"London Homesick Blues" by Gary P. Nunn and the Lost Gonzo Band. This great song about a homesick cowboy stuck in London is the bittersweet side of outlaw country music, Austin style. Performed here at Willie Nelson's second annual 4th of July Picnic, in Bryan/College Station, Texas, 1974.
The armadillo was the symbol of far-out, longhaired Texas -- as opposed to the longhorned shitkicker variety steer -- and was probably made popular by underground artist Jim Franklin, who had been drawing them since 1968.
Jim Franklin came from Galveston, and opened a psychedelic music hall in Austin, called the Vulcan Gas Company. He lived in the place, and provided a stage, and great posters for Texas hippie bands like Shiva's Headband, and 13th Floor Elevators. The legacy of the gas company was continued in 1970, with the opening of the Armadillo World Headquarters.
Armadillo World Headquarters, Austin, TX, in 1976
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Photo of Armadillo World Headquarters by Steve Hopson, www.stevehopson.com
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