Following on from Oliver Gray’s SXSW report we have another AUK reviewer who was at SXSW and took the time to bus it out to the annual Luck Reunion one day festival, hosted by Willie Nelson. Thanks to Mark Howson for the words and pics.
The name Luck Reunion probably doesn’t mean much in the UK, but for the good folk of Austin, Texas, and for many regular attendees of the South by South West music festival, its status is legendary.
Holding a one day festival a few miles outside of Austin during SXSW – where music is to be found everywhere you turn – sounds like a crazy idea, but this one sells out every year and tickets are like gold dust. Why? Because this one takes place on Luck Ranch, home of one Willie Hugh Nelson. Back in the mid-80s Willie had starred in the film, ‘Red Headed Stranger’, and the main set – a small western town comprising of several buildings, including a chapel, saloon and general store – had been built on the ranch. These buildings remained after shooting wrapped and now form the location of Luck Reunion.
Last year saw me visiting SXSW for the first time, and yet 2025 would be my second visit to Luck. How so, you may ask. Well, despite the rarity of tickets, every year there is a lottery to have the chance to purchase tickets and my festival buddy, John, did that last year and his name came out of the hat. My mind was already spinning at the magnitude of events during SXSW so when he asked me if I wanted to pay $149 for a one day event somewhere (plus $50 for the bus transfers) I wasn’t overly enthusiastic. But then I saw the line-up and decided to go for it. We had an amazing day and afterwards signed up for the Luck Presents newsletter, which was the means by which we were invited to purchase tickets for this year’s event; something we successfully achieved when they went on sale last November.
And so we found ourselves (me, John and my friend Mike, who was in Austin for the first time) boarding a bus at the Hotel Magdelena for the 45-minute trip to Luck. It was only on the corresponding trip last year that we discovered that all drinks, including alcoholic ones, were free, but on that occasion we were still suffering the after-effects of a long day in Austin’s dive bars and water was our main beverage. This year we had no such issues, but the weather forecast strongly suggested that water would be the most sensible option.
Once through the gates, and having had our IDs checked to make sure that we were old enough to legally drink alcohol (I was the youngest of the trio, at 59), we were greeted with the festival board.
Looks great, doesn’t it? We were already familiar with the majority of the lineup, but last minute additions were Waxahatchee, Arcade Fire and Jessica Simpson. I was really looking forward to finally seeing Charley Crockett for the first time, but what’s this? He’s playing in The Chapel (capacity 49)? Dammit!
And herein lies the problem – so many great artists to see, but some seriously hard choices to make.
Knowing what it was like, I’d already made sure that I’d seen Ken Pomeroy, Wonder Women of Country and Willi Carlisle earlier in the week (all were showcasing artists during SXSW and all were just fantastic), but that still left 33 artists. To narrow things down further, we decided that there was no point trying for the Chapel and that removed a further nine. And who wants to see Steve Earle, Lukas Nelson and the aforementioned Charley Crockett anyway?
So we started in the shade of the Revival Stage watching a superb set from The Deslondes. I’d heard that they were good but wasn’t expecting them to be more of a musical collective than a regular group, with several members (among them Sam Doores and Riley Downing) taking their turn on lead vocals – presumably with songs they’d written.
After a quick wander through the crowds we returned to the Revival Stage for a songwriters’ round featuring three up-and-coming artists; and each would perform four songs in rotation.
JD Clayton was up first, with his rootsy, observational songs being culled from his recent album, Blue Sky Sundays. He was followed by Coleman Jennings, and his set of western ballads immediately evoked a young James Taylor playing Glen Campbell songs on a porch overlooking a prairie. And finally we had Valley James (the main reason we were here, following a recommendation from a friend) – who self-mockingly introduced herself as ‘the resident sad bitch’. Her debut album, ‘Star’, was due for release that very evening and the songs she performed were very much from the Lana Del Ray/David Lynch end of the spectrum. All three artists were excellent and the crowd loved them. Remember those names.
It was by now mid-afternoon and temperatures were already into the 90s, and it was getting a bit uncomfortable in the arid surroundings (thank goodness for the cans of cold water being given away). In truth, the musical offerings were a bit thin on the ground. A quirk in the timings meant that only two of the stages were active and with artists that didn’t especially appeal, so we went and got some food – during which we were entertained by the sight of several cardboard boxes being hurled hundreds of feet into the air by a dust devil that passed by just beyond the festival boundary.
