Son Volt's latest record, Day of the Doug, revisits the music of legendary Texas troubadour
Doug Sahm. But it's much more than fond remembrance and colorful tribute. It is a
summoning and a celebration of a songwriter and performer whose work forged country,
Tex-Mex, rock, rhythm and blues, folk, and psychedelia into an utterly unique American
sound.
Sahm's 50-year career was a restless and relentless quest for the Holy Grail of 'the groove.'
He played pedal steel with Hank Williams, Sr. as a kid before making three Top 40 hits with
the Sir Douglas Quintet and recording a dizzying array of solo works with a passel of shifting
personas on a carousel of record labels. Son Volt's eleventh release since 1995's Trace steps
confidently on the trails Sahm blazed. Like any journey to find a grail, Day of the Doug also
seeks out all the things that make young artists fall in love with making music in the first
place: adventure, youth novelty, and a chance to snatch a bit of immortality