Cowboy Cartographer

Comments (0) By Noah W. Bailey Thursday, Jan 22 2009

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If you've ever watched an episode of Austin City Limits, then you've no doubt heard Gary P. Nunn's "London Homesick Blues," ("I wanna go home with the armadillo/good country music from Amarillo to Abilene/the friendliest people and the prettiest women you ever seen") which served as the show's theme song from 1977 till 2004, when it was finally retired in favor of a new tune. More than anyone, Nunn embodies the Texas singer-songwriter tradition of randomly picking places on a Texas map and inserting them into a song along with shoutouts to regional cuisine and Lone Star Beer. For evidence of this, look no further than "What I Like About Texas"--which namechecks Nacogdoches, burritos and at least four Texas rivers--or "It's A Texas Thing," where Nunn employs San Antonio's River Walk, Austin's Barton Springs and Gruene Hall to similar effect. Forget a rhyming dictionary. Gary P. Nunn just needs a road atlas and a menu to churn out the hits. Get a lesson in Texas geography at 8 p.m. Saturday when the legend plays the Granada Theater along with openers Two Tons of Steel and Rodney Hayden. Tickets are $14 to $22. Visit granadatheater.com.
Sat., Jan. 31, 2009