Jim Stringer, the Austin-based bandleader and guitarist, has died. It is believed he was 77 years old.
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A mainstay in the Texas capital's music scene for over three decades, he is perhaps best known as the leader of the AM Band. Formed in 1997, the roots-and-rockabilly outfit's name stood for Austin Music.
"I'm really proud of the AM Band," Sringer wrote on his website. "It's named for a comment by Lisa Pankratz: 'There's only ONE band in Austin, and everyone plays in it.'"
The group released several albums over the years, including 1999's Swang, 2001's On The Radio, and 2008's Triskadekaphilia.
Jim Stringer Was Inspired by Elvis Presley
Stringer's story begins in Kansas. In 1956, when he was just 8 years old, he saw Elvis Presley on television and asked for a guitar for Christmas. That year, Stringer received a 3/4 size guitar decorated with an image of Roy Rogers and Trigger.
"The first songs I remember playing were 'Red River Valley,' 'She'll Be Comin' Round the Mountain'... common country-folk tunes," said Stringer. "They were in the book that came with the guitar... not exactly the rock and roll I'd envisioned, but it was a start."
Stringer would join and leave several bands while attending college at the University of Kansas. One of those groups was called The Upside Dawne. One of Stringer's bandmates was Garth Fundis, who would go on to produce albums for Trisha Yearwood and Sugarland. Tide, another band founded by Stringer, would become a regional favorite in the early 1970s.
Stringer's Biggest Hit Is a Safety Video
Stringer left Tide in 1974 and began working for a movie producer, creating music scores for safety videos.
"I learned so much about the craft of recording during those years," he said. "You're always on a time schedule, but there's no slack cut as far as the quality required... You just have to do top-notch work real fast."
One of those videos was for Caterpillar called Shake Hands with Danger. He performed the vocals on and co-wrote the title song with John Clifford and Charles Oldfather Jr. It was a cautionary tale about "Three-Finger Joe," who had a tragic accident while operating machinery distracted.
After leaving his studio job, Stringer moved to Austin in 1993. Once settled, he produced and released Travis County Pickin', a country-jazz record made with a local collective of musicians.
In addition to The AM Band, Stringer was a member of the rock and roll band Git Gone and Blue Moon Jazz Quartet. He was inducted into the Kansas Music Hall of Fame in 2007.
"I'm just so very heartbroken to learn that my friend and guitarist Jim Stringer passed today," his Blue Moon Jazz Quartet bandmate Rosie Flores wrote in a post yesterday. "I can't believe I'm writing these words. It seems surreal to me. He is so alive in my heart and I feel so sad for Dana Stinger, his lovely wife who has been his best friend and took such great care of him after he was diagnosed with cancer."
