The Improbable Rise of Redneck Rock

An amazing overview of the early years of Austin Texas' ascension as a thriving American music centre that joined rednecks and hippies together into a communal musical mishmash that revitalized country music for the better, and sowed the seeds for today's No Depression alternative-country scene. Joyfully poignant stories on early luminaries like Kenneth Threadgill, the fateful establishment of Armadillo World Headquarters, and Willie Nelson's eternal stamp on Austin as the in-house musical Jesus. Many fascinating profiles on people like Michael Murphey, Kinky Friedman, and other important artists either ignored or forgotten. The story is told with wry wit and a gripping style that paints a loud, colourful, wonderfully dusty picture of Austin's cosmic cowboy scene of 1973-74. A must for archivists and historians, a good read for the curious country fan, and an all-around amazing piece of music journalism that reads more like Hunter Thompson than Ian Tyson.

Jan Reid's fascinating account of the rise of the "Outlaw Country" scene of the 1970's will more than hold the interest of folks who were into the Austin scene of the time, as well as those who have only recently discovered some of the singer-songwriters from that period via covers of their work by Lyle Lovett and other artists.Reid's book explains why Austin has long been an island of culture and tolerance in Texas, and how that atmosphere set the stage for a burgeoning music scene. He chronicles the rise of artists who went on to varying degrees of mainstream success, such as Willie Nelson, Waylon Jennings, Michael Martin Murphey, and Jerry Jeff Walker. He also tells the story of artists who once seemed on the precipice of stardom, only to fade into relative obscurity as the sun set on the era of "redneck rock": Willis Alan Ramsey, Steve Fromholz, Rusty Wier, Bobby Bridger, B.W. Stevenson, and Kinky Friedman (who reached a level of success as a novelist which surpassed that of his music career).This is a readable, enjoyable book. Well worth a look.