(bluegrass music) - Good evening.

On behalf of Texas Tech, I should say first, I'm Lawrence Schovanec, and on behalf of Texas Tech it's my great pleasure to welcome you to this concluding event of the 4th Annual Lubbock Lights.

I'm sure that I join with you in looking forward to the tonight's performance by Amanda Shires, Jimmie Dale Gilmore, and Lloyd Maines.

Their careers have been a very important part of the heritage, of the rich musical heritage, of West Texas, and beyond that, their talents have brought pleasure to people around the world.

One of the neat aspects of Lubbock Lights is the opportunity it provides for students.

Students here at Tech and students in the area schools to interact with these artists, and I want to thank Amanda, and Jimmie, and Lloyd for so graciously sharing their talents and insights with these students.

I also want to thank Jo Moore, and many others in the President's office who have done so much work to make this event possible.

And I should also thank Andy Wilkinson who will now be coming onstage with our three artists.

He'll be introducing them and then moderating tonight's discussion and conversation that will be part of the performance.

Thank you all for being here.

(audience applauding) - So.

We're ready for our 4th Annual Lubbock Lights.

Because this is real music, we're gonna get tuned up and get our things together for the first bit of it, and, I wanna start by saying, as every year, I'm so blessed, so fortunate to be onstage with people who are my heroes and my pals.

And I'm gonna say that because I'm holding up this sheet of notes because this group of pals has got so much going on now that I don't want to forget or miss anything.

So while we're doing a little tuning, I'm gonna lay out some stuff for ya, and we're gonna start way down, not way down yonder in the Indian Nation, although I hear that was your first song, your first performance, is that right?

Way Down Yonder In The Indian Nation?

- Oklahoma Blues.

- I think-- (laughing) That's what I heard.

- Oklahoma?

- Yeah.

That you sang that at some sort of an event.

- Oh you're talking about, I did that when I was in elementary school at Roosevelt.

- Yeah.

- Yeah.

(audience laughter) - My dad played guitar behind me and I sang that, I think it was in like 4th grade, 3rd grade, something like that.

And I remember I got beat out by this really tall guy that sang, remember the song ♪ Let me tell you 'bout the birds and the bees ♪ Yeah.

I couldn't believe he beat me on that one.

- Yeah.

- Yeah.

Actually, I couldn't believe he was singin' that at Roosevelt.

(audience laughing) - You just needed a few more Oklahomans in the crowd.

- Yeah, exactly.

- Well this is Lloyd Maines.

(audience cheering) - Thank you.

- So I want to catch you up on some current facts about Lloyd, and I'm gonna rehash a few old facts about Lloyd.

The current fact that I think is really cool is that the third floor of the Bob Bullock Texas History Museum in Austin, Texas, the other city in Texas with music (audience laughing) has an exhibit that is devoted to Lloyd.

Isn't that great?

(audience applauding) - I always knew that if I lived long enough, and played music long enough, I'd finally wind up in a museum.

That's what happened.

- I thought in the third floor, and we were trying to decide today if that was the cream rises or the hot air.

(audience laughing) - [Lloyd] That's a toss up.

- But the reason he's there, we know the reason he's there.

'Cause we're his people, this is his tribe here in Lubbock.

But here's some numbers that you might not have on the tip of your tongue, and will be good anytime you're playing trivia at the next cocktail party.

Who has the most appearances of any one person or group on Austin City Limits?

Yeah.

(audience applauding) And who was inducted into the Austin City Limits Hall of Fame?

(audience applauding) - They know the answer to all these questions.

- [Andy] It's how we get 'em warmed up Lloyd.

- Okay, okay.

- We don't want to stump 'em.

Twice inducted into the West Texas Walk of Fame.

(audience applauding) - I like that one.

- A Grammy Award-winner in 2003.

(audience applauding) And he won in 1999 a National Western Heritage Wrangler Award.

(audience applauding) We'll learn more about him as we progress.

- One thing I forgot to tell you, I should add this to the list, I was the Secretary at Roosevelt High School FFA.

(audience laughing) Yeah.

That's the big one.

- But I understand that doesn't count if you can't still where the corduroy jacket.

- You know, my mom, I wish I had it.

Those things are worth money now.

And my mom threw it away.

- All right, well that's what happens.

They throw away your old 45s and your corduroy jacket.

So, moving this way.

Amanda Shires.

(audience applauding) That we all know is a terrific fiddle player, singer, songwriter, performing artist of the first water, but, I wanna remind you that she was also in the motion pictures.

(Amanda laughs) She played alongside Gwyneth Paltrow, now that's a big deal.

In a movie called Country Strong, is that right, Country Strong?

And I think that's a big deal.

And though she is a young person as you can see, and especially relatively speaking compared to the rest of us.

(audience laughing) In spite of that, she has a whole list of accomplishments.

The Emerging Artist of the Year, 2017 Americana Music Awards and Honors, and that is a cool thing.

(audience applauding) A Grammy in 2018.

That's this year.

(audience applauding) She was a part of Jason Isbel, and that's the 400 unit, is that right?

- Yes.

- That is a Grammy Award-winning record, and she was an integral part of that.

That is a very cool deal.

(audience applauding) She has a new album coming out.

She has a pretty recent album that is just terrific that I've been listening to a lot, and I can't wait for this new one 'cause she's been playing some of those songs this week during our outreach experiences throughout the week.

It's called To The Sunset produced by Dave Cobb at the historic RCA Studio A in Nashville.

For those of you who are music nerds, that is a big deal.

That is one of the most important studios in our kind of music.

Not only did she do the record there, but also has played there, Lloyd Maines, and Jimmie Dale Gilmore.

(audience applauding) And in fact, the publicity for this record just hit Amanda during lunch, sent me a little image of the cover, which is very, very cool, and very, very spooky.

You'll want to buy it just for that.

