Live Music: Casper Rawls

Casper Rawls has been part of the Texas music scene since the 1970s, when he left his hometown of Helotes and became part of the Austin roots music community.

Best known for his signature B-Bender Telecaster style, Rawls has spent decades as one of the city’s most respected sidemen, recording on more than 75 albums and performing with artists including Toni Price, Doyle Bramhall, The Derailers, The LeRoi Brothers, Miss Lavelle White and John Juke Logan.

His first solo album, Brave World, finally put his own songwriting and vocals front and center after years of helping define the sound of countless Texas records.

Around Austin, Casper is just as well known for keeping traditions alive. He founded the annual Buck Owens Birthday Party at the Continental Club in 1992, a benefit concert that became a beloved local institution for more than two decades, and he’s still a regular on the Continental Club stage.

A Casper Rawls show is packed with classic country, Bakersfield twang, blues, rockabilly, and stories from a lifetime spent playing alongside some of Texas’ finest musicians. It’s the kind of show locals know they’ll leave smiling.