The State Musician of Texas

For nogle år siden brændte, den nu afdøde mester-producer Jerry Wexler, en cd med de numre, han var mest stolt af at have haft med at gøre. Et af disse var ’(Is Anybody Going to) San Antone’ fra lp’en ’Doug Sahm And Band’ fra 1973. Sahm, der med årene kom til at beherske alt fra country, r&b, conjunto, cajun til tex-mex rock’n’roll, begyndte karrieren i midten af halvtredserne, hvor han indspillede nogle singleplader på et par små Texas-labels. I tresserne gik det bedre i Sir Douglas Quintet, der i dag må kandidere til enhver seriøs liste over toneangivende garagerockbands.

’Doug Sahm And Band’ var hans første soloprojekt. Wexler havde samlet et stjernebesat backingband, der bl.a. talte Bob Dylan, Dr. John, David ’Fathead’ Newman, David Bromberg og Flaco Jimenez. Flere år senere sagde Wexler:

"I worked with a lot of musicians over the years and had been very fortunate. There was something about Doug, though, that really intrigued me. The fact that he could not only play just about every style of Texas music, but play it with so much soul and intensity was something that always amazed me. I never got tired of listening to him pull out song after song and just pour it on."

Det er ikke kun Wexler, der har set op til Doug Sahm. Til marts udsender Vanguard Records tribute-pladen ’Keep Your Soul’ med dette indhold:

Little Willie G. - She's About a Mover
Delbert McClinton - Texas Me
Flaco Jimenez with the West Side Horns - Ta Bueno Compadre (It's OK Friend)
Los Lobos - And It Didn't Even Bring Me Down
Jimmie Vaughan - Why, Why, Why
Alejandro Escovedo - Too Little Too Late
Greg Dulli - You Was for Real
Dave Alvin - Dynamite Woman
The Gourds - Nuevo Laredo
Terry Allen with Joe Ely - I'm Not That Kat Anymore
Freda & the Firedogs - Be Real
Shawn Sahm - Mendocino
Joe "King" Carrasco & Texas Tornados - Adios Mexico
Charlie Sexton & the Mystic Knights of the Sea - You're Doin' It Too Hard