- I think of it more like a wizard than scary or spooky.

- Oh, yeah, okay I'll go with that.

Wizard-y.

- [Amanda] Wizard-y.

- She also, besides being from Lubbock, she's a graduate of Texas Tech, and our other two artists are alum, alumni of Texas Tech.

- He didn't say graduates.

(laughing) - Jimmie Dale, I was trying to be polite.

(laughing) And Amanda even went on beyond that.

She's a graduate student.

She got a Masters in Fine Arts and Creative Writing from Suwanee College.

College or Institute?

- University of the South.

- Yeah, University of the South.

It's a great program.

It's one of the best known in America for creative writing.

Let's see, what have I missed?

Gosh, that ought to be enough.

- I think.

- Terrific, so, Amanda Shires.

(audience applauding) - We should also add to that, I just got my outgoing mail greeting, Jimmie Dale did it.

That's my most, best accomplishment ever.

(audience laughing) I've been listening to these guys since I was, well, since I was just yesterday.

We'll pretend like I'm not old.

- So, and that's what we call in the trade, a good segue.

- [Amanda] Yeah.

- Now to my immediate right, Jimmie Dale Gilmore.

(audience applauding) And I've been saying all week, and I'll continue to say it, I knew of Jimmie Dale before I knew him because I went to Monterey just a few, that's Monterey High School, (whistling) (audience laughing) just a few years after Jimmie was there.

His younger sister Donna and I got to be really good pals and she would always talk about her brother who played the guitar and sang songs.

This was the 60s, the mid-60s, and it was such a, to know somebody that even had a guitar was such a big deal.

And Donna's brother sang and played on the guitar so he was always this mythical figure and then I got to meet him and he's still a mythical figure.

He's still terrific.

Three Grammy nominations.

(audience applauding) In two categories.

Country Artist of the Year, three consecutive years by Rolling Stone Magazine.

(audience applauding) And West Texas Walk of Fame, not once, but twice.

(audience applauding) And since we bragged about Amanda's appearance in moving pictures, Jimmie Dale's been in three different movies.

But I think most of us are most impressed that he was in The Big Lebowski.

(audience applauding) - [Amanda] Oh yeah.

(laughing) - Maybe sometime during the evening you'll recreate your appearance.

It was singular, was it not?

(laughing) So let's get started with some music.

We're gonna talk a little bit about how the music comes about and how these brilliant, creative people up here do their creative works, and I think we're gonna have fun doing it.

So Lloyd, would you, not because you're, no you're not the oldest, that be Jimmie Dale and I, wouldn't it?

- Don't worry, I'm not gonna a sing.

(Amanda laughing) I volunteered to to kind of be the warm-up act for Jimmie and Amanda.

I've never really been a singer, never wanted to be, I've been very happy just being the side guy, the back up guy, so I thought I'd do an instrumental, and I hardly ever do instrumentals anymore, but I worked this one up.

Anybody else out there watch too much evening news besides me?

Yeah, I can't see your hands, but I know you're there.

So sometimes I get too caught up in that and I get kinda depressed, so I've got this little man cave at my house and I'll retreat back to that and play some music.

By the way, we've been doing schools this week, and I'm so used to show and tell frame of mind here.

This is called a dobro.

For anybody that doesn't know that, it's a dobro.

The resonator guitar originated in Hawaii and then kind of made its way over to the Deep South and turned into a Blues instrument.

So anyway, I'm gonna play it on this.

But I'll go back to my room and play, and I been working on this, especially for Lubbock actually, and my wife and I have been married 47 years, yeah.

(audience applauding) She's a tough one.

Sometimes I try to get her to come back and give me an assessment of how I'm doing, if it's even worth messing with, and she's kinda past listening to me play dobro at this point.

We have this rescue dog, he's 13 years old, we got him as a little tiny puppy, he's half Great Dane and half Rhodesian Ridgeback.

His name's Otis, and he'll follow me back to my music room and I promise you, he'll sit right there and I swear he stares right at me while I'm playing.

I've never figured it, I think he thinks I've got a treat or something.

But anyway, as long as I've got an audience, I feel a little more special.

He delivers that for me, but I thought I'd do this tonight.

For when I start feeling like I need to remind myself where I live.

("My Country 'Tis of Thee") (audience applauding) - Now, during rehearsal today we not rehearsal, soundcheck, there were three Amandas in this room.

The sound crew, and so everytime anybody would say Amanda everybody would hold their hand up.

So she has requested that the band from here on out just call her Shires.

(laughing) So anyway, I'm gonna turn it over to you, but before I do, I wanna say one thing, the way we're set up here, kind of in the round, and I realize there's people sitting over here that paid the big ticket price, so this actually happened during one of our school settings this week, it was set up kind of like this, there were students over here.

It was one of the Texas Tech classes.

We just played a song, and as we were playing the song, I noticed these really good looking Tech co-eds sitting over to my right, and about halfway through the song, I could hear them saying my name.

It's like they were kind of calling my name, and I was frankly starting to feel kind of good about myself.

(audience laughing) But then we ended the song and I thought I should at least acknowledge them, and I said yeah, what can I do for you all?

They said, "Could you move back a little bit "so we can see Amanda?"

(audience laughing) So, I'm gonna do my best, I'll be mindful of that tonight.

Amanda Shires.

(audience applauding) - It is always so wonderful to be back here in Lubbock, Texas.

It really is.

If you've ever gone away for a while, and then come back, you feel a sort of relief when you get here.

The sky is 2/3 of what you see and the rest of it's flat.

(audience laughing) It just feels so at home.

I had to move away because you have to do that sometimes when you try to be a songwriter because it's really, really hard to drive from Lubbock to Atlanta, or Lubbock to Nashville, or Lubbock to New York.

It takes forever.

(audience laughing) So I picked a central location.

And it's not because I didn't love it, because I do love it here.

