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SXSW scene report: Austin Music Awards/Texas Sheiks
The Texas Sheiks play a tribute to Stephen Bruton.
Photos: Scenes from the Austin Music Awards
Austin Music Hall
7:55 p.m. Saturday
The annual Austin Music Awards (aka, the Bob Schneider Canonization Ceremony — he’s up for archbishop this year, I think) kicked off on a new night, but at the same don’t-be-late 7:55 p.m. start time.
The first act, the all-star acoustic music ensemble known as Texas Sheiks, had a special poignance for the local music fans in attendance. The Sheiks represented one of the final projects (the other was the soundtrack to the film “Crazy Heart”) to bear the imprint of singer/songwriter/guitarist/producer Stephen Bruton, who died after a long siege of cancer last year.
The Sheiks, helmed by acoustic music veteran Geoff Muldaur, and starring local luminaries like pianist Johnny Nicholas, steel player Cindy Cashdollar, bassist Bruce Hughes, Muldaur’s mentor Jim Kweskin and others, was conceived of as a way for Bruton to stay in touch with his musical lifeline and to distract him from the rigors of radiation and chemo. Sadly, Bruton died before either the Sheiks’ record or the “Crazy Heart” soundtrack saw the light of day.
“What started being a diversion ended up being a tribute,” said emcee Andy Langer.
“We didn’t know we were making a record,” recalled Muldaur from the stage. “We were just getting together to have some fun.”
And so they did on Saturday, launching into a jazzy vintage lament, “The World Is Going Crazy,” with Muldaur on vocals and featuring a hot dobro solo from Cindy Cashdollar. A rousing jump-blues take on “All By Myself,” featuring Johnny Nicholas on vocals and guest pianist Floyd Domino followed.
By way of introducing jug band music godfather Jim Kweskin (who also guested on the album), Muldaur said, “When he was 19 years old, Stephen and a friend left Fort Worth and drove to the Newport Folk Festival just to see this guy.” Kweskin is getting on up there, but his nimble guitar playing and easy vocals belie his years, as he demonstrated on the playfully ribald Bob Wills song, “Fan It.”
After bassist Bruce Hughes essayed one number (whose title I didn’t catch), the group wrapped up their brief set with a swinging blues/gospel-flavored Bruton original, one which the Sheiks did not feature on their record. “Walk By Faith” probably came as close to being Bruton’s personal mantra as anything else he ever read or sang: “You got to walk by faith and not by sight.”
Wherever he’s walking now, Bruton is taking note of the accolades for “Crazy Heart” and the outpouring of affection from fans, friends and peers and he is, make no mistake about it, eating it up with a spoon.
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