History & Stories

Don’t let the lame-stream “intellectuals” convince you Alaska is larger than Texas

Our federal government continues to disrespect us. By us, I mean all those who inhabit the spaces from Beaumont to El Paso and Dalhart to Brownsville: the Great State of Texas, the biggest state in the USA. It’s appalling that our government refuses to concede this fact. The liberal bureaucrats of the U.S. Census Bureau…
How a convicted killer shaped American gun policy

Harlon Carter’s legacy is transforming the NRA from a hobbyist club into a powerful D.C. lobbying machine. He was a staunch opponent of gun regulation who masterminded a scorched-earth strategy that combined aggressive grassroots organization with Beltway cash. There wasn’t room for compromise in Harlon’s mind. When asked if he would allow felons, the mentally…
When Charley the alligator patrolled his moat on Barton Springs Road

Charley’s adventures in Austin started when he was found paddling around the Littlefield Fountain one warm April morning. His presence was presumed to be a fraternity prank, but none of the Greeks came forward to claim credit. The incident left the chief of police with two problems. The first he solved by ordering the city…
What was so special about the Armadillo World Headquarters?

Anyone who has spent more than ten minutes in Austin has heard a reverent reference to the Armadillo World Headquarters. Though the club has been closed for over forty years, it maintains a mythical status as a symbol of a time when Austin was undeniably cool, and long before anyone felt the need to ask…
A mostly true narrative of the first ACL Festival (Part 1)

“That’ll be $7.67,” I said while scribbling the order with one hand and swigging some Shiner from the Solo cup I kept on a shelf under the bar with the other. I had worked the lunch rush enough times to know the price of any combo on the menu, but I punched a few keys…
The peculiar tale of Gram Parsons’ death and its infamous aftermath

Head east from L.A., and soon the sprawling metropolis is swallowed by the vast emptiness of the Mojave Desert. It’s an otherworldly terrain boasting some of the most inhospitable conditions on this planet. Rugged mountains and precariously balanced stacks of boulders are the defining characteristics of the hot, dusty expanse. The only visible signs of…
The revival of Townsend’s Treacherous Treat, Austin’s beloved cocktail of yesteryear

Townsend Miller was a unique character who was larger than life. This article is our attempt to recreate his signature drink, Townsend’s Treacherous Treat, which he carried in a flask while making the rounds of Austin’s honky-tonks in the seventies. To learn more about his extraordinary life, click here. “Townsend’s Treacherous Treat” is a legendary…
The sensational double life of Townsend Miller

Townsend Miller is a character who should not exist in the real world, but for over a decade he was one of the unique personalities comprising the outlaw country scene that permeated Austin in the seventies. He is a throwback to a time when America was great, and dinosaurs like Hunter S. Thompson roamed the…
Kacey Musgraves long history with Austin

It’s time to recruit Kacey Musgraves back to Austin. No slight to Nashville, it’s just that Kacey is a more natural fit in the capital city of her home state. She is one of us. It’s time to come home with the Armadillo and rule the city alongside Willie Nelson and Matthew McConnaughy.
Kinky Friedman – In Memorium

Yesterday’s unfortunate news of Kinky Friedman’s passing has been difficult to grapple with. He had an oversized personality that was a constant presence in my life, and it is a sad realization that this presence is now a memory. I’m not sure what this is that I’m writing; it’s not an obituary. I guess these…
The largest heist in city history, a clash with the Crimson Tide, and flying submarines – it’s the holiday’s in Austin, 1964

All of the stories, quotes, and other anecdotes are from articles published in the Austin American Statesman between November 15, 1964 and January 2, 1965. As 1964 bowed away and 1965 danced in, a crew of yeggs pulled off the largest cash heist in Austin history. The crime was dutifully reported by the Statesman but,…
You’ve got to have some scars if you want to be a poet

Ray Wiley Hubbard is one of the cosmic cowboys that made Austin home in the early 1970’s and played the bars and clubs alongside the likes of Willie Nelson, Doug Sahm, and Ray Benson. Heck, if you want old school credentials, he went to high school with Michael Martin Murphy. Before he inserted ‘Martin’ into…
Part One: Getting There

“We’re here!” I announced as I pulled off the blacktop bringing the old Pontiac to an abrupt stop. The sudden jolt, and my exclamation, startled my passenger Mike into the beginnings of consciousness. “Where?”, Mike groggily asked. “It’s only been an hour since we left Austin, have you forgotten where we were going?” I replied.…
The history of Antone’s, Austin’s Home of the Blues

Life outside the ‘Dillo 1970’s Austin was dominated by the hippie adjacent cosmic cowboys with their long hair, cowboy boots, and distinctive country-rock fusion music. It was their fashion and attitude that defined the national perception of Austin. Still does. The center of their universe was the Armadillo World Headquarters where there were some pretty…
The long, strange trip of Asleep at the Wheel

Asleep at the Wheel is the most iconic punk band to come out of Austin. This is usually overlooked because they play Western Swing music that hasn’t been popular since the 1940’s. But punk is about attitude, and Ray Benson has the spirit of a punk. He’s the definition of DIY and has built a…
Why listen to music on vinyl?

Record sales peaked in 1978. At that point, records started slowly giving ground to the cassette tape before surrendering more rapidly to the CD. Still, the album era continued unabashed until the advent of digital music. Napster severely wounded the industry in 1999, and the iPod delivered the apparent death blow two years later.
Welcome to the Club

Congratulations, if you are reading this you are one of the first visitors to this site! Take a look around, there is some content available but a lot more is brewing. What you will typically find in this section is a brief biography of an artist. A lot of them will be the original Cosmic…