And when I did move, the first song I wrote when I moved is this next one called Mineral Wells, and it talks about where I was born, Mineral Wells where my dad lives, and Lubbock, where my mom lived up until a couple months ago because I forced her to move to Lubbock to help me with my husband and I's baby, but anyway, so the song talks a little bit about both places, and if I don't mention both places, then I get long voicemails.

(audience laughing) ♪ In '81 I was just a drink ♪ On the shelf, a daiquiri ♪ Not even a thought ♪ Until sometime in July ♪ Sometime in July ♪ And something happened in '84 ♪ ♪ I ended up with two places to be from ♪ ♪ The only tree with leaves in Lubbock ♪ ♪ With roots in Mineral Wells ♪ Mineral Wells ♪ At night I dream I'm in the Brazos River ♪ ♪ Pines and cypress of the West Cross Timbers ♪ ♪ And oh, I know, it shows ♪ I'm another one still thirsting for my home ♪ ♪ There's a spot under the train track trestles ♪ ♪ The water's too deep to stand in ♪ ♪ And you were there once ♪ We climb the sandstone and jumped in ♪ ♪ Hold your breath and jump in ♪ We take the airboats way upstream ♪ ♪ The heat's tiring and I fall asleep ♪ ♪ In my folding chair ♪ I dreamed Dad was smoking cigarettes ♪ ♪ He always had one hanging from his lips ♪ ♪ And my arms reached for the Brazos River ♪ ♪ Pines and cypress of the West Cross Timbers ♪ ♪ And oh, I know, it shows ♪ I'm another one still thirsting for my home ♪ ♪ I've tried drinking water from the Gibson well ♪ ♪ Folks before me say, it cures what ails ya ♪ ♪ I think it might be true ♪ That there's something in the well ♪ ♪ In Mineral Wells ♪ And at night I dream I'm in the Brazos River ♪ ♪ Pines and cypress of the West Cross Timbers ♪ ♪ And oh, I know, it shows ♪ I'm another one still searchin' for my home ♪ (audience applauding) - I wanna say seems like I've known Amanda for a long time.

But I know I've known Lloyd for a long time.

(audience laughing) - [Lloyd] Long time.

- An actual long time.

- [Lloyd] Yeah.

- She doesn't know what a long time is yet.

- [Lloyd] Not a clue.

- So I have a long story that goes with this, but I'll just tell the short joke that goes with it.

I always say this is kind of my theme song.

It's one of my very best songs.

It's just sad that it was written by Butch Hancock.

(audience laughing) And I've gotta bunch of 'em like that.

♪ My mind's got a mind of its own ♪ ♪ It takes me out a walkin' when I'd rather stay at home ♪ ♪ Takes me out to parties when I'd rather be alone ♪ ♪ My mind's got a mind of its own ♪ ♪ I've been doing things I thought I'd never do ♪ ♪ I've been getting into trouble without ever meaning to ♪ ♪ I no sooner settle down but I'm right back up again ♪ ♪ I feel just like a leaf out in the wind ♪ ♪ 'Cause my mind's got a mind of its own ♪ ♪ It takes me out a walkin' when I'd rather stay at home ♪ ♪ Takes me out to parties when I'd rather be alone ♪ ♪ My mind's got a mind of its own ♪ ♪ I seem to forget half the things I start ♪ ♪ I try to build a house and then I tear the place apart ♪ ♪ I freeze myself on fire and then I burn myself on ice ♪ ♪ I can't count to one without thinking twice ♪ ♪ 'Cause my mind's got a mind of its own ♪ ♪ It takes me out a walkin' when I'd rather stay at home ♪ ♪ Takes me out to parties when I'd rather be alone ♪ ♪ My mind's got a mind of its own ♪ ♪ I tell myself to do the things I should ♪ ♪ And then I get to thinkin' that them things ♪ ♪ ain't any good ♪ I tell myself the truth but know I'm lying like a snake ♪ ♪ You can't walk on water at the bottom of a lake ♪ ♪ My mind's got a mind of its own ♪ ♪ It takes me out a walkin' when I'd rather stay at home ♪ ♪ Takes me out to parties when I'd rather be alone ♪ ♪ My mind's got a mind of its own ♪ ♪ My mind's got a mind of its own ♪ (audience applauding) Thank you.

Thank you Butch.

- I'm just gonna say it one last time and never say it again in front of y'all.

It is my honor, I've been listening to y'all so long I just have to say it one more time.

That I wanted to be like you guys when I grew up.

I hope I grow up soon.

(laughing) I know all your records, so if you want, I can play the fiddle whenever you decide.

- On all of them.

- Okay.

(laughing) But I am supremely honored.

Now I'm gonna do some more of my songs.

(laughing) This has a long story and I'm gonna tell it, and maybe that'll get Jimmie into telling a long story.

So I left Texas and I started touring around all by myself.

It was lonesome.

I started figuring out real quick that I'd make friends the quickest in the town if I'd go to the merchandise table after the show 'cause that's where the friends, the potential friends would hang out.

Sometimes friendship includes the use of your washing machine or dryer.

And occasionally a person might need a ride to or from the airport.

Lloyd was just telling me about this time in San Antonio when he needed the help of a bail bondsman.

(audience laughing) But friendship is a great thing.

I have this friend named Brenda.

- Never let the facts get in the way of a good story.

- Yeah, that's right.

(audience laughing) - I didn't know you didn't want me to tell that story.

I had this friend in New Jersey named Brenda and she always comes to the show with a bottle of red wine that's at least $25 in value or greater.

One of my best friends.

I was in Tampa, Florida one evening.

By myself.

And then I went to the merchandise table and this guy I had never met before approached the merchandise table and he stuck his hand out across and said, "Hi, I'm Tiger Bill."

And I said, I'm Amanda Shires.

I need to work on my name.

