WHAT DO YOU KNOW about Armadillo World Headquarters?

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ARMADILLO WORLD HEADAQUARTERS In my day Austin was ethnically divided by East Avenue. In 1960, Interstate 35 replaced this street. Today singles, couples, families, artists and musicians flock to live and operate in the convenient downtown neighborhoods east of US Interstate 35 displacing many of the older and earlier residents. Another coveted place to locate today is south of the river. Hip restaurants, bars, upscale hotels and residences are displacing the cowboy and red neck residents, the quirky retail stores and the souvenir shops that were there previously. In 1960 Austin was awash with hippies. The Armadillo World Headquarters (1970-1981) was Austin's legendary concert hall located on Barton Springs Road across the street from where the Long Center is located today. Eddie Wilson with Jesse Sublet(*) transformed an abandoned National Guard Armory into a music venue that was instrumental (pun intended) for Austin becoming the "The Music Capital of the World". It previously may have been either next door to a building where I went with pre-teen friends to roller skate or it actually had been the "Skating Palace" in the mid 1940s. ( I have now revealed my considerable age.) My name was given as one of Austin's visual artists who might come aboard to exhibit art and help promorte the NEW venue. This naive mother and communiy volunteer said "Armadillo WHAT? No thank you." Mistake! I later learn that Willie Nelson, Jerry Jeff Walker, Asleep at the Wheel, Bette Midler, Ray Charles, Waylon Jennings and others came to participate. Ann Richards' daughter Ceil says that her Mom/Governor thought it much better than hiring babysitters.Ceil reports that "Armadillo was THE place!" * Read ARMADILLO WORLD HEADQUARTERS by Wilson and Sublet.Another fun read about Austin is THE GAY PLACE by William Brammer. Also for this article, I referenced YESTERDAY'S AMERICA (online) and a book of photos of LOST AUSTIN, published by Arcadia. Carole Sikes

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