Live Oak Decline

Last updated

Live Oak Decline
Origin Austin, Texas, United States
Genres Alternative rock
Years active2001–present
MembersNoah Watson
Greg Combs
Keld Ewart
Rob Schilz
Steve Littleton
Past membersCody Banks
Website liveoakdecline.com

Live Oak Decline is an alternative rock band from Austin, Texas.

Contents

Members

Biography

Live Oak Decline began in 2001 when Combs, Ewart, and Watson moved into a house together on Live Oak Street in Austin, Texas. The neighbors were not accepting of their partying and late night recording sessions, so the band often joked about being the decline of the neighborhood's peaceful reputation. Shortly after, the band's name was coined. It has also been implied the name is meant to send an environmental message. Live oak decline is actually another term for oak wilt, a tree disease that can devastate live oak tree populations. A bird has always been the subject of their logos.

For the band's first several shows at Austin's famous Antone's, Cody Banks was recruited to play drums, while Noah performed up front playing acoustic guitar and singing. They recorded a 4-song demo (Coffee & Cars, Ups and Downs, A Song To Fall Asleep To, Circles), and planned to begin work on a full-length album. Littleton, an experienced keyboardist, had recently moved to Austin from Oklahoma, and had planned to begin recording with the group. Only weeks into the recordings, Watson quit and for personal reasons. For the next few years, he recorded and performed with several other musicians in different projects, including Tucker Livingston and Spoon bassist Joshua Zarbo. The other members would also continue to perform with other bands, including Django Walker (Jerry Jeff Walker's son), Dexter Freebish, and Stoney Larue.

In the winter of 2005, Combs, Ewart, Littleton, and Watson began discussing the possibilities of re-uniting to complete the album they started in 2001. They would eventually begin rehearsing and performed their first show with Littleton at Antone's in Austin, Texas, with Watson on drums while singing lead. Shortly after, they decided to record the album themselves, and built a studio in Ewart's house. One of the tracks, entitled "Woody Harrelson", is about an encounter with the actor at Austin's famous natural spring swimming hole, Barton Springs. After a full year of recording 11 songs, the band hired Nick Brophy for mixing and mastering in Nashville, Tennessee. Brophy has mixed albums for Everclear, Avril Lavigne, The Rolling Stones, and Hootie and the Blowfish. After several weeks working with Brophy, the band released their self-produced debut album at Stubb's in Austin, Texas on January 31, 2007. Rob Schilz, drummer for Dexter Freebish, was recruited to play drums for the CD release and would perform with Live Oak Decline several more times, including a live performance on ME TV. Watson eventually took over drums while still singing lead, and has performed this way since.

As of 2011, Littleton is performing with Cody Canada of Cross Canadian Ragweed in their band The Departed.

Noah Watson has since released a solo track, "When the Cold Wind Blows", on his website and has stated another release is in the works.

Hello World

Full-length album recorded between 2005 and 2007 at the Ewart residence and Metanaut Recorder in Austin, Texas. Released on January 31, 2007 at Stubb's in Austin, Texas.

Produced by Live Oak Decline

All songs written by Noah Watson

Mixed and mastered by Nick Brophy in Nashville, Tennessee.

Engineered by Greg Combs, Noah Watson, and Morgan Spenceley

Track list

  1. Woody Harrelson
  2. Meet Me at the Climbing Tree
  3. Does Anything Ever Change?
  4. Coffee & Cars
  5. A Song To Fall Asleep To
  6. The Earth Is Much Bigger
  7. Too Many Dollars
  8. I Forgot How Sweet It Is
  9. Sweet Oxygen
  10. Black Edged Letters
  11. Control

Radio Play

Coffee & Cars (Hello World) made its way into national mainstream radio rotation, placing top 100 in the adult contemporary category in the summer of 2008.

"Woody Harrelson", "Meet Me at the Climbing Tree", "A Song To Fall Asleep To", and "I Forgot How Sweet It Is" have also received regular radio play in Texas, Arizona, and several other states.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cross Canadian Ragweed</span> Former American rock band

Cross Canadian Ragweed was an American rock band formed in Stillwater, Oklahoma in 1994. The band consisted of Cody Canada, Grady Cross (guitar), Randy Ragsdale (drums), and Choya Partridge. The group released five studio albums and three live albums from 1994 until 2010. The band was at the forefront of the rise of the red dirt music scene in Oklahoma and the Texas Music scene. After almost 15 years together, the group disbanded in 2010.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Asleep at the Wheel</span> American band

Asleep at the Wheel is an American country music group that was formed in Paw Paw, West Virginia, and is based in Austin, Texas. The band has won nine Grammy Awards since their 1970 inception, released over twenty albums, and has charted more than 21 singles on the Billboard country charts. Their highest-charting single, "The Letter That Johnny Walker Read", peaked at No. 10 in 1975.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Doug Sahm</span> American musician, singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist (1941–1999)

Douglas Wayne Sahm was an American musician, singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist born in San Antonio, Texas. Sahm is regarded as one of the main figures of Tex-Mex music, and as an important performer of Texan Music. He gained fame along with his band, the Sir Douglas Quintet, with a top-twenty hit in the United States and the United Kingdom with "She's About a Mover" (1965). Sahm was influenced by the San Antonio music scene that included conjunto and blues, and later by the hippie scene of San Francisco. With his blend of music, he found success performing in Austin, Texas, as the hippie counterculture soared in the 1970s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nashville Pussy</span> American rock band

