-116; Loma x
1910, p. xxvii.
6. Loimoi, Adventures, p. 58. In 1921, N. Howar d (Jack ) Thorpe publishe d
Songs o f the Cowboys (Bosto n an d Ne w York : Houghton Miffli n Co. , 1921) , an
expansion o f a 1908 chapbook of cowboy song s Thorpe ha d either written o r
collected. In this book, Thorpe say s that "Sam Bass" was written in 1879 by John
Demon of Gainsville, Texas; p. 135.
7. Josep h G. McCoy, Historic Sketches of the Cattle Trade of the West and South-
west (Kansa s City: Ramsey , Millett and Hudson, 1874; reprint, Readex Micro-
print, 1966). Despite a n explicit romanticism, McCoy's sketches were treated as
Notes to Pages 12-23 I z$6

more authentic descriptions of life in the cattle trade than was found in popular
melodramas o r dime novels.
8. Accordin g t o G . Malco m Laws , "American ballads leave relativel y little
to th e imagination . They ar e explicit and detailed, often tiresomel y so." Native
American Balladry: A Descriptive Study an d a Bibliographical Syllabus (Philadel -
phia: The American Folklore Society, 1964), p. 13. Lomax 1910, p. 152..
9. I surveye d several collections of cowboy songs tha t wer e published be-
tween 1910 and 1935. The text of "Sam Bass" remains remarkably consistent. See
Jules Verne Allen, Cowboy Lore (San Antonio: Naylor Printing Company, 1933);
Margaret Larkin, Singing Cowboys: A Book of Western Songs (New York: Alfred A.
Knopf, 1931); Kenneth S . Clark, The Cowboy Sings Songs of the Ranch and Range
(New York: Paull-Pioneer Music Corporation, 1932); and Thorpe, Songs o f the
Cowboys. Lomax's text for "Sam Bass " does not chang e throughout the various
editions of Cowboy Songs.
10. Joh n A . Lomax , Cowboy Songs an d Other Frontier Ballads (Ne w York:
Sturgis an d Walton , 1916) . This editio n expand s the origina l publicatio n b y
ninety pages, includin g forty-one additional song texts.
11. Th e histor y o f thi s song , an d it s variations , deserve som e seriou s re-
search. O f th e collection s I surveyed , it appear s i n Larkin , Singing Cowboys,
Allen, Cowboy Lore, and Clark , The Cowboy Sings. It was clearl y a par t of the
cowboy repertoir e b y the 19305 . While these publishe d versions agree on th e
general story as well as in the specifi c details on which I will focus, they vary as
to the amoun t o f detail, the clarit y of the narrative , and the name of the hero -
ine. In Lomax' s 191 0 collection, she is named Varo. This nam e also appears in
Allen's collection. Larkin , Clark, and the 1938 Lomax edition al l call the daugh -
ter Lenore , which enable s multiple rhymes with "before" and "anymore." The
1938 Loma x versio n contain s th e mos t cinemati c narrative. Lomax credit s a
"cowboy on th e Curve T Ranch " with writing the song. One can only assume
that this accreditatio n is intended t o legitimat e the man y changes that appear
between the version of "Utah Carroll" published in the 1916 collection and the
later, more spectacular version. Eventually, John Lomax and his son, Alan, reg-
istered a copyright t o this song. Some scholars have detected a commercial taint
to it s verses , insistin g that "Uta h Carroll " (o r "Uta h Carl " as it i s otherwis e
known) i s a pop song , not a true folk ballad . Such a distinction is irrelevant for
my purposes. Howeve r th e song entered the cowboy tradition, "Utah Carroll "
became part of the body of songs that cowboy singers sang.
iz. Joh n A . Lomax , Songs o f th e Cattle Trail an d Ca w Camp (Ne w York :
Macmillan Co., 1919) , p. xi.
13. Allen , Cowboy Lore, p. 63. The announcement of copyright to the title of
"original singin g cowboy" is on p. viii.
14. Th e word s fo r "Punchin ' th e Dough " came from a cowboy poe m b y
Henry Herver t Knibb . According to Allen , "This son g ha s been recorde d o n
Victor Records with permission of the author of the poem. Music by Jules Verne
Allen. All rights reserved." Cowboy Lore, p. 100.
15. Eri c Hobsbawm , "Introduction : Invente d Traditions, " i n Hobsbaw m
and Ranger, Invention, pp. 1,9.
16. Joh n I.White, Git AlongLittle Dogies: Songs and Songmakers of the Ameri-
can West (Urbana : University of Illinois Press, 1975), p. 189.
17. I t i s interesting to rea d Lomax's justification o f Fox's copyright (Adven-
tures, pp. 61—63) . Lomax first heard the song in San Antonio, when it was sung
to him by a "Negro saloonkeeper." He recorded this version on a wax cylinder,
and the melody was transcribed from the cylinder by Henry Leberman, a music
Notes t o Pages 23—2 9 / 25 7

teacher at the Austin State School for the Blind. Lomax reasoned that since Fox
learned th e son g directl y from Lomax' s collection , usin g th e melod y Loma x
learned fro m th e African-America n singer , clearl y th e copyrigh t belonge d t o
Fox. As a member of the "throng," Lomax's source was never considered t o b e
the legitimat e author o f this cowboy song . Oscar Brand traces "Home on th e
Range" to Dr . Brewste r Higley and Daniel E. Kelley . Originally entitled "My
Western Home," the song was composed by the two Kansas neighbors in 1873.
Brand refers to i t dismissively as a "folk-type song." Th e Ballad Mongers: Rise of
the Modern Folk Song (Ne w York: Funk & Wagnalls, 1961), p. 13.
18. Bil l Malone, American Music, Southern Music (Lexington : University of
Kentucky Press, 1979), p. 33 . This story i s also told in Archie Green, "Dobie's
Cowboy Friends, " John Edwards Memorial Foundation Quarterly 12 , no . 4 1
(1976): 11-29.
19. Davi d Rothel , Th e Singing Cowboys (Sa n Diego an d Ne w York : A. S .
Barnes and Co., 1978) , p. 83.
zo. J . Brooks Atkinson, New York Times, January 28,1931. Phillip Hale wrote
in the Boston Herald, December 9,1930, that the play was too vulgar.
2.1. "Folk-play " and "authentic songs ..." from Richar d Dana Skinner, "The
Drama," Commonweal, Februar y n, 1931 , pp . 414-15 ; "ensembl e . . . " fro m
H. C . P. , "The Guild , a Folk Play and Acting," Th e Boston Evening Transcript,
December 9,1930 .
22. Arthu r Chapman , "Pitchfor k Replace s Spur i n West of Guild's 'Gree n
Grow the Lilacs,' " New York Herald Tribune, March i, 1931. How fa r had they
gone, anyway, ten blocks?
23. Frankli n Jordan, "No: Thes e Cowboys of'Green Gro w the Lilacs' Were
Not Sh y . . . ," The Boston Evening Transcript, Decembe r 13,1930.
24. Larkin , Singing Cowboys, p. xiii.
25. Rothel , The Singing Cowboys, p. 83.
26. Th e bes t discussio n of the Hollywoo d singin g cowboy s can be found
in Douglas B . Green, "The Singin g Cowboy: A n American Dream," Journal of
Country Music j, no. 2 (1978): 4—59.
27. Bil l Malone, Country Music, U.S-A., rev. ed. (Austin: University of Texas
Press, 1985), p. 151.
28. Green , "Dobie's Cowboy Friends," pp. 21-29. Also, Larry Willoughby,
Texas Rhythm, Texas Rhyme (Austin: Texas Monthly Press, 1984), pp. 29-30 .
29. However , i t woul d no t b e lon g befor e women adopte d th e cowgir l
image and projected it in popular song. The most powerfu l earl y statement of a
woman's righ t to th e freedo m an d equality of the cowboy ca n be found in the
work of Patsy Montana. Listen to "I Wanna Be a Cowboy's Sweetheart " (1935).
Robert Oermann and Mary Bufwack argue that this song represents "a woman's
desire for independenc e i n the rugge d outdoor lif e o f a cowhand." Se e "Patsy
Montana an d the Development of the Cowgirl Image," Journal o f Country Music
8, no. 3 (1981): 18-32.
30. On e goo d plac e to begi n reading about blue s in Texas is Samuel Char-
ters, Th e Country Blues (Ne w York: Rinehart , 1959). Another excellen t source
is William Barlow, Looking Up at Down: The Emergence o f Blues Culture (Phila-
delphia: Temple University Press, 1989). Manuel Pena discusses orquesta music
in Tex-Mex Conjunto: the History of a Working-Class Music (Austin: University
of Texa s Press, 1985) . Clinton Machan n discusses the interpla y of traditiona l
Czechoslovakian music s with countr y an d wester n musi c in centra l Texa s i n
"Country-Western an d th e 'Now ' Soun d i n Texas-Czec h Polka Music, " John
Edwards Memorial Foundation Quarterly 19, no. 6 9 (1981): 3—7.
31. Th e classic biography of Jimmie Rodgers is by Nolan Porterfield, Jimmie

Rodp/ers: Th e Life an d Times o f America's Blue Todeler (Urbana : Universit y o f
Illinois Press , 1979).
32. Pete r Guralnick , "Ernest Tubb , th e Texa s Troubadour," Lost Highway:
Journeys an d Arrivals o f American Musicians (New York : Vintage , 1981; orig .
1979), P- 2.7 -
33. Tub b quote d in Ibid., p. 31.
34. Townsen d Miller , "Ernest Tubb, " i n Bill Malone and Judith McCulloh,
eds., Stars of Country Music (Urbana : Universit y of Illinoi s Press , 1975) , pp .
121—36.
35. Guralnick , "Ernest Tubb, " p. 35.
36. Bil l Malone has written extensivel y on th e developmen t o f honky-ton k
culture. Se e his "Honky-Tonk: th e Musi c of the Souther n Workin g Class, " i n
William Ferri s an d Mar y Hart , eds. , Folk Music an d Modern Sound (Jackson :
University Pres s of Mississippi, 1982) , pp. 119—29 . A condensed versio n of hi s
points ca n be found in the revise d edition o f Malone, Country Music, pp. 153—5 5 •
37. I n this discussion I am using the word "element " i n a very abstract way.
It does not necessaril y refer to a thing or to an individual, although thing s and
individuals ca n momentaril y embod y o r symboliz e thes e elements . Se e Ray-
mond Williams's discussio n o f "Dominant , Residual , an d Emergent" cultura l
forms i n Marxism an d Literature (Oxfor d an d Ne w York : Oxford Universit y
Press, 1977), PP-121-27.
38. McCoy , Historic Sketches, p. 138.
39. Th e carniva l tradition ha s bee n documente d b y many popular cultur e
historians, critics , and folklorists. Some of the better books are Mikhail Bakhtin,
Rabelais andHis World, trans . Helene Iswolsk y (Bloomington: Indian a Univer-
sity Press, 1984; orig. 1968); Peter Burke, Popular Culture in Early Modern Europe
(New York: Harper & Row, 1978) ; Barbara Babcock, ed., The Reversible World
(Ithaca an d London : Cornel l Universit y Press, 1978); and Alessandro Falassi,
ed., Time out of Time: Essays on the Festival (Albuquerque : New Mexic o Press ,
1987). Beverl y Stoeltje provide s a n excellen t discussion o f th e rode o a s cow -
boy festival in "Riding, Roping, and Reunion: Cowboy Festival," in the Falassi
volume.
40. Malone , Country Music, 154-55.
41. Willia m Warren an d Arli e A. Carter, "Th e Wil d Sid e of Life, " Capito l
Records (1951) . Thompson was not th e first to recor d thi s song , bu t hi s ver-
sion was by far the most popular. Thompson wa s a radio performer from Waco,
Texas. His recordin g career took off after the success of "Wild Side of Life."
42. Thi s song was written by a man, J. D. Miller , as an effort to capitaliz e
on th e succes s of Thompson's record. Wells recorded i t for Decca in May 1952.
Kitty Wells was from Tennessee. She sang in bands with he r husband for years,
demurely performing her many hits.
3. Desperados Waiting for a Train

1. T . R . Fehrenbach , Lone Star: A History o f Texas an d th e Texans, 2 d ed .
(New York: Collier Books, 1985) , pp. 635—36 , 650. Anonymous, Austin Ameri-
can, September 18,1933 , p. i.
2. Anonymous , Austin American, October 3,1933, p. i.
3. Bil l Malone, Country Music U.SA., rev . ed. (Austin : Universit y of Texas
Press, 1985) , p . 393 ; Jan Reid , Th e Improbable Rise o f Redneck Rock (Austin :
Heidelberg Publishers, 1974), p. 16.
4. Myr a Friedman , Buried Alive: Th e Biography o f Janis Joplin (Ne w York:
Bantam Books, 1974) , p. 44.
Notes to Pages 3 2-3 9 / 25 9

5. Reid , Th e Improbable Rise, p. 2.7 ; Bil l Malone, personal communication ,
Spring 1991.
6. Malone , ibid. The hills surrounding Austin were covered with cedar trees.
The wood of these tree s was valued for its resistance to insec t damage. While
chopping ceda r tree s wa s particularly dirty and har d work (especiall y in th e
summertime), th e regula r demand fo r th e woo d usuall y guaranteed a living
wage.
7. Tar y Owens , intervie w with th e author , Decembe r 18, 1990 ; Malone ,
ibid. Everyon e who spok e t o m e or wrot e t o m e about Kennet h Threadgil l
referred t o hi m a s Mister Threadgill . H e wa s clearl y th e centra l figure , an d
his patriarchal authority grew as the performer s an d audience s at his bar grew
younger.
8. Roge r Abrahams , interview with the author, August 1990. Oscar Brand,
The Ballad Mongers: Rise of the Modern Folk Song (New York: Funk & Wagnalls,
1962.), p. 54.
9. Clay , letter to the editor, Rolling Stone, April 13,1972, p. 3.
10. Owens , interview ; Jeff Nighbyrd , intervie w with th e author , Septem -
ber 18, 1990.
11. Malone , personal communication, Spring 1991; Owens, interview.
12. Malone , Country Music, p. 394; Owens, interview.
13. Friedman , Buried Alive, pp. 42—55; Friedman gives Clay's opinion, which
was supported b y Owens when I interviewed him on December 18,1990.
14. E d Guinn, interview with the author, June 19,1991.
15. Ibid. ; Anonymous, "Longhorn Band Accepts Negro," Daily Texan, Sep-
tember 2.3,1963, p. i; Elaine Blodgett, "Ed Guinn,"Austin Chronicle, August 15,
1986, p. 17.
16. Jef f Nighbyr d (n e Shero) , intervie w wit h th e author , Septembe r 18 ,
1990; James Miller, "Democracy i s in the Streets" (New York: Simon & Schuster,
1987), pp. 125—26 ; Owens, interview. There is some disagreement about which
night the Folk Sing regularly took place. Owens remembers it as being Wednes-
day; Nightbyrd recall s that it took place on Thursdays. Others say that the club
met on Sundays.
17. Owens , interview ; Guinn , interview . Manc e Lipscom b wa s th e firs t
African-American t o ente r and pla y musi c at ThreadgilPs, a few years after th e
incidents already described. B y the tim e Threadgill's was integrated, Lightnin '
Hopkins and Lipscomb, as well as other African-American musicians, had been
hired by several downtown commercia l clubs.
18. Owens , interview.
19. Owens , interview ; Reid, The Improbable Rise, pp. 15—28 . Later som e of
the origina l member s of the Hoots dropped out , an d the ban d was joined by
Chuck Joyce, Julie Paul, and Cotton Collins. Over the years, the Hoots made for-
ays into the fol k festival circuit, playing shows in Rhode Islan d and Minnesota ,
but thei r first gigs outside of Threadgill's were at another, larger honky-tonk at
the southern edge of town, the Split Rail.
20. Guinn , interview.
2.1. Ibid .
2.2. Ibid. ; Reid , Th e Improbable Rise, pp. 34-35 ; Archi e Green, "Midnigh t
and Othe r Cowboys" John Edwards Memorial Foundation Quarterly n , pt . 3 ,
no. 3 9 (1975): 145.
23. Joh n Cla y found he r "commercial. " Ji m Langdo n calle d he r "great. "
Both ar e quoted in Friedman, Buried Alive, p. 76.
24. Hug h Sparks , "Stylistic Development an d Compositional Processe s o f
Notes t o Pages 39-48 I z6 o

