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Although a lot of websites contend this group was
formed in 1989, they had in fact recorded at least thirteen years earlier
on the album Texas Rock For Country
Rollers, which was released in 1976. To make matters more confusing, the
group is listed as Sir Doug & The Texas Tornados on the LP, whereas a
promotional 45 with material from the album lists them as Doug Sahm &
The Texas Tornados. The "Sir"
comes from Sahm's sixties band, the Sir Douglas Quintet. " The Texas Tornados"
comes from Sahm's 1973 release, Texas
Tornado. Whatever the name,
the group originally consisted of Atwood Allen, Jack Barber, Harry Hess,
Harvey Kagen, Augie Meyers, Frank Morin, George Rains, and Doug Sahm. The history of the band is
such: Meyers and Sahm met in
1953. At the time, Meyers was
in a band called The Goldens.
Eleven years later, The Goldens, along with Sahm's band The
Markays, were opening for the likes of The Dave Clark Five. It was the beginning of The British
Invasion, and record producer Huey P. Meaux was miffed. Why were groups like The Beatles and
The Dave Clark Five so successful? he wondered, and why can't
Americans come up with an answer to them? The result was the Sir Douglas
Quintet, composed of Meyers, Sahm, and members of their respective
bands. They had one big hit in
1965 with "She's About A Mover". It is unclear as to exactly when
Doug Sahm & The Texas Tornados formed, but one of their earliest
incarnations would have been on the 45 "I Love The Way You Love (The
Way I Love You)" backed with "Country Peyton Place", the
latter penned by Sahm. Thirteen
years later, Meyers and Sahm would join Freddy Fender and Flaco Jimenez as
The Tex-Mex Revue at a concert in San Francisco, then return to the studio
under their former moniker, The Texas Tornados. They released four albums and won a
Grammy award for Best Mexican/American Performance on a cut from their
eponymous 1990 album, a song called "Soy de San Luis". Other albums included Live From Austin, chronicling their
appearance on Austin City Limits,
and Live From The Limo. They were very much in demand in the
'90s, appearing at Farm Aid, The Montreux Jazz Festival, and at
President Bill Clinton's Inauguration. In 1999, they appeared on Austin City Limits one last time,
weeks before Doug Sahm's untimely demise in a New Mexico motel room
on 18 November 1999. They
announced, out of respect for their long-time front man, that they would no
longer appear as The Texas Tornados.
Freddy Fender passed away in 2006. Flaco Jimenez continues to tour the
American Southwest and recently made a guest appearance on the album Spongebob Squarepants: The Best Day Ever. He also has plans to release Ya Volvi De La Guerra, in honour of
U.S. troops. Augie Meyers and
the Roca Baca's released a new album in 2006, entitled My Freeholies Ain't Free Anymore. He is currently working on a solo
project, Through The Years.
Doug Sahm
& The Texas Tornados recordings
Cowboy Peyton
Place (Doug Sahm)
I Love The Way
You Love (The Way I Love You) (A. Allen)
Sources:
1.
http://www.dougsahm.com/
2.
http://www.laventure.net/tourist/sdq_hist.htm
3.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Texas_Tornados
4.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Doug_Sahm
5.
http://www.jr.com/JRProductPage.process?Product=4147666&JRSource=nsa&nsa=1
6.
http://www.pbs.org/klru/austin/artists/program22.html
7.
http://www.rollingstone.com/news/story/5924301/texas_rocker_doug_sahm_found_dead_in_new_mexico/
8.
http://www.augiemeyers.com/discography/index.php
9.
http://www.flacojimenezmusic.com/shows_and_news/default.asp
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