(audience laughing) He said, "I brought you a present."

But let me go back.

This guy had a long ponytail coming out the back of his baseball hat, and he had on this red and white floral hibiscus shirt like you might see in Hawaii or on Magnum P.I.

He had on his khaki cargo short pants that came just past the knee and the kind that had 36 pockets.

Which is all amazing and good.

We all have those kind of short pants.

But every one of his 36 pockets was bulging full of whatever the hell it is that you need to take with you to the folk Rock and Roll show.

(audience laughing) Upon his feet were some brand new white at the ankle, at the calf length socks.

And we're in Florida.

He somehow shoved two, well, one on each foot, navy blue leather flip flops upon his stockinged feet.

So you could clearly see the separation of his big toe from his other four toes.

It was amazing.

This is Florida, we're outside.

And beautiful.

I do that too.

At home.

(audience laughing) And this guy, this Tiger Bill, he produced from one of his 36 pockets this brown, rumpled up bag.

He was reeking of the herbs that are legal in Colorado and 25 other of our fine states.

And while he was holding that bag, I was thinking to myself, self, this must be a hippie.

(audience laughing) And he shoved it at me, this bag.

This rumpled up brown paper lunch bag.

And so I took the bag and I just threw it under the merchandise table real quick.

And he said, "Man, Amanda man, "aren't you gonna open it?"

And I said, right here in front of God and everybody?

And he said, "Yeah man, it's Tampa."

I was like cool, okay, I could live here.

And so I got the bag and I'm opening it up, and you can't make this up, in the bottom of this bag, well actually all over the inside of the bag, was like tufts of fur and claws and teeth.

And what turned out later I found out, were whiskers.

And also what looked to be dried bits of blood or dirt.

So being that I'm a Texan and I was raised right I used all my manners, and I said, oh, this is the best gift I ever got.

I don't know what to say.

And he said, "It's not what you think."

And I said I know.

(audience laughing) And Tiger Bill said, "Those are real Siberian tiger claws, "and teeth, and fur, and the whiskers, "Amanda man, they're gonna make you bullet proof."

Tiger Bill is a real person and he is my friend to this day.

He's on Facebook.

(audience laughing) ♪ So this guy Tiger Bill gave me a tiger claw ♪ ♪ From a real Siberian tiger paw and said ♪ ♪ This is gonna make you bulletproof ♪ ♪ So I've got this tiger claw ♪ From a real Siberian tiger paw in my pocket ♪ ♪ And I'm thinkin' now ♪ Could I really somehow be bulletproof ♪ ♪ Does bulletproof include bows and arrows ♪ ♪ Hatchets and hammers, bandoliers full of ammo ♪ ♪ Anything from hacksaws to hand grenades ♪ ♪ 'Cause we could set me up in my grandad's pasture ♪ ♪ Have ourselves a live target practice ♪ ♪ Try out your throwing stars, bring out your switchblades ♪ ♪ And maybe folks would line up show up armed ♪ ♪ Excited for a person to try their weapons out on ♪ ♪ And we could charge money ♪ We could charge a whole lot of money ♪ ♪ And I'm thinkin' now, could I really somehow ♪ ♪ Be bulletproof ♪ And I'm thinkin' now, could I really somehow ♪ ♪ Be bulletproof ♪ Against you shotgunnin' across my mind ♪ ♪ And I've taken you back too many times ♪ ♪ Could I be armored against you too ♪ ♪ Against all the ways that words cut through ♪ ♪ Against promises breaking into open wounds ♪ ♪ And the resulting scars ♪ And I'm thinkin' now, ♪ Could I really somehow be bulletproof ♪ ♪ And I'm thinkin' now, ♪ Could I really somehow be bulletproof ♪ Wanna do a verse?

- Yeah.

- Now.

Woo, we didn't practice that.

♪ And I'm thinkin' now ♪ Could I really somehow be bulletproof ♪ ♪ And I'm thinkin' now ♪ Could I really somehow be bulletproof ♪ (audience applauding) - Amanda just mentioned Facebook and that's part of my new story now.

I got a Facebook page just about when they first became available.

And very quickly I discovered I was really bad at it.

And I've never gotten any better.

All these years.

So what happened was I immediately, I just friended everybody that came up.

No matter what.

And later on, of course I regretted that I wanted to actually have my friends be available to communicate with.

And most of the people that came on and asked to be my friend were Big Lebowski fans.

(audience laughing) And that movie, well I have to say, I really liked that movie a lot.

I really am glad I was in it.

I just found out this week I got a pension from SAG, from the Screen Actor's Guild.

(audience laughing) (audience applauding) It's true.

But, and as I say, I loved the movie, it's not my favorite.

I haven't watched it 100 times like most of the people I've met.

These college kids, they put it on a loop and have parties where they drink White Russians all the whole weekend long and play the movie over and over and over.

And they have it memorized.

I really can't remember my own lines.

And I was only in it two minutes.

But anyway, so at some point I just didn't even try to use Facebook any more.

Well, I have a new record coming out with Dave Alvin in June.

First one I've made in many years.

Nowadays, the last record I made, I don't know if you were supposed to use Facebook or not, but I didn't and now, I guess you have to.

So the record company and Dave is real good at it, so I have to use it.

Okay, so Janet, my wife Janet, who happens to be here tonight I'm happy to say.

(audience applauding) She'll get to be here for the rest of the, she started refurbishing my Facebook and my own website which was 20 years old.

So she came across these old quotes.

One of 'em I get to use forever now maybe it could go on my epitaph.

It was sometime back in the 90s.

David Fricke, who's a writer and editor for the Rolling Stone said, "Jimmie Dale Gilmore's train of thought "makes all the stops."

(audience laughing) - [Andy] And we've been with him all week.

And we have been on every stop.

- So the trouble with that is that there was another one like that earlier in my career where a journalist said, "Jimmie Dale Gilmore never met a digression he didn't like."