Selected Sol o Singer/Songwriter s i n Austin, Texas," Ph.D. diss. , University of
Texas at Austin, 1984; Owens, interview.
25. Owens , interview ; also Friedman, Buried Alive, p. 78.
2.6. Se e th e line r notes fo r Th e Psychedelic Sounds o f the i^th Floor Elevators,
Owens, interview; Nightbyrd, interview; Reid, The Improbable Rise, pp. 33—34 .
27. Sparks , "Stylisti c Development, " pp. 35—43 ; Jim Franklin , interview ,
March n , 1993 ; Elain e Blodgett , "Th e Vulca n Ga s Co.," Austin Chronicle,
August 9,1985; Guinn, interview.
2.8. Blodgett , ibid. ; Reid , Th e Improbable Rise, pp. 35—41 ; Franklin , inter-
view.
29. Ibid .
30. Reid , The Improbable Rise, pp. 47—52 .
31. Ibid . The Conquero o woul d hav e been a perfect choic e for Armadillo
Productions, bu t b y 1970 they, too, ha d moved to California .
32. Wilson , quoted i n Chet Flippo, "Texas Music Halls: 'Uncle Zeke's Roc k
Emporium,'" Rolling Stone, October 12,1972 , p. 18; Reid, The Improbable Rise,
P-49-
33. Flippo , ibid.; Reid, ibid., pp. 52—53 ; David Menconi, "Music, Media and
the Metropolis: Th e Case of Austin's Armadillo World Headquarters," Masters
thesis, University of Texas at Austin, 1985, pp. 62-64.
34. Menconi , ibid. , pp. 62—64 ; Reid, ibid., pp. 50—53; Flippo, ibid.
35. Tolleso n quote d i n Menconi, ibid. , p . 69; Chet Flippo , "Freddie Kin g
and His Heav y Blues," Rolling Stone, November 25,1971, p. 16; Flippo, "Texa s
Music Halls"; Reid , ibid., pp. 53, 59-61.
36. Wilso n quoted i n Reid, ibid., p. 62; Flippo, "Texas Music Halls"; Men -
coni, "Music, Media and the Metropolis," pp. 73—75.
37. Eddi e Wilson quoted i n Flippo, ibid.
38. Mik e Tolleson, telephon e interview, July 12,1990.
39. Reid , Th e Improbable Rise, pp. 69—71 ; Menconi, "Music , Media and th e
Metropolis," pp . 89—91 .
40. E d Ward , interview with Jo e Gracey , 1978 , quote d i n Menconi, ibid. ,
pp. 90—91,119—20.
41. Flippo , "Texas Music Halls"; Willie Nelson with Bud Shrake, Willie: A n
Autobiography (Ne w York: Pocket Books, 1989), p. 205; Tolleson, interview.
42. Reid , The Improbable Rise, pp. 5 , 297.
43. Ibid. , pp. 243—46 ; Green, "Midnight," p. 145.
44. Sparks , "Stylistic Development," pp . 52,43.
45. Ibid. , p. 51.
46. Reid , The Improbable Rise, pp. 260—64 .
47. Gu y Clark, "Desperados Waitin g For a Train," Chappel l Music, as per-
formed b y Jerry Jeff Walker, on Viva Terlingua, MCA (1974) .
48. Green , "Midnight," p. 87.
49. Che t Flippo , "Scen e o r Mirage ? Austin : The Huckster s Ar e Coming,"
Rolling Stone, April n, 1974, p. 24.
50. Ibid .
4. The Collapse of the Progressive Country Alliance

1. L . E . McCullough, "Austi n Music, 1985: The Everchangin g Presence of
the Past," Austin Chronicle, March 8,1985, p. 10.
2. "Su n Readers ' Poll: Austin's Top Bands," Austin Sun, February 26,1976.
3. Pau l Ray, "Letter to the Editor,"Austin Sun, March n, 1976.
Notes t o Pages 48-67 I 2.6 1

4. Jef f Nightbyrd , "Cosm o Cowboys: To o Much Cowboy an d not Enoug h
Cosmic" Austin Sun, April 3,1975, pp. 13,19.
5. Nightbyr d pointe d ou t on e o f the read y implications of this traditiona l
identity, asking , "Wh o ha s hear d o f th e Cosmi c Cowgirl ? . . . Th e cosm o
scene consist s o f male tribalism. Women ar e relegated t o spectator s o r hanger s
on." Ibid .
6. Nichola s R. Spitzer, " 'Bob Wills is Still the King': Romantic Regionalis m
and Convergen t Cultur e i n Central Texas," John Edwards Memorial Foundation
Quarterly n, no. 40 (1975), pp. 191—96.
7. Nightbyrd , "Cosm o Cowboys," p. 13.
8. Jean-Francoi s Lyotard , Th e Postmodern Condition: A Report o n Knowl-
edge, trans . Geof f Benningto n an d Bria n Massum i (Minneapolis : Universit y
of Minnesot a Press , 1984) ; Jea n Baudrillard , Th e Ecstasy o f Communication,
trans. Bernar d and Carolin e Schutze (Ne w York: Semiotext(e) , 1988); Fredric
Jameson, Postmodernism or, the Cultural Lq0ic of Late Capitalism (Durham : Duk e
University Press , 1991) ; Georg e Lipsitz , Time Passages: Collective Memory an d
American Popular Culture (Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press , 1990).
9. Crai g Hilli s o f Moon-Hil l Management , quote d i n Eri c Harrison, "I s
Progressive Countr y Dying ? Industr y Leader s Argu e Fat e o f Loca l Genre, "
Daily Texan, September zi, 1976.
10. Quote d in Billy Brammer, "Austin's Musica l History Explored," Austin
Sun, October 17,1974.
11. Ja n Reid, "Who Kille d Redneck Rock?" Texas Monthly, December , 1976 ,
p. 211 .
12. Ibid. , pp. 210, 211.
13. Ibid. , p. 216.
14. Ibid. , p. 213 .
15. Larr y Grossberg, "Anothe r Borin g Day in Paradise: Rock an d Roll an d
the Empowerment of Everyday Life," PopularMusic 4 (1984): 225—58 .
16. Pau l Congo , Marth a Hartzog , an d Tary Owens , prods. , A Texas Blues
Reunion, video, 1989.
17. Rei d Th e Improbable Rise, p . 34 . Accordin g t o A Texas Blues Reunion
(ibid.), Bill Campbell was the first white guitarist to play on the east side. How -
ever, Conqueroo wa s the first mixed band fro m th e west side that was hired t o
play in East Austin.
18. "Exchange " is , perhaps, too positive a term for it. No African-America n
musicians from East Austin currently share the commercial success of the Anglo -
Americans wh o participate d in this "exchange." Whil e the T-Birds an d Stevi e
Ray Vaugha n wi n gol d records , W . C . Clar k an d Blue s Bo y Hubbar d stil l
struggle for gigs throughout centra l Texas.
19. Carlyn e Majer, interview with the author, September 14,1990. Paul Ray,
"Paul Ra y an d th e Cobras : A Brief History," Austin Chronicle, December 19 ,
1986, p. 23.
20. Majer , ibid.
21. Ibid .
22. Reid , Th e Improbable Rise, p. 10.
23. Michae l Ventura, "Marcia Ball: Portrait of a Professional," Austin Sun,
May 27,1977, pp. 12—13 , 2O -
24. Loui s Black , interview with the author, Septembe r 17,1990.
25. Stev e Chancy, interview with the author, March 8,1990.
26. Ray , "Paul Ra y and the Cobras."
27. Quote d in Bill Bentlcy, "The Vaughans—Mainlin e Blues," Austin Sun,
April 28 , 1978 , p . Wz; quote d i n Michae l Corcoran , "Stevi e Ra y Vaughan :
Notes t o Pages 67—76 / 2.62.

Straight From the Heart" Austin Chronicle, May 15,1987, p. 18; Ray, "Paul Ray
and the Cobras. "
z8. Bil l Malone, Country Music U.SA., rev . ed. (Austin: University of Texas
Press, 1985), pp. 397, 404.
29. Th e balanc e sheets o f show s tha t hav e bee n stored i n th e Archive s of
the Armadillo World Headquarter a t the Eugene C. Barker Texas History Cen -
ter contain numerou s arithmeti c errors. Mike Tolleson wil l still talk about th e
Armadillo a s a n Art s Laborator y intende d t o spar k a cultural renaissanc e in
central Texas.
30. Eddi e Wilson , quote d i n David Menconi, "Music , Medi a an d the Me -
tropolis: Th e Cas e of Austin's Armadillo World Headquarters," Master s thesis,
University of Texas at Austin, 1985, p. 132. Original date of the Associated Press
interview, June 26,1974. Interior Memo o f Armadillo Productions, Armadill o
Archives, Barker Texas History Center .
31. "Financia l Summary of 1976 Birthday Party, as of 8/17/76," Armadillo
Archives, Barker Texas History Center .
32.. Rober t Hadley , "Stormy Weathe r for the Armadillo, " Austin Sun, No -
vember 12, 1976, p. 13 . Clifford Endres , "Near Truths : Armadillo Rebounds, "
Austin Sun, January 14,1977, p. 3.
33. Han k Alrich, quoted i n Hadley, ibid.
34. Ramse y Wiggins, "Shoot-Ou t a t the Bo x Office," Austin Sun, Novem -
ber 12, 1976, p. 7.
35. Se e Richard Dyer, "In Defens e o f Disco, " i n Simon Frit h an d Andre w
Goodwin, eds. , O n Record: Rock, Po p and th e Written Word (Ne w York: Pan-
theon Books , 1990) . Dyer discusses disco in terms of a gay culture. In Austin,
the growing ga y community did adopt some elements of the disco culture, espe-
cially the growin g eroticis m in dancing and an affinity fo r the complex rhythms
coming ou t o f New York City, which slowly made their way into the rock'n'rol l
scene during the mideighties.
36. Wiggins , "Shoot-Out. "
37. Quote d in Carlene Brady, "The En d o f Live Music? Not Wit h a Bump,
But a Hustle," Austin Sun, Novembe r 12 , 1976 , p . 7. The concep t o f the pro -
fessional-managerial class was first worked out b y Barbara and John Ehrenreich
in "Th e Professional-Manageria l Class," i n Pat Walker, ed., Between Labor and
Capital (Boston : Sout h En d Press , 1970), pp. 5—45 . Fre d Pfei l first related th e
PMC t o specifi c pleasure s in pop musi c in "Making Flippy-Floppy : Postmod -
ernism an d th e Baby-Boo m PMC," i n M. Davis , et al. , eds., The Tear Left: A n
American Socialist Yearbook (London : Verso , 1985), pp. 263—95 .
38. Simo n Frith , South Effects: Youth, Leisure an d th e Politics o f Rock'n'Roll
(New York: Pantheon Books , 1981), pp. 244, 246.
39. Brady , "The En d o f Liv e Music?"; John Moore, "Th e Embattle d Rab -
bit: Wil l Disc o Spoi l Eddi e Wilson?" Austin Sun, Ma y 19, 1978 , pp . 8—10 . I t
might be worthwhile to point out that discos in the South an d the Midwest did
not restric t their playlis t to thos e song s mos t closel y identified wit h th e disc o
musical genre. I t wa s not unusua l to hea r songs b y Bob Seeger or Pin k Floyd
booming over the sound system in any disco in the middle of the country.
40. Se e H. Stit h Bennett , O n Becoming a Rock Musician (Amherst: Univer-
sity o f Massachusett s Press , 1980), for a discussion of the proces s of learnin g
and consistently performing other people's music.
41. Anton e quote d i n Dea n Webb , "Antone' s Venerable Venue Keeps th e
Blues Aliv e i n Austin, " Images: Daily Texan, Jul y 18 , 1988 ; advertisemen t fo r
Antone's one year anniversary party, Austin Sun, May 14, 1976; Stev e Chancy,
interview with the author, March 8,1990.
Notes to Pages 76-83 / 26 3

