The documentary Jimmie and Stevie Ray Vaughan: Brothers in Blues provides a rare, behind-the-scenes look at the two Texas icons, and their musical journeys.
The film, directed by Kirby Warnock, uses a mix of archival video, rare photos and interviews with some of the well-known musicians the brothers played with, to tell the Vaughan's story — their early days playing small clubs in the Dallas area, their meteoric rise in the Texas music scene, and Stevie Ray's death in 1990.
Marfa Public Radio caught up with Warnock about his film and what he hopes it adds to the legacy of the Vaughan brothers.
Interview Highlights
On the Vaughan brothers' early shows
Warnock wrote about the Vaughan brothers in the 1970s and 1980s, covering them for a Texas music publication called Buddy Magazine.
"Whenever they played a club, no matter how small or dumpy it was, I always saw somebody famous sitting there watching them," Warnock said.
Warnock recalled seeing well-known musicians like Billy Gibbons, Jaco Pastorius, and members of the Allman brothers among those gathered to watch the Vaughans play their early gigs.
"It was always amazing to me that they weren't already famous. And that was why I wrote about them so glowingly, I was telling people, 'you need to go see these guys now, because one day they're going to get big!'"
On the surprising moments of the documentary
Warnock — who got to know the brothers fairly well during his time with Buddy Magazine — said he was surprised to learn that their talents were clear even at a young age.
"Even back then, there were people who recognized they had something special."
On the film's intended audience
Warnock said he believes the film will speak to three groups: folks who were around in the Dallas area during the brothers' musical start, the Austin crowd that witnessed Jimmie and Stevie Ray break out, and a new generation who Warnock said "knows the music, but doesn't know anything else really about them."
On where Warnock thinks Stevie Ray's career would've gone
Warnock believes Stevie Ray's musical style, had he lived, would've become more jazzy.
"If you listen to [the album] "Family Style," they tried a lot of different stuff, and I think that may have [made] Stevie maybe branch out to more of a jazz influence than he was doing at the time," Warnock said.
Jimmie and Stevie Ray Vaughan: Brothers in Blues screens this weekend, Saturday June 24, at the Crowley Theater in Marfa. The film is currently available to stream on Apple, Amazon, and Youtube.
