Clifford Antone: Austin icon and patron saint of the Blues

I just went to the Kinky Friedman site and discovered that Clifford Antone died two days ago. If you are a Blues fan (and I'm talking music here), you likely know who Clifford Antone was. If you don't know who he was, here's some info. Antone was the founder and longtime owner of one of the greatest Blues clubs to ever exist--Antone's. Antone's opened in Austin in 1975, and since then every major and up and coming Blues player has played there (a partial list is here). Clifford Antone passionately loved the Blues, the musicians, and the Austin scene, and it is impossible to overstate how much he did for all.

I lived in Austin when Stevie Ray Vaughn died. That tragedy cast a pall over the entire city. I still remember how I felt when I heard that news, and tonight I have that feeling again. Shortly after Vaughn's death, a statue of SVR was commissioned and placed on the south bank of Town Lake. Cutter Brandenburg, at one time Vaughn's road manager, at a memorial last night said, "I don't know anybody else in this industry who reached out to so many artists, young or old. There should be a statue of Clifford right next to Stevie." And he's right.

Antone twice went to prison on marijuana-related charges, but as another article in the Austin American-Statesman concluded,

In the hearts of local fans, Antone's musical accomplishments far overshadow his criminal record. He has helped make Austin what it is today: a live music mecca where the young learn from the old and those who move on continue to live in what they've left behind.

Singer Delbert McClinton summed up Antone in a statement he released Tuesday. "He loved the music so much," McClinton recalled. "Like nobody else I've ever known."

If you follow any of the links to the Austin paper, read all the other other articles listed to learn more about Antone.

As a Blues fan, a Texan, and a former resident of Austin, I say "thank you" to Clifford Antone. You will be missed.