Legendary troubadour visits Sisters

Slaid Cleaves calls him "the Obi-Wan Kenobi of Austin songwriting" for his work mentoring up-and-coming artists.

Ray Wylie Hubbard is a true-blooded American original, earning his wry wisdom in 40 years of singing and living the blues.

Born in Soper, Oklahoma, his music was spawned from dusty coffee-house circuits of the 1960s Southwest. He was part of the progressive country movement in the '70s, which combined elements of roots rock, outlaw country and folk. His first album, "Ray Wylie Hubbard and the Cowboy Twinkies," recorded in 1975 by Warner Brothers, gained him instant cult status and a strange kinship with his legion of loyal fans.

This year, Hubbard's own label, Bordello Records, released his 14th album: "A. Enlightenment B. Endarkenment (Hint: There is No C)," which he calls the worst damn album title ever invented.

"I was always a bit of a rebel, I guess," Hubbard said. "I found out early on you get more attention burning down the barn than taking out the trash."

Branching out of his twisted musical tree, Hubbard recently penned a pulp Western screenplay that was sold and made into an independent feature starring Scott Speedman, Kris Kristofferson and Dwight Yoakam. The movie, "The Last Rites of Ransom Pride," was filmed in Calgary, Alberta and will be released in limited areas on October 5.

"The movie is about a bunch of despicable people killin' each other and cussin' in 1912 Texas.

It was directed by my friend, Tiller Russell.

I wrote the script and scored the music but then it got sold to another production company and they messed it all up," said Hubbard, tapping his nails on the table in frustration.

"The new producers wanted a more modern, dramatic soundtrack and replaced it with some overbearing, cliché junk.

I removed my name.

A couple of my songs stayed but the subtlety is all lost.

That's what happens when decisions are made based on money and fear and not on art. It was heartbreaking.

I learned a lot but am sad for what it could have been.

I'm old, but I know what cool is."

Hubbard lives in Wimberly, Texas, with his wife, Judy, and 17-year-old son, Lucas, who is often Hubbard's lead guitar player when they're on the road. It's a little town of 3,800, not unlike Sisters, just south of Austin.

"We just played the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, original home of the Grand Ole Opry, on Thursday for the Americana Music Awards," he said. "It was a lot of fun. Lucas just smoked. He's a real great player. I don't know if he's gonna hang his life on a guitar yet or not."

Hubbard was nominated for Artist, Album and Song of the Year but got edged out by some of the bigger, corporate acts.

"Bordello Records, that's just Judy and I so even to be nominated with the big guys and recognized as a tadpole record company is quite an honor," he said, nodding his shaggy gray head.

His weekend at the Sisters Folk Festival was memorable and allowed him to connect with many old-time friends and a new generation of fans.

"Man, I'll tell you what. This is the best music festival I've ever played. There's something very special about it that puts it in a category all its own. The people here are just precious," said Hubbard, eyes twinkling behind his trademark round-lensed shades. "Looking out at the crowd at the end of my set, it was really hard to not get emotional. It was just indescribable."