Reckless Kelly, Steve Earle & More Help Arlyn Studios Celebrate 40 Years

It’s not just Austin’s legendary performers like Willie Nelson and Jerry Jeff Walker, or legendary venues like The Broken Spoke and Saxon Pub that make the city a storied location in the annals of American music. The walls of some of of Austin’s recording spaces have witnessed such incredibly iconic moments being made, they have become iconic themselves. That’s definitely the fate of Arlyn Studios on Academy Drive, near South Congress.

Arlyn is where Willie Nelson has recorded countless times. Merle Haggard recorded there before his death. Sublime even recorded their legendary album in the space. In fact, it’s probably easier to list off the folks tied to Austin in some capacity that for some reason never graced the halls of Arlyn than to bog down in a discussion of who did.

When Miranda Lambert wanted to mark her big return to her Texas roots with her last album Postcards from Texas, recording at Arlyn seemed like the only real option. When Reckless Kelly recorded their first album when Willy Braun was still in his teens, Arlyn is where it happened. When they recorded their 30th Anniversary album The Last Frontier, Arlyn also hosted the sessions. This is what Aryln is. It’s not a studio to many musicians. It’s home.

Miranda Lambert was seen milling about, and Reckless Kelly helped headline an event in the parking lot of the Arlyn Studios on Saturday, November 17th. Instead of just shooting off a missive on social media to mark the 40th anniversary of the studio, owners Freddy and Lisa Fletcher decided to throw a big shindig called “For The Record: Arlyn Turns 40.”

Also performing during the event were the Los Lonely Boys, The Allen Family featuring the legendary Terry Allen, along with sons Calder, Bukka, and Bale. There was a tribute to Doug Sahm featuring Shawn Sahm, Riders Against The Storm performed, and guitar legend Charlie Sexton lead an all-star tribute to Stevie Ray Vaughan.

Though the iconic studio might have just celebrating it’s 40th Anniversary, the history of the space goes back even farther than that. The property once housed the the Terrace Club where jazz and big band acts played in the mid 1960s. It became the Texas Opry House in 1974, which became a rival of Austin’s famed Armadillo World Headquarters, and a favorite place for Willie to play after the Armadillo’s hippies didn’t like Willie’s pistol-packing rednecks on the property. Eventually, Willie would purchase the property in 1977.

In 1984, Willie Nelson decided to build a studio as part of the property with his nephew Freddy Fletcher, who was the son of Arlyn Fletcher and Willie’s sister, Bobbie Nelson. Freddy named the studio after his father. Today, Freddy Fletcher and his wife Lisa run Arlyn Studios, which along with still running regular recording sessions in its numerous rooms, also hosts numerous functions as a living piece of Austin music history.

Perhaps a few more pieces of Austin music history were made on Saturday as part of the anniversary party. Getting to see Terry Allan with all of his sons and Charlie Sexton on guitar was a treat for many. Then after Reckless Kelly played a full set of tunes whose studio renditions were recorded at Arlyn, Steve Earle took the stage with Reckless Kelly as his backing band—a configuration that has been featured on the road recently, but nonetheless was a unique treat for the audience assembled.

Along with all the musical legends on the stage, homages were paid to other important parts of the Austin music legacy. The backdrop of the stage showcased The Saxon Pub, The Continental Club, Waterloo Records, Antone’s, and The Broken Spoke. Though Austin’s most legendary club, the Armadillo World Headquarters is long gone, a relaunching of the brand with the express purpose of supporting local musicians was also in attendance.

Austin’s music scene is definitely still in a precarious position with all the growth in the city. Just over the shoulder of the stage in Arlyn’s parking lot could be seen the construction cranes assembling multiple skyscrapers augmenting Austin’s landscape. But there does now feel like a concerted and unified effort at musical sustainability.

Events like the 40th Anniversary of Arlyn Studios works to cement these locations as imperative to Austin’s music legacy, and hopefully, impervious to development, or being forgotten to the forces of time. On the contrary, they only continue to grow in stature with age.