#port arthur texas

[todayinhiphophistory]

Today in Hip Hop History:

UGK released their third album Ridin’ Dirty July 30, 1996

[kjfrost]

Dylan’s Handlebar and Outdoor Patio -  9:50 PM- Saturday, April 22nd

You hear Dylan’s about a mile before you walk in to it. On this particular Saturday night, the entryway pulsed with the percussion and bass of a country cover band that had taken the stage. I unfortunately didn’t catch their name, and didn’t linger for their set. My friend’s and I were here for a singular destination: The dance floor on the patio. 

We managed to arrive with near perfect timing. The small gray square laid atop astroturf had a few women dancing, with a lively DJ playing mixes on the fly. A rare sight, as pre-made playlists and rented speaker systems to make a quick buck seem to be the norm for SETX. But skilled hands flew across a mixing table, with the occasional obligatory fist pump, as he actively watched the crowd, gauging their responses. Finding a wooden swing bench, across from a few strangers (of whom I only learned one name - Hi, David - wish you had danced!) who greeted us with open arms and made good on their word to watch our drinks and purses as we head for the dancefloor. I’m not sure which song led me to the DJ. I just know, beautiful women danced wild and free, and I knew all the lyrics. The bass had pumped through my chest, guiding my ungraceful limbs in seemingly whatever way the wind was blowing at that particular moment. A blonde ponytailed man, with an oversized button up shirt left unbuttoned, baggy pants, and gold chain made his way in front of me. He was clearly skilled, nimble, and encouraging. “I don’t dance!” I say, screaming over the speakers. “Sure you can! You’re dancing right now!” And he grabbed my hands, graciously letting me try to match his foot patterns, and calling “Spin!” on every 8th beat. I never learned his name, but learned a little bit more about dancing, and the power that a singular “never meet them again” person’s dance can have on oneself.

A photographer was making his way through the crowd, requesting pictures of various groups (with no bias - he seemed adamant on getting at least one shot of anyone willing!) He stopped to talk to me and my friends as we caught our breath back on “our” bench.

“Don’t pretend you don’t all look beautiful!” A flash, and the strange sensation of having been perceived in a moment that I felt selfless. That is to say, at this point in the night, I had ceased to exist as myself, blending into the vibrations of those around me, allowing myself to embody the energy of a good time.

The crowd and music at Dylan’s varies, but the food is delicious, and the drafts are never dry. One of the few places in SouthEast Texas with a true dance floor, its weekend atmospheres call to anyone at all looking to feel nothing but one with a crowd that searches for The Oneness alongside you.

[coutureboard]

[unteriors]

13th Street, Port Arthur, Texas.

[lonestarbattleship]

USS CONSTITUTION in Port Arthur, Texas. She was newly refurbished and embarked on a thank-you tour, stopping at Atlantic and Gulf Coast ports from July 1931 to May 1932.

Texas Parks and Wildlife Department: TXPWD_1997-22-145

Date: March 1932

[stastrodome]

Fun Facts. 100% verified.

The fifth horseman of the Apocalypse was written out of the Bible due to a dispute over oat taxes.

Betty Crocker was related to Salvador Dali.

In an attempt to better understand America, Raul Castro learned the the lyrics to "Call Me Maybe".

American author F. Scott Fitzgerald was the first person to drown in the Playboy Mansion's grotto.

The so-called "new space race" refers to the rush to be the first person watch Shannon Sharpe's Club Shay Shay on the moon.

[conandaily2022]

Makalani Jones biography: 13 things about multi-instrumentalist from Port Arthur, Texas

Makalani Okpara Jones Sr. is a multi-instrumentalist originally from Port Arthur, Texas, United States. He previously lived in Atlanta, Georgia, USA.

[joeinct]

Gulf Oil, Port Arthur, Texas, Photo by Edward Weston, 1941

[flygrldiaries]

Footage of the Lincoln High School prom in Port Arthur, Texas (1997) via LD Vision on YouTube

[todayinhiphophistory]

Today in Hip Hop History:

Bun B released his debut solo album Trill October 18, 2005

[kvetchlandia]

Richard Avedon Janis Joplin, Port Arthur, Texas 1969

[coutureboard]

[unteriors]

13th Street, Port Arthur, Texas.

