Go! Texas

Tonight’s the big BCS Championship Game pitting the University of Texas against the other team from Alabama.  The Longhorns’ lackluster performance in the Big 12 Championship Game against Nebraska has many “experts” picking the Crimson Tide to roll.  Whether they do or not is up for debate, however, I can guarantee you that our cheerleaders will be hotter.  Kickoff at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena is set for 7 p.m. CST.  Hook ‘Em.

MP3: “The Eyes of Texas” by the University of Texas Longhorn Band

MP3: “March Of The Longhorns” by the University of Texas Longhorn Band

MP3: “The Yellow Rose of Texas” by the University of Texas Longhorn Band

MP3: “Deep In The Heart Of Texas” by Gene Autry

MP3: “Texas In My Soul” by Willie Nelson

MP3: “Miles and Miles of Texas” by Asleep at the Wheel

MP3: “What I Like About Texas” by Jerry Jeff Walker

MP3: “It’s A Texas Thing” by Gary P. Nunn

MP3: “Screw You, We’re From Texas” by Ray Wylie Hubbard

MP3: “Texas Me” by Doug Sahm

The Texas Top 10?

Austin public radio station KUT has announced that it’s determined the best songs about Texas, as voted by its listeners.  Asleep At The Wheel leader Ray Benson openly campaigned for votes on his MySpace page, so it figures that the group would be No. 1.  Here’s the list:

“Miles And Miles Of Texas” by Asleep At The Wheel

“New San Antonio Rose” by Bob Wills & the Texas Playboys

“Waltz Across Texas” by Ernest Tubb

“Deep In The Heart Of Texas” by Gene Autry

“London Homesick Blues” by Gary P. Nunn (w/Jerry Jeff Walker)

“El Paso” by Marty Robbins

“Luckenbach, Texas” by Waylon Jennings (w/Willie Nelson)

“That’s Right (You’re Not From Texas)” by Lyle Lovett

“La Grange” by ZZ Top

“Amarillo By Morning” by George Strait

Nice list, but we tend to think it leaves a little to be desired.  After the jump, we offer some of our own suggestions; they, too, are pure Texas and sound great at any weekend barbecue.

Review: “Willie and the Wheel,” Willie Nelson & Asleep at the Wheel

Man, music doesn’t get any more fun than this.  American master musician Willie Nelson singing a selection of Western Swing classics accompanied by Texas swingers Asleep at the Wheel – an unlikely union, to be sure.  But this union was envisioned and engineered by master producer Jerry Wexler, who died last year.  He was able to hear the result of this bit of genius before he passed, thank god.  From the first licks of opener “Hesitation Blues” to the closer “Won’t You Ride In My Little Red Wagon,” this album rocks.  Many of these songs were made famous by people like Bob Wills and Spade Cooley way back in the Depression – so what better timing to bring ’em back, eh?  You realize Nelson could have been a big star back then, or in any era: his lazy, jazzy vocals fit perfectly as the music lopes from Western swing to Dixieland to straight jazz.  The Wheel’s steel guitarist Bob Rivers shines throughout, and he even holds his own against guest stars Vince Gill and Paul Shaffer on the instrumental “South.”  And Elizabeth McQueen of the Wheel gets her own spotlight in a duet with Willie on “I’m Sittin’ On Top Of The World,” the album’s highlight.  Is there anything Willie Nelson can’t do?  Well, maybe reggae … but Willie and the Wheel is a delight, it’s the first must-have album of the year.

MP3: “Hesitation Blues”

Willie and the Wheel official website

30 Days Out (From Christmas): Texas 2

Along the Trail of Lights, Austin (2008)

Day 24 –  Here are some more favorites from the Lone Star State.  From Roy Orbison’s classic “Pretty Paper” (written by Willie Nelson) to Robert Earl Keen’s modern radio favorite “Merry Christmas From The Family,” these homegrown holiday chestnuts are enough to keep you cool on a humid December Texas night.  And they’ll keep you toasty a few hours later, when the cold front blows through.

MP3: “Pretty Paper” by Roy Orbison

MP3: “Blue Christmas” by Kelly Willis

MP3: “Merry Christmas From The Family” by Robert Earl Keen

MP3: “Christmas Morning” by Lyle Lovett

MP3: “Please Daddy, Don’t Get Drunk ” by Bruce Robison & Kelly Willis

MP3: “I’m Grateful For Christmas This Year” by Hayes Carll

MP3: “Winterlude” by Joe Ely

MP3: “Rockin’ Winter Wonderland” by the Fabulous Thunderbirds

MP3: “Merry Christmas” by Lightnin’ Hopkins

MP3: “Please Come Home For Christmas” by Lou Ann Barton

MP3: “Jingle Bells” by Flaco Jimenez, Freddy Fender, Joel Nava, Rick Orozco & Ricardo Castillon

MP3: “She’ll Be My Everything For Christmas” by Los Lonely Boys

MP3: “Christmas Everyday” by Rosie Flores

MP3: “Merry Texas Christmas, Ya’ll” by Asleep At The Wheel