Cosmic Austin: that edgy intersection where the best of the Texas songwriters meets Folk-Rock & Roll. And who was there for a lot of it, who helped make that music and who continues that tradition with their own songs and the iconic tunes of that time?

The Lost Austin Band, that's who!

If you've heard the music of Willie Nelson, Jerry Jeff Walker, Michael Martin Murphey, Rusty Wier, Ray Wylie Hubbard, Guy Clark, Townes Van Zandt, Willis Alan Ramsey, B.W. Stevenson, the Lost Gonzo Band and other song-oriented Texas artists, then you've heard the music of The Lost Austin Band.

Today’s Americana and Texas country artists owe a debt of gratitude to the stalwarts of what the media of the day called “Progressive Country.” All members of the Texas Music Legends Hall of Fame, Bob Livingston, Bill Browder, Dave Moerbe, Patterson Barrett, Ernie Gammage, and Craig D. Hillis return to their musical roots as The Lost Austin Band with the songs and stories that created this special time in Texas’s musical history. It’s quite a trip!

What is it about Wednesday?

Wednesday is Game Night at the Duck.   What is Game Night, you may ask? 

It's an informal night of fun, no reservations, no cover charge, just come on by.

We put out our collection of board games like Checkers, Backgammon, Monopoly, Risk, Jeopardy, Operation, Clue, Trivial Pursuit etc, (or you are welcome to bring your favorite) and folks bring their families and friends to have a bite and play games. 

In keeping with the spirit of Game Night, you can roll the dice and try your luck.  Roll any combination that equals four, or  two fours, and your entree will be on the house.  

Wednesday is also Irish Session Night at the Duck which usually starts around 7:30pm

Joe Ely blew in from out of West Texas like a blue norther 50 years ago and changed the sound of Texas music.  Born in the Panhandle, raised in Lubbock, and a key player in the emergence of Austin as a music capital, Ely has created a life’s work of singing, songwriting, playing guitar, performing, leading a band, swapping songs in guitar pulls, telling stories in songs and in prose about rambling around a larger-than-life world. 

Leading a band that reinvented honky tonk music in Lubbock in the mid 1970s, then inventing a whole ‘nother kind of Texas rock and roll while spearheading a wave of songwriters articulating the progressive country sound that put Austin on the map as the alternative Nashville, Joe Ely screams Texas.

It’s all here: the Flatlanders, the folk trio formed in 1970 with Butch Hancock and Jimmie Dale Gilmore that tried and failed to make a dent in Nashville in 1972, only to be “rediscovered” in the late 1990s;  the Joe Ely Band with steel guitarist Lloyd Maines, guitarist Jesse Taylor, and accordionist Ponty Bone that created their own synthesis of honky-tonk, western swing, and rock and roll;  subsequent live ensembles featuring guitarists David Grissom and David Holt and guest stints from  West Texas sax legend Bobby Keys whenever he wasn’t playing with the Rolling Stones; working as a duo with the classical flamenco guitarist, Teye; becoming a distinctive borderlands troubadour through his collaborations with conjunto accordionist Joel Guzman; taking home a Grammy as part of the Tex-Mex supergroup, Los Super Seven, along with Los Lobos, Freddy Fender, and Doug Sahm.

With 26 albums to his credit, he was declared the State Musician of Texas by the Texas Legislature in 2016. He’s shared microphones with Linda Ronstadt, the Clash, the Crickets, Waylon Jennings, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Willie Nelson, Bruce Springsteen, David Byrne, and the Chieftains. He’s swapped songs with Guy Clark, John Hiatt, Lyle Lovett, and Robert Earl Keen in songwriting circles, while continuing to tour and record with Butch Hancock and Jimmie Dale Gilmore in the Flatlanders, and with their Lubbock mentor Terry Allen.

Music is only part of the mix. Ely has authored the books Bonfire of Roadmaps and Reverb and is a member of the Texas Institute of Letters. He’s acted in the theatrical musical Chippy. His drawings, collages, prints, and paintings have been exhibited nationally. He’s earned his reputation as a genuine storyteller. 

Within all these media are larger-than-life tales filled with characters too unreal to make up – The Crazy Lemon, CB Stubblefield – Stubb of Stubb’s BBQ, Little Pete the Midget, Steve Wozniak, co-founder of Apple Computer, and Norman Odam, aka The Legendary Stardust Cowboy, the Lubbock artist behind the World’s Worst Record “Paralyzed.”  From a shark in a bathtub to picking up Townes Van Zandt hitchhiking across Lubbock to letting Townes and his songwriting running buddy Blaze Foley backstage at Aqua Fest to see what kind of trouble they could stir up,  Joe Ely has seen it all and managed to sing about a whole lot of what he’s experienced. 

Come on in, look around, and sit a spell.

