"the man with magic fingers"
Stephen Ray Vaughan known as Stevie Ray Vaughan was born on October 3,1954. He was born and raised in Dallas,Texas, and for a short period of time he lived in Graham,Texas.He was an American guitarist, singer-songwriter, and record producer. Often referred to by his initials SRV. Vaughan is best known as a founding member and leader of Double Trouble. Together with drummer Chris Layton and bassist Tommy Shannon, they ignited the blues revival of the 1980s. Vaughan started playing the guitar at age seven and formed several bands that occasionally performed in local nightclubs.
At age 17, he dropped out of high school and moved to Austin,Texas to further pursue his musical career. He joined groups such as Krackerjack, the Nightcrawlers, and the Cobras. In 1977, he formed Triple Threat Revue, a band that eventually evolved into Double Trouble and regularly performed around Austin. In 1982, Vaughan and Double Trouble performed at the Montreux Jazz Festival in Switzerland. He caught the of musicians David Bowie and Jackson Browne. Bowie asked Vaughan to play on his upcoming studio album Let's Dance. While Browne offered the band free use of his personal studio in Los Angeles to record an album. SRV's music style varied from different music genres. He was influenced by blues artists consisting of Albert King, Freddie King, Otis Rush, and Muddy Waters. Also rock guitarists such as Jimmi Hendrix and Lonnie Mack. He has received wide critical recognition for his guitar playing, ranking at #6 on Rolling Stone's list of "100 Greatest Guitarists" in 2011. Stevie Ray Vaughan is widely considered to be one of the greatest musicians to come from the state of Texas.
During the tour with Double Trouble, Vaughn developed a serious alcohol and cocaine habit. His use of cocaine increased to a quarter-ounce a day about seven grams and spiraled into a life-threatening dependency. Vaughan's stomach became fiercely scarred from dissolving half a gram of cocaine in alcohol, leaving hundreds of small cuts in the stomach lining. During a tour in Europe, Vaughn was hospitalized for suffering from near-death dehydration after years of alcohol and substance abuse. Stevie Ray Vaughan was urged to attend a drug rehabilitation center for full-recovery. SRV eventually recovered and began recording his fourth full length studio album with Double Trouble. Stevie Ray Vaughan's most famous song was Texas Flood and the Sky is Crying.
On August 27, 1990, Vaughan had just performed with Double Trouble at Alpine Valley Resort in East Troy, Wisconsin.
All of the musicians boarded four helicopters bound for Chicago, which were waiting on a nearby golf course. According to a witness, there was haze and fog with patches of low clouds. Despite the conditions, the pilots were instructed to fly over a 1000-foot ski hill. Vaughan, along with three members of Clapton's entourage, boarded the third of the four helicopters a Bell 206B Jet Ranger flying to Meigs Field. At about 12:50 am, the helicopter departed from an elevation of about 850 feet, veered to the left and crashed into the hill. All of the passengers, including the pilot, Jeff Brown, were killed instantly.[In Clapton: The Autobiography, Eric Clapton explains that, contrary to rumors, his seat was not given to Vaughan, although two members of Clapton's road crew were on board with Vaughan at the time of the crash. At 4:30 am, Civil Air Patrol was notified of the accident, ultimately locating the crash site almost three hours later. Both Clapton and Jimmie were asked to identify the bodies. A Coptic Cross necklace worn by Vaughan, was given to Jimmie. The Walworth county coroner conducted an autopsy and found that Vaughan suffered from multiple internal and skull injuries. The cause of Vaughan's death was blood loss due to transverse laceration of the aorta. Stevie Ray Vaughan will always be remembered as the man with the magic fingers.
At age 17, he dropped out of high school and moved to Austin,Texas to further pursue his musical career. He joined groups such as Krackerjack, the Nightcrawlers, and the Cobras. In 1977, he formed Triple Threat Revue, a band that eventually evolved into Double Trouble and regularly performed around Austin. In 1982, Vaughan and Double Trouble performed at the Montreux Jazz Festival in Switzerland. He caught the of musicians David Bowie and Jackson Browne. Bowie asked Vaughan to play on his upcoming studio album Let's Dance. While Browne offered the band free use of his personal studio in Los Angeles to record an album. SRV's music style varied from different music genres. He was influenced by blues artists consisting of Albert King, Freddie King, Otis Rush, and Muddy Waters. Also rock guitarists such as Jimmi Hendrix and Lonnie Mack. He has received wide critical recognition for his guitar playing, ranking at #6 on Rolling Stone's list of "100 Greatest Guitarists" in 2011. Stevie Ray Vaughan is widely considered to be one of the greatest musicians to come from the state of Texas.
During the tour with Double Trouble, Vaughn developed a serious alcohol and cocaine habit. His use of cocaine increased to a quarter-ounce a day about seven grams and spiraled into a life-threatening dependency. Vaughan's stomach became fiercely scarred from dissolving half a gram of cocaine in alcohol, leaving hundreds of small cuts in the stomach lining. During a tour in Europe, Vaughn was hospitalized for suffering from near-death dehydration after years of alcohol and substance abuse. Stevie Ray Vaughan was urged to attend a drug rehabilitation center for full-recovery. SRV eventually recovered and began recording his fourth full length studio album with Double Trouble. Stevie Ray Vaughan's most famous song was Texas Flood and the Sky is Crying.
On August 27, 1990, Vaughan had just performed with Double Trouble at Alpine Valley Resort in East Troy, Wisconsin.
All of the musicians boarded four helicopters bound for Chicago, which were waiting on a nearby golf course. According to a witness, there was haze and fog with patches of low clouds. Despite the conditions, the pilots were instructed to fly over a 1000-foot ski hill. Vaughan, along with three members of Clapton's entourage, boarded the third of the four helicopters a Bell 206B Jet Ranger flying to Meigs Field. At about 12:50 am, the helicopter departed from an elevation of about 850 feet, veered to the left and crashed into the hill. All of the passengers, including the pilot, Jeff Brown, were killed instantly.[In Clapton: The Autobiography, Eric Clapton explains that, contrary to rumors, his seat was not given to Vaughan, although two members of Clapton's road crew were on board with Vaughan at the time of the crash. At 4:30 am, Civil Air Patrol was notified of the accident, ultimately locating the crash site almost three hours later. Both Clapton and Jimmie were asked to identify the bodies. A Coptic Cross necklace worn by Vaughan, was given to Jimmie. The Walworth county coroner conducted an autopsy and found that Vaughan suffered from multiple internal and skull injuries. The cause of Vaughan's death was blood loss due to transverse laceration of the aorta. Stevie Ray Vaughan will always be remembered as the man with the magic fingers.