In Memory of
Stevie Ray Vaughn
Bright lightning drew up from deep in the south that even a blind man could see.
Intense and raw,  determined that his voice would be heard across the miles.
Little did he know how much the storm would affect us all.
The "Flood" would immerse us in a torrent of sound and sights unrivaled.
When his touch met steel,  the result was truly a work of natures power and art.
The voice,  his thunder,  echoed throughout the depths of our mind.  Pure and deep.
A symphony,  ever to be remembered.  Unwilling to be forgotten.
Walls crumbled.   Lives changed.
He remains!
I hear it still,  that soulful rumble,  in storms that pass this way.
They take up where he left off.
In this way he is with us to this day.
In this way he will be permanent in the history that he wrote himself into.
Forever missed,  forever remembered.
Brian Cross
    Stevie Ray Vaughn had a tremendous impact on me. At the age of 26, in the year 1986, I first heard him play on MTV .  (trust me...it was much better back then! :)
I could not believe my ears!  I was a solid "hard rock/heavy metal" kinda guy.  Iron Maiden, Van Halen, Metallica...etc.  So for me, it was truly a religious experience.  Sure, I had heard some blues before.  But not like this. Nothing could have prepared me for what  Stevie's music did to me.  It hit me like the proverbial "ton of bricks"!  Soon after I had every recording available and wanted more!  For the first time in my life I wanted a guitar so bad I could taste it.  Both my older brother, Tom, and my younger brother, Scott, had played for years and years, but I never got the bug.  Until him!  I wanted to play like him!  Wow, wouldn't that be cool?

    When I heard the news of his death, I was working in the Air Traffic Control Tower at the St. Paul Airport.  I remember it like it was yesterday.  I called my wife! We didn't want it to be true.  But it was.  And it hurt.
Since that time, I have coveted every thing SRV!  I bought a Red Fender American Strat and play it as often as I find the time.  I play his music.  I listen to it.  And remember.  I watch the videos and study his motion and guitar work.  And remember.

    The way I see it, they already had their share of legends on "the other side"!  They could've let us keep Stevie for a while longer.  But ya gotta admit, they must have one HELL of a band! :)

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