4Z. Mik e Clark, "Antone Brings the Blues to Austin and the World," Austin
Business Journal, July 9-15,1990, pp. 7-8; Stev e Wist, "The Howlers : Ne'r-do -
wells Doin' Well" Austin Sun, April Z9,1977, pp. 9,15; Wiggins, "Shoot-Out."
43. Bo b Edwards, "Rockin" at the Rail"Austin Sun, March 18,1977, p. z ;
Anonymous, "Backstage : Joe Ely at the Split Rail" Austin Sun, May z8,1976,
p. zz.
44. Jo e Nic k Patoski describe d Alvin Crow' s musi c as gut country , "pur e
country musi c tha t ain' t bee n sanforize d in Nashville, " in "Alvi n Crow: Gu t
Country," Austin Sun, October 17,1974 , p. 30; Ventura, "Marcia Ball," p. iz.
45. Cliffor d Endres , "Near Truths: Armadillo Rebounds," Austin Sun, Janu-
ary 14, 1977, p. 3; financial records, Armadillo Archives, Barker Texas History
Center.
46. Majer , interview.
47. Texas Sun, January z8,1977, p. 5.
48. "Su n Readers ' Poll : Musi c Awards 1977," Texas Sun, Marc h 2.5 , 1977 ,
p. 7.
49. Ventura , "Marcia Ball."
50. "Adio s From Sir Doug," Texas Sun, August 3,1977 (letter dated July Z9,
1977); Majer, interview.
51. Quote d in Diana Potts, "Do g Day s at the 'Dillo?' " Texas Sun, Decem -
ber 9 , 1977 , p . 17 . The "bar e minimum " numbe r require d to ru n Armadill o
shows wa s derived from a n examination of staf f schedule s and assignment s i n
the Armadillo Archives, Barker Texas History Center . Alric h quoted fro m th e
same article.
5Z. Bobbi e Bridget, "Rusty Wier," River City Sun, September 15,1978, pp .
2-3-2-4-
53. Fo r a discussion of the rol e of gatekeepers in culture industries see Paul
Hirsch, "Processing Fad s and Fashions: An Organization-Set Analysis of Cul-
tural Industr y Systems" American Journal o f Sociology 7 7 (1971) , reprinte d i n
Frith an d Goodwin, O n Record. See also Frith's use of the gatekeepe r concept
in Sound Effects.
54. Chancy , interview.
55. Jef f Nightbyrd , intervie w with the author, Septembe r 18,1990.
5. Punk Rock at Raul's

i. Lenn y Kaye , liner notes to Nuggets: Original Arty facts from the First Psy-
chedelic Era, 1965-1968, Elektra Records 7E-zoo6 (1971) .
z. Kare n Rose, "Luck and Pluck: The Heartwarming Rise to Fame of Lenny
Kaye," TrouserPress (June/Jul y 1976): Z7-Z9, 31.
3. Broc k Altane, "The Ramones, " New7or&Reefer i, no. i (January 1976): 4.
Cartoon vision . .. is Charles Shaar Murray writing for the English music paper
New Musical Express, quote d i n an a d for th e Ramones ' firs t album in New York
Rocker i, no. 3 (May 1976): 8. Cleanly conceptualized . .. is Robert Christga u
writing for the Village Voice quoted in the sam e ad. Rock and roll formalists . . .
is from Gene Scullati, "Ramones Leave Home," New YorkRockeri, no. 6 (March
1977) = 7 -
4. Th e connections betwee n English punk rock and the Situationist Interna-
tional have been well documented. See Simon Frith, SoundEffects: Youth, Leisure
and th e Politics ofRock'n'Roll (Ne w York: Pantheon Books, 1981); Simon Frit h
and Howar d Home , Art into Pop (New York and London: Methue n and Co. ,
1987); Paul Taylor, Impressario: Malcolm McLaren and the British New Wave (New
York an d Cambridge : Ne w Museu m o f Contemporar y Ar t an d MI T Press ,
Notes t o Pages 83-93 I 2.6 4

1988); an d Grei l Marcus , Lipstick Traces: A Secret History o f the zoth Century
(Cambridge: Harvar d Universit y Press, 1989). In hi s film The Great Rock'n'Roll
Swindle, McLaren stresses the musical ineptitude of the Sex Pistols, insisting that
he deliberatel y chose incompetent players . In fact , Glen Matlock, Stev e Jones,
and Paul Cook were fine rock'n'roll musicians . With John Lydon as singer, they
were a superior example of the Stooges, Slade , Dolls tradition. When McLaren
fired Matlock an d adde d Si d Vicious, the band' s abilit y to pla y liv e droppe d
considerably. Frith, Sound Effects, p . 265.
5. Th e Contingent included Siouxsie and Steve Severin of Siouxsie and th e
Banshees, Bill y Idol, and Si d Vicious, who soo n replaced Glen Matlock as the
Pistols' bas s player. See Frith and Home, Art into Pop, p . 127. The bes t history
of the Se x Pistols i s Jon Savage , England's Dreaming: Punk Rock, Sex Pistols and
Beyond (Ne w York: St. Martin's, 1992) .
6. Thi s legac y also limits the movement' s effectivenes s a s the cente r of any
progressive political program.
7. Dic k Hebdige, Subculture: The Meaning of Style (Ne w York and London:
Methuen an d Co., 1979) , p. 102.
8. Detournement, an importan t strateg y of th e Situationists , i s defined b y
Greil Marcu s a s the "thef t o f aestheti c artifacts fro m thei r contexts an d thei r
diversion int o context s o f one's own devise " (Lipstick Traces, p . 168) . I n Blac k
& Red' s translatio n of Th e Society of th e Spectacle, detournement is called "diver-
sion" and is defined as "the opposit e o f quotation . . . a fragment torn fro m its
context" (n . 208). Punk rock's failur e t o contro l th e context s o f consumptio n
undermined its attempt at detournement. The controversy over the dissemination
of difficul t taste s had bee n debated i n the Unite d State s during the 1920 5 an d
the 1930 5 in what has been termed "th e Boo k Club Wars." See Janice Radway,
"The Scanda l of th e Middlebrow, " South Atlantic Quarterly (Fal l 1990) . This
contradiction stil l fires intense debates in the academic battles over the content s
of the canon .
9. To m Carson, "Ceremonie s o f the Horsemen," New Tork Rocker i, no. 1 0
(Nov.-Dec. 1977): 43.
10. "Th e Ne w Payola," New Tork Rocker i, no. 6 (March 1977): 14—15.
11. Frith , Sound Effects, p . 159 .
12. Loui s Black, interview with the author, September 17,1990.
13. To m Huckabee , telephon e intervie w with th e author , Decembe r 16 ,
1990.
14. Black , interview.
15. Jef f Whittington , "Pun k Rock : Sur e It' s Noisy , Bu t I s I t Art? " Daily
Texan, October 2,1978 , "Images," pp . 24, 28.
16. Loui s Black and Richard Dorsett, "Jonathan Richman: In Love with the
Radio On" Daily Texas, September 18,1978, "Images," pp . 14—15 .
17. Thi s entir e story and al l quotes ar e from th e intervie w I did with Jesse
Sublett, December 19,1990.
18. Sall y Jones, "Hey Punk'." Austin Sun, December 2,1977, pp. 23, 27.
19. Carlen e Brady , "Sex Pistol s i n Austin, " Austin Sun, Januar y 20, 1978 ,
p. ii.
21. Jef F Whittington, "Se x Pistols: Rock Anarchy Arrives in San Antonio,"
Daily Texan, January ii, 1978, p. 8.
22. Ibid .
23. Th e bes t book so far on the development of Mexican-American musical
culture i n Texa s remains Manuel Pena, Th e Texas-Mexican Conjunto: History o f
a Working-Class Music (Austin : University of Texas Press, 1985) . The stor y o f

the origi n of Raul' s comes from a number of interviews , particularly Joe Aros,
March 18 , 1990 ; Stev e Chancy, March 8, 1990; an d Ylean a Martinez, Jun e 4 ,
1992..
24. Anonymous , "Austin Goe s Punk'' Austin Sun, January 13,1978, p. 17.
Sublett, interview .
25. Sublett , ibid . Eddi e Muno z wa s being quote d i n the Su n durin g thi s
period a s "a local punk." Munoz was attracted to the way that punk codes per-
mitted certai n expressions of anger . His influenc e o n Sublet t wa s strong, bu t
even thi s stree t pun k wa s quick to defen d hi s musica l abilities and quic k t o
emphasize his self-conscious adoption of punk's musical limitations. Sec Anony-
mous, "Looking Like the Other E\v\s," Austin Sun, January 17,1978, p. 15; and
Michael Ventura, "Hey Mama, What's a Punk?" Austin Sun, June 30,1978, pp.
4-5,11.
z6. Anonymous , "Austin's 'New Wave': The Violators," Austin Sun, Janu -
ary 27,1978, p. 15.
27. Sublett , interview . When I asked Jesse what he meant by "leather girls,"
he said, "Oh, you know, homosexua l women." Bot h Olso n an d Valentine have
had successfu l professiona l music careers: Olson wit h a series of solo projects ,
and Valentine, of course, with the Go-Gos. The best book on the rise of women
in rock'n'roll afte r pun k is Sue Steward and Sheryl Garrett's Signed, Sealed, and
Delivered: True Life Stories of Women in Pop (Boston: South En d Press , 1984).
28. Sublett , interview ; Chancy, interview; Black, interview; Huckabee, in -
terview.
29. Huckabee , interview.
30. Ibid .
31. Jef f Whittington, "The Man Can't Bus t Our Musi c . . . but h e sure can
stop the show : a report o n th e rumbl e at Raul's," Daily Texan, Septembe r 25 ,
1978, "Images," pp . 10—n, 14.
32. Chaney , interview.
33. Whittington , "The Man," p. 10.
34. Huckabee , interview .
35. M y accoun t o f thi s nigh t i s draw n fro m Whittington , "Th e Man" ;
Anonymous, "Roc k Clu b Raid Leads to 6 Arrests," Daily Texan, September zo ,
1978, p . i ; Anonymous , "Si x Arrested i n Pun k Roc k Sho w Melee, " Austin
American-Statesman, Septembe r 21 , 1978 , pp . Ai, Ai2; an d interview s with
Chaney, Huckabee, Black , and Barbaro (September 21,1990).
3 6. Huckabee , interview; Anonymous, "Our Bo y in Blue," Daily Texan, Sep-
tember 21,1978 , p. 5; Anonymous, "Protest of Raul's Raid Leads to Arrest on
Drag,"Daily Texan, September zi, 1978, p. i.
37. Quote d i n Anonymous , "Roc k Clu b Raid" ; Anonymous , "Ou r Boy
in Blue."
38. Anonymous , "Phi l Tolstea d Foun d Guilty , Fined fo r Disorderl y Con-
duct," Daily Texan, October 10 , 1978, p. i. Joe Frolik, "Huns Can Dish Ou t
Abuse, Take It," Austin American-Statesman, October iz, 1978. Itis amusing that
the fina l charg e was disorderly conduct. After all, that was the band's intention .
Tolstead wa s also charged with resisting arrest and abusive language. These tw o
charges were dealt with i n a different case , which is still under appeal. Specifi c
aspects o f thi s identity , it s power , it s attraction, an d it s transient capacity for
change will be examined in later chapters.
39. Huckabee , interview.
40. Th e Explosive s were a band that performe d in a battle of the band s a t
Raul's i n July of 1979. Musically, they were more competent tha n most o f th e
bands that were competing. However , they were judged to sound "suspiciousl y
Notes t o Pages 102-Ti / 2.6 6

professional." Whe n i t was revealed that tw o of the thre e member s of the Ex-
plosives had experience in the progressive country scene, there was a movemen t
to disqualify them fro m the competition. The y were allowed to complete thei r
performance, bu t did not plac e among the top four bands. See Margaret Moser,
"The Battl e of the NewWave Bands: Who Really Won?" Rumors, Gossip, Lies &
Dreams, July 2.6,1979, pp. 4—5. 1 will explain and justify th e us e of this some -
what abstrac t languag e i n the followin g chapter . The concep t o f th e "abject "
comes from Julia Kristeva's theorization o f primary narcissism in the production
of the subject and the splitting of f from the mother-child dyad .
41. Mikhai l Bakhtin, Rabelais and His World, trans. Helene Iswolsky (Bloom-
ington: Universit y o f Indian a Press , 1984 ; translatio n originally publishe d i n
1968), pp. 62,94 .
42.. Rolan d Swenson , "Ho w I Starte d i n th e Recor d Business, " Austin
Chronicle, September 2,6,1986, pp. 24—25; also, Swenson, interview with author,
July 10,1990.
43. Melliss a Cobb, interview with th e author, May 27,1989.
44. Ki m Longacre, interview with the author, Jun e 2,1989.
46. Whittington , "Punk Rock," p. 24.
6. The Performanc e of Signifying Practice

i. Tar y Owens, interview with the author, Decembe r 18,1990.
2.. Bren t Grulke, sound enginee r and music editor fo r the Austin Chronicle,
interview with th e author, Marc h 6,1990.
3. Mik e Hall, intervie w with the author, July u, 1990.
4. Ibid , emphasis mine.
5. Diann e Hardin, interview with the author, March 10,1990.
6. Jacque s Lacan (coul d i t possibly have been anyon e else?) , "The Subver -
sion o f the Subjec t an d the Dialecti c of Desir e in the Freudia n Unconscious, "
Ecrits: A Selection, trans. Ala n Sherida n (Ne w York: W . W. Norton an d Co. ,
1977), P-305-
7. Ki m Longacre, intervie w with the author, June 2,1989.
8. Joh n Croslin, intervie w with the author, June i, 1989.
9. Melliss a Cobb, interview with the author, May 29,1989.
10. Marci a Buffington, intervie w with the author, March 10,1990.
11. Anonymous , "T o B e a Punk i n Austin," Austin Vanguard ( a fanzine),
1978 (no page numbers). For a discussion of the performance of "violence," see
chapter five. The obviou s similaritie s to th e concep t o f subcultures as worke d
out b y th e Birmingha m Centr e fo r Contemporar y Cultural Studie s an d dis -
cussed i n Dic k Hebdige's Subculture: The Meaning o f Style (London : Mediue n
and Co. , 1979 ) shoul d no t b e overlooked , bu t neithe r shoul d the y b e over -
emphasized. B y the tim e o f thes e interviews , rock'n'rol l fan s i n Austi n wer e
conversant wit h a popularized version of subculture theory an d were quick t o
use its categories to describ e their practice . Some difference s betwee n th e spe -
cifics of Austin music-making and the outlines of subculture theory will emerg e
later in the chapter.
12. Longacre , interview , June 2,1989.
13. Buffington , interview.
14. Joh n Shepherd , Music a s Social Text (Cambridge : Polit y Press , 1991) ;
Leonard Meyer , Emotion andMeaning inMusic (Chicago: University of Chicago
Press, 1956) , p . 81. Se e also the discussio n o f gesture i n Jean-Jacques Nattiez,
Music and Discourse: Toward a Semiolqgy o f Music, trans. Carolyn Abbate (Prince-
Notes to Pages 11 i-z 6 I z6j

ton: Princeto n Universit y Press, 1990), p. 44. Se e chapter 4 for a discussion o f
dancing in the context o f disco music.
15. Georg e Rief f was bass player for Joe King Carrasco, 1984—85, and played
in variou s othe r band s throughou t th e eighties ; intervie w with th e author ,
March 1987.
16. Longacre , interview , June z, 1989.
17. Hunte r Darby was bass player, singer, and songwriter for the Wannabes;
interview with the author, March 5,1990.
18. To m Thornton was bass player, singer, and song writer for the Way-Outs
from 198 6 to the present; intervie w with the author, March 1987.
19. Ro n Marks was bass player, singer, and songwriter fo r The Texas Instru-
ments, fro m 1984 to the present; intervie w with the author, Marc h 1987.
zo. Longacre , interview , March 6,1990.
zi. Mak i Fife and Joanne Weinzierl, interviews with the author, March 1987.
These women wer e self-identified "member s o f the scene," as were all other fan s
I interviewed .
zz. Dav e Roberts, intervie w with the author, March 1987.
13. Group Psychology an d th e Analysis o f the Ego, trans. James Strachey (Ne w
York: W. W. Norton and Co., 1959) , pp. zz, 44.
Z4- Freu d distinguishe s betwee n the state of being in love and the conditio n
of identificatio n solely by whether th e objec t is introjected int o th e eg o or th e
ego-ideal. Se e Freud, Group Psychology, p . 58. In rock'n'roll scene s the boundar y
between thes e tw o psychi c structures is easily permeated. Se e the discussio n o f
the rol e of desire in the structures of identification below.
Z5. Roberts , interview. Fo r Freud, the primary group i s "a number of indi-
viduals who have put one and the same object in the place of their ego ideal and
have consequently identifie d themselves with one another i n their egos" (Group
Psychology, p . 61).
2.6. Lacan , "Th e Mirro r Stag e a s Formative o f th e Functio n o f th e I, " i n
Ecrits, pp . 1—7 ; quot e fro m p . 2 . Se e also, i n th e sam e volume, "Th e Subver -
sion o f the Subjec t and the Dialecti c of Desir e i n the Freudia n Unconscious, "
pp. Z9Z—3Z4. 1 do not inten d this one-page distillation to represent adequately
the whole of Lacan's positions o n the complex processes of subject production .
Such a representation woul d requir e a monograph o f it s own . I hop e I hav e
explained enoug h o f th e basi c terms t o clarif y m y us e of thi s psychoanalytic
framework.
Z7. Lacan , "Mirror Stage," p. z.
z8. Lacan , "The Subversio n of the Subject," p. 301.
zg. Thi s describes an idealized situation, where conflicts between immediate
experience and the dominant Symboli c can, indeed, resul t in "dialectical synthe-
ses." Such identifications are never complete, and even partial identifications are
not alway s possible under conditions o f cultural dominance .
30. Fife , interview.
31. Ibid .
3Z. Thes e terms, "subject-in-process" and "signifying practice," derive from
the wor k o f Julia Kristeva. In Kristeva' s work, th e subjec t i n process an d sig -
nifying practic e maintai n a reciproca l relationship . Signifyin g practice i s th e
process o f producing , exchanging , an d incorporatin g sign s i n suc h a fashio n
that change s occu r i n th e psychi c organization o f the subjec t in th e process .
However, transformations in identity escape the awareness of the individua l t o
such an extent tha t the "subject" i s "put o n trial" (that is, his or her very coher-
ence as a unified ego is threatened). The transformative work of this exchange of
signs does not occu r i n a transparent, self-mastering, self-conscious individual.
Notes t o Pages 126-31 I z6 8

