by Phil Houseal | Jul 11, 2019 | All Articles, Events, Philosophy, Venue
July 10, 2019–There is an artist I want to see. She is coming to “a major theater” in “a nearby city,” so I went online to look at seating and pricing. All seats were $29.50. Giddyup. But a funny thing happened on the way to the forum. Like sprinkles at a 4-year-old’s...
by Phil Houseal | Jun 13, 2019 | All Articles, Education, Events, Music, People of the Hill Country, Venue
June 12, 2019–It was a gazillion years ago, but I was able to accomplish a rare financial feat–to finish college with more money than I started with. How? First, I was an extreme cheapskate. I lived in a one-room apartment with no appliances. I used the space between...
by Phil Houseal | May 30, 2019 | All Articles, History, People of the Hill Country, Venue
May 29, 2019–I’ll bet many of you have driven through the town of Hye, Texas, and not even realized you were passing by a 100-year-old dance hall. I know I’ve made that journey between Stonewall and Johnson City countless times, and only had eyes for the old...
by Phil Houseal | May 23, 2019 | All Articles, Events, Food, History, Music, People of the Hill Country, Venue
May 22, 2019–I first came to the Texas Hill Country in 1978. Yet I’d never visited Castell. Last weekend, I fixed that. The Castell General Store–which is essentially Castell–was celebrating its Testicle Festival. As auspicious an event as any for finding out...
by Phil Houseal | Apr 25, 2019 | All Articles, Events, Music, Philosophy, Venue
(Note: This is the second of two columns on my interview with Jimmie Webb. Read Jimmy Webb: Writing His Songs) April 24, 2019–A question I ask of all recording artists I have the honor of interviewing is whether it is the song or the singer that makes the hit. Jimmy...
by Phil Houseal | Apr 18, 2019 | All Articles, Events, Music, Venue
April 17, 2019–Even after his six decades in the industry, being the only artist ever to receive Grammy Awards for music, lyrics and orchestration, being a member of every musical hall of fame on the planet, and writing so many hit songs no one has added them...
