calls the concert series "Saints and Sinners," and he hopes this might become an annual event. Dave said: "Day 1 will be punk night with Tex and the Horseheads and the Knitters. The second night will be The Cold Hard Facts, The Hacienda Bros. and The Guilty Men. Then the third night will be the Blasters and X." - The Gene Taylor Blues band show in Los Angeles this past December was recorded for a live album due out late this year. -- Dave Alvin has contributed a poem to Some For The Road, a tribute to poet/author/professor Gerald Locklin. The poem is called "Toad Meets Little Julian Hererra" and can be read at www.davealvin.net. Dave has cited Locklin, who taught him in college, as an influence on his work. (AM #15 featured a full length interview with Locklin). -- The Bob Dylan Encyclopedia by Michael Gray has been published in paperback by Continuum Publishing and includes an updated entry on Dave Alvin. - Topcat Records is releasing a live CD of Hollywood Fats and the Paladins on June 17, 2008. The concert was recorded in 1985. - -AM

     In the early formation of the Hacienda Brothers the band was called the Tucson Ramblers. There was a spilt of membership between California and Arizona. Gaff and Dave Gonzalez were from southern California. Teddy Morgan, from Arizona, was in the band and Chris Lawrence was the original pedal steel player. That version of the band worked on demos in Tucson in 2002 - 2003.
     I had toured with Chris Lawrence and Dallas Wayne - so Chris and I were buddies. Gaff and Dave were talking about getting together to play with Chris Lawrence in Southern California. They didn't have a set bass player - sometimes it was Gaff's brother Greg. Chris Lawrence called me to play drums doing Thursdays at the Doll Hut in Anaheim. It was basically a rehearsal in front of people. We never had an official rehearsal. They said 'Just show up and well do some country standards and songs from our demo."
     When Chris Lawrence told me Gaffney was in the band, I said: "Woo Yeah! Chris Gaffney? I'm in!"
I knew that Teddy Morgan was in the band and they had another drummer that did the Arizona shows and recording. I just figured I'm in the rehearsal band and eventually they will give me the slip. But I was totally digging it and lovin' just doing that.
     I don't know all the politics involved, but eventually Teddy and his bass player Steve Grams quit, and the name changed to the Hacienda Brothers. Teddy's drummer, Richard Medek, stayed in to record the first album and then Chris Lawrence left the band when he got busy with other stuff and was undecided about going on the road.
     We were playing an anniversary party for Dave G's parents in San Diego and we got a sub-steel player which turned out to be the young genius David Berzansky.
     Dave G. and Gaff had just done a Johnny Paycheck tribute in San Francisco and Hank Maninger was playing with another band. Dave G. asked Hank to come down to the Doll Hut and play bass and then Hank was in. It all happened in a short period of time.
     After the album was finished they only did few shows with Richard on drums, then I was playing. So instead of getting canned because Teddy left, I slid right in. They were nice enough to put my mug on the album cover even though I didn't play on it, but I was now the full time drummer.
     Gaff did not have patience to rehearse. We rehearsed at Hank's house in his studio when in San Francisco. Gaff would be in the house watching sports.
     I remember one time we were rehearsing a Johnny Cash song for a tribute and there was this one chord that was giving the guys fits trying to figure out. They would listen to it over, and over, and say: "What's