Kristeva insists that, "We can speak of practice wherever there is a transgression
of systematicity , i.e. , a transgression o f the unit y prope r t o th e transcenden -
tal ego." I n addition , she says "Signifying practic e . .. is taken a s meaning th e
acceptance o f a symbolic la w together wit h th e transgressio n o f that la w for
the purpos e of renovating it . The moment o f transgression i s the key momen t
in practice" ; "Th e Syste m an d th e Speakin g Subject, " i n Toril Moi, ed. , Th e
Kristeva-Reader (Ne w York: Columbia Universit y Press, 1986), p. 29. The bes t
introduction to Kristeva' s work i s in the introduction to this volume. Kristev a
works ou t he r theor y o f the semioti c an d th e mean s whereby i t i s integrate d
into the symbolic in Revolution in Poetic Language, trans. Margaret Waller (Ne w
York: Columbia Universit y Press, 1984).
33. "Th e Imaginary, " i n Sexuality i n th e Field o f Vision (Ne w York : Vers o
Books, 1986) , pp. 167-97.
34. Ibid. , p. 177. The interior quote s ar e from Sigmun d Freud, "O n Narcis-
sism."
35. Juli a Kristeva , "Freud an d Love : Treatment an d it s Discontents," Tales
of Love, trans. Leo n Roudie z (Ne w York: Columbia University Press, 1987), pp.
25-26.
36. Fife , interview , March 1987.
37. Se e Larry Grossberg , "Th e Politic s o f Yout h Culture: Som e Observa -
tions o n Roc k an d Rol l i n American Culture," Social Text 8 (Winter 1983—84) :
104—26; Simon Frith , SoundEffects (Ne w York: Pantheon Books , 1981); Angela
McRobbie, "Danc e an d Socia l Fantasy," i n McRobbi e an d Mic a Nava , eds. ,
Gender and Generation (London: Macmillan, 1984), pp. 130—61 ; Hebdige, Sub-
culture; Pau l Willis, Learning t o Labour: How Working Class Kids Ge t Working
Class Jobs (London : Saxon House, 1976); Stuart Hall and Tony Jefferson, eds. ,
Resistance Through Rituals (London: Hutchinson, 1976).
38. Davi d Harvey , The Condition o f Postmodernity: An Enquiry into the Ori-
gins of Cultural Change (Oxford and Cambridge , Mass.: Basi l Blackwell, 1989),
P- 339-
39. Juli a Kristeva, "The Adolescen t Novel, " i n John Fletche r an d Andre w
Benjamin, eds., Abjection, Melancholia, andLove: The Work ofjuliaKristeva (Lon -
don and New York: Routledge, 1990), p. 9.
40. I use the word "inscribe " deliberately . I a m describing a structure tha t
writes th e conditio n o f adolescenc e across bodies o f all ages. It i s also impor -
tant to not e that I am differing from a strict Lacanian viewpoin t on this . My
perspective align s more closel y with Kristeva's . She allows for the possibility of
social structural chang e i n the Symboli c through thes e processe s of identifica -
tion incorporate d int o signifyin g practice.
41. Patrici a Meyer Spacks , The Adolescent Idea: Myths of Youth and th e Adult
Imagination (Ne w York: Basic Books, 1981), p. 289.
42. Juli a Kristeva , Powers o f Horror: A n Essay o n Abjection, trans . Leo n
Roudiez (New York: Columbia University Press, 1982), p. 12, also pp. 1—89 .
43. "Freu d and Love," p. 24. The semiotic is described by Kristeva as "a psy-
chosomatic modality of the signifying process . .. articulating . .. a continuum"
between th e bod y and the sociosymboli c i n the speakin g being. The semioti c
is a function o f th e chora , "i n whic h th e linguisti c sign i s not ye t articulate d
as the absenc e o f an object and a s the distinctio n betwee n rea l and symbolic. "
See Revolution in Poetic Language, trans. Margaret Waller (New York: Columbia
University Press, 1984), pp. 25-30 and passim.
44. Spacks , The Adolescent Idea, p. 291.
45. Buffington , interview .
46. Kristeva , Powers of Horror, p. 67.
Notes t o Pages 13 1—3 6 / 2.6 9

47- Austin Chronicle, March 11,1988, p. 77.
48. Austin Chronicle, November 13,1987 , p. 65.
49. Austin Chronicle, February 17,1989, p. 37.
50. Austin Chronicle, Septembe r 2.9, 1989, p . 37 . According t o Lis a Byrd ,
who works with Freelove, this ad did not attract the desired musicians.
51. Bran t Bingamon, intervie w with the author, March 8,1990.
52. Jo e McDermott, interview with the author, Marc h 7,1990.
53. Heathe r Moore, interview with the author, March 5,1990.
54. Croslin , interview s with the author, June i, 1989, March 3,1990.
55. Longacre , interview , June 2,1989.
56. Se e the discussion o f suture, film theory, and Jacqueline Rose above .
57. Croslin , interview , June i, 1989.
58. Hall , interview.
59. Moore , interview .
60. Juli a Austin, intervie w with the author, September 13,1990.
61. Kevi n Whitley, interview with the author, March 13,1990.
62. Alejandr o Escovedo, intervie w with the author, March 7,1990.
63. Austin , interview ; emphasis in the recorded voice .
65. Fo r a n excellent discussion of the physicalit y of jaz z improvisation, se e
David Sudnow, Ways of the Hand (Cambridge : Harvard University Press, 1978).
66. Lacan , "Th e Mirro r Stage, " p. 2 . Se e the discussio n o f identificatio n
above.
67. Whitley , interview, March 13,1990 .
68. McDermott , interview . The phrase "bouncing scratch y cassette tape re-
corders back and forth," refers to a primitive recording method. A musician will
record hi m o r hersel f playin g one par t o n a guitar, fo r instance . The n sh e o r
he will pla y back that recorde d tap e whil e playin g a different par t an d recor d
both of those tracks on another tap e recorder. The loss of sound fidelity in this
process is tremendous. Thu s the reference to "scratchy cassette tape recorders. "
69. Ibid .
70. Ibid .
71. Ibid .
72. Stev e Spinks, interview, March 1987.
73. Bil l Malone, Country Music USA., rev . ed. (Austin: University of Texas
Press, 1985), p. 86.
74. Carri e Rodgers , quote d i n Nola n Porterfield , Jimmie Rodgers; Th e Life
and Times o f America's Blue Todekr (Urbana : University of Illinoi s Press, 1979),
p. 363.
75. Quote d in Peter Guralnick, Lost Highway: Journeys and Arrivals of Ameri-
can Musicians (Ne w York: Vintage Books , 1982, p. 28.
76. Quote d in Malone, Country Music, p. 242.
77. Ma x Horkheime r and Theodor W. Adorno, Dialectic of Enlightenment,
trans. John Gummin g (New York: Continuum, 1987 ; first trans. 1972, German
orig. 1944), pp. 83-84.
78. Secon d definitio n of sincerity in The Compact Edition of the Oxford English
Dictionary, vol. 2 , p. 2,830 . Se e chapter 5 for discussions o f "Gla d He' s Dead "
and "Big Peni s Envy."
79. I trust the reader understands that I am trying to describe a set of beliefs
and assumption s underlyin g th e practic e of rock'n'rol l i n Austin. Explicitly , I
am not advocatin g the possibility of a "pure representation. "
80. Quote d in Carlos Grasso , et al., prods., "Austin Avalanch e of Rock and
Roll," The Cutting Edge (1985) .
Notes t o Pages 136-48 I 27 0

82. Austin , interview.
84. "What' s Wrong with the Austin Music Scene>" Austin Chronicle, Novem-
ber 15,1985, pp. 24— 2.6. As Jesse remembers it, the label originated a s a throw-
away remark in a conversation he was having with Margaret Moser in the Conti -
nental Club. "Al l those new sincerity bands, they're crap." Moser picked up the
phrase an d began using it in her columns in the Austin Chronicle. Jesse Sublett,
telephone conversatio n wit h the author, January 30,1991.
85. Darby , interview.
86. Ibid .
87. Jacque s Attali discusses the politica l predictive value of nois e i n Noise:
The Political Economy of Music, trans. Brian Massumi (Minneapolis: University of
Minnesota Press, 1985). Jean-Jacques Nattiez provides a more useful discussion
of "Noise as a Semiological Phenomenon," pp . 45—48 .
88. Whitley , interview, March 13,1990.
89. Ibid .
90. Longacre , interview , March 6,1990.
91. Longacre , interview , June a, 1989.
92.. Longacre , interviews , June z, 1989, March 6,1990. The ellipsis indicates
the brea k between th e passages from eac h interview.
93. Buffington , interview . 94. McDermott , interview.
95. Ibid . 96 . Ibid .
97. Croslin , interview, June i, 1989.
98. Danie l Johnston, "I Am a Baby," Hi, How Are You (the Unfinished Album) ,
homemade tape , recorded Septembe r 1983 .
99. Danie l Johnston, "Ge t Yoursel f Together," Hi , How Are Tou.
100. Danie l Johnston, "Walkin g the Cow," Hi, How Are Tou.
101. Carlo s Grasso, prod., 1985.
loa. Ibid .
103. Ibid .
104. Cf . "I'll Neve r Marry." The complet e lyric s are, "I'll neve r marry, I'll
never wed. Nobod y loves you when you're dead . Nobod y want s to li e in bed
with you when your flesh is rotting." Hi, How Are Tou.
105. Sinc e that time, Daniel Johnston ha s recorded an d performed with Jad
Fair of Hal f Japanes e and members of Sonic Youth. He performe d at CBGB' s
in Ne w Yor k in 1988 , release d a new album , 1990 , an d san g five songs a t th e
Austin Chronicle Music Awards show in 1990. A letter published in the Chronicle
after th e award s show declared , "I'm totall y mystified. I'v e bee n reading abou t
Daniel Johnston eve r since I came to Austin four years ago, but I never had th e
opportunity t o se e him pla y unti l the Musi c Awards show. . . . What I won -
der, i s how someone who can' t pla y guitar, can't sing , an d (fro m wha t I coul d
pick up ) doesn' t write particularly goo d songs can get so much goo d ink and
such a good gig in a town filled with s o many superb songwriters, singer s and
bands? . . . Johnston ma y be vulnerable and real and intense, bu t those qualitie s
do not guarante e art." Austin Chronicle, April 13,1990, p. a.
7. The Inscription of Identity in the Music Busines s

i. Fo r instance, the University Coop (the largest textbook and alumni para-
phernalia store) allow s extra time-off for all part-time student employee s during
final exams. This policy is also in the store's interest , as final exam weeks tend to
be slow sales periods as well.
Notes t o Pages 148-6) I 27 1

