Austin City Limits Now a Part of National Rock History
KLRU's Austin City Limits television program, long a cornerstone of Austin music culture, can now count itself as a national institution: the 34-year-old show has been designated as a "historic rock and roll site" by the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
On October 1st, the Rock Hall will unveil the official marker that makes ACL the tenth in its Landmark Series of sites around the country deemed essential to the narrative of rock history:
There are currently nine sites including the Whisky-a-Go-Go in Los Angeles where the Doors were resident performers; King Records in Cincinnati, a prominent American record label started in the 40s, The Crossroads in Clarksdale, Mississippi and the Surf Ballroom in Clear Lake, Iowa . Five sites are located in the Cleveland area and include Brooklyn High School, the location Elvis played his first concert north of the Mason-Dixon line and WJW Radio, home to Deejay Alan Freed who popularized the term “rock and roll.”
"Austin City Limits represents one of the most unique archives of modern American music," said Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum President/CEO Terry Stewart. “It shares with the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame the mission of collecting, preserving and interpreting the rock and roll story and educating fans about the cultural significance of this art form.”
Performers on the 35th season of the show, which debuts October 3rd, include M. Ward, St. Vincent, Esperanza Spalding and Madeleine Peyroux, and Austin's own Okkervil River.
