APRIL 2019 BUDDY 11

BUDDYTHE ORIGINAL TEXAS MUSIC MAGAZINE

APRIL 2019VOLUME XLVI, NUMBER 10

By now most of you knowVaughan’s story: a 13-year-oldguitar prodigy who started hisfirst band, the Swinging Pendu-lums in Oak Cliff, joined a leg-endary Dallas band, The Chess-men at age 14, moved to Austin,then founded The FabulousThunderbirds, recorded with hisbrother, Stevie, on the LP FamilyStyle, then had to recover fromSRV’s untimely death in a heli-copter accident.

Since then he’s released astring of solo LPs, as well as atribute to Jimmy Reed with Aus-tin blues rocker Omar Dykes.Now he’s keeping the genre alivewith his newest release, BabyPlease Come Home, an LP on theLast Music label.

Fans of the Texas blues willimmediately immerse themselvesin this album and find it to bejust like welcoming an old friendinto their home. It just soundslike the Texas music you heardin clubs in the ’50s and ’60s:upbeat and danceable with a hornsection and the unmistakabletone of the Hammond B3 organ.To quote Jerry Jeff Walker, it’slike “a coat from the cold.”

Baby Please Come Home onthe Last Music label will be re-leased on May 17, but we werelucky enough to get an advancecopy and talk with JLV on thephone about it.

The first thing that hit me isthat besides being an out-of-this-world guitar player, JimmieVaughan is now an establishedsinger. Until Family Style, I hadnever heard his voice, except totalk between songs at the Fabu-lous Thunderbird shows. Whenhe sang “White Boots” or “GoodTexan” it was still a surprise. Asa matter of fact, he was oncequoted in Buddy saying, “Theonly difference between me andStevie is that Stevie can sing.”

So what changed?“WHEN I WAS A KID OFabout 13-14, I had all of theserecords by Muddy Waters andLonnie Mack. They had big,strong male voices, but when Isang I sounded like a little kidwith a high and squeaky voice.That was just my thinking at thetime.

There were always singers,and people who wanted to singin my earlier bands (Phil Cham-berlain with the Pendulums andDoyle Bramhall with The Chess-men). When we did Family StyleNile Rodgers (the producer)asked Stevie, ‘What are yougonna sing?’ And Stevie said‘I got theses two songs,’ then Nilelooked at me and asked‘What are you gonna sing?’ Imumbled something, but then Ihad to do it.”

“Feel singer”“Nile called it being a ‘feel singer’.You gotta sing like your voice,”adds Jimmie. “You can’t sing likeBrook Benton, you gotta findyour own voice. When I got tothat point it helped a lot.”

Apparently that worked, be-cause Jimmie’s singing soundsmuch more comfortable on thisalbum, from the title song “Baby,Please Come Home” to last one,the Jimmy Reed classic, “Baby,What’s Wrong” he is not shy infront of the mic.

Jimmie is helped out on theEtta James tune, “Be My LoveyDovey” sharing vocal duties withEmily Gimble and GeorgiaBramhall. If those names soundsomewhat familiar, then theyshould. Emily Gimble is thegranddaughter of JohnnyGimble, a legendary member ofBob Wills and the Texas Play-boys, while Georgia Bramhall isthe younger sister of DoyleBramhall II, who now plays gui-tar with Eric Clapton’s band.

“I was there when both ofthem were born,” says Jimmie,“Because Doyle (senior) and I

were playing together and livingin south Austin.”

On a first listen, Baby PleaseCome Home is like a flashback tothose R&B bands of the ’50s and’60s that used to play Lou Ann’sin Dallas, or dances at the Ameri-can Legion Hall: an upbeat gui-tar groove complemented byhorns and the Hammond B3 or-gan. It’s almost like Jimmie isreturning to the sounds of hisboyhood in Oak Cliff.

“To be honest I’m being 100%selfish on this record,” he re-sponds. “I’m doing exactly whatI want to do, musically speaking.If you don’t, there will always bepeople there telling you what todo.”

