i was the resident pool player at the rome inn, after jack and joyce davis were "politely" asked to leave their thriving restaurant business in oklahoma city and came to austin. i was only 18-19 during that time, and no one at the rome inn (especially jack) knew it - otherwise they wouldn't have kept laying out my michelob drafts, while i waited for the next road player or drunk local to ask for a game in the bar. the restaurant was the front of the place; the bar was in the back and had a "basement" room where other stuff went on, too (that became a dancewear outlet later). c-boy (only if you were a friend or a hot chick) would come to the rome inn to cook, after he finished his stint at the nighthawk on guadalupe, and he received fifths and other gratuities from all the waitresses, every night, to assure the orders would be plated and put on the counter quickly. after the restaurant closed, he would come into the "after hours" club/bar, and cool down with some of the gift liquor. after we knew each other for about a month, he would always invite me to head over to the victory grill or an assortment of other, white-mildy-tolerant clubs on the rougher east side (charlie's playhouse was mainly a frat facade). the first time we went, he coaxed me into playing some pool against the house players, introducing me and giving his stamp of approval. i knew that first night that i would never try to win a game, given the drunk, angry black youth that hovered over my every shot. so i just went, time and time again, for the blues greats that would arrive to sit in. c-boy would always have his gibson with him, too. we did that for a couple of years: my misspent/well spent youth. i have a thousand stories about jack davis, c-boy, the rome inn, and everyone who passed through there. i'm so glad i decided not to be a neurosurgeon and not to go to vietnam and not to play pool on the east side. thanks for your histories of austin music, michael. i've been fortunate enough to know, watch, and hear the characters that have driven it since roky and the rest
Fun fact: I bought at the time, The Fabulous Thunderbirds (Girls Go Wild). Not at Sound Warehouse, not at at Inner Sanctum, not Waterloo Records. But at Conan's Pizza on Anderson lane - coz someone there BELIEVED in the Tbirds and by golly they were gonna make the rest of us believe as well. Well, they got at least one convert ;)
Correction: SRV and the Fabulous Thunderbirds played the Friday night of the last weekend of the Rome Inn. Lewis & The Legends and my band, Kathy & The Kilowatts played Saturday, the final night of the Rome Inn. The club was packed both nights. C-Boy Parks told me the City of Austin shut him down because of the zoning that required him to sell a certain percentage of food vs the alcohol sales…and anyone who was there knows there was not a lot of pizza being eaten at the Rome Inn. : ) This was well before the City saw any value in our music scene, well before they saw the money music brought in and we were deemed the “Live Music Capitol of the World“.
Just as I remember it, Michael. Unfortunately the building that housed the old Rome Inn burned down, so another piece of history, gone. We interview Billy Gibbons and get the entire story about his trips to the Rome Inn and the song he wrote about it in our new doc about the Vaughan Brothers, coming out March 20th. Check out the trailer here: https://vimeo.com/647443654/6d7919fd07
If you haven't been to C-Boys yet, you need to do so, NOW!!!
When I first got to Austin in '77, Townes and Mickey were playing at the Rome Inn. I was SO excited! I was finally going to get to hear this incredible singer-songwriter I'd been listening to for the past seven years! ....but when I got there Townes was so loaded that he couldn't remember lyrics to his own songs, and got his fingers caught so badly in the strings of his guitar that Mickey had to help him get untangled. I quickly learned that at any TVZ show, you had a 50-50 chance of the same things happening, but the good nights made enduring the bad ones worthwhile.
