Texas--When musician James McMurtry wrote "We Can't Make It Here Anymore," the ballad of the Bush regime, he hadn't yet met Kay Gourley. A single mother with an eight year-old son, Gourley has fused together her love of music and politics by organizing "Red State Blues: A Concert for Change" in Austin this upcoming Monday night. Along with her co-producer Graham Williams of Transmission Entertainment, Gourley has roped in several acts to headline the La Zona Rosa on the eve of Election Day.
"This is not a backyard precinct chair bar-b-que," Gourley explained. "This sort of thing brings out people who would not normally attend a political event or rally - which is crucial if we want to raise awareness." Gourley carries same anxious urgency in her voice that most Democrats these days seem to be afflicted with - the toxins of the Bush administration manifesting themselves in tense tones and raspy acknowledgment.
The event kicks off on Monday with a VIP "Glitterati Rockstar Hour," where musicians Joe Ely, Bob Schneider, Black Joe Louis and others are slated to mingle. Texas politicians will also be delivering short speeches throughout the night, including US Congressman Lloyd Doggett. On stage, musicians Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings will be joined by Brownout and Austin legend James McMurtry. McMurtry's haunting lyrics give Obama's commercial last night a run for its $4M price tag, playing out a similar health care vignette in his song "We Can't Make It Here Anymore":
Vietnam Vet with a cardboard sign/Sitting there by the left turn line
Flag on the wheelchair flapping in the breeze
One leg missing, both hands free.
And there's more comin' home from the Mideast war.
We can't make it here anymore
Texas's Democratic residents are taking particular glee in churning the tide turn this year, with talk of Harris County's massive, 3.9 million population potentially turning blue and whispers of Texas going to Obama. While the rumor mill flies, schadenfreude has settled in when it comes to watching our Bush - or Shrub, if you're worth your oats - return back to his ranch in Crawford, where the only major decision he'll have to make is whether to eat pretzels with or without Secret Service standing by. For a red state, it's feeling a little more eggplant, or perhaps a soft plum color, these days.
The event planning hasn't all been peachy, though. Direct Events, who handles the ticket sales for the concert, is charging a $12.50 processing charge on all online orders, bumping up the $25 regular admission ticket price. As a way to counteract that, local party organizations are selling the tickets in person this weekend at their volunteer headquarters. Undeterred, Gourley, whose efforts in organizing Red State Blues have been entirely philanthropic, with proceeds going to the Travis County Democratic Party and The SIMS Foundation, says there's no better time than now to celebrate the end of an error.
"We want the country to know that we're down here in Texas, but we're ready for change, and we're ready to rock out," Gourley said. "I want this to be a thank you to the community, a thank you to the volunteers. Thank you for skipping your son's soccer game to phone bank, thank you for donating the money you might have spent on an anniversary dinner. This concert is for them."
These grassroots efforts like Gourley's prove that we can, in fact, still make it here -- and might just have James McMurtry singing a different tune on Monday night.
The concert will start Monday, November 3rd at 7:30 p.m.here.