Quick background on my introduction to SRV. I was living in Connecticut and a friend of mine started talking about this great guitar player that I needed to hear. He told me about Stevie Ray Vaughan and I put it in the back of my mind for later usage. Not long after that I left my friend and moved back home to Vermont to live with my father. One day while watching MTV (back when it was almost watchable) I saw advertised that Stevie Ray Vaughan was going to be on MTV Unplugged. Knowing that I would miss the program I set the VCR to record it for later. For about a week I left that tape in the VCR trying to find the time to watch the show though I really wasn't in any hurry. I was pretty sure that it would be decent but was also pretty sure it wouldn't blow my mind the way Led Zeppelin was at this time.
Finally one night I had some time and I also had the living room to myself (meaning that my father was sitting in his chair "resting his eyes". So I rewound the tape and started watching. I was blown away from the first 15 seconds of watching this man play that 12 string guitar all by himself in front of that crowd. I loved the hat, I loved the shirt, I loved the guitar, I loved the ease with which he played the thing and how the music just poured out of him. It seemed effortless to him and it was perfect. From that moment on I was a huge fan.
The second song of the program started playing and the phone rang. Great, I was a little annoyed but answered as this was in the days before caller ID. It turns out it was my buddy back in Connecticut. He said to me "did you hear what happened?" I told him that I had no idea what he was talking about as I was only half listening, still enraptured by SRV's playing. He continued "Stevie Ray Vaughan just died in a helicopter accident"...
I'm actually getting goose-bumps right now as I write this, that was an intense night. I was stunned as I watched my new guitar hero performing on the screen as it hit me that this incredible guitar player had just been silenced just as I discovered him. There would be no more music, I would never get the chance to see him perform live and I mourned for all the music that we would never get to hear.
I stayed up late that night recording all the news programs that mentioned Stevie. I recorded all the videos from VH-1 as they were having an SRV video marathon. I can still remember Kurt Loder's voice on MTV announcing Stevie's death. I must have watched that VHS tape a hundred times. That night also introduced me to Dick Dale as it was the first time I'd seen the duet he performed with Stevie in the video for Pipeline from the Back to the Beach Sountrack. In my quest to collect everything SRV related this was a much coveted album until eBay came along and made it much easier to find stuff. That Christmas I was given my very first CD player and my father bought me my very first CD; Stevie Ray Vaughan and Double Trouble: Couldn't Stand the Weather.
And so now I'm sitting here on my couch listening to this, his best album of the SRV discography. He had just gotten sober and was playing the best damn guitar of his life. He totally changed his life around and he was out to change others through his music and his huge personality. My absolute favorite track on here is Tightrope. The guitar solo (both of them) gives me chills every time I hear them. His performance on Austin City Limits of this song is one of the best live performances by anyone I've ever seen. In fact, while writing this particular entry I actually had to take a pause when the song came on and then resume. This really is an album I don't want to be doing anything to... I just want to sit back and listen.
There are lots of albums out there where there are maybe one or two really solid tracks and then the rest is filler. This is NOT one of those albums. I can't list a single song on here that I couldn't do without. Take away any of them and the album In Step just isn't the same album.
Side One:
The House is a Rockin' - Brian Setzer does a pretty decent version of this but damn Stevie really nailed it.
Crossfire - One of the bigger hits from this album. Great groove.
Tightrope - Again, if I have to call a favorite it'd be this one
Let Me Love You Baby - Great rocker and every solo sounds completely different from the others.
Leave My Girl Alone - Vocals are almost more powerful than the guitar on this one... Man.
Travis Walk - Damn! I tried learning this one as a kid... actually I tried learning all of them but especially this one.
Side Two:
Wall of Denial - One of my favorites on side two. Great goove, funky with fantastic guitar tone
Scratch -n- Sniff - This one sounds different than most SRV tracks, a great boogie and great party tune. Stevie uses a whah pedal rather unconventionally and it totally works.
Love Me Darlin' - Upbeat 12 bar blues. Funny I don't often hear this version. I usually hear his slow version. I can just imagine his head bobbing with that hat as he plays the shuffle over his vocal line. Listening to his solo I'm just struck by the fact that, if he had to, he could just keep playing ad nauseaum and NEVER run out of ideas. As someone who tries to play guitar, this just amazes me. I could never do that.
Riviera Paradise - I tried playing this when I was a kid also. Still play parts of it sometimes. I remember trying to write a tune like this in memory of SRV. It was dumb, I hope I burned it so that nobody finds it. Normally this would be the type of tune that a kid would skip past but I loved that he ended this album of mostly fiery, poignant barn burners with a jazz tinged, bluesy instrumental. He shows the power of dynamic contrast and his complete grasp of the instrument. Man, I wish I could have stood in his presence just once and seen him perform live.
Listening to this album tonight really made me want to pull out my other SRV albums and flop 'em on the platter. But I suppose I'll have to save that for another day.
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