Austin Music Poll - vote

There's still time to vote in the Austin Music Poll. You don't have to live here and you don't have to fill out the whole form. The musicians really do appreciate (and need) your votes.

There are lots of criteria to use in voting, whether you are a fan or just want to show some love to someone who had a tough year. There are musicians living around here who are pretty famous, and oddly enough, they don't usually win these awards although by no means are they exempted from the contest. Michael Corcoran, in this post, lays out his description of the difference between an Austin musician and a musician who lives in Austin, and tells why he doesn't think Iron & Wine qualifies. (When Sam Beam moved here, he was already big enough to sell out Stubb's, so he doesn't have to bust his ass every night in little clubs for tips. No crime there.) There are soooo many choices in every category you could list a hundred for each slot, but it's still perfectly alright to plug a few people.

Musician of the year: Stephen Bruton
He's battling throat cancer but still out there playing at the Saxon Pub, solo or with The Resentments. He threw a huge concert last summer called The Road to Austin, a FREE outdoor show with Kristofferson, Raitt, Eric Johnson, Bobby Whitlock, Joe Ely and lots more. He's a wonderful songwriter with a lot of soul. He's a treasure, and he got my vote.

Electric Guitar: Eric Johnson
He's world-class, and my favorite guitar player... period... and as unconceited as he can possibly be. If you want to embarrass him, tell him how good he is. His Cliffs of Dover is part of Guitar Hero III, Legends of Rock.

Acoustic Guitar: several plugs: Eric Johnson is great. Also Rick del Castillo or Mark del Castillo are favorites, and Monte Montgomery. All as fine as they can be. Monte is busting his ass every Wednesday night at the Saxon Pub, and that's not his only gig. This is a guitar town, so there are hundreds of choices for both electric and acoustic.

Bass Guitar: Chris Maresh. Versatile to the max, plays every kind of music and can keep up with the best of them. Roscoe Beck, also a good choice.

Drums: Tommy Taylor, who usually plays with Eric. There's also Terry Bozzio. You may have heard of him. Used to be in a band with Jeff Beck. Rattletree is a Zimbawean-style marimba band, and they made their own instruments.

Latin anything: Del Castillo or Grupo Fantasma.

Bluegrass: South Austin Jug Band

Strings: Brian Beken, Warren Hood, or Dennis Ludiker (my favorite fiddlers!)

Kid Band: though not technically a "band", our young friend Sarah Jarosz and her amazing mandolin won this last year, and she is still eligible. Also write her in for "Miscellaneous instrument -- mandolin"

Blues: Gary Clark Jr. hits the big screen this year in the movie "Honeydripper" directed by John Sayles. He's been playing in these clubs since he was way too young to be in them. He's the real thing, and my pick this year.

Bands, Roots Rock, Folk, Male and Female Singers, good grief there are too many to mention: The Band of Heathens, Mother Truckers, Gougers, Reckless Kelly, Texas Sapphires, Joe Ely, Mario Matteoli, Del Castillo, Patty Griffin, Shawn Colvin, Dixie Chicks, Willie Nelson, Iron & Wine, Dale Watson, James McMurtry, Ruthie Foster, Terri Hendrix, Belleville Outfit, Jon Dee Graham, The Resentments, Tea Merchants, any band that plays any night at Momo's, Antone's, The Saxon Pub, Emo's, Flipnotics, over on Red River, or at the Continental Club (what have I left out?).

Novelty or none of the above: Austin Lounge Lizards, Asylum Street Spankers, Friends of Dean Martinez, White Ghost Shivers, Eggmen...

World Music: Mundi

My favorite club this year was Momo's, the best acoustic listening room is still The Cactus Cafe.

Best Record Store: Waterloo Records

Want to explore Austin music? There's not a comprehensive guide, but there's this and this or this.

Here's the ballot.

Tags: Music - Austin - Texas - Texas Music