z. Austi n ha s "the sixt h largest concentration o f artists in the nation. " Th e
Economic Impacts of the Arts and Entertainment Industries of Austin, Texas, a report
by the Leisure Variety Action Team, Leadership Austin 1986—87.
3. Ibid . Also , Mik e Clark , "UT offer s mor e tha n educationa l opportuni -
ties," Austin Business Journal (Apri l 3o-Ma y 6 , 1990): 7-8; Rolan d Swenson ,
interview with the author, Jul y 10,1990; and Nick Barbaro, interview, Septem-
ber zi, 1990.
4. Jud y Jamison, interview with the author, March 14,1990.
5. Kevi n Whitley, interview with the author, Septembe r 13,1990.
6. Michae l Corcoran, "Don' t You Start Me Talking," Austin Chronicle, June
2.6,1987, p. Z4.
7. Se e chapter 4 for Alrich's comment.
8. Alejandr o Escovedo, intervie w with the author, March 7,1990.
9. Ibid .
10. Jo e McDermott, interview with the author, March 7,1990.
11. Ki m Longacre, intervie w with the author, March 6,1990.
iz. Joh n Croslin, interview with the author, March 3,1990.
13. Byro n Scott, interview with the author, March 7,1990.
14. Ro n Marks, interview with the author, March 1987.
15. Bran t Bingamon , intervie w with th e author , Marc h 8 , 1990 , empha -
sis mine.
16. To m Thornton, interview with the author, March 1987.
17. Kevi n Whitley, interview with the author, March 13,1990.
18. Bober g ha d bee n th e hea d of A&M's college radio department. "Ne w
York News"NewTorkRocker z i (August 1979): 17. Both IRS and Rockpool, th e
distribution syste m set up by Mark Josephson, applied a lesson learned from th e
independent musi c businesses in England—the value of focusing o n a specifi c
subfragment o f the youth market—in a new context: the geographi c challenge
of the United States . Distribution and publicity were the keys to the alternative
music business in the U.S. See the next chapter.
19. E d Ward, "On th e Verge with the Standin g Waves," New Tork Rocker Z7
(March 1980) : zg ; "Austi n News, " Ne w Tork Rocker 33 (November 1980) : Z9 ;
Jesse Sublett, " A View From the Stage, " Third Coast (March 1987): 36, 56-58;
Jesse Sublett, telephone intervie w with the author , Decembe r 19 , 1990 ; Joh n
Dee Graham, telephone intervie w with the author, May 2,7,1991.
zo. Joh n Croslin, interview with the author, June i, 1989.
zi. Melliss a Cobb, intervie w with th e author , Ma y 27, 1989. KO A i s the
trademark o f Kampground s o f America. This compan y rent s parkin g space s
with showe r facilitie s along major highways in the United States .
zz. Escovedo , interview .
Z3- Bingamon , interview .
Z4. Bil l Malone, Country Music USA., rev . ed. (Austin: University of Texas
Press, 1985) , pp. 36—42 .
Z5. Ibid. , p. 84.
z6. H . Stit h Bennett, O n Becoming a Rock Musician (Amherst : University of
Massachusetts Press , 1980).
27. Se e chapter 8 for a detailed discussion of this process.
28. Thes e figures come from an annual list compiled by the Austin Chronicle.
The lis t i s usually printed i n th e las t issu e of Decembe r o r th e firs t issu e o f
January each winter.
Z9. Anonymous , "Austi n Music, '81," Austin Chronicle, December 12,1981 ;
Luke Torn, "1989 Austin Discography," Austin Chronicle, January iz, 1990, p. 18.
In thes e listings , an y recording release d i n bot h th e cassett e and th e viny l o r
Z
Notes to Pages 163-7 3 / 7Z
compact dis c format is automatically included in the LP or EP category. Those
recordings release d only on cassette make up the tape category.
30. Dem o tapes ca n serve a variety of other function s as well. They can b e
used t o obtai n booking s o r t o attrac t the attentio n o f managers or publicists .
However, th e demos that are sent to record companies tend to be more extrava-
gantly produce d and , consequently , more expensive than thos e use d fo r other
purposes.
31. Mik e Hall, interview with the author, July n, 1990.
32. Se e Susan Willis, "Learning Fro m th e Banana, " American Quarterly 39
(Winter 1987): 586-600.
33. Se e Georges Bataille , "The Notio n o f Expenditure, " in Visions o f Excess:
Selected Writings, 1927-1939, ed. and trans. Alan Stoekl (Minneapolis: Univer-
sity of Minnesota Press , 1985), pp. 116—29 .
34. Cobb , interview.
35. Hall , interview.
36. Stev e Spinks, interview with the author, Marc h 1987.
37. Th e concept o f the big drum sound first entered the pop music industr y
after Le d Zeppeli n recorde d th e dru m track s for a n albu m i n a n ol d Englis h
cathedral. The echo provided b y the high ceilings and the stone walls combined
with th e expens e involve d i n thi s remot e recordin g t o produc e th e prestig e
awarded to this sound.
38. Wit h the advent of syn-drums and the increasing use of digital machines,
this ha s become les s of an issue. Big drum sounds no w can be produced wit h
ease by computer technologies, but these technologies ar e also very expensive.
39. Escovedo , interview.
40. Fo r an example of a rock'n'roll rhyth m section recorded previou s to th e
rigid enforcement of this standard, listen to any electric Bob Dylan record from
the midsixties. Garrett Williams, Steve Grimes, and Terri Lord ar e drummers in
the Austin rock'n'roll scen e who aspire to digitally precise timing i n their work.
Terri Lord, intervie w with the author, May 26,1989; Grimes, interview, March
1987; Williams, interview, March 8,1990.
41. Stuar t Sullivan , interview with the author, September 13,1990.
42. A s evidenced b y the above discussion of punching in the bass part.
43. Croslin , interview , June i, 1989. Since the time of this writing, Crosli n
has produced a n album by the Reivers , Pop Beloved, fo r DB Records .
44. Th e wor k o f Phi l Specto r remain s probably the canonica l example of
an overwhelmin g producer' s style . Mike Chapman's wor k wit h glitte r bands ,
Giorgio Morodor's work with the disco style , and Brian Eno's productions o f
postpunk ar t bands are other examples.
46. Croslin , interview , March 3,1990. Let i t Be and Pleased t o Meet Me ar e
albums by the Replacements.
47. Croslin , ibid .
48. Keit h Ayres, owner of Glitch Records and publisher of Texas Beat maga-
zine, interview with the author, July 10,1990.
49. Loui s Meyers , ban d manage r and cofounde r o f Sout h B y Southwest ,
interview with th e author, July 10,1990.
50. Spinks , musician, interview.
51. Joh n Croslin, musician and producer, interview, June i, 1989.
52. Jo e McDermott, musician and producer, interview.
53. Bran t Bingamon, musician, interview.
Notes t o Pages 173-89 I 27 3

8. The Commodification of Identity
i. Marci a Ball, quoted i n Michael Ventura, "Marcia Ball: Portrait of a Pro-
fessional," Texas Sun, May 5,1977, pp. 12—13 , zo .
2,. Rolan d Swenson, interview with the author, July 10,1990.
3. Mik e Tolleson, telephon e interview with the author , Jul y iz, 1990. See
John T . Davis, "Austin All-Stars, " Austin Sun, February 10, 1978 , pp . 16-17 ;
John T. Davis, "Mother of Pearl Takes You to the Tropics," Austin Sun, June 3,
1977, pp. 10—ii . The K-Tel s ar e self-described i n the Austin Chronicle "Musi -
cians Register " o f 198 3 as performing "updated version s o f sou l classic s and
originals" (November 25,1983, p. 2.2). For an excellent discussion of the difficul -
ties and rewards associate d with performing other people's music, see H. Stit h
Bennet, O n Becoming a Rock Musician (Amherst : Universit y of Massachusett s
Press, 1980).
4. Nick Barbaro, interview with the author, September zo, 1990.
5. Jo e Dishne r an d Nic k Barbaro , "Lette r fro m th e Publishers, " Austin
Chronicle Prototype Issue , Summer 1981, p. z. Emphasis in original.
6. Ibid .
7. Anonymous , "Readership, " Austin Chronicle Prototyp e Issue , Summe r
1981, n.p. Louis Black, interview with the author, September 17,1990.
8. "Th e 198 1 Poll : Don' t Blam e Me, I Vote d fo r Budd y Holly, " Austin
Chronicle, March 5,1981, p. 9.
9. Anonymous , "Readership, " Austin Chronicle Prototyp e Issue , Summe r
1981, n.p.
10. Increas e in jobs from Michel e Kay, "Austin Nursing Growth Hangove r
from Go-G o Years : Moderatio n come s back in style, " Austin American States-
man, September 16 , 1990, pp . Ji, J4. Incom e per capita provided by the Cit y
of Austi n Departmen t o f Planning . Comparative cost o f livin g figure s fro m
the Austi n Chambe r of Commerce Researchers ' Association, "News Release, "
December 20,1988. Price of new houses from Anonymous, "Number, Value of
Permits Issued i n August Declines," Austin American Statesman, September 17,
1990. Increas e i n downtow n renta l space provided by The Lindle y Group, a
market analysis consulting firm specializing in real estate.
11. Jame s Winton Bohmfalk , "The Austi n Chamber of Commerce: A His-
tory of the Organization and its Uses of Propaganda," Masters thesis, University
of Texas at Austin, 1968, p. z8; Kay, "Austin Nursing Growth Hangover," p. Ji.
Computer chip production wa s such a significant component of manufacturing
jobs that a chip was used in this article as the ico n representing all jobs in this
sector.
iz. Kay , "Austin Nursing Growth Hangover," p . Ji.
13. Ibid . Population figures provided by the City of Austin.
14. Enrollmen t figures from th e Offic e o f Institutiona l Studies , University
of Texas at Austin; Dowel l Myers, et al., "Quality o f Life: Austin Trends 1970 —
1990," Research Report fo r the Community and Regional Planning Program ,
School o f Architecture , Universit y of Texa s at Austin , Jun e 1984 , p . 5 . Th e
longer-lasting, mor e famou s nightclub s o f Austi n presen t exception s t o thi s
average. The Armadillo, the Soap Creek, Antone's, the Broken Spoke, and, more
recently, Libert y Lunc h eac h attained much longer lif e span s than club s such
as the Rome Inn , the One Knite, the Eleventh Door, Club Foot, or the Beach.
However, both the Soa p Cree k and Antone's change d locations twic e withi n
their lif e spans . I f that i s taken into consideration, thei r length o f residence at
each locatio n revert s back to the averag e three-year duration. The Continenta l
Notes to Pages 192-98 I 27 4

Club, whic h ha s presente d bands at the sam e location for nearly fifteen years,
has changed owner s almost every five years.
15. "Qualit y o f life" became a catch phrase in local politics in Austin during
the 19805 . Candidates fo r the city council and state legislature vowed to protec t
Austin's qualit y of life , howeve r that might be defined. One attempt t o analyze
the meanin g o f the phras e for the citizen s of Austin was Dowell Myers, et al.,
"Quality of Life."
16. Phylli s Krantzman, "Impac t o f th e Musi c Entertainment Industr y o n
Austin, Texas," Masters thesis in the Program of Community and Regional Plan-
ning, University of Texa s at Austin, 1983, pp. 9—2.6 , 72. Texas is an open sho p
state. Musician s do not nee d t o join the union i n order t o perfor m locally. I n
fact, mos t younge r rock'n'rol l musician s in Austin, particularl y those playin g
punk, new wave, or alternative music, do not join the union. The union is better
organized a t th e nationa l recordin g level , however. Man y of th e majo r label s
avoid union actions by requiring musicians to join the A.F. of M. before record-
ing. Therefore, once musicians record for a major label , or tour with a band that
records for a major label , they tend to be members of the union. Membership in
the musicians union i n Austin, Texas, then, is predicated upon a specific degre e
of commercial success .
17. Davi d Lord, "The Busines s of Local Music on High Note," Austin Busi-
ness Journal (Dec . 3i-Jan. 6, 1985), p. 20 ; Ernie Gammage, interview with th e
author, July 13,1990.
18. Lord , "Th e Busines s of Local Music."
19. Erni e Gammage , interview; Tolleson, interview; Roland Swenso n an d
Louis Meyers, interview with the author, July 10,1990.
20. Ji m Shahin , "Remember Qualit y of \JS<i>" Austin Chronicle, March 13 ,
1987, p. 10; Lord, "The Busines s of Local Music"; Stanford Researc h Institute,
"Creating an Opportunity Economy, " repor t prepared for the Austin Chambe r
of Commerce , Apri l 1985. The specifi c applicatio n of the "opportunit y econ -
omy" concept to music in Austin is discussed below.
21. Jef f Whittington and Louis Black, "Music and Commerce: Two Views,"
Austin Chronicle, November 15,1985, pp. 36—37 .
22. E d Ward , "Austi n News, " Ne w Tork Rocker 3 3 (November 1980) : 29 .
Ward's insistence upon linkin g music-making in Austin with the standards and
tastes o f th e nationa l recordin g industr y prompted Carlyn e Majer an d Dou g
Sahm to initiate a "Dump Ed Ward" bumper-sticker campaign .
23. See , fo r example, Judith Sims, "Record Industr y Profiles: Tw o Lonel y
Bulls and How They Grew,"Rolling Stone (October 12,1972): 14; Jann Wenner,
"The Recor d Compan y Executiv e Thing: Rollin g Stone Interviews Joe Smith, "
Rolling Stone (July 8,1971).
24. Th e distinctio n wa s made clear by Alvin Toffler i n 1965. "Contrast th e
output o f the non-profi t performing arts with tha t of the recordin g manufac -
turer. He, too, sell s what appears to be a performance. But it is not. It is a replica
of a performance, a mass-produced embodimen t of a performance." Quote d in
Paul Hirsch, "Processin g Fad s and Fashions: An Organization-Set Analysis of
Cultural Industry Systems, " in Frith and Goodwin, eds. , On Record: Rock, Pop
and the Written Word (Ne w York: Pantheon Books, 1990), p. 128.
25. Th e mode l fo r Horkheime r an d Adorno' s metapho r was , again , th e
motion pictur e industry . Se e "The Cultur e Industry : Enlightenmen t a s Mass
Deception," Dialectic of Enlightenment, trans. John Gumming (New York: Con -
tinuum Press , 1987; orig. 1944) , pp. 120-67 . Paul Hirsch, Th e Structure of the
Popular Music Industry (An n Arbor : Surve y Researc h Center , 1969); R. Serg e
Notes t o Pages 198-20 4 / 27 5

Denisoffi, Solid Gold: The Popular Record Industry (Ne w Brunswick: Transaction
Books, 1975) ; Richard Peterso n an d David Berger, "Cycles in Symbol Produc -
tion: The Cas e of Popula r Music," American Sociological Review z (1975): 158 —
73; Simon Frith , Sound Effects: Youth, Leisure and the Politics ofRock'n'Roll (Ne w
York: Pantheon Books , 1981); and "The Industrializatio n o f Music," Music For
Pleasure (Ne w York : Routledge , 1988) . I n "Th e Industrializatio n o f Music, "
Frith say s that "th e industrializatio n of music cannot b e understood a s some-
thing that happens to music, since it describes a process in which music itself is
made." I hope that my work has shown that industrialization is precisely some-
thing that happens to music-making. While it is absolutely true that rock'n'rol l
as we know i t woul d no t exis t without th e recordin g industry , tha t fac t doe s
not authoriz e the subsumptio n o f all the use s and pleasures of popular music-
making under th e functions and values of that particula r organization. I n fact ,
some o f the mos t importan t pleasure s of rock'n'roll ru n counte r t o th e goal s
and intention s o f al l industrial organization. A s Hirsch himsel f pointed out ,
studies using the organization-set paradigm "seldom inquire into the functions
performed b y the organizatio n fo r th e socia l system but as k rather, as tempo -
rary partisans, how the goals of the organization may be constrained by society.
The organizatio n i s assumed to ac t under condition s o f rationality. . . . " Th e
Parsonian language and the assumption of a single "social system" should warn
us tha t ver y importan t matter s ar e being lef t unconsidered . Hirsch , i n Frit h
and Goodwin, On Record, p. 12.8 . See also Denisoff, especiall y chapter 4, "Th e
Cop-Out: Inside the Record Company," pp. 144—2.15 .
2.6. Loui s Black, et al., "Austin Music: Behin d the Scenes," Austin Chronicle,
November 16,1984 , pp. i, 6—9.
2.7. Gammage , interview.
2.8. Whittingto n and Black, "Music and Commerce," p . 36.
Z9. Austi n Musi c Advisory Committee , "Austi n Music : Int o th e Future, "
report to the Austin Chamber of Commerce, May 1985, p. ii. Page numbers for
subsequent citation s will be given in the text.
30. O f course, th e onl y "music industry" that generate d these kind s of in -
come figures was the national recording industry.
31. Jopli n move d bac k to Texa s in 196 5 an d performe d regularly in Beau-
mont, Houston, and Austin for another year. She moved again to San Francisco
to join Big Brother on May 30,1966. Myra Friedman, Buried Alive: The Biogra-
phy o f JanisJoplin (Ne w York: Bantam Books, 1974) , pp. 54 , 78. Alrich, quoted
in Diana Potts, "Dog Day s at the 'Dillo,'" Texas Sun, December 9,1977, p. 17;
Bobby Bridger, "Rusty Weir,"River City Sun, September 15,1978, pp. Z3—24 .
32.. Ja y Boberg , Jonatha n Dayton , Valeri e Paris , Carlo s Grasso , prods. ,
"Austin Avalanche of Rock and Roll," The Cutting Edge ( 1985). All the followin g
quotes are taken from the program aired on MTV in the fall of that year.
33. Se e Sara h Wimer, "Timbu k 3 : Th e Famil y tha t Play s Togethe r Stay s
Together," Austin Chronicle, August 15 , 1986, p. 16, for an early history of th e
band. Carlyne Majer credited Ed Guinn with packaging Timbuk 3 for the record-
ing industr y whe n I interviewe d he r o n Septembe r 17 , 1990 . Guin n himsel f
says only that h e "heard qualit y songs, a n acerbic, beatnik sensibility." And i n
turn, he taught the m ho w to be a band. Ed Guinn, interview with the author ,
June 19,1991.
34. Rober t Draper , "The Ne w Sobriety: Austin Music Meets the Industry, "
Austin Chronicle, July 4, 1986, p . 2.8 . The articl e quoted "anonymous industr y
figures."
35. Bruc e Newman , "Lowe r th e Age , Shrin k the Audience : A Disastrou s
Equation fo r Austin Clubs?'M«rfm Chronicle, September 12,1986, p. 17.
Notes to Pages 204—13 / 2.76

