The Vaughan Brothers, Family Style (1990)

I came to this as a Stevie Ray Vaughan fan and left a Jimmie Vaughan fan. At the time that was the crucial thing for me with this album – it was an indicator that Jimmie Vaughan had so much to offer outside of his rhythm guitar work on stage with his little bro. So Family Style was both the bittersweet reminder that Stevie Ray was gone and a happy introduction to the world of Jimmie. I remember being ever so slightly underwhelmed on the first listen – not enough blues-guitar (given that’s what I loved at the time). But actually, it was just the adjustment – and by the second/third listen I was hooked. Really, it wasn’t that far removed from other SRV material – or if it was it was a good shift. Readers will know I’m a huge fan – here’s the piece I wrote detailing my listening experience/s when the 20^th anniversary of Stevie’s death came up last year. But this Vaughan Brothers album is now one of my favourites from the catalogue – and it was a great springboard (for me) to check out all of the great Jimmie Vaughan material; funny, the album’s gone from seeming like a compromise to a lively classic. So many great groove pieces – like Baboom/Mama Said – and plenty of Stevie’s great wail (Telephone Song) and Jimmie’s cool-chug (D/FW and Good Texan). I love this album. Had the LP for a while, been playing it heaps lately. Sad to hear – just the other day – of the passing of Doyle Bramhall, co-writer of some of these songs (and others among SRV’s work), a great player/producer and a constant influence for Stevie; hopefully he and Stevie are rocking back now on a groove like Baboom/Mama Said, or Hard To Be.

Sample Track: Long Way From Home

The Vinyl Countdown is a document of every LP I listen to, brand new discoveries and old-old favourites; extremely pre-loved, previously abandoned or with the shrink-wrap having just been removed it’s all here at The Vinyl Countdown