Gurf Morlix, named 2009's Americana Music Instrumentalist of the Year, plays the songs of the late Blaze Foley at Kiki's House of Righteous Music Oct. 27. What we have here is an original, in a tribute to an original, in Madison's original house music setting.
Morlix is an Austin icon in his own right but, like most musicians from that town, he recognizes Blaze Foley as the Bad Ass standard bearer.
Foley was murdered in Austin at the age of 39 in 1989. Prior to that he established himself as a prodigious wanderer, hell raiser, love maker, deadbeat and creator of songs that make grown men cry.
Morlix has a knack for making other good musicians like Lucinda Williams and Robert Earl Keen sound even better. He waited a long time to make an all-Foley cover record. Blaze Foley's 113th Wet Dream is worth the wait. Knowing Foley's music and playing it well is cool enough. But Morlix hung out with Foley during Austin's formative years. The stories that must go with these songs will alone be worth the admission price.
I saw Morlix in Kiki's basement in 2008. He was joined that night by a different Texas soul mate, a living one, the left-handed country sparrow Sam Baker.
Grown men cried.
