"I love Hendrix for so many reasons. He was so much more than just a blues guitarist, he played damn well any kind of guitar he wanted. In fact I'm not sure if he even played the guitar, he played music". - SRV

" I don't anyone has commanded my respect more, to this day. The first time I heard Stevie Ray, I thought, Whoever this is, he is going to shake the world. I was in my car and remember thinking, I have to find out, before the day is over, who that guitar player is..... It's going to be a long time before anyone that brilliant will come along again" - Eric Clapton.

"I remember being fascinated by the fact that he never, ever seemed to be lost in any way. I mean, it wasn't ever that he took a breather or paused to think where he was going to go next. It just flowed out of him". - Eric Clapton.

"I was always mesmerized by the power he had. He has a strength and confidence and fortitude in what he was doing, and it was just a dynamite effect" - Eric Johnson.

"I was a great fan of his and he was a great fan of mine. Not just for the music, but for the love of each other. He was one of the greatest musicians who ever lived, and it was a great loss to the world, to Blues and to me" - John Lee Hooker.

Stevie Ray Vaughan (1954 - 1990)

Stevie Ray Vaughan was born in the Oak Cliff Section of Dallas, Texas on October 3rd 1954. He was the younger brother of Jimmie Vaughan (also a popular guitarist) and the son of Jim and Martha Vaughan. He began playing guitar under the influence of his brother at the age of eleven and was soon playing in local teen combos.

 Stevie didn't do well in high school. He would sit at the back of the classroom tired from playing music all night and just doze off. Steve dropped out of school in 1972 and moved to Austin to play music full-time. Doyle Bramhall, a longtime friend and songwriting partner, was the first one to tell him that he was a good guitar player. In the early seventies, Stevie played in a band with Doyle called the Nightcrawlers. Then, during the mid-seventies, Stevie played with a popular Austin band called the Cobras.

Stevie formed an ambitious Blues-R&B band in 1976 called Triple Threat Revue with Lou Ann Barton, W.C. Clark, Freddie Pharoah and Mike Kindred. This band evolved into Triple Threat with Stevie, Lou Ann Chris Layton and Jackie Newhouse. When Lou Ann left in1980 to go to the Roomful of Blues, Stevie stepped forward and renamed the group Double Trouble. On January 2, 1981 Tommy Shannon replaced Jackie Newhouse on Bass.

On December 20th 1979, Stevie married Lenora (Lenny) Baily between sets at the Rome Inn in Austin. Stevie later a beautiful instrumental song and titled it "Lenny".

1982 was a banner year for Stevie, who when spotted by David Bowie in Montreaux Festival was immediately asked to play on Bowie's Let's Dance album. He was also given studio time by Jackson Browne at Browne's Downtown Studio in Los Angeles. In addition, Stevie Ray Vaughan & Double Trouble were signed by Epic Records by John Hammond. This was the beginning of Stevie's international stardom and constant worldwide touring.

"Texas Flood", Stevie Ray Vaughan and Double Trouble's debut album was released in 1983 and the band appeared on Austin City Limits for the first time. In 1984 the band released their second album "Couldn't Stand The Weather" followed by "Soul To Soul" in 1985. By this time Stevie was well immersed in alcohol and drugs. In 1986 the band released the first live album entitled "Live Alive" Later in that year however, after collapsing in London and Germany while on Tour, Stevie had to enter rehabilitation clinics to help himself out of his drinking and drug problems. He eventually succeeded in winning the battle for his life and got closer once again to his mother Martha. Stevie remained clean and sober for the rest of his life. 1987 and 1988 were uneventful years in his career apart from divorcing his wife Lenny and performing an acoustical set on an MTV appearance.

The album "In Step" was released in1989 and during the following tour he joined up with another master guitarist, Jeff Beck. He appeared on Austin City Limits for the second time. Both his Austin City Limits performances were released years later on a single video entitled "Live From Austin, Texas"

In 1990, Stevie toured with Joe cocker, and finally recorded an album with his brother Jimmie entitled "Family Style".

Stevie Ray Vaughan died on august 27th 1990 in a helicopter crash after leaving a concert having played with Buddy Guy, Eric Clapton and Robert Cray held at Alpine Valley, Wisconsin. Following his death there were a number of posthumous album releases namely:

".... he was always quick to show gratitude to me and other artists who have been around. But when it came to playing the blues he earned plenty of respect himself."

".... the fact is that he affected the way blues will be played and heard forever."

"I've said that playing the blues is like having to be black twice. Stevie missed on both counts, but I never noticed." - B. B. King.

Recommended Listening.

Tracks:

Albums: Stevie Ray Vaughan and Double Trouble

Albums: Authorized Bootleg

Albums: Other

DVD/Video

Books

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