(audience laughing) I took that as a license because first of all, I didn't know that was true until I read it in the Chicago newspaper.

(audience laughing) But then, after I read it, I thought, well, it's in the newspaper.

It just got worse.

(audience laughing) I was gonna digress, but I lost my train of thought.

(audience laughing) I had a digression planned here.

So this is one of the first songs I wrote actually, way, way, way back there.

And it's still one of my favorites of my own songs.

And Lloyd has played it with me many times.

He also, Joe Ely recorded it, and they played it with him thousands of times.

I'm still am not tired of it, so, I can't say that about all my songs.

I was gonna say something clever about it, but there wasn't anything.

(audience laughing) Except for that.

♪ Tonight I think I'm gonna go downtown ♪ ♪ Tonight I think I'm gonna look around ♪ ♪ For something I could not see ♪ ♪ When this world was more real to me ♪ ♪ Tonight I think I'm gonna go downtown ♪ ♪ My love, my love has gone away ♪ ♪ My love, my love, what can I say ♪ ♪ My love would never see ♪ That this world's just not real to me ♪ ♪ Tonight I think I'm gonna go downtown ♪ ♪ I told my love a thousand times ♪ ♪ That I can't say what's on my mind ♪ ♪ But she would never see ♪ That this world's not real to me ♪ ♪ Tonight I think I'm gonna go downtown ♪ ♪ Tonight I think I'm gonna go downtown ♪ ♪ Tonight I think I'm gonna look around ♪ ♪ For something I could not see ♪ ♪ When this world was more real to me ♪ ♪ Tonight I think I'm gonna go downtown ♪ ♪ Tonight I think I'm gonna go downtown ♪ (audience applauding) Thank you.

Thank you so much.

Lloyd Maines on the dobro.

Amanda Shires on the fiddle.

We're going in the round, and so Lloyd is skipping a turn of telling stories I've just noticed.

He's got more of them than any of us and they're funny.

(audience laughing) And some of 'em are true I think.

(audience laughing) - I won't get asked back if I tell the truth.

- Uh-oh.

By the way, let me just take this chance right now to thank both Lloyd and Andy for doing such a wonderful thing here.

All week long I've been having my mind blown by the Southwest Collection.

And then going into my old world.

I grew up at Texas Tech.

My dad worked here.

And from the time I was in the first grade, and then we went to Monterey High School the other day and went in and played music for the choir and some of the other kids there.

- And I think you got a pardon.

Is that right?

(audience laughing) - I did.

- I think you need to tell that story.

'Cause it's a heartwarming story.

- Okay, okay, I'll tell it because I might not get another chance.

Okay.

When we got to the day of finals at Monterey High School, in 1962, I'm not ashamed to tell when it was.

Tony Pierson and I both had, Tony is from Lubbock, although he hasn't been here in a long time, but he was one of the original members of the Flatlanders.

He played the mandolin in the Flatlanders.

And he and I were buddies.

This is long before the Flatlanders.

But we were playing music together back then.

But we were going to school together that morning and we had a wreck.

Well it so happens that both of us, through that semester, had accumulated 11 demerits.

Some of the younger people these last couple of days when I told this story didn't know what demerits were.

(audience laughing) But we had 11 demerits, and if you got 12 you were expelled.

We got to school, we were late, they gave us each another demerit.

And we were expelled.

So, we actually ended up graduating.

We participated in the ceremony at Monterey, but we had to go to Lubbock High for the last two months of our high school education.

So we graduated from both places.

Well, so I told this story to the kids at Monterey the other day, and the principal Mr.

Purkepile, afterwards, when we were finishing up, he come over to me.

First he had a hat.

It was a gimme cap and it was Monterey colors, and it said Golf on it.

Monterey Golf.

Great big Golf.

I have played golf once or twice.

(audience laughing) Probably at Monterey.

(audience laughing) But it was the 60th anniversary of Monterey High School so he presented me with a gift.

But also, he told me that as of that day, my 12 demerits were being expunged.

(audience laughing) and it had been taken off of my permanent record.

(audience laughing) (audience applauding) - I love that.

So when I was a kid, I was in my early teens.

I used to go around, there was a friend of mine named Joel Stevenson, who was a year younger.

I was 13 and he was 12.

He was a great fiddle player.

So we used to go around to all these fiddle contests around the area, so when we were thinking about what song Amanda was gonna do on fiddle, she said I'd like to do this song by Eck Robertson.

She learned this-- - [Amanda] From Frankie, who learned it only from Eck.

- Oh yeah?

- Frankie learned it directly from Eck.

- Oh yeah, okay.

So you learned it off his record?

- No, I learned it from Frankie when he was a person alive.

- Aah, got it, got it.

- I sat on his porch while he chain smoked cigarettes and offered me whiskey.

(audience laughing) - But Eck Robertson made this song famous though, right?

Say yes or you're gonna screw up my story.

- [Amanda] Okay, yes.

(audience laughing) - So anyway-- - [Amanda] If a fiddle tune can be famous.

- For all you music historians, Eck Robertson actually recorded the very first country recording ever.

I think 1919, something like that.

- Okay, I thought it-- - One side was a song called Sallie Gooden, and the other side was this, and so anyway, when she told me she wanted to do this song I said I actually played that, and there was a fiddle contest in Beulah, Texas.

I can't remember where Beulah is.

It's somewhere near White Face.

- [Jimmie] I've been there.

- Oh yeah?

- I've been there.

- Anyway, there was a fiddle contest there and I show up there with Joe, and Eck Robertson, he had to be at least 92, 93.

They had to tie his fiddle around his neck with a red bandana, I remember that.

And he had a little goatee that literally, he gave it the name goatee 'cause it looked like a little white Billy goat goatee, and so there was not another guitar player there at that time, so I got to get up and play with Eck Robertson.