[boricuacherry-blog]

alchrista:

Guitarist toured with King of Pop Jackson

Becky Barksdale is a pretty accomplished blues guitarist, but in her hometown of Port Arthur, Texas, the most she’ll likely be thought of as is second best. When a legend like Janis Joplin tops the list, you likely won’t hear much complaining.   Barksdale, who shot off a blistering set Saturday evening on Day 2 of the Thunder Bay Blues Festival, can claim one accomplishment the late Joplin can’t — Barksdale once shared a stage with the late, great King of Pop, Michael Jackson, who died last week of cardiac arrest.   In fact, she spent the better parts of two years as his lead guitarist. “I played with him in 1993 and 1994 on the Dangerous tour,” explained Barksdale, an unfamiliar name to all but the most enthusiastic blues fans, but one whose tunes have a familiar ring. But more on that later. “It was just an incredible experience. Being involved with something at that level, and just being next to someone who is that amazing (is incredible),” Barksdale said, seated casually in her red performance dress at a picnic table backstage at the Marina Park venue she’d just taken by storm. “Especially the dancing. He would be right next to me dancing. I mean, it’s something to see on television, but when you’re right there next to someone who is that talented, you’re like awestruck.” Though she really hadn’t had any contact with Jackson for several years, the news of his death still hit her hard. “When I heard the news I was really upset,” said Barksdale, who at the time wore her hair in a blond, spiked faux hawk. “I just feel blessed that I did have that opportunity to kind of know him and work with him,” Barksdale said. Looking back, eight days after his death, all Barksdale remembers are the good times. One event in particular stands out. It wasn’t a moonwalk moment, but instead something that showed the lighter side of Jackson, a man villified in the press as an eccentric recluse, at times more plastic than human following umpteen surgeries to reconstruct his facial features. Barksdale recalled a concert, in a town she can’t remember, where she got an unexpected surprise from the Man in the Mirror. It was during Jackson’s mega-hit Beat It, as she ripped through the Eddie Van Halen riffs made famous on MTV. Concentrating on the song, Barksdale was paying attention to little else. “I came out front with him and we were dancing around and playing guitar, and he was right next to me,” she said, encouraging fans to visit her website to look for photos of the two together. “We never really had any contact with each other. We’re doing the show, night after night after night. One night, I think we wer in Buenes Aires, or Chile, I can’t remember which … I had my eyes shut and I’m playing guitar, doing a guitar solo. All of a sudden I feel something on my butt. I was like, ‘Oh my God, some crazed fan had somehow gotten past security and was on stage. But he was just having fun with me. I turned around and I saw that it was him, and my jaw dropped. And the drummer, I think he skipped a beat because he was laughing so hard,” said Barksdale, who beat out hundreds of other guitarists in a closed audition to win the right to stand on stage with Jackson during the tour.

alchrista:

Guitarist toured with King of Pop Jackson

Becky Barksdale is a pretty accomplished blues guitarist, but in her hometown of Port Arthur, Texas, the most she’ll likely be thought of as is second best.

When a legend like Janis Joplin tops the list, you likely won’t hear much complaining.

 Barksdale, who shot off a blistering set Saturday evening on Day 2 of the Thunder Bay Blues Festival, can claim one accomplishment the late Joplin can’t — Barksdale once shared a stage with the late, great King of Pop, Michael Jackson, who died last week of cardiac arrest.

 In fact, she spent the better parts of two years as his lead guitarist.

“I played with him in 1993 and 1994 on the Dangerous tour,” explained Barksdale, an unfamiliar name to all but the most enthusiastic blues fans, but one whose tunes have a familiar ring.

But more on that later.

“It was just an incredible experience. Being involved with something at that level, and just being next to someone who is that amazing (is incredible),” Barksdale said, seated casually in her red performance dress at a picnic table backstage at the Marina Park venue she’d just taken by storm.

“Especially the dancing. He would be right next to me dancing. I mean, it’s something to see on television, but when you’re right there next to someone who is that talented, you’re like awestruck.”

Though she really hadn’t had any contact with Jackson for several years, the news of his death still hit her hard.

“When I heard the news I was really upset,” said Barksdale, who at the time wore her hair in a blond, spiked faux hawk. “I just feel blessed that I did have that opportunity to kind of know him and work with him,” Barksdale said.

Looking back, eight days after his death, all Barksdale remembers are the good times. One event in particular stands out. It wasn’t a moonwalk moment, but instead something that showed the lighter side of Jackson, a man villified in the press as an eccentric recluse, at times more plastic than human following umpteen surgeries to reconstruct his facial features.

Barksdale recalled a concert, in a town she can’t remember, where she got an unexpected surprise from the Man in the Mirror. It was during Jackson’s mega-hit Beat It, as she ripped through the Eddie Van Halen riffs made famous on MTV. Concentrating on the song, Barksdale was paying attention to little else.

“I came out front with him and we were dancing around and playing guitar, and he was right next to me,” she said, encouraging fans to visit her website to look for photos of the two together. “We never really had any contact with each other. We’re doing the show, night after night after night. One night, I think we wer in Buenes Aires, or Chile, I can’t remember which … I had my eyes shut and I’m playing guitar, doing a guitar solo. All of a sudden I feel something on my butt.

I was like, ‘Oh my God, some crazed fan had somehow gotten past security and was on stage. But he was just having fun with me. I turned around and I saw that it was him, and my jaw dropped. And the drummer, I think he skipped a beat because he was laughing so hard,” said Barksdale, who beat out hundreds of other guitarists in a closed audition to win the right to stand on stage with Jackson during the tour.