Stevie Ray Vaughan
a million units. Along with making an appearance on Austin City Limits, readers of Guitar Player magazine voted Vaughan as “Best New Talent” and “Best Electric Blues Guitar Player”, with Texas Flood as “Best Guitar Album”.
On May 15, 1984, Couldn’t Stand the Weather was released and hit number 31 on the Billboard charts. In October 1984, Vaughan and Double Trouble performed at Carnegie Hall. To celebrate his thirtieth birthday, Vaughan brought along an all-star supporting band, including Dr. John on keyboards and his brother, Jimmie, on guitar, who wore custom tailored velvet mariachi suits. His wife and parents flew in from Texas to share in his triumph. In November 1984, Vaughan won “Entertainer of the Year” and “Instrumentalist of the Year” at the National Blues Awards in Memphis, Tennessee.
Drug and alcohol addiction
On September 30, 1985, the band’s third album, Soul to Soul, was released, featuring new band member, Reese Wynans, on keyboards. It became their third gold album and went to number 34 on the Billboard charts. In July 1986, the band recorded shows in Austin and Dallas for their fourth album, Live Alive. On August 27, 1986, Vaughan’s father, Big Jim Vaughan, died of Parkinson’s disease. In late September 1986, Vaughan became ill while on tour in Ludwigshafen, Germany. He managed to make it through three more shows with his illness. He was then admitted into a hospital in London before he was flown to a rehabilitation center in Atlanta, Georgia . Among his addictions were extensive cocaine use and an addiction to Crown Royal whiskey. After being released clean and sober, Vaughan’s songs took on a theme of dealing with recovering from substance abuse. Songs such as “Tightrope” and “Wall of Denial”, were written by Stevie Ray Vaughan and fellow musician Doyle Bromhill.
Recovery
Vaughan struggled through two more concerts, though the last thirteen dates on the tour were canceled while Vaughan was admitted to a hospital in London. He emerged clean and sober in Atlanta, Georgia. Tommy Shannon also came out clean and sober while in Austin. Live Alive was released on November 15, 1986.
In the spring of 1987, MTV broadcast the band show in Daytona Beach, Florida as part of its spring break coverage. Vaughan also appeared in the movie Back to the Beach, performing “Pipeline” with Dick Dale. He also appeared on B.B. King Cinemax television special with Eric Clapton, Albert King, Phil Collins, Gladys Knight, Paul Butterfield, Chaka Khan, and Billy Ocean. Later that year, Vaughan filed for divorce from Lenny.
In 1988, Vaughan appeared with Stevie Wonder on an MTV special called Characters. Double Trouble also headlined a concert at the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival. The show, featuring jams with Katie Webster, Albert Collins, and B.B. King, was filmed for a Showtime special called Coast to Coast. Vaughan’s divorce from Lenny was finalized toward the end of the year.
On January 23, 1989, the band performed at an inauguration party in Washington, D.C. for George H. W. Bush. The band’s fifth album, In Step, was released in June, and went on to win a Grammy Award for “Best Contemporary Blues Recording”.
In the spring of 1990, Vaughan and his brother recorded an album together, one that would feature the music they had grown up with. They recorded at Ardent Studios in Memphis and were produced by Nile Rodgers. The brothers agreed to name it Family Style. That summer, Vaughan and Double Trouble went on tour with British soul singer Joe Cocker, touring places like Alaska and the Benson & Hedges Blues Festival.
Death
To complete the summer portion of the “In Step” tour, Stevie Ray Vaughan and Double Trouble played two shows on August 25 and 26 at Alpine Valley Music Theatre in East Troy, WI, while on tour with Eric Clapton.
For travel to the next venue, the tour manager reserved four helicopters to circumvent congested highway traffic. In very dense fog, the helicopters, not certified for flight under instrument flight rules (IFR) lifted off at 12:40 A.M. Just past the lift-off zone was a 300-foot hill. Vaughan’s helicopter pilot was unfamiliar with the area, and did not climb to sufficient altitude immediately after take-off. Vaughan’s helicopter crashed into the hill.
According to the findings as reported by the National Transportation Safety Board, the cause of the accident was determined to be inadequate planning by the pilot, and failure to attain sufficient altitude to clear an obstacle. Fog and haze, as well as the rising terrain were listed as contributing factors. All occupants including Vaughan, the pilot and three members of Eric Clapton’s travel group were killed on impact.
On August 31, 1990, funeral services were held for Vaughan at Laurel Land Memorial Park in the Oak Cliff area of Dallas, Texas. Brother Jimmie, mother Martha, and girlfriend Janna were in attendance. Among the mourners were Stevie