Asleep At The Wheel: “It’s A Good Day”
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In 2002, a brand-new music festival kicked off in Zilker Park with much fanfare but also with a lot of questions to be answered. Since that beginning, the Austin City Limits Music Festival has transformed into a yearly Austin tradition, and over the years bigger and bigger acts have attracted bigger and bigger crowds to the park. Yet one thing has stayed constant over a decade of change: Asleep At The Wheel has kicked off the Fest every single year.
Longevity is a trademark in Asleep At The Wheel’s collective character. Started by Ray Benson in West Virginia in 1970, last year marked the fortieth anniversary of the group, and over the past four decades the longtime Austin act has introduced Bob Wills and Texas swing music to several generations. Like the Fest, Asleep At The Wheel has become an iconic institution, releasing twenty-two studio albums and winning nine Grammys.
The band is no stranger to KUT, and late last year we invited them to celebrate their anniversary with a live performance in Studio 1A. Today’s song of the day comes from that session. “It’s A Good Day” opens with the line, “yes, it’s a good day for singing a song, and it’s a good day for moving along.” It’s an appropriate introduction to Asleep At The Wheel’s tenth consecutive performance at ACL Fest, where they’ll be revving things up today at 12:25 PM on the AMD Stage.
Podcast: Download (3.3MB)
