Doug Sahm - Biography
By Bob Fagan
Douglas Sahm found varying degrees of fame and fortune in his musical journeys around the world, from the mid-sixties hits with his combo The Sir Douglas Quintet, to Beatlemania-like popularity in Sweden in the 80s, and the multilingual sensation The Texas Tornados. He wrote great, tender and sometimes humorous lyrics, and could sing convincingly in several languages in his sweet and evocative tenor. He mastered an extensive array of instruments, including guitar, bajo sexto, violin, pedal steel, and could play T-Bone Walker-styled electric blues guitar well enough to give Stevie Ray Vaughn pause. He was comfortable and convincing in blues, country, folk, R&B and rock 'n' roll styles, virtually invented the Tex-Mex sound, and produced records for and encouraged the careers of artists as diverse as San Jose Latino rock band Louie and the Lovers, to psychedelic pioneer vocalist Roky Erickson.
Douglas Wayne Sahm was a child prodigy who performed onstage with Hank Williams when he was only 11-years-old. It is said that he was offered a regular spot on the Grand Ol’ Opry before he had even entered high school; his mother overruled on behalf of a traditional education. Born in 1941 in San Antonio, TX, he was sitting in with established blues and swing bands when he was still a child. He formed his first band in 1957, and recorded for a number of small local labels over the next several years. Some of these earliest recordings have been gathered in the compilation, Doug Sahm – San Antonio Rock. The Harlem Recordings (2000 Norton Records).
At the urging of record producer and local impresario Huey Meaux, he formed The Sir Douglas Quintet. The band’s name was supposedly meant to suggest they were English, and an attempt to cash in on the British Invasion phenomenon then in full swing. Some critics have noted a resemblance to The Beatles’ “I Feel Fine” and the Quintet’s first release (and US top twenty hit) “She’s About a Mover.” But perhaps their greatest similarity to The Beatles lay in their ability to meld a diverse array of influences into an original sounding whole. In the Quintet’s case, this meant incorporating blues, country and western, swing and soul as well as Cajun and Tex-Mex/polka sounds into their music.
The band temporarily disbanded following a drug bust in Texas. Sahm journeyed West to the San Francisco area, and the Quintet eventually followed. They began to incorporate the psychedelic aspects of that musical scene into both their lyrics and music. Their biggest hit from this era, 1969’s “Mendocino,” featured blissed-out lyrics celebrating a vision of coastal-town hippy utopia wed to a two chord blend of tex-mex and folk rock. Sahm and the band also received the ultimate accolade that same year, when Bob Dylan declared them one of his very favorite bands. The Quintet never really broke up, and would continue to play and record on and off into the 90s, with Augie Meyers the other constant member.
Signed as a solo act by Jerry Wexler at Atlantic Records, Sahm put together an all-star band including Bob Dylan, Dr. John, acclaimed guitarist David Bromberg and Mexican conjunto legend Flaco Jimenez. The resultant record, Doug Sahm and Band (1973 Atlantic) suffered from an over-abundance of rather loose jams, but featured the hit single “Is Anybody Goin’ to San Antone,” and the sweet Dylan-penned waltz “Wallflower.” Sahm continued to perform and record both with the Quintet as well as a solo act; in the latter capacity he worked for a time with former Creedence Clearwater Revival rhythm section Doug Clifford and Stu Cook. He also became an in demand session musician for acts such as Willie Nelson and The Grateful Dead, and even acted in a few films as well as the 70s ended.
Beginning in the early 80s, Sahm and Meyers found a home for the Sir Douglas Quintet on the Swedish Sonet label, and began to tour heavily in Europe. A single off their Midnight Sun album (1983 Sonet) entitled “Meet Me in Stockholm,” went platinum in Sweden and ultimately became one of the biggest selling records ever in that country. For a brief while, Sahm and Meyers were “The Beatles” of Sweden, complete with screaming fans tearing their clothes and racing after the limousines bearing them away from sold-out live performances.
In 1988 Sahm returned to Texas, where he would remain, more or less, for the remainder of his life. Sahm recorded and released several solo albums in the 90s, including the Grammy-winning The Last Real Texas Blues Band featuring Doug Sahm (1994 Texas Music Group/Lone Star Records).
In 1990 he assembled the Tex Mex supergroup The Texas Tornados. Besides himself, the group included Augie Meyers, Flaco Jimenez, (who had found worldwide fame as a session man for artists such as The Rolling Stones, Ry Cooder, and Bob Dylan) and Freddy Fender. Fender had great success on the country and pop charts in the 70s, with hits such as “Before the Next Teardrop Falls” and “Wasted Days and Wasted Nights.” The band was an instantly popular concert draw. Their first LP, Texas Tornados (1990 Reprise) was released in both English and Spanish versions, and reached number 25 on the US country charts. The follow-up release, Zone of Our Own (1991 Reprise) was nominated for a Grammy. Altogether the band released five studio albums and at least two live compilations. The band members maintained solo careers throughout the Tornados’ existence, and Meyers and Sahm also found time to put together a new version of The Sir Douglas Quintet, this one featuring Sahm’s sons Shandon and Shawn. Sahm and his sons also appeared on the Roky Erickson covers compilation Where the Pyramid Meets the Eye (1990 Warner Brothers). Sahm had been instrumental in helping Erickson launch his post-Elevators, post-mental-hospital solo career, spending his own money to record and release Erickson’s first single as a solo artist.
The Texas Tornados’ second live release, Live from the Limo, Vol. 1 (1999 Virgin) would turn out to be a posthumous release for Sahm. On November 18th, 1999, while vacationing in Santa Fe, New Mexico, he suffered a fatal heart attack. He was 58 years old.
Since his death numerous compilations and reissues have been released on CD. It is a testament to the breadth and depth of Sahm’s talents that so much of it is of the highest caliber. Sahm was almost literally a born musician, who could play better in more genres and styles than most musicians can in one. The posthumous Sir Douglas Quintet DVD Live from Austin, Texas (2006 New West), captures the latter-day Quintet in full splendor, offering up a rich stew of their best known songs and versions of The Kinks’ “Who’ll Be The Next In Line,” the 13th Floor Elevators’ “You’re Gonna Miss Me” and even the proto-punk classic “96 Tears” by one-hit-wonders, ? and the Mysterians. It doesn’t get any better than this.