It was like one of my greatest thrills ever.

So when she chose this song, I thought this is, I'm going back in time.

What a generational thing because just the fact that you are still excited about that music really inspires me.

- It's amazing.

It's amazing music.

How could you not be inspired by it?

I didn't win no contest with it, I just won second place in Snyder.

(audience laughing) It was better than none.

I guess, okay.

(upbeat fiddle music) I wanted to do it faster.

Let's do it super fast.

- You set the tempo, go ahead.

(upbeat fiddle music) (audience applauding) That's old time fiddle right there.

And the reason she likes to speed it up is it doesn't matter, I've played many dances down around Spur, Texas, and Guthrie, that area.

All those ranches.

And those dances would be six hours long.

- But you never had to play the fiddle sittin' down.

And this is the first time I've done it.

(audience laughing) Claps.

- If you really wanted to fire the crowd up, you would play it regular speed, then breakneck speed.

And they were all impressed by that.

(audience laughing) - [Jimmie] I was.

- We'll come back to it.

We'll do it again later standing up.

(audience laughing) - So last night, or yesterday afternoon actually, we got to make a visit over to a landmark.

I'll have to give you some of the background to it because this is called The Lubbock Lights.

This show and this little series that we're doing.

And it came from a very famous UFO sighting.

Probably most of you are aware of it, but if you're not, some of you might not have ever heard of it.

In 1952, there were sightings of UFOs over Lubbock that actually ended up being filmed and photographs were taken, documented, early on, and I was a little kid then, but even then I was really fascinated by it.

But 10 years later, in 1962, and I've told this story in a number of places.

I think Andy told me he wasn't aware of it before, but in 1962, I, myself saw the Lubbock Lights.

These things became, you can look it up, it's probably in Wikipedia.

The Lubbock Lights.

It's like in UFO world, it's like a very famous UFO sighting.

Never explained.

Well, some people pretended to explain it.

(audience laughing) I saw it for myself when I was in high school, and I used to always sleep out in the summertime.

I always slept out in the backyard if the weather would let me.

I saw these things come over that were exactly what were in these photos that I had seen when I was a little kid.

So last night, Meredith, Meredith McClain, let us come over and visit, yesterday, not last night.

We visited the house that these sightings happened at.

Which I wasn't even aware of.

In all these years, I never-- - Three professors from this Texas institution were having iced tea.

- Right.

(audience laughing) - I believe it.

- That's the story.

Late of an evening.

When they saw, made the first corroborated, I mean there were three of them who saw those UFOs, so.

- And they got a friend of theirs to photograph it.

In fact, one of the men, Mr.

Ducker was the father of a guy who much later became a friend of mine in high school.

They had a friend that was an amateur photographer and astronomer who was able to photograph these things.

Anyway, it's just this beautiful place over on 24th Street.

It's amazing.

The place in itself, if no UFOs had been there it would have been amazing.

Beautiful, beautiful place.

And thank you to Meredith for letting us see that place.

It's also, this whole week, my mind has been blown as I said.

I get to see part of the Southwest Collection, and a lot of you might not know this, amazing thing is coming together.

They're archiving all the music, lots of art, lots of the creative works that have come out of Lubbock and this area.

They're getting all this stuff, and keeping it, taking care of it museum style.

I've been hearing about it from friends for years, including Andy, but I told him yesterday, I don't really know something actually exists until I see it.

It was all hearsay, but now I've seen it, and so I'm gonna-- - We have a couple of those UFOs in there.

- Oh really?

I didn't see that part.

I do want to tell you that I, if I can manage to get my stuff together I want to give it to you guys.

(audience cheering) 'Cause it's the right place.

- That's the kind of UFO I'm talkin' about.

A Lubbock Light.

(audience laughing) The real Lubbock Lights.

We have the real Lubbock Lights in our archive.

- There's a Lubbock friend of ours named Al Strehli who has been underappreciated, all of these years he's really, truly one of the best songwriters that ever came out of Lubbock.

And he's still just pretty much unknown, which is kind of strange.

And I want to do one of his songs tonight.

♪ Oh the townhouse warbler lives far apart in a song ♪ ♪ He holds the poor in his memory he never, ♪ ♪ he never lets on ♪ He gathers strength as he gazes at length in a joy ♪ ♪ You cannot tell from the sound of nothings ♪ ♪ Been heard from his boy ♪ He's a thief in the night and he's stealing for light ♪ ♪ You won't know it ♪ He's already found you, his arms all around ♪ ♪ You won't show it ♪ Maybe one day you'll know more of ♪ ♪ You'll know enough to say ♪ Look over yonder he's already coming ♪ ♪ Look over yonder he's already coming ♪ ♪ Look over yonder he's already coming your way ♪ ♪ Oh the caretaker's daughter ♪ She lives near the Garden of Eden ♪ ♪ She knows the name of each flower ♪ ♪ She remembers which let you in ♪ ♪ She spills the sky when she looks in your eye ♪ ♪ And her jasmine ♪ A symphony heard from a mansion ♪ ♪ When the wind sweeps in between ♪ ♪ She's a thief in the night and she's stealing for love ♪ ♪ You won't know it ♪ She's already found you, her arms all around ♪ ♪ You won't show it ♪ Maybe one day you'll know more of ♪ ♪ You'll know enough to say ♪ Look over yonder she's already coming ♪ ♪ Look over yonder she's already coming ♪ ♪ Look over yonder she's already coming your way ♪ ♪ Oh the old engineer stays patient high in his roundhouse ♪ ♪ He watches his trains appearing ♪ ♪ Through silent puffs of snow ♪ And his eyes are bright as he watches them ♪ ♪ Nearing the time to set the track ♪ ♪ With a flick of his wrist he waves to let them go ♪ ♪ He's a thief in the night ♪ And he's stealing for life you won't know it ♪ ♪ He's already found you his arms all around ♪ ♪ You won't show it ♪ Maybe one day you'll know more of ♪ ♪ You'll know enough to say ♪ Look over yonder he's already coming ♪ ♪ Look over yonder he's already coming ♪ ♪ Look over yonder he's already coming your way ♪ ♪ He's a thief in the night and he's stealing for life ♪ ♪ You won't know it ♪ He's already found you, his arms all around ♪ ♪ You won't show it ♪ Maybe one day you'll know more of ♪ ♪ You'll know enough to say ♪ Look over yonder he's already coming ♪ ♪ Look over yonder he's already coming ♪ ♪ Look over yonder he's already coming your way ♪ (audience applauding) Thank you.