36. Loui s Black , "Ch-Ch-Changes, an Interview with Louis Meyers," Austin
Chronicle, December 18,1987, p. 15; Swenson, interview.
37. Loui s Black , Michael Hall, E. A. Srere, eds., 19 90 Austin Music Industry
Guide (Austin: Austin Chronicle Corporation, 1990) . The table of contents lists
twenty-eight categorie s includin g separate listings for "Producer s an d Soun d
Engineers" and "Sound, Lighting and Staging" (p. 3). For an example of listin g
inflation conside r Jeff Tartakov's two listings . One i s for his artist management
company, Stress Worldwide Communications. The othe r i s for a service called
Austin Mealfinders . "Fo r tourin g act s who don't know where to eat . Mexican
food, witt y conversation , Danie l Johnston updates/anecdote s for cost o f on e
extra meal " (p . 8) . Th e 198 4 recor d compan y figures in thi s compariso n ca n
be found in Chri s Walters and Brent Grulke, "Austin's Recor d Labels," Austin
Chronicle, November 16,1984, p. 19. Other 1984 figures derive from Louis Black,
et al., "Austin Music: Behind the Scenes." The names and the phone numbers of
the majo r recor d labe l representatives are listed in E. A. Srere, "Austin Recor d
Labels: The List" Austin Chronicle, Decembers, 1989, p. 15.
38. Whittingto n and Black, "Music and Commerce," p. 37.
39. Kay , "Austin Nursin g Growth Hangover, " p. Ji. Cooke quoted in, and
the foru m reporte d in , Shery l Martin, "Mayora l Candidate s Se e Mone y i n
Music,"Austin Chronicle, May 6,1988, p. 8.
40. Gerr y Wood, "Th e Cit y of Austin: No Musical Limits," Billboard, Sep-
tember 9,1989 , p. 42. . L . E . McCullough, "Agents , Managers , and Attorneys:
New Ban d of Professional s Surge Ahead with th e Music, " Billboard, Septem -
ber 9 , 1989, p . A-4; Michael Point, "On e o f the Mos t Music-Intensiv e Cities
in America Today, Austin, Texas Is a Cool-Flowing Natural Spring of Refresh-
ingly Original Record-Ready Talent for the World. Now There's a Strong Local
Industry Rallyin g Around the Sound," Billboard, September 9,1989, p. A-1.
41. Gammage , interview.
42,. Tolleson , telephon e interview.
43. Frith , Sound Effects, p . 159.
44. Ki m Longacre, intervie w with th e author , Jun e ^, 1989; Loui s Black,
interview with the author , Septembe r 17,1990; Craig Lee, "The Fall, " Slash 3,
no. i (Jan./Feb. 1980): 34.
45. Bu t within th e competitiv e industrial system of the recording business
a relativel y high leve l o f economi c suppor t i s necessary . By 1990, Rabi d Ca t
was ou t o f business . Al l quote s fro m recor d compan y owners a s well a s th e
generalization are from Robert Lucey, "Home-Grown: Loca l Recording Labels
Promote th e Music Austin Loves," Images, Daily Texan, June 2.0,1988, p. i.
46. Kat e Messer, telephone interview with the author, August 13,1990. The
following quotes ar e taken from the same interview.
47. Mauree n Tucke r was the drumme r fo r th e Velve t Underground . Fea -
turing John Cale, Sterling Morrison , Lou Reed, an d Tucker, th e Velvets wer e
a very important ban d fro m th e sixties . They blende d a n urban artisti c sensi-
bility with undisciplined rock'n'roll immediacy . They have become perhaps the
most influential American band among "alternative" musicians. For detailed in-
formation, se e any issue of What Goes On, "the officia l magazin e of the Velvet
Underground Appreciatio n Society. "
48. Th e descriptio n o f Jeff' s initia l encounters with Happ y Famil y com e
from a n interview with Julia Austin, September 13,1990.
49. Th e Bril l Building hel d a se t o f office s an d studio s wher e man y suc-
cessful songwriter s worke d fo r variou s publishers during th e earl y sixties . By
referring t o 61 1 Broadway as the Indi e Bril l Building, Kate is highlighting th e
concentration of these music businesses at one address.
Notes to Pages 213-22 / 27 7

50. Austin , interview.
51. A copy of the a d can be found in What Goes On 4 (1990): 72.
52. J o Rae DiMenno, interview with th e author , Septembe r 18,1991 . The
following quotes are also taken from this interview.
53. Gian t an d Chrysali s are subdivisions of major label s that hav e targeted
the alternativ e market. Rough Trade had no such affiliation and , as of this writ-
ing, ha s just declared Chapter VII bankruptcy.
54. Bren t Grulke, interview with the author , March 7, 1990. Unless other -
wise indicated, all quotes ar e from thi s interview. Brent and I have known each
other sinc e 1984. We have had man y late-night drunken conversations abou t
the meanin g of rock'n'roll , bu t th e conversatio n I recorde d o n tap e took o n
the structure of an ethnographic interview, with me asking questions about th e
meaning of certai n terms he used and particular actions he had taken . A t th e
same time, Bren t played off o f the fac t tha t we had alread y talked about thes e
issues severa l times. A t on e poin t h e dismisse d m y questionin g with , "Sub -
culture, subculture . It's al l subculture, Barry. You know that." Afte r a nod t o
Professor Hebdige , w e continued the interview.
55. Fro m m y notes take n during the meetin g o f the Music Editorial Staff ,
September 18,1990 .
56. Michae l Corcoran, "Don't You Start Me Talking" Austin Chronicle, Au-
gust 15, 1986, p. 17.
57. Ibid. , February 27,1987, p. 14.
58. I n 1993 , th e conferenc e moved it s panel s and workshop s t o th e ne w
Austin Convention Center.
59. Dre w Wheeler, "New Musi c Seminar: Getting Might y Crowded," New
TorkRocker^z (Octobe r 1980) , p. 7.
60. Swenson , interview . The Ne w Musi c Semina r refer s t o itsel f a s "th e
world's premie r international musi c industry convention" i n its advertisement
in the SXSW'9o booklet .
61. Rolan d Swenson and Louis Meyers, interview, July 10,1990. The narra-
tive of the earl y days of SXSW comes largely from thi s interview.
62. Michae l Corcoran , "Don' t Yo u Star t M e Talking, " Austin Chronicle,
March 27,1987, p. 18.
63. "Intimacy " fro m Chri s Morris, writer for Billboard, quoted i n Michael
MacCambridge, "SXS W Strike s Golden Chor d wit h Musi c Industry, " Austin
American-Statesman, March n, 1990, p. A-io; "Grass-roots orientation " fro m
Louis Meyers, interview; Swenson, interview.
64. Thor n Duffy , "Growin g SXS W Shines in Austin," Billboard, March 31,
1990, p. 8.
65. A ful l lis t o f th e panel s i s published i n th e bookle t fo r th e Sout h b y
Southwest Music and Media Conference '90.
66. Swenson , interview.
67. Fro m my notes taken during the conference. Unless otherwise indicated,
the quote s ar e from member s of the panel . All quotes fro m othe r panel s were
acquired in the same fashion.
68. Christga u is a music critic for the Village Voice. Sometimes referred to a s
"the dean of American rock critics," Christgau edits the Voice's annua l "Pazz and
Jop Poll," writes a regular "Consumer Guide, " and has published several books
of his criticism.
69. Simo n Frit h reporte d o n th e Controvers y pane l in his "Brit Beat " col-
umn i n the Village Voice, April 24,1990. He describe d it as "an angry argument
about censorship. " The ange r evidenced in the pane l came from Ji m Fourrat' s
attack on antiga y lyric s in some ra p songs, followed by a defense of rap against
Z
Notes t o Pages 222-37 I 7%
racialist censorship motives . I n general , the pane l and the audienc e supporte d
more speech as the answer to bad speech, and the open market as the direct and
important resul t of the commitment t o free speech.
9. The Continuing Importanc e of Musicalized Experience

i. Th e quoted statement s ar e reconstructed fro m th e notes I too k durin g
the busride .
z. Se e chapter z and Mikhail Bakhtin, Rabelais and His World, trans . Helene
Iswolsky (Bloomington : Indian a Universit y Press , 1984 ; orig . 1968) ; Pete r
Burke, Popular Culture i n Early Modern Europe. (Ne w York: Harpe r & Row ,
1978); Barbara Babcock, ed., The Reversible World (Ithac a and London: Cornel l
University Press , 1978; and Alessandr o Falassi, ed., Time out of Time: Essays o n
the Festival (Albuquerque : New Mexico Press, 1987).
3. Se e chapter 3.
4. Marci a Ball , quoted i n Michael Ventura, "Marcia Ball: Portrai t o f a Pro-
fessional," Texas Sun, May 5,1977, pp. 11-13, zo.
5. Ja n Reid , The Improbable Rise of Redneck Roek (Austin : Heidelber g Pub -
lishers, 1974), p. 10; Hugh Cullen Sparks, "Stylistic Development an d Compo-
sitional Processes of Selected Sol o Singer/Songwriter s i n Austin, Texas," Ph.D .
diss., University of Texas at Austin, May 1984, pp. 5z, 43; Kevin Whitley, inter-
view with the author, Marc h 13,1990.
6. E d Guinn, interview with the author, June 19,1991; Hank Alrich, quoted
in Diana Potts, "Dog Day s at the 'Dillo?'" Texas Sun, December 9,1977, p. 17.
7. Bren t Grulke, interview with the author, March 7,1990.
8. To m Carson, "Ceremonie s o f the Horsemen," New York Rocker i, no. 1 0
(Nov./Dec., 1977) : 43.
9. Frith , Sound Effects: Youth, Leisure and the Politics of Rock'n'Roll (Ne w York:
Pantheon Books , 1981) , p. 159.
10. Loui s Black , intervie w wit h th e author , Septembe r 17 , 1990 ; Joh n
Croslin, interview with the author, March 3,1990.
11. Loui s Meyers , ban d manage r an d cofounde r o f Sout h b y Southwest ,
interview with the author, July 10,1990.
ia. E d Guinn , intervie w wit h th e author , Jun e 19 , 1990 ; Kevi n Whitley,
interview, March 13,1990; Brant Bingamon, interview with the author, March 8,
1990; Croslin, interview, March 3,1990.
13. Th e relation s betwee n th e Marxis t understanding o f commodit y an d
the Freudia n understanding o f symptom have recently been explored by Slavoj
Zizck i n Th e Sublime Object o f Ideology (Londo n an d Ne w York : Verso Books ,
1989).
Notes to Pages 23 7-51 / 2.7 9

Selected Bibliography
NEWSPAPERS
Austin American Daily Texan
Austin American-Statesman New York Herald-Tribune
Austin Business Journal New Tork Times
Austin Chronicle River City Sun
Austin Sun Texas Sun
Boston Evening Transcript Third Coast
Boston Herald Village Voice
Chicago Tribune
MUSIC MAGAZINE S AN D FANZINE S

Austin Vanguard Rumors, Gossip, Lies and Dreams
Billboard Slash
New Tork Rocker Trouser Press
Rolling Stone
BOOKS, ARTICLES , VIDEO S

Adorno, Theodo r W . Introduction t o th e Sociology o f Music. Ne w York : Con -
tinuum Press, 1988.
. "On th e Fetis h Character o f Music and the Regression o f Listening."
In Th e Essential Frankfurt School Reader, ed. Arato an d Gebhardt. New York:
Continuum, 1982.
and Georg e Simpson . "O n Popula r Music." Studies in Philosophy an d
Social Science 9 (1941), pp. 17—48 .
Allen, Jule s Verne. Cowboy Lore. San Antonio: Naylor Printing Company , 1933.
Attali, Jacques. Noise: The Political Economy of Music, trans. Brian Massumi. Min -
neapolis: University of Minnesota Press , 1985.
Babbitt, Milton. "Who Care s if You Listeny High Fidelity (Februar y 1958), pp.
38—40,126—17.
Babcock, Barbara , ed . Th e Reversible World. Ithaca : Cornel l University Press ,
1978.
Bakhtin, Mikhail. Rabelais and His World, trans. Helene Iswolsky. Bloomington:
Indiana University Press, 1984.
Selected Bibliography I 2.8 1

