Say a little bit more about the songwriting and the lyrical content, and how that's shown some light on the artist as opposed to the guitar player alone. And to get it, it helps us understand a little bit better the complicated relationship with his brother, Jimmy, so I felt that the materials could add to more of a portrait of the man rather than only the legend. I felt these materials got at three main areas where we could learn more about him as a songwriter, which I think sometimes gets lost in the conversation, the importance of his recovery, sobriety, even spirituality in his life, especially at the end. And it’s materials that we were very interested here at the Wittliff Collections because they gave another view beyond the guitar god, with the hat and the guitar and the strap. This was a private sale from a seller who wanted to remain anonymous but was a very close part of the inner circle. What about this collection you've acquired? Tell us a little bit more about some of the artifacts and how you came about them. So not only did we sort of watch him blossom, but we sort of shared in his success and in a certain way, and had a lot of pride that he came from Texas. And then, he’s recording with David Bowie and suddenly, touring around the world and having hits on the radio. And then we saw him go from sort of a bar band like a lot of bands to regional status. He was playing in the bars and, we knew about his brother, Jimmy. Well, for all of us here in Texas, especially, we feel like we grew up with him.
Tell us a little bit more about why he made such an impact and his untimely death in that helicopter crash. I believe he was 35 years old when he died. So you're talking about really bending those strings to the outer parts of the galaxy and then also just he went for it. But he also brought his own take, which was heavily influenced by Hendrix. In other words, he drew his inspiration from the Texas blues. Hector Saldana: I think it was the passion that he brought to it and also the willingness to paint outside the lines. How would you describe him as a sort of a touchstone in Texas music? What made him that way? Texas Standard: in his short time recording, Stevie Ray Vaughan really made a huge impact. This interview has been edited lightly for clarity.
Listen to the full interview in the audio player above. He says the items in the new collection represent three important themes in Vaughan's life: songwriting, recovery and his relationship with brother and fellow musician, Jimmie Vaughan. Hector Saldana is music curator at the Wittliff Collections. Items range from clothing to music, to song lyrics.
Now, some of the most important artifacts of Vaughan's life and career have been acquired by the Wittliff Collections at Texas State University in San Marcos. He was a guitar legend with an unmistakable sound. Stevie Ray Vaughan was an icon of the Texas blues music scene.