Yeah the Triple Threat Revue with SRV was legendary, but then so was about every other band back then. It was incredible how much talent was around Austin from the 60s through the 80s.
i was the resident pool player at the rome inn, after jack and joyce davis were "politely" asked to leave their thriving restaurant business in oklahoma city and came to austin. i was only 18-19 during that time, and no one at the rome inn (especially jack) knew it - otherwise they wouldn't have kept laying out my michelob drafts, while i waited for the next road player or drunk local to ask for a game in the bar. the restaurant was the front of the place; the bar was in the back and had a "basement" room where other stuff went on, too (that became a dancewear outlet later). c-boy (only if you were a friend or a hot chick) would come to the rome inn to cook, after he finished his stint at the nighthawk on guadalupe, and he received fifths and other gratuities from all the waitresses, every night, to assure the orders would be plated and put on the counter quickly. after the restaurant closed, he would come into the "after hours" club/bar, and cool down with some of the gift liquor. after we knew each other for about a month, he would always invite me to head over to the victory grill or an assortment of other, white-mildy-tolerant clubs on the rougher east side (charlie's playhouse was mainly a frat facade). the first time we went, he coaxed me into playing some pool against the house players, introducing me and giving his stamp of approval. i knew that first night that i would never try to win a game, given the drunk, angry black youth that hovered over my every shot. so i just went, time and time again, for the blues greats that would arrive to sit in. c-boy would always have his gibson with him, too. we did that for a couple of years: my misspent/well spent youth. i have a thousand stories about jack davis, c-boy, the rome inn, and everyone who passed through there. i'm so glad i decided not to be a neurosurgeon and not to go to vietnam and not to play pool on the east side. thanks for your histories of austin music, michael. i've been fortunate enough to know, watch, and hear the characters that have driven it since roky and the rest
Fun fact: I bought at the time, The Fabulous Thunderbirds (Girls Go Wild). Not at Sound Warehouse, not at at Inner Sanctum, not Waterloo Records. But at Conan's Pizza on Anderson lane - coz someone there BELIEVED in the Tbirds and by golly they were gonna make the rest of us believe as well. Well, they got at least one convert ;)
Correction: SRV and the Fabulous Thunderbirds played the Friday night of the last weekend of the Rome Inn. Lewis & The Legends and my band, Kathy & The Kilowatts played Saturday, the final night of the Rome Inn. The club was packed both nights. C-Boy Parks told me the City of Austin shut him down because of the zoning that required him to sell a certain percentage of food vs the alcohol sales…and anyone who was there knows there was not a lot of pizza being eaten at the Rome Inn. : ) This was well before the City saw any value in our music scene, well before they saw the money music brought in and we were deemed the “Live Music Capitol of the World“.
Kathy is a local legend too. Saw her a few years ago at a neighborhood festival.
Tell it!
Just as I remember it, Michael. Unfortunately the building that housed the old Rome Inn burned down, so another piece of history, gone. We interview Billy Gibbons and get the entire story about his trips to the Rome Inn and the song he wrote about it in our new doc about the Vaughan Brothers, coming out March 20th. Check out the trailer here: https://vimeo.com/647443654/6d7919fd07
If you haven't been to C-Boys yet, you need to do so, NOW!!!
I added to the post after it was emailed that Texas French Bread is being rebuilt and from what I've seen, in the same design as previously.
Good to hear! At least Austin TRIES to preserve its history, unlike Dallas that tears it down.
https://oakcliff.advocatemag.com/2022/04/barrow-filling-station-demolished/
When I first got to Austin in '77, Townes and Mickey were playing at the Rome Inn. I was SO excited! I was finally going to get to hear this incredible singer-songwriter I'd been listening to for the past seven years! ....but when I got there Townes was so loaded that he couldn't remember lyrics to his own songs, and got his fingers caught so badly in the strings of his guitar that Mickey had to help him get untangled. I quickly learned that at any TVZ show, you had a 50-50 chance of the same things happening, but the good nights made enduring the bad ones worthwhile.
Yeah the Triple Threat Revue with SRV was legendary, but then so was about every other band back then. It was incredible how much talent was around Austin from the 60s through the 80s.
I lived right down the street 1977-1979. Went there many times. Saw 'em all. You were right "Blue Monday" was the best!