Barlow, William. Looking Up at Down: The Emergence o f Blues Culture. Philadel-
phia: Temple University Press, 1989.
Barthes, Roland. Th e Responsibility o f Forms, trans. Richard Howard. Ne w York:
Hill and Wang, 1985.
Bataille, Georges. Visions o f Excess: Selected Writings, 15)27-1938 , ed. an d trans .
Alan Stoekl. Minneapolis: Universit y of Minnesota Press , 1985.
Bauman, Richard Story, Performance, an d Event: Contextual Studies of Oral Nar-
rative. Cambridge, Mass. : Cambridge University Press, 1986.
Bennett, H . Stith . O n Becoming a Rock Musician. Amherst: University of Mas-
sachusetts Press, 1980.
Black, Louis , Michae l Hall, an d E . A . Srere , eds . 199 0 Austin Music Industry
Guide. Austin: Austin Chronicle Corporation, 1990 .
Bluestein, Gene . Th e Voice o f th e Folk. Amherst : Universit y o f Massachusett s
Press, 1972.
Boberg, Jay, Jonathan Dayton, Valerie Paris, Carlos Grasso, prods. "The Austi n
Avalanche of Rock and Roll." "The Cuttin g Edge," 1985.
Bohmfalk, Jame s Winton. "The Austi n Chambe r of Commerce: A History of
the Organizatio n an d its Uses of Propaganda. " Master' s Thesis, University
of Texas at Austin, 1968.
Brand, Oscar. The Ballad Mongers: Rise of the Modern Folk Song. New York : Funk
& Wagnalls, 1962.
Burke, Peter . Popular Culture in Early Modern Europe. Ne w York : Harper &
Row, 1978 .
Charters, Samuel . The Country Blues. New York: Rinehart, 1959.
Clark, Kennet h S . Th e Cowboy Sings Songs o f the Ranch and Range. New York :
Paull-Pioneer Music Corporation, 1932 .
Clifford, James, and George Marcus, eds. Writing Culture. Berkeley: University
of California Press, 1986.
Congo, Paul, Martha Herzog, and Tary Owens, prods . A Texas Blues Reunion,
1989.
Debord, Guy. Society o f the Spectacle. Detroit : Blac k & Red Press, 1983.
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INTERVIEWS
Julia Austin. Musician , Happy Family . September 13,1990 .
Keith Ayres . Publisher , Texas Beat; recor d compan y owner, Glitc h Records .
July jo, 1990.
Nick Barbara . Publisher , Austin Chronicle; co-director , Sout h b y Southwest .
September zi , 1990.
Brant Bingamon. Musician, Pocket FishRmen. March 8,1990.
Louis Black . Editor , Austin Chronicle; co-director , Sout h b y Southwest . Sep -
tember 17,1990.
Marcia Buffington. Fan , ex-manager, Doctors' Mob. March 10,1990.
Lisa Byrd. Sound engineer , record producer. March 14,1990.
Steve Chaney. Musician, fan, bartender, ex-club owner. March 8,1990.
Steve Chapman. Musician, The Texas Instruments. March 1987.
Mellissa Cobb . Musician, Ho i Polloi ; ex-Blac k Spring . Marc h 1987 , Ma y 27,
1989.
John Croslin . Musician , Reivers/Zeitgeist ; recor d producer . Jun e i , 1989 ,
March 3,1990.
Hunter Darby. Musician, Wannabes. March 5,1990.
Jo Rae DiMenno. Publicist, booking agent. September 18,1990.
Aina Dodge. Fan. March 5,1990.
Josh Ellinger. Fan. March iz, 1990.
Becky Escamilla. Musician, Trance Farmers; ex-Black Spring. March, 1987.
Alejandro Escovedo. Musician , Buick McKane, Alejandro Escovedo Orchestra ,
ex-True Believers. March 7,1990.
Maki Fife. Fan . March, 1987.
Hugh Forrest. Journalist, Austin Chronicle. March 6,1990.
Ernie Gammage . President , Austi n Musi c Industr y Council ; pas t president ,
Texas Music Association; ex-musician . July 13,1990.
Gilbert Garcia. Fan. March 9,1990.
Jon De e Graham . Musician, solo songwriter , guitarist , ex-Tru e Believer, Lift ,
Skunks. Telephone, Ma y 27,1991.
Steve Grimes. Musician, Grains of Faith, ex-Black Spring. March 1987.
Brent Grulke. Sound engineer ; journalist, Austin Chronicle. March 7,1990.
Ed Guinn . Producer , engineer , an d owner , Lon e Sta r Studios ; musician , ex-
Conqueroo. Telephone, June 19,1991.
Mike Hall . Journalist , Austin Chronicle; musician , the Michae l Hall Band , ex-
Wild Seeds. Jul y n, 1990.
Dianne Hardin. Fan . March 10,1990.
Dan Heyman. Fan . March 1987.
Tom Huckabee . Vide o producer ; ex-musician , Huns , Re'Cords . Telephone ,
December 15,1990 .
Judy Jamison. Fan. March 14,1990.
Mark Kenyon. Musician, Trouser Trout, Jaws of Life , ex-Blac k Spring. Marc h
1987-
Kim Longacre. Musician , Reivers/Zeitgeist. June z, 1989, March 6,1990.
Terri Lord. Musician, Hoi Polloi. June i, 1989.
Joe McDermott. Producer, musician, Grains of Faith. March 7,1990.
Kathy McTee. Fan. July n, 1990.
Carlyne Majer. Manager, ex-club owner. September 14,1990.
Bill Malone. Musician , the folksin g a t Threadgill's; historia n of country music.
Undated lette r responding t o written questions, receive d spring 1991.
Ron Marks. Musician, The Texas Instruments. Marc h 1987.
Yleana Martinez. Fan . June 4, i99z.
Amy Mattingly. Fan. March 13,1990.
Kate Messer . Recor d compan y owner , 50,000,000,000,000,00 0 Watts . Tele-
phone, August 10,1990.
Louis Meyers. Manager, co-director of South by Southwest. Jul y 10, 1990.
Sdected Bibliography I z8 6
Heather Moore. Musician, Grains of Faith. March 5,1990.
Jeff Nightbyrd . Editor , Austin Sun; journalist, AustinChronicle. September 18 ,
1990.
Tary Owens . Recor d compan y owner, Catfish Records ; ex-musician . Decem -
ber 18,1990.
George Rieff. Musician, Big House. March 1987.
Dave Roberts. Fan. March 1987.
Byron Scott. Graphics artist; musician, Do Dat. March 7,1990.
Steve Spinks. Musician, Big House, ex-Dharma Bums. March 1987.
Jesse Sublett. Musician, ex-Skunk s and many others. Telephone , Decembe r 19 ,
1990.
Patrice Sullivan. Musician, ex-Hundredth Monkey . March 1987.
Stuart Sullivan . Recording engineer , producer. Septembe r 14,1990.
Jennifer Summers . Musician, Grains of Faith. March 1987.
Roland Swenson . Manager , co-director, South by Southwest. Jul y 10,1990.
Tom Thornton. Musician, The Way-Outs. March 1987.
Mike Tolleson . Attorney ; ex-president , Texas Music Association; co-founder ,
Armadillo World Headquarters. Telephone, Jul y 12,1990.
Luke Torn. Journalist, Austin Chronicle. March 8,1990.
Joanne Weinzierl. Fan. March 1987.
Kevin Whitley. Musician, Ed Hall. March 13,1990.
Garrett Williams . Musician, Reivers/Zeitgeist. March 8,1990.
David Woody. Musician, The Texas Instruments. March 1987.
Selected Bibliography I z87