(melodic fiddle music) ♪ A phased golden light ♪ ♪ Rained down from the street light ♪ ♪ It fell across your shoulder ♪ ♪ Paused just above your collar ♪ ♪ Like it had something to show me ♪ ♪ As if I wasn't already noticing ♪ ♪ Your eyes a shade of wonder ♪ ♪ Like if thunder had a color ♪ ♪ It could have been harmless ♪ ♪ Wanting to see ♪ ♪ If I could get a little closer ♪ ♪ And walk away breathing ♪ ♪ It might've been cheating ♪ ♪ Where exactly is the line?

♪ Too early to admit it ♪ ♪ I wanted you for mine ♪ ♪ I kissed Maria in the alley ♪ ♪ You laughed and spilled your whiskey ♪ ♪ There's some I can't remember ♪ ♪ A talented bartender ♪ ♪ And way out in the cheap seats ♪ ♪ The stars stared unblinking ♪ ♪ The ones that know anything ♪ ♪ Won't be revealing ♪ ♪ It could have been harmless ♪ ♪ Wanting to see ♪ ♪ If I could get a little closer ♪ ♪ And walk away breathing ♪ ♪ It might've been cheating ♪ ♪ Where exactly is the line?

♪ Too early to admit it ♪ ♪ I wanted you for mine ♪ ♪ There was a sword in my drink ♪ ♪ Everything's a sign, if you want it to be ♪ ♪ And you want it to be ♪ ♪ It could have been harmless ♪ ♪ Wanting to see ♪ ♪ If I could get a little closer ♪ ♪ And walk away breathing ♪ ♪ It might've been cheating ♪ ♪ Where exactly is the line?

♪ Too early to admit it ♪ ♪ I wanted you for mine ♪ ♪ It could've been harmless ♪ ♪ It could've been harmless ♪ (audience applauding) (mumbles) - As a person who values writing, about as much as anything that that one phrase, if, as if Thunder had a color.

It knocks me out every time I hear it.

It is so incredible.

- Inspired by Lubbock sunsets and sunrises, Lubbock skies.

- Yeah.

Terrific, what a Great song, - Jimmie, you better do your medley of hit.

- Oh, should I (laughing), okay.

I forgot, Yeah I have a... Okay, I'll tell a story it's real quick.

I wrote this song because it actually happened.

I was flying into Dallas and it said in my brain said, Did you ever see Dallas from a DC-9 at night and the other part of my brain then heard it went, Boy, that's a good line for a song.

So I kept it and I wrote a song with it.

And he's what he was referring to the Townes Van Zandt used to call Pancho and lefty, the middle of his greatest hit (Laughing) so this this is my medley of my greatest hit, and Lloyd actually played on my even produced the actual first hit version of it with the Eli Band, so... (audience applauding) ♪ Did you ever see Dallas from a DC-9 at night?

♪ ♪ Well Dallas is a jewel, oh yeah ♪ ♪ Dallas is a beautiful sight ♪ ♪ And Dallas is a jungle but Dallas ♪ ♪ gives a beautiful light ♪ Did you ever see Dallas from a DC-9 at night ♪ ♪ Well, Dallas is a woman who will walk ♪ ♪ on you when you're down ♪ ♪ But when you are up, she's the kind ♪ ♪ you want to take around ♪ ♪ But Dallas ain't a woman ♪ ♪ to help you get your feet on the ground ♪ ♪ And Dallas is a woman who will ♪ ♪ walk on you when you're down ♪ ♪ Well, I came into Dallas with the bright lights ♪ ♪ on my mind ♪ ♪ But I came into Dallas with a Dollar and a dime ♪ ♪ Dallas is a rich man with a death wish in his eyes ♪ ♪ A steel and concrete soul ♪ And a warm hearted love disguise ♪ ♪ A rich man who tends to believe in his own lies ♪ ♪ Dallas is a rich man with a death wish in his eyes ♪ ♪ Well, I came into Dallas with the bright lights ♪ ♪ on my mind ♪ But I came into Dallas with a Dollar and a dime ♪ ♪ Did you ever see Dallas from a DC-9 at night ♪ ♪ Well Dallas is a jewel ♪ oh yeah, Dallas is a beautiful sight ♪ ♪ And Dallas is a jungle but Dallas gives ♪ ♪ a beautiful light ♪ ♪ Did you ever see Dallas from a DC-9 at night ♪ ♪ Did you ever see Dallas from a DC-9 at night ♪ (audience laughing) Thank you.

Thanks so much to Andy, Andy Wilkinson everybody.

(Audience applauding) Between him and Lloyd (Applauding) people to other so many I can't name everybody.

- you know, I've got like this best gig, I get to sit on the stage.

Listen to the music and I don't have to work(laughing).

let's What do you got in mind?

Lloyd Let's do one to.. - None of us would be here had you not... - Defer to Jimmie he's got a good ending song.

- All right.

- Okay.

Oh, I didn't mention I have a new record coming out and the title of the record... is with Dave Alvin and the record is called Downey to Lubbock.

- Explain that.

