Stevie Ray Vaughan

@ Lloydc...I saw SRV more than a dozen times during his career, in bars and in some pretty large venues and the ONLY time he wasn't "pushing the limit" was when he was too wacked out on coke and booze (I thought his playing was actually disappointing a few times due to his being too wasted). I never saw him consciously "not take chances" in his playing. His playing and skill level continued to progress until the day he died. I was at Alpine Valley - his last show - and it was the very best I'd ever heard him play.

I also saw SRV a few dozen times, mostly in Austin bars like Soap Creek Saloon and the Rome Inn, when he was playing with Paul Ray and the Cobras. As great as his recordings are you can't get a sense of what an incredible player he was from any one recording of a song. What was most remarkable to me was that he never played a song the same way twice. His ability to improvise, sometimes wildly, while retaining the integrity of the song was something I've never heard anyone equal.

Any SRV, is good SRV. Play it Loud!

Agree that the records do not begin to capture the way SRV played live. Playing in large stadiums, as he did after going nationwide, is not like playing in a bar, where the blues belong. Stadium rock is more constrained, more pressure, less free. The best improvisations usually happen in smaller venues. Can not think of many exceptions, other than Garcia with the Dead.

When someone told Jimmy Vaughan that Stevie never played anything the same way twice, he said, "Stevie never played anything the same way ONCE."

I saw SRV play over a hundred times, mostly in Houston and Austin. Sometimes to "crowds" of a dozen people. Agree that he was occasionally too wasted to play cleanly, e.g., the Live Alive album. So what? What he would do with "mistakes" was always interesting. Imo, his best work was before he bacame famous, in the early 80's, and at that time, he was always high.

Very beautiful. The boy did have the touch, didn't he? Thank you.