“The ice pick sound”VAUGHAN REMAINS THEmaster of understatement withhis guitar playing. Mike Flanigindescribes it as “the ice pick sound”(precise and to the point) whileformer Fabulous Thunderbirdsdrummer Mike Buck observes,“Jimmie makes every note count.”

How does he keep it so cleanwhen so many guitar players

want to demonstrate how “outthere” they are with rapid-fire,gunpowder licks and scorchingriffs?

“I hate all that stuff,” Jimmiewinces. “It sounds like they (gui-tar players) are figuring out whatto play, so they play everything. Iapproach the guitar as if I weremy favorite sax player. You caneither play scales or express your-self.”

“I went through a stage whenI was 14-15 (with the Chess-men) where I wanted to playfast. Once I could play fast, it wasjust a trick, it wasn’t satisfying.”

He pauses then gives anotherangle.

“I believe that if you got allyour favorite guitar players in aroom and you were playingaround, what were you gonnado when it came to you? Youcouldn’t do what they did. It hasa lot to do with style. It’s likebeing a painter, or an artist. Whatdo I want to draw today? That’sthe beauty of art and music—you can re-invent yourself overand over. It always changes. Youdon’t have to do the same thing

endlessly.”My favorite cut on the album

is “Be My Lovey Dovey” an earlyEtta James song.

“It’s one of her earliest re-cordings. She cut it with JohnnyOtis. It fit in with what I wastrying to do on this record.”

Another great tune on here is“Hold It” an instrumental thathas the feel of the early T-Birdstunes “Extra Jimmies” and “LastCall for Alcohol.” It’s almost as ifyou are in a smoky bar and theband is getting ready to take abreak.

“That song was originallydone by Bill Doggett with BillyButler playing the guitar,” laughsJimmie. “When I was a kid, ev-erybody in Dallas, whether theywere in a C&W, rock, or bluesband, played this song just be-fore they took a break.”

On the day we spoke (March20), Jimmie was getting ready tocelebrate his 68th birthday. He’sbeen playing in bands since hewas 13 years old, so I wonderedif it every gets old, or tiring. Howdoes he keep it fresh after all ofthese years?

“I just want toplay. I don’t want tobe out on the roadall the time,” he re-plies. “I can go to C-Boy’s (an Austin baron South Congress)and play on week-ends and it’s stillfun.”

“It never gets oldbecause I love toplay. I’m always try-ing to figure outsomething I didn’tknow before. Iworked in a lumberyard once and hadsome other day jobsto make money, butthis is the best. It’sgreat to do what youwant to do, but youhave to fight for it.”

In a world filledwith YouTube “stars”who use autotune,and performers wholip sync their songsin concert, BabyPlease Come Homeis the latest volleyin the battle tokeep the blues alive.With more than 50years of playing gui-tar for his fansaround the world,Jimmie Vaughan be-lieves the Texas bluesremain worth fight-ing for.

Understated master of the bluesStill Rocking: Texas blues-rock legend, Jimmie Vaughan, has Baby Please Come Home to be released on May 17

By Kirby F. WarnockJIMMIE VAUGHAN NEEDS NO INTRODUC-Jtion to the readers of BUDDY magazine. He, andJthe Fabulous Thunderbirds, were regulars inthe pages of this mag throughout the ’70s and ’80s.Once he went onto a solo career he’s been featuredon the cover, as well as the interior pages numeroustimes.

“It never gets old because Ilove to play. I’m alwaystrying to figure out somethingI didn’t know before. I workedin a lumber yard once andhad some other day jobs tomake money, but this is thebest. It’s great to do what youwant to do, but you have tofight for it.”

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–JIMMIE VAUGHANHe said “I just want to play . . . I can go to C-Boy’s and play on weekends and it’s still fun and play on weekends and it’s still fun”:Jimmie Vaughan