Index
abject, 119,135—36,160, 267^0 Austin Music Advisory Committee ,

Abrahams, Roger, 4 0 202—zo8, 213
AC/DC, 18 6 Austin Music Awards, 182
adolescence, 133—36,149—50,169114 0 Austin Music Industry, the construction
Adorno, Theodor, 203 of, 198-218
Adventures of a Ballad Hunter, 2 1 Austin Music Industry Council, 215—17
aesthetics, musical, 145 Austin Music Industry Guide, 214—15 ,
affective alliance , 71 277H37
Alexander, Stan, 39—40, 52 Austin Opera House , 1 0
Allen, Jules Vern, 27-28, 33 Austin Sun (aka , River City Sun, The Sun,
Alrich, Hank, 9, 84-85, 88,165, 2.07 Texas Sun), 8 , 66,100,194—96
alternative music network, 218—13 , 229 — authenticity, 2 9
30 Autry, Gene, 30
Andrews, John ("Toad"), 46, 50, 54
anticommercial, 61, 65, 243 Baez, Joan, 45
Antone, Clifford , 15 , 82-83, Ball, Marcia, 66, 72, 83, 84, 85, 86-88,
Antone's (the club), 15, 75, 82, 240, 149,183
274ni4 band, as concept, 136,140-4 1
Arlyn Studios, 10,176—79 Barbaro, Nick, 108,115,194, 231, 248
Armadillo Productions, 53 , 84-85, 26in3i Barton, Lo u Ann, 183
Armadillo Special Interest Group, 77 basic tracks, 179-80
Armadillo World Headquarters, 8,15,16, Baudrillard, Jean, 69
20, 54, 56, 71, 76—80, 88,104,189, Beach, 7, 209, 211 , 274ni4
191,193, 218, 248, 263n29, 264n5i, Beattie, Brian, 154
I74ni4 Bell, Rusty, 57
Asleep at the Wheel, 66, 76 Bell,T. D.,7 2
Austin, history of, 6—8,10—12,196—98 Benson, Willie, 39—40
Austin, Julia, 140,148, 221 Betrock, Alan, 95-96
"Austin Avalanch e of Rock and Roll," 146 Big Boys, 3,119
Austin Ballet Theater, 56 "Big Penis Envy," 113,114,147
Austin Chamber of Commerce, 8 , n, 17, Billboard, 33, 203; spotlight issue on
197—202, 210, 218, 231 Austin music industry, 216—18
Austin Chronicle, 3,115,194—96, 204, 209, Bingamon, Brant, 137,167
213, 214, 227—28, 248 Birmingham Centre fo r Contemporary
Austin Cit y Limits, 20 0 Cultural Studies , 133,2.67nn
Austin Interchangeable Band, 60—61, Black, Louis, 3, 74, 97, 98—99,100, ir6,
244, 245 194, 215, 231, 248, 254n4
Index I 2.8 9
Black Spring, 155,15 7 Daily Texan, 8,98, 99,101,109,194
bluegrass music, 40-41 Darby, Hunter, 126,149-50, z68niy
blues, xiii, iz, 31, 76, 83, 2.49, 2.561130, Day-job, i6z, 163—66
2.581130 Dean, Marilyn, 99—100
Boberg, Jay, 169, zjzniS Delinquents, the, 116,171
Bowser, Erbie , 72. demo tapes, 173—74, Z73n3o
Brand, Oscar, 40 "Desperados Waiting for a Train," 63 -
Bridger, Bobby, 84, 89, zo7 64,Z46
Bridgewater, Steve, z, 107-10 detournement, 106,109, z65n8
Bromley Contingent, 93-9 4 Dharma Bums, 7,157, zn
Brown, Bob, 45—46 , 70 DiMenno, Jo Rae, zi8, zz4—27
Buffalo Gals , 119,12.0,154 Disco, 79-8z, z63mi35 and 39
Buffington, Marcia , IZ3,125,133,135 Dishner, Joe, 194
Buntline, Ned, Z3 Dobie, J . Frank, z8, Z9
Butthole Surfers, 6,119,176 Doctors' Mob, 7,127,157,184, zn
buzz, i6z, ZZ3-30 do-it-yourself, 119,148, Z47
Dorsett, Richard , 3, 97, 99,104,108,
Capitol Records, 5Z 2-54114
Cardwell, Dave, 97 Draper, Robert, 115, ziz
carnival, as cultural practice and tradition , Duke's Royal Coach Inn , to, 116,191
34-37, Z59n39
carnivalesque, 12,8, Z4i—4 Z Ed Hall, 13-14,140,143,150,183
Carrasco, Joe King, 116, 209—10 Eleventh Door, the, 15, 45, Z74ni4
Carson, Tom, 95 Ely, Joe , 83-84, 86, 87, i8z, 196
Chancy, Steve, 90,106 Erickson, Roky, 49
Chenier, Clifton, 8z-83 Escovedo, Alejandro, 140,157,165,171
Chequered Flag, 8,10,15, 46 ethnography, xi-xii, Z53ii5
Chlorine, zzi-zz
Clark, W.C., 71 Fabulous Thunderbirds, 75, 76, 83, 86,
Clay, John, 40, 41, 45, Z43 i8z, 196
Club Foot, 10,119, Z74ni4 Fife, Maki, 127,131,133
Cobb, Mellissa , 116,12,3,155—57,170— 50 Skadillion Watts, 219—zz
71,174 Flatlandcrs, 84
Cobras, the, 67, 71, 83, 85, 86 Flippo, Chet, 191
Coe, Davi d Allen, 70 folklore, zo—z z
Conqueroo, 14 , 46—47, 50, 70, 72, z6in3i Folk Sing, the, 41, 47, z6oni6
Continental Club, 119, 213, Z4O , 248 , folksinging, 40 , 43—45 , 242—4 3
Z74ni4 Foster, J. D., 224-2 5
Cooke, Lee , zi5, Z3i Fox, Oscar, 28, 29
Corcoran, Michael, zz8-Z9, Z3 Z Franklin, Jim, 4, 51, 55, 65, 254n6
cosmic cowboy, 8,16, zo, 61, 67, 68—69, Franklin, Randy, 97
71,77-79,90 Freeman, Denny, 75
country and western music, xiii, 33—37 Freud, Sigmund, 128 , 268nn24—25
cowboy lore, zo, 2.6 , 37 Frith, Simon, 81, 96,133, 204, 218, 227,
cowboy songs, xiii , 16, zo—z8 247, Z76nz5 , Z78n69
Cowboy Songs and Other Frontier Ballads, Fromholtz, Steve , 66, 70, 84
21, zz, Z4
Crews, Bert, 108—109 Gammage, Ernie, ix, 193,198—203, 204-
Croslin, John, 18—19, 123, J3^, J39, 1 4°, Z05, zi6-i7 , Z78n69
I4I-4Z, 148,153,166-67,170,183-86 Gatekeepers, i6z, 175, Z49, 264^3
Crow, Alvin , 72, 84, 264^4 Gavin, Ty, 104, 236
Cutting Edge, 146,148,157, zo8—iz Gilmorc, Jimmie Dale, 84
Index I Z9< D
"Glad He' s Dead, " 107, in—12, 114, "It Wasn't God Who Made Honky-Ton k
147,146 Angels," 36
Glass Eye, 154,157, 211
Gonzalez, Joseph, Jr., 2, 102,104,109—10 Jade Room, 8,15
Gracey, Joe, 58 Jameson, Fredric , 69
Grains of Faith, 138,143-45 Jamison, Judy, 164
Green, Archie, 64, z$4n6 Jennings, Waylon, 10, 68-69, 84
"Green Gro w th e Lilacs," z8—3 0 Johnston, Daniel , 153—59 , 212, 2710105
Greezy Wheels, 72, 86 Joplin, Janis, 40—41, 42—43 , 47, 50, 207
Grimes, Steve, 145 Josephson, Mark, 230-31, 272ni8
Grossberg, Larry , 133
Grulke, Brent, 218, 22.7—2.8, 278054 Kaye, Lenny, 91—92
Guinn, Ed, 43—45 , 46, 47, 50, 212, 243, Kennedy, Rod, 46
2761133 King, Freddie, 72
Kittredge, George Lyman , 22
Half-Price Books, 166 KOKE, 57 , 86
Hall, Michael, 115, izo—2.1,140,173, Krantzman, Phyllis, 199, 203
TJS,1?6 Kristeva, Julia, 134—35,160, 253^,
Hall, Ted, 238-3 9 2.6j<t\40, 268n332 , 269nn4O and 4 3
Hallcy, David, 225—2 6
Hancock, Butch, 84, 86,196 Lacan, Jacques, x, 122,129—32,134,159,
Happy Family, 4,140, 220—2.3 268n26
Hardin, Dianne, 121-22 LeRoi Brothers , 119
Harvey, David, 134 Liberty Lunch, 15,17—18 , 213, 240, 248
Hebdige, Dick, 94,133, 267nn Lipscomb, Mance, 45, 260017
Hedderman, Bobbie , 9, 77 Lipsitz, George, 69
Helms, Chet, 43, 50 Littlefield, Ira, 46
hillbilly music, xii, 32.—33, 39 Lockett, Sandy, 50
Hirsch, Paul, 203—204, 275n25 Lomax, John Avery, xiii, 21-28, 29, 31,
Hobsbawm, Eric, 27 257017
Hoi Polloi , 17 4 Looe Star Studios, 176
Hole in the Wall, T, 15, 240, 254ni Longacre, Kim, ix, x, 19,116,122,123,
"Home on the Range," 28—2 9 12.4,12,6,127,133,138,148,151-52,
homosocial Utopia , 26, 30, 34, 36 166, 25301
honky-tonk, xiii, 34—37, 64—65, 80,192 Lord, David, 199-203, 210, 231
honky-tonk culture, xii, 116-18, 241-42, Lost Gooz o Band , 62—64, 7 Z > 86
259036 Lyotard, Francois, 69
honky-tonk economy, 15,198
Hootenany Hoots, 45, 83, 260019 McCarty, Kathy, 154,183
Howlin' Wolf, 182 McCoy, Joseph, 23, 256ny
Huckabee, Tom, 97,104,105 McDermott, Joe , 137-38,143-45,146>
Huns, 2—3 , 98,105—10, in, 114,147, 152-53, r66, 270068
194, 246 McLaren, Malcolm, 93,100-101,147,
26504
identification, 129,131—36 , 243, 250, McRobbic, Angela, 133
268nn24 and 29, 269n4o McTee, Kathy, 235—36
identity, x, 9,10, 57, 59, 61, 67—69, 89— Majewski, Carlyne (aka Carlyne Majer),
90,112,129,173—74,188,192, 245, 72,85,88, 276033
248-51, 268032 Majewski, George, 72 , 85
Imaginary, xiv, 130—31,134,139,148,153, "make-it," the desire to, 187-88, 248-49
159-61 Malone, Bill, 35, 39, 41, 259^6
Inner Sanctum , 3, 97, 99,104 Marcus, Scott, 154
Index I 2,9 1
Marks, Ron, 12.6,133,167, z68ni9 physicality of music, iz8
mass culture, 94—95 Pocket FishRmen, 137, zz o
Maynard, Ken, 30 Police, the, 169—70
Meat Joy, 119,155 populism, 168—6 9
Mellon, Ed, 39—4 0 postmodernism, 69,11 7
Messer, Kate, zi9-z3, zjjn^t) producer, the, 183—87 , Z73n44
Mexican Revolution, z , ioz progressive country, 3, 8,15—16, 57, 59,
Meyer, Leonard, 12.6, 231 64, 66—67, 70, 75, 80, 90,115, Z44—45 ,
Meyers, Louis, 116, 213, 218 2-55019
"Millionaire's House," 143,145 Prohibition, 38-3 9
mis-recognition, 1x9,130-3 1 psychoanalysis an d identity, iz9—3 6
Moore, Heather, 138,140 Puckett, Dan, 98,108, in
Morales, Bobby, 108,109 punk, xiii, z-3, 7,15,17, zo, 48, 93-95,
Moser, Margaret , 115,195 98,100—loz, 105,115,147—48, igz;
MTV, 146,148,157—58 , 208—12 . as anti-authoritarian, 106-107; as
Muddy Waters, 83,182 performance art, no
Munoz, Eddie , 99—100,102 , z66nz5
Murphey, Michael, 14,16, 60—6z, 70, 79, Ramones, z , 9z—93, 95,104
84, 89, ziz, Z44 Randy's Rodeo, TOO-IOI
music industry infrastructure, 15-17, Rank & File, 140,17 0
189—90, 237, Z5O , Z53nz , Z75ni6, Ratliff, John , 14 5
z?6nz5 Raul's, i—z , 15, loz—17, izz—Z3,191—92,
musical construction of community, 9 , Z36, Z48, z66nz3
izo-zz Ray, Paul, 67,71,75, 76, 85, 86
recording: the proces s of , 172—83; record -
Napier, Alex, 71, 72 ing studio, 175—79, I^3,185
narcissism, 12.9,131 Re 'Cords, z, 98,113-14
Neely, Bill, 41, 45 redneck rock , 8, 78
Nelson, Willie, 9,10,14,16, 59—60, 65, 66 Reid, Jan, 57, 59, 70-71,191, Z55nni8
70, yz, 75,76, 79, 86, 89,147,149, zo; and zi
New Musi c Seminar, Z3O—32 Reivers, th e (se e also Zeitgeist), r8 —
New Orleans Club, 8,15 , 48 19,138
New Sincerity, izo, 148—49,157, zog, Replacements, the , 184,18 5
Z49, 27in84 rhythm, 12.5—z 6
New York Rocker, 95,97,170 rhythm section, 178—80 , Z73nn37—3 8
Next, the, 104,194, Z36 and 40
Nightcrawlers, 75, 76 Richardson, Joel , 98—99
Nunn, Gary P., 50 Richman, Jonathan, 3 , 99
Rieff, George, tz6, z68ni5
Offenders, z , 3 Ritter, Woodward Mauric e ("Tex") ,
Olson, Carla, 99—100,103—104, z66nz 7 2-9-3°
Omar and the Howlers, 83 Roberts, Dave, iz7
One Knite , the, 75, 83, Z74ni4 Rodgers, Jimmie, 3z—33, 39, 47,146,166,
Over th e Rainbow, 166 I7Z, Z58n3i
Owens, Tary, 40-41, 45, 48,156^0 Rosario, Manny, 105,108—109
Rose, Jacqueline, 1 3 z
Pearson, L. P., 7Z Ruttenberg, Neil, 97,98, 99,115
Pecan Street Studios, 18 9
Persians, Spencer , 5 2 Sahm, Doug, 75, 84, 85,86, 87-88, ZO 7
personality: in the formation of bands , St. John, Powell, 40, 41, 45, 50, 54, Z43
136—41; in relation to sincerity , 139; it "Sam Bass, " 23—Z4, Z9
musical expression, 138 Scanlon, Gary, 50
Index I 29 2
scene, a s signifying community, 12,0—z z Texas Music Association, 193,198, zi5—16
Scott, Byron, 166 Texas Music Hall of Eame, 196
Scratch Acid , 11 9 Tex-Mex music, z, xoz, Z40, z65nz3
"Sea Wall," 144-45 "The Ga l I Left Behin d Me," Z4
Sex Pistols, z , 93, 94,100-101,103,147, "The Wil d Sid e of Life," 36
465^14-5 13th Floor Elevators , the, 48-50
sexual metaphors fo r musical communica- Thompson, Hank, 36, Z59n4i
tion, izy-zS Thornton,Tom, iz6,168, z68ni8
Shepherd, John , IZ5—z 6 Threadgill, Kenneth , 39, 83, z6onn7
Shero, Jeff(aka, Nightbyrd , JefF) , 44 , and 1 7
67—69, 90, z6zn 5 Threadgill's, xiii , zo, 34 , 4Z, 45, ic>z, Z4Z
Shiva's Head Band, 5Z-56, zo7 timbre (as component of musical significa-
signifying practice, xiii, 133—36,159, Z45, tion), iz5—z 6
2.68n3Z, z69n4 O Timbuk3, zn—13, Z76n33
sincerity, xiii-xiv, 9,15, 34, 59, 60, 64, Tolleson, Mike , 9, 55, 77,78,191,193,
146—60, Z43, Z45, Z5O, Z7OH78 ZOT—zoz, zi4, zi6—18, z63nz9
Situationists, 93,109, z64H4 Tolstead, Phil, z , 91—93, 95,104
Skunks, the, 103,170,194 Torn, Luke , Z35—3 6
Smith, Darden , Z4o True Believers, the, 157, zn
Smith, Patti, 9Z, 93, 95; and gender roles Tubb, Ernest, 33, i8z
in rock, 9Z Two Nic e Girls, Z3 Z
Soap Cree k Saloon , 10 , yz, 74—75, 77, 84,
85,119, Z48, Z74ni4 University Coop, 5, Z7ini
song composition, 141—4 4 University of Texas, xiii, t, 5 , 6,15, Z9, 4Z,
Songs of the Cattle Trail and Cow Camp, z6 44, 90,118,191,198, Z4Z
Sound Exchange, 3, 4, 6 "Utah Carroll, " Z5
South by Southwest Music and Media
Conference (SXSW) , 116, zo8, zi3 , Valentine, Kathy, 99—100,104, z66nz7
2.30—37, Z4o, Z78n65 Van Zandt, Townes, 66
Spacks, Patricia Meyer, 135 Vaughan, Jimmie, 75—76, 86, Z40
Sparks, Hugh "Speedy," 60—6z Vaughan, Stevie Ray, 75, 76,196, Z4 O
Sparky's, izo Velvet Underground, gz , zzo, Z77n4 7
Spinks, Steve, 146,175 Ventura, Michael, 74, 84, 87
Spitzer, Nicholas, 68 Violators, z, 100,101—104
Split Rail, 14, 83-84 Viva Terlingua, 6z—64, Z44
Sprague, Carl , z8 Voltaire's Basement, 119
Srere, E. A., 115 Vulcan Gas Company, 4 , 10, 14, zo ,
Standing Waves , 3,115,170, Z48 50-51,191
Strehli, Angela, 71,183
Students fo r a Democratic Society , 5 Walker, Jerry Jeff, 14,16 , 45, 61-64, 66>
Sublett, Jesse, 99, too, loz—103,105,148, 70, 71, 76, 77, 84, 89,144
z66nnz5 and Z7 "Walking the Cow, " 155—5 6
Sullivan, Stuart, 176-81 Wannabes, the, 116,184-87
Summers, Jennifer , 145 Ward, Ed, 115,170, zoi, zog, 175021
Swenson, Roland, 115—16,193, zoz, zi3 , Waterloo Records , 4,165—66 , Z54H 5
zi8,131-33 Way-Outs, the, iz6,168
Symbolic, xiv, 130-31,134-36,139-40, WBAP, z8
147,148,153,157,159—61, z68nz9 , Weber, Joel, 131
1691140 Weinzierl, Joanne, 127, z68nzi
Weir, Stella, 155
Tartakov, Jeff, zzi—Z 3 Wells, Kitty, 36
Texas Instruments, the, 7, iz6,167, zn Wheatsvillc Food Coop, 164-65
Index I Z9 3
White, Huston, 50 Wilson , Eddie, 9, 53-56, 77-78, 89, 201
Whitley, Kevin, 13-14,140,143,150-51, Wilson , Kim, 76
168,183
Whittington, Jeff, 98, TOI-IOZ, 104,194, Yea r Zero, 212. , zi3
195, 202 yout h culture, 133
Wier, Rusty, 48, 50, 60
Wiggins, Lanny, 40-41, 45 Zaremba , Peter, 158, 208-10
Wiggins, Ramsey, 79-80 Zeitgeis t (see also Reivers, the), 7,113,138,
Wild Seeds, 7,120,176 148,157,170, 211
Williams, Garrett, 148 Ziegler , Shorty, 39-40, 45
Williams, Hank, 146
Index I 2.9 4
U N I V E R S I T Y PRES S O F NE W E N G L A N D publishe s books unde r it s own imprin t
and i s the publishe r for Brandeis University Press, Brown University Press, University of
Connecticut, Dartmout h College , Middlebur y College Press , University of New Hamp -
shire, University of Rhode Island, Tufts University, University of Vermont, and Wesleyan
University Press.
B A R R Y SHAN K i s Assistant Professo r o f American Studies at the University of Kansas.

He ha s performed in rock'n'roll band s in Kansas City, Los Angeles, Austin, and Philadel-
phia.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Shank, Barry.
Dissonant identities : the rock'n'roll scene in Austin, Texas /
Barry Shank.
p. cm . — (Music culture)
"Wesleyan University Press."
Includes bibliographica l reference s and index.
ISBN 0—8195—5172.—o . — ISB N 0—8195—62.76— 9 (pbk.)
i. Rock music—Texas—Austin—History and criticism. I . Title.
II. Series.
ML3534.S46 199 4
78i.66'o9764'3i—dca.o 93-4138 5
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The lyric s from Gu y Clark, "Desperados Waiting for the Train,"

2. Constructing th e Musicalized Performance o f

3. Desperados Waiting for a Train: The Development of

4. Th e Collapse o f the Progressive Country Alliance 6 6

5. Punk Rock at Raul's: The Performance

6. The Performance o f Signifying Practice 11 8

7. The Inscription o f Identity i n the Music Business 1 62

8. The Commodificatio n o f Identity 19 1

When I moved t o Texas I was dead se t on doin g wha t it was I wanted t o do .

Every busines s ha s it s researc h an d developmen t function . We hav e tha t i n

Sixty different musicians , fans, writers, and industry support person -

The Imaginary Tourist

The Imaginary Tourist I i

The Imaginary Tourist I 3

The Imaginary Tourist I 5

The Imaginary Tourist I 7

Now w e are crossing th e Colorad o Rive r on th e Congress Avenu e

The Imaginary Tourist I 9

Now that we are finally heading north on Interstate 35, recrossing th e

The Imaginary Tourist I n

We get of f the freewa y a t Airport Boulevar d and head west on 45t h

The Imaginary Tourist I 1 3

The Imaginary Tourist I 1 5

The Imaginary Tourist I 1 7

The Imaginary Tourist I 1 9

Constructing the Musicalized

By the tim e of Lomax' s autobiography (1947) , he had already been ac-

The Musicalized Performance o f Identity I 2. 1

For Lomax, who was following these conventions of ballad scholarship,

The M usicalized Performance o f Identity I 2. 3

The Muskalized Performance o f Identity I 2, 5

The Musicalized Performance o f Identity I 2. 7

The Popular Dissemination of the Cowboy Singer

The Musicalized Performance o f Identity I 2. 9

The Musicalized Performance o f Identity I 3 1

Fromjimmie Rodgers to Honky-Tonks:

The M usicalized Performance o f Identity I 3 3

The Musicalized Performance o f Identity I 3 5

The M usicalized Performance of Identity I 37

Desperados Waiting for a Train

Desperados Waiting for a Train I 3 9

Desperados Waiting for a Train / 4 1

Desperados Waiting for a Train I 4 3

Desperados Waiting for a Tram I 4 5

Desperados Waiting for a Train I 4 7

Desperados Waiting for a Train I 4 9

Desperados Waiting for a Train I 5 1

Desperados Waiting for a Train I 5 3

The clu b continued t o flounder economically for a year, with th e man-

Desperados Waiting for a Train I 5 5

Desperadtis Waiting for a Train I 5 7

Ironically, th e ver y popular musical tradition tha t alienate d youn g

Nelson's show s a t th e Armadill o containe d an d resolve d throug h

Desperados Waiting for a Train I 5 9

Desperados Waiting for a Train I 6 1

Desperados Waiting fur a, Train I 6 3