With all due respect to Charlie Pride, IMHO this recording - with Doug Sahm on vocals and Charlie Owens on steel - is the definitive version of "San Antone."
There isn't a lot of information about Charlie Owens out there. Does anybody have any recollection or anecdotes about Mr. Owens they can share?
wow, I have never seen a doug sahm tab on here, thanks! any chance you have Dougs steel intro to Country Groove off the Texas Rock for Country Rollers?
Nice job, Frank! I don't hang out much in this part of the forum so I'm just seeing this (11 years late!) But since the thread's been revived I'll chime in.
I think Charlie Owens was Memphis-based and was working with Jerry Lee Lewis when that Sahm album was cut in New York.
It's Harry Hess playing steel in the 1975 Austin City Limits video.
I got to play with Doug on-and-off for a while; he hired me in 1979 after I sat in on some shows in DC and NYC (the Cellar Door and Lone Star Cafe). I think he liked me at first 'cause I knew all Charlie's parts from that song (no kidding!). Doug's version of the song was a staple on DC's "hippie" FM station when I first started playing steel so it was kind of in my DNA.
Playing with Doug wasn't a very reliable gig in terms of working regularly and paying the bills, but it sure was fun, and got me into the Austin scene in a pretty cool way.
Better late than never. Way cool stories- thanks, Pete! I used to frequent the Lone Star in the late '70's - early '80's but somehow managed to miss you and Doug.