Nashville Pussy is an American rock band from Atlanta, Georgia. The band's lyrical themes mostly revolve around sex, drugs, drinking, fighting, and rock 'n' roll. Initially called Hell's Half-Acre, the band's name comes from Ted Nugent's introduction to "Wang Dang Sweet Poontang" on the Double Live Gonzo album.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jimmie Vaughan</span> American blues rock guitarist and singer

Jimmie Lawrence Vaughan Jr. is an American blues rock guitarist and singer based in Austin, Texas. He is the older brother of the late Texas blues guitarist Stevie Ray Vaughan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dangerous Toys</span> American rock band

Dangerous Toys is an Austin, Texas-based rock band, with often humorous lyrics. Founded in 1987, Dangerous Toys released four full-length albums and one live album before unofficially disbanding at the turn of the millennium. The band found mainstream success with its debut album Dangerous Toys (1989), which featured the singles "Teas'n, Pleas'n" and "Scared" and it was certified gold by the RIAA five years after its release. Their next two albums, Hellacious Acres (1991) and Pissed (1994), were not as successful as the self-titled debut, but also received acclaim. Although they have not released any new material since their fourth studio album The R*tist 4*merly Known as Dangerous Toys (1995), Dangerous Toys have continued to perform live over the years.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Toni Price</span>

Toni Price is an American country blues singer from Austin, Texas, United States.

Dexter Freebish is a band based in Austin, Texas, consisting of Robert Kyle, Scott Romig (guitarist), Chris Lowe, Charles Martin, and Rob Schilz (drummer). They are perhaps best known for the 2000 single "Leaving Town," which peaked at number 11 on the Billboard Bubbling Under Hot 100. They have released five albums and one extended play, with their most recent release being the October 19, 2010 LP Shine On.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ray Benson</span> American singer-songwriter

Ray Benson is an American musician and the frontman of the Western swing band Asleep at the Wheel as well as an actor and voice actor.

Johnny Nicholas is an American blues musician. He is most noted for being a member of the Grammy Award winning group, Asleep at the Wheel.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jimmy LaFave</span> American singer-songwriter

Jimmy LaFave was an American singer-songwriter and folk musician. After moving to Stillwater, Oklahoma, LaFave became a supporter of Woody Guthrie. He later became an Advisory Board member and regular performer at the annual Woody Guthrie Folk Festival.

Mike Herrera's Tumbledown is an alternative country band from Bremerton, Washington consisting of MxPx guitarist/vocalist Mike Herrera and Rocky Point All Stars. The name "Tumbledown" comes from a line of a Woody Guthrie song. They are currently signed to End Sounds, which is based in Austin, Texas. In Mexico, they are signed to Cafeina Riot Radio Records.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Reckless Kelly (band)</span> American band

Reckless Kelly is an American country rock band. Formed in Stanley, Idaho, the band moved to Austin, Texas in October 1996 and is now based there.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Omar Kent Dykes</span> American blues guitarist and singer

Omar Kent Dykes is an American blues guitarist and singer, living in Austin, Texas.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Omar & the Howlers</span> American blues band

Omar And The Howlers is a Texas based electric blues and blues rock band, The original Howlers was formed in Hattiesburg, Mississippi in 1973. Three years later they moved to Austin, Texas. The band has regularly toured European countries. Led by singer/guitarist Omar Dykes, they are best known for the 1987 album Hard Times in the Land of Plenty which sold over half a million copies and whose title song was a top 20 hit in America.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Band of Heathens</span> American rock and roll band

The Band of Heathens is an American rock and roll band from Austin, Texas. The band was originally formed by Colin Brooks, Ed Jurdi and Gordy Quist in 2005.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chris Layton</span> American drummer

Christopher Layton, also known as "Whipper", is an American drummer who rose to fame as one of the founding members of Double Trouble, a blues rock band led by Stevie Ray Vaughan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Departed (band)</span> American rock band

The Departed is an American rock band. The band was formed in 2011 by Cody Canada, the former lead vocalist and guitarist for Cross Canadian Ragweed after that band broke up in 2010. The band currently consists of Canada, Jeremy Plato, and Eric Hansen (drums).

<i>Living in a Dream</i> (album) 2009 live album by Arc Angels

Living in a Dream is a live album by the Texas blues rock band Arc Angels. The first disk of the album contains the majority of a show recorded on March 26, 2005, at Stubb's Bar-B-Q in Austin, Texas. The show which proved to be historic for the band. They played the entirety of their debut album, a then unreleased song "Crave and Wonder" and a cover of Muddy Waters' "She's Alright." This show also proved to be the Arc Angels' final with original bass guitarist Tommy Shannon. The second disk contains 3 studio tracks recorded specifically for this album as well as the remainder of the 2005 show—along with the song "Spanish Moon." The DVD contains the Stubb's show and interview footage directed by Kyle Ellison and produced by Mark Proct and Charlie Boswell.

"The Gift of the Woodi" is the nineteenth episode of the seventh season of the American television sitcom, Cheers, written by Phoef Sutton and directed by James Burrows. It originally aired on April 6, 1989, on NBC. In this episode, Woody Boyd sings a self-penned song "Kelly Kelly Kelly Kelly...", also called "The Kelly Song", as his birthday gift to his girlfriend Kelly Gaines. Cliff plans to popularize his invention "beetabaga", a vegetable hybrid of rutabaga and beetroot. Rebecca wants to downgrade her sexual appeal in attempt to impress her superiors. The song has been praised by the critics. It also was performed by a couple other performers and actor Woody Harrelson himself a few times, portrayer of Woody Boyd.

References