Live From Austin, Texas

John Mayall gets the star treatment in this installment of the fantastic LIVE FROM AUSTIN series, which features uncut performances from perhaps the greatest live televised music showcase ever, Austin City Limits. Throughout his career, Mayall has been more famous as a picker and pruner of talent–among the ranks of his famed Bluesbreakers stood Peter Green, Eric Clapton, and Mick Taylor–than as a bluesman in his own right, but here he challenges all comers with a confident set of blues classics and self-penned numbers, plus a wildly effusive stage persona. The set was originally recorded on September 13, 1993.

The most popular exponent of the classic New Orleans R&B sound, Fats Domino sold more records than any other black rock & roll star of the 1950s. His relaxed, lolling boogie-woogie piano style and easygoing, warm vocals anchored a long series of national hits from the mid-'50s to the early '60s. Through it all, his basic approach rarely changed. He may not have been one of early rock's most charismatic, innovative, or threatening figures, but he was certainly one of its most consistent.
Domino's first single, "The Fat Man" (1949), is one of the dozens of tracks that have been consistently singled out as a candidate for the first rock & roll record.

What more can you ask for? Asleep at the Wheel playing on Austin City Limits running through a smoking program of rocking, strolling Western swing tunes – with special guests like Eldon Shamblin, Johnny Gimble, Leon Rausch, and Herb Remington no less. Asleep at the Wheel have performed on Austin City Limits numerous times – including the very first broadcast program back in 1976 – but this show, recorded gorgeously from 1992, is special. The bandmembers are so relaxed, open, and in the groove here that this stands out among their live recordings. It's true that the program is familiar, full of favorites and legendary swing tunes, though "Boot Scoot Boogie" by Brooks & Dunn's Ronnie Dunn is also here. Some of the standouts include "Roly Poly," "Corrine, Corrina," "Blues for Dixie," and the closing read of the Cindy Walker/Bob Wills tune "Sugar Moon."

In this 2003 performance from the Austin City Limits series, New England's Susan Tedeschi demonstrates a range that extends well beyond her blues base. Following the blueprint employed by Bonnie Raitt a few decades earlier, she covers John Prine's "Angel from Montgomery" (a signature tune for Raitt), inserting a snippet from the Grateful Dead's "Sugaree." The piano balladry of her "Wrapped in the Arms of Another" could fit just fine on a Raitt album. The set also finds her sampling from the songbooks of Sly Stone ("You Can Make It If You Try"), Bob Dylan ("Don't Think Twice, It's All Right"), and Stevie Wonder ("Love's in Need of Love Today"), in addition to the more straightforward blues of Koko Taylor ("Voodoo Woman"). Though Tedeschi's stinging lead guitar provides the focus, she receives strong support from a band featuring the interplay of electric pianist Jason Crosby (who doubles on violin) and William Green on Hammond B-3 organ. Highlights include a tribute to jam-band inspiration Col. Bruce Hampton on "Hampmotized" and the simmering "Wait for Me," with its echoes of Aretha Franklin.

For the first time ever, the "Live from Austin, Texas" concert series comes to home video to offer fans a series of previously unreleased performances from television's award-winning Austin City Limits series. In this release, Delbert McClinton and his band take the stage to perform fifteen hits including "A Fool in Love," "Sneakin' Around," "The Jealous Kind," and "Shaky Ground."

Live from Austin, Tx is a live recording by John Mayall and the Bluesbreakers. The performance from Sept. 13, 1993 was for the TV show Austin City Limits and has been released in 2007 on CD and DVD. Only John Mayall is credited on cover but he can be heard to announce 'The Bluesbreakers': Joe Yuele on drums, Rick Cortes on bass and Coco Montoya on lead guitar. Texas guitarist David Grissom makes a guest appearance on last track.