Written by Glenn McDonald
The little big city of Austin, Texas, is famously referred to as “The Live Music Capitol of the World.” The city boasts nearly 200 performance venues and, according to figures from the visitor’s bureau, nearly 2,000 bands and artists call the city home.
That’s more live music venues per capita than such music hotbeds as Nashville, Memphis, Los Angeles, Las Vegas or New York City, according to the city’s research team. The town also hosts a number of prestigious music festivals, none more ginormous than the annual March rockfest “South by Southwest (SXSW).” If you’ve ever been to Austin you won’t need any convincing on the statistics—you can’t swing a Stratocaster in this town without hitting a historical music venue.
Of all the storied stages in town—Emo’s, Stubb’s Bar-B-Q, the Continental Club—the legendary Antone’s has more stories than any. Founded in 1975 by music promoter and staunch blues advocate Clifford Antone, the venue anchored the famous Sixth Street strip bar and club scene.
The Real House of Blues
Antone’s moved several times over the years before settling in its current location at 213 W. 5th St. During that time the club launched its own record label and retail music store. It also launched the careers of dozens of blues and rock luminaries.
The first band to ever take the stage at Antone’s was zydeco legend Clifton Chenier and His Red-Hot Louisiana Band, on July 15, 1975. The list of acts who have played there since reads like an exhaustive playbill of blues legends: John Lee Hooker, Delbert McClinton, Fats Domino, Pinetop Perkins, Clarence “Gatemouth” Brown, B.B. King, Muddy Waters, Albert Collins and Jimmy Reed. And that’s only a few of them.
Stevie Ray Vaughan and Doug Sahm played Antone’s regularly, and the Fabulous Thunderbirds were the house band for many years. Bonnie Raitt and Lucinda Williams also played there regularly, and the club earned a reputation for inspiring long jam sessions that roared deep into the night.
Antone launched blues label Antone’s Records in 1987, recording studio sessions and live shows at the club. Now part of the Austin-based Texas Music Group, the label issued recordings by Eddie Taylor, Jimmy Rogers, Memphis Slim, Matt “Guitar” Murphy and James Cotton, whose record was nominated for a Grammy.
Again, just a sampling. Before his death in 2006, Clifford Antone received the National Blues Foundation’s lifetime achievement award for his contributions to music. That same year saw the release of documentary film Antone’s: Home of the Blues.
Clearly, Antone’s has seen a lot of history and made a lot of friends over the years. Of all the regulars, the late Stevie Ray Vaughan is perhaps the one artist most closely associated with the venue. The Texas Music Group features a telling Vaughan quote in its archives: “The best music I’ve ever heard was at Antone’s and some of the best music I’ve ever played was there. I really don’t know where I’d be today or what I’d be doing without Antone’s.”
That Was Then, This Is Now
In its current incarnation, Antone’s is an all-ages club focusing on blues and roots rock. It regularly presents musical artists of all stripes, however, particularly during the busy festival season. Those who have graced Antone’s wide stage include Eric Clapton, Bono and the Edge, Elvis Costello and Dwight Yoakam.
Maybe the best example of Antone’s central role as both a locus of music history and a spot for a diverse variety of artists to gather came during the 2010 SXSW festival. When news of Alex Chilton’s passing hit the festival that March, Antone’s hosted an extemporaneous tribute to the former Big Star frontman.
During the 12:30 a.m. slot that Saturday night—a set that was scheduled to feature Big Star and Chilton himself—a parade of admirers performed in Chilton’s honor, including M. Ward, John Doe, Evan Dando and R.E.M.’s Mike Mills.
“It was obviously kind of heartbreaking because of the situation surrounding it,” said Pitchfork Media’s Ryan Dombal, who witnessed the improvised evening. “The emotions were still raw.”
Antone’s unique stage layout contributed to the intimate vibe of the evening. “It’s a pretty long room, and most venues have their stage at the back,” Dombal said. “There, the stage is on the side. I think more people get a better view—you’re closer.”
South by Southwest at Antone’s
During South by Southwest, Antone’s is one of the festival’s premier stages. Throughout the week, the club hosts sets from 8 p.m. until deep into the night. Consider that the last scheduled set each night starts at 1 a.m. (and we all know how punctual rock musicians tend to be).
A quick look at the 2011 SXSW lineup suggests the degree to which Antone’s has become a crossroads for so many types of music.
On Wednesday, March 16, Antone’s featured Mexico’s Chikita Violente and the Greenhornes, who hail from the exotic land of Cincinnati. Thursday’s headliners included marquee acts Emmylou Harris and Old 97’s, while Friday concluded with a set from critical darlings and Austin natives Okkervil River. Finally, if you wanted to catch up on your 1990s nostalgia, mmm-boppers Hanson closed Antone’s SXSW run on Saturday.
From 1975 to 2011, from afrobeat to zydeco, Antone’s has seen it all. It has kept up with the digital times, too—see the venue’s Facebook page for upcoming events and a fairly active community area filled with memories of great shows.
A posted reminiscence from “Kate H.” is fitting testament to Antone’s variety of music and long history in the Austin scene:
“I was a cocktail waitress at the Guadalupe location for several years in the early ’90s and was working when Willie and Waylon played for Willie’s 60th birthday celebration. Saw Bonnie Raitt come in and play some old-school blues late on a Wednesday night with Derek O’Brien. Albert Collins played all the way out into the parking lot to end his set. Also loved the variety of seeing Beausoleil and Irma Thomas. Great times!”
Indeed.