With singles such as “Wait by the Line”, “Killin Me”, and an EP released in 2016 titled “Light Out,” Madeline is always emulating the challenge to be real through vulnerability and passion. 

Madeline has worked with the Houston Symphony as well as opened up for American Idol winner, Jordin Sparks, played at South by Southwest, opened up for Houston rap artist, Tobe Nwigwe, and performed at the 2018 NBA playoffs.

MADELINE EDWARDS DROPS HER SECOND SINGLE,“MIRROR” OFF UPCOMING SEVEN-SONG ALBUM

Houston musician debuts emotional ballad that touches on standards of beauty and the impact on mental health for women in today’s society 

WHO: Madeline Edwards has released the second song, “Mirror,” off of her seven-song album “Made” which is scheduled to hit all streaming platforms November 2019.

WHEN: The song and accompanying music video was released Thursday, August 1. This new single comes on the heels of Edwards’ first song released off of the album, “Tryna Make Sense,” which debuted on May 2nd. The remaining songs on the album will release one by one each month until the album launch in the fall, each accompanied with a full music video.

WHAT: “Mirror” is the powerhouse ballad of the entire album. What is an emotional experience for the listener was also an extremely powerful journey for those that created the story and the video. “Mirror” takes the listener through the journey of a women in present day society – feeling trapped by trying to be someone she’s not and maintain societal standards of beauty; thus neglecting her emotional and mental well-being. The words and story of the song bring awareness to this challenge that many women face each and every day. The music video was produced by Madeline herself along with her team of talented creatives and visionaries.

WHAT IS BEING SAID: “This song is the best I’ve ever written,” says Madeline Edwards. “The video is conceptually appealing and so emotionally artistic. Multiple times on set, myself and the crew would tear up while creating these scenes. Too often, women try to be something they’re not and lose themselves in the process, and I wanted to convey that in a really powerful way. I am so excited for everyone to experience this story.”

The Latin instrumentation and English, Spanish and “Spanglish” lyrics on Lisa Morales’ thoroughly entertaining sophomore album Luna Negra and the Daughter of the Sun emphasize the impact of her upbringing, yet it’s impossible not to hear the Americana and country-music influence that has made Morales one of the most multifaceted artists to watch.

In a voice tinged with worldly wisdom, heartache and wanderlust, Morales’ album strolls the music-filled backroads of two countries, offering a collection that’s part Lucinda Williams, part Paulette Carlson-era Highway 101, and part Canciones de Mi Padre-era Linda Ronstadt. Morales (like Ronstadt, who is her cousin) was raised in Tucson, Arizona, where her mother, a Ph.D. who spoke 11 languages, immersed her in the work of poets like Spanish playwright Federico Garcia Lorca.

“She would take me down to the ocean,” Morales tells Rolling Stone Country. “And the way she would describe things to me was more in a poetic sense. From the time I was about 5 through grade school, we had playwrights and authors at my house. People who were giving lectures at the University of Arizona would stay at our house. They would travel from Spain and South America and Mexico. So I was kind of revisiting all that.”

While drawing on the unique perspective afforded her in her childhood, Morales has also gone deeper into more recent experiences to write material for this and her previous LP. “I Want the Roses,” from the soon-to-be-released Luna Negra and the Daughter of the Sun, is a moving track in both a rhythmic and emotional sense, a powerful meditation on what we settle for as opposed to what we ultimately deserve in a relationship.  - Rolling Stone

Known for his intimate tenor, fingerpicked acoustic guitar, and moody melodies, LA-based indie Shane Alexander has quietly made a name for himself with millions of Spotify streams, an extensive touring history in the US and Europe as both a headliner and as support for acts like Bon Iver, Suzanne Vega, Jewel, Seal and Yes, and dozens of film and TV credits featuring his alternative Americana. 

He is powerful and yet elegant, soulful and bluesy, heartfelt and yet soaring in his playing.  A disc from a Musician you will be hearing a lot more from as he gets the recognition he deserves. If you get a chance to see him don’t miss it. - No Depression  - Bob Gottlieb

Whether one’s first impression of Jeff Plankenhorn is that of a monster slide guitarist or an equally formidable songsmith and powerhouse vocalist, the strong likelihood is that, upon even a brief listen, one of these will jump to the fore. -  Roots Music Report - Duane Verh

"The Change" is the debut solo album from singer/songwriter and longtime Uncle Lucius frontman Kevin Galloway.  "It's a love letter, and a promise to my newly formed family", says Galloway.  "My wife and I have two children under the age of 3 now.  After touring almost incessantly with a band for over a decade, I've decided to take a different approach.  

This album is a sincere reflection of my mindset while reorganizing priorities." 

As for the sound, Galloway and producer Vorpahl call it "Gulf Coast Country Soul".  Of the band, Kevin comments, "We put together some great players and they really found something special. It's organic and undeniably in the pocket."