- Well Downey California is where Dave is from and he's Dave was in a band called The Blasters which was a really famous and I by some weird fluke missed out on the whole thing and you know, I had to catch up later, but he's, he's one of the best guitar players and songwriters, and I got to know him as a lot more like a folk player, but back in the Blasters days.

The Blasters and The Eli band toured together a whole lot and they were they were co billed it was like that neither one was you know, top dog and they took turns the in the opening and the closing acted... Hey Lloyd said it was it was a battle of the bands always and they all became real good friends and everything and I got to know Dave much later on and I've made this new record, it's like the the most rocking thing that I've done in my career, which is strange I'm at I'm at a funny age to do my first rock and roll record but there's a song on it we're doing is this is a it's kind of a rock song, I guess.

But it's got requested by Dave over and over... when we were doing our live shows and then he asked me to do it on the record, so I didn't and it's coming out on this on the album.

And also as a single pretty soon I think.

- And when can we expect that?

- June 1st is one of the actual release is but you can find a few you can find Downey to Lubbock.

The song is is on, I think it's on Rolling Stone on the Rolling Stones web page and... - I just YouTube and there are... - Oh really - Yeah, - Oh, sorry Oh, we have a video and everything.

- Oh, yeah or you can do the YouTube thing.

- Yeah.

- I don't know.

I don't understand.

- That's because I'm younger than you are(audience laughing) - Yes By the way, also, my mom is also here tonight.

My mum is 92 and I wanna thank her for coming (audience applauding) and Debbie and jack savage who actually helped me do my laundry today.

good friend - Could you introduce me to them(laughing).

- I will.

- And we and we all appreciate it that a lot.

- Nobody said anything about it.

I figured it was about time I've been on the road for a little while.

This time around here anyway so this is a this is a like an anthem out of the 60s, it was done by the Youngbloods and I'm doing my version now.

♪ Love is but a song we sing ♪ ♪ Fear's the way we die ♪ ♪ You can make the mountains ring ♪ ♪ Or make the angels cry ♪ ♪ Though the bird is on the wing ♪ ♪ And you may not know why ♪ ♪ Come on people now ♪ ♪ Smile on each other ♪ ♪ Everybody get together ♪ ♪ Try to love one another right now ♪ ♪ Some may come and some may go ♪ ♪ We will surely pass ♪ ♪ When the one who left us yes ♪ ♪ Returns for us at last ♪ ♪ We are but a moment's sunlight ♪ ♪ Fading in the grass ♪ ♪ Come on people now ♪ ♪ Smile on each other ♪ ♪ Everybody get together ♪ ♪ Try to love one another ♪ ♪ Right now ♪ ♪ If you hear the song I sing ♪ ♪ You will understand ♪ ♪ You hold the key to love and fear ♪ ♪ All in your trembling hand ♪ ♪ Just one key unlocks them both ♪ ♪ It's there at your command ♪ ♪ Come on people now ♪ ♪ Smile on each other ♪ ♪ Everybody get together ♪ ♪ Try to love one another ♪ ♪ Right now ♪ ♪ Come on people now ♪ Sister and Brother ♪ ♪ Everybody get together ♪ ♪ Try to love one another ♪ ♪ Right now ♪ Right now ♪ Right now (Audience applauding) - Lloyd Maines, Amanda Shires, Jimmie Dale Gilmore.

Thank you.

(Audience applauding) - Would you do one more?

- Okay Lloyd thought of another one.

- Is it faded love?

- I hope so brought my fiddle .

- Okay, let's do it - I borrowed a fiddle actually.

- Let's try it, Let's try (mumbles) - Bob Wills song.

(Audience applauding) And I can't remember what key we did I remember that it was too high for me to do it anyway.

- Actually yours is a D you sing the Versa she sings the chorus.

- Yeah, okay.

- It's gonna be amazing.

- All right, - you'll see.

- Yeah, every you know everything, everything is Have you ever noticed that all these signs and all these places like, always misspell exist?

(laughing) No matter where you go, - I'm keeping that.

- Whenever I was growing up playing the dances in West Texas with The Maines Brothers, siblings, we found out early on that if you could play this next song, you played this next song, you could get a gig every Saturday night, even if he just play it over and over.

- And I used to play this song a whole lot, but it was more than half a century ago.

(Laughing) - I just want to thank Andy Wilkinson for getting in touch with his daughter and Emily Wilkinson for donating the fiddle for me to borrow tonight, cause I thought that nobody would know any of my songs or anything like that, so I thought just bring the ukulele which was a terrible mistake.

But it all ended well because there's many a fiddle in Lubbock Texas so thank you to Emily Wilkinson.

- So we'll play it through once in d?

- What did you say?

- Play it through once in d - Yeah anything you say sir?

- Okay, you gonna give me a nick nick noo?

- No I don't do nick, nick noo's those are more expensive.

(laughter) - OKay, we'll just start with a count?

One, two A one two ♪ As I look at the letter ♪ you wrote to me ♪ It's you that I am thinking of ♪ ♪ As I read the lines ♪ that to me were so sweet ♪ I remember our faded love ♪ - ♪ I miss you darlin' more and more every day ♪ ♪ As Heaven would miss the stars above ♪ ♪ With every heartbeat I still think of you ♪ ♪ And I remember our faded love ♪ ♪ I think of the past and all the pleasure's we had ♪ ♪ As I watched the mating of the dove ♪ ♪ It was in the spring-time when you said good-bye ♪ ♪ I remember our faded love ♪ - ♪ I miss you darlin' more and more every day ♪ ♪ As Heaven would miss the stars above ♪ ♪ With every heartbeat I still think of you ♪ ♪ And remember our faded love ♪ And remember our faded love (Audience applauding) - [Jimmie] Thanks so much, everybody.

- [Amanda] Thank you.

- [Jimmie] Lloyd Maines and Amanda Shires wow.

Come back next year we're going to do it again.