Mike and John returned to the Revival Stage, mainly for the respite from the sun, but there was no way that I was going to miss Aaron Lee Tasjan and so joined the long queue outside the Saloon (capacity 150). After about 20 minutes the preceding act finished and the venue half-emptied, meaning I had chance to grab a free Luck Lemonade (a very refreshing vodka-based cocktail) from the bar at the back of the venue before taking up position in the crowd.
This was actually ‘Aaron Lee Tasjan and Friends’ and I did not realise at the time that this was part of a full tour of the same name. I also was unsure of what to expect, having never seen him perform live before. I certainly wasn’t expecting Mr Tasjan to be such an incredible guitar player and definitely wasn’t expecting the show to veer into heavy metal territory at times. His band, comprising of guitarists Bobby Bare Jr and Rickie, bassist Jessye DeSilva and a drummer whose name I didn’t catch, performed for 90 minutes with a set comprising of Tasjan songs, but also a couple of their own each. In addition, guests Lafemmebear, Judy Blank, Kim Richey and Micah Nelson were invited onto the stage to join in the fun. By the end I was exhausted, very sweaty and utterly thrilled; and it made me wonder what we’d missed out on when Aaron Lee cancelled his UK tour last year.
Mike and John were in line for the following act in the Saloon, Particle Kid (Micah Nelson and Daniel Lanois, who were also spectacular, apparently), as I staggered out, so I went and grabbed a cold beer and headed into the Barn Stage – which was actually a big tent – for Julien Baker and Torres.
Dressed in nudie suits, the two artists received a huge welcome from the crowd and it was clear that they are a big deal in the States. With a set culled mostly from their forthcoming album, ‘Send A Prayer My Way’, it wasn’t easy at first to spot the country angle and the songs seemed more indie in tone; but that side of the music made its presence felt as things progressed, with Torres (real name Mackenzie Scott) making clear that she has always been a big fan of country music. I was more intrigued than wowed, but left the tent with the intention of exploring their music further.
And the reason I left just before the end was that Waxahatchee was about to start on the World HQ Stage (the main stage). I was initially surprised by how light the crowd was when I arrived, but it gave me the chance to get a good view and it would quickly grow in size as other sets ended. Over the course of the next hour we were treated to 16 songs from the back catalogue, including a couple of Plains songs (sadly without Jess Williamson), with Katie Crutchfield proving herself to be an unexpectedly kinetic frontwoman – when not encumbered by a guitar, making frequent trips to various points at the front of the stage to the obvious delight of the nearby sections of the crowd. And there was absolutely no let-up in the pace, with tuning interludes being replaced by the simple expedient of stagehands appearing between every song with freshly tuned instruments for whoever needed them. It was hugely entertaining and another of my ‘must see’ artists had been ticked off the list.
What I am about to say next will be akin to heresy for many readers of this sight, but Lucinda Williams was not on that same list. I only became aware of her music four or five years ago and must admit that it didn’t grab me, despite the obvious outrage of Americana-loving friends. In fact, I almost went to see Taj Mahal instead before John reminded me that I’m not a blues fan either. So we went back to the Barn and squeezed in near the back and it wasn’t long before a huge roar indicated that the band were taking to the stage. Lucinda clearly had significant mobility issues and I really feared that the next hour was going to be pretty painful. Oh my, I’m not sure I’ve ever been so wrong in my life. She was incredible.
Backed by a superb band she belted out song after song, beginning with ‘Let’s Get The Band Back Together’, through ‘Drunken Angel’ (where Steve Earle barged his way onto the stage to play harmonica – “Same old f***ing Earle!”, she said), along with ‘While My Guitar Gently Weeps’ from the ‘Sings The Beatles’ album, and ended her 11-song set with ‘Joy’, this time with Earle and Margo Price joining in. To say my mind had been changed was a massive understatement and this was one of my top-three sets from an incredible week of music.
Luck Reunion traditionally ends with a set from the ranch owner and, despite being just a few weeks away from his 92nd birthday, Willie was in full flow when we arrived (a long way back from the main stage). As usual he was surrounded by his band, and flanked by sons Micah and Lukas. The 20-song set was pretty much a rerun of the one that closed out the 2024 edition, but it was still a delight to witness and it ended with all the musicians who were still on site joining them on stage for a rendition of ‘Will The Circle Be Unbroken’ and ‘The Party’s Over’, before Willie left the stage to the strains of ‘I Saw The Light’ and to huge cheers.
All that was left was for us to head back to the coach that would return us to South Congress and reflect on a day of stellar performances from remarkable musicians.
So, if you are planning on heading out to Austin for SXSW next year and fancy a unique festival experience, get signed up to the Luck Presents newsletter now.
