Just a couple of weeks ago I wrote about Billy Gibbons taking the stage with Heybale at the Continental Club. My husband Mark was on stage as the drummer (subbing in for Tom Lewis) playing along with the best classic country band in Austin AND Billy Gibbons AND Brad Paisley. That was quite a night. Seeing Billy Gibbons up close again made me remember my first experience seeing ZZ Top in concert in 1979 or so. I knew I had pictures from that night somewhere, but even a trip to the attic didn’t turn them up. Tonight, I cleaned the office closet, which is stuffed full of genealogy, writing, love notes from Mark, art supplies, Let’s Learn About Austin source material, and PHOTOS, lots and lots of photos. I happened upon a stack of “radio pics” and there it was. The evidence of my first meeting with Billy and Dusty and Frank. I say evidence, I might have to get someone else that was there to swear this is me. Anyone that knows me know might not recognize the young Janice Williams.

Okay, that was a trick. I’m not either one of those girls. I have no idea who they were. I have a feeling they weren’t Amarillo girls. I think they came with the tour or were brought in. So, the real young Janice:

Can you tell which one I am in that group? I’m the girl drinking the TAB! I just noticed that. I’m afraid that shows the age immediately. At least it is a can and not one of those bumpy-textured bottles that I gagged on for the first 20 years of my life. Thank god for Diet Coke . . . but I digress.
I was working at the time at KPUR in Amarillo (1440 AM). This was probably the first big concert that I got to go to as a disc jockey. And backstage! I had had a little bit of backstage experience at my first radio job (KBUY-Amarillo), but this was my first rock show.
Who is with me and Billy? Dan Wilson on the left. He was my boss and afternoon drive at the time (I did nights). Dan and I later did the morning show together for a couple of years. He’s a big shot in San Antonio in Hispanic radio now. I haven’t seen him in years. Behind me is Dean ? somebody. He did the news at the station and I’ve lost all track of him. Down front, appearing to pass out, is Jack Randall, real name Jack Light (which I always thought was the better name). I think Jack worked weekends back then, but he later did all-nights for the station and we worked together for years. He is still in Amarillo and works for the newspaper, last I heard. How about the glasses on Dan and Billy? Thank goodness I had on my contacts or I would have had my big ugly glasses, too. They were in style. Seriously! So was the velveteen blazer I am wearing (which coordinated with the turtleneck better than it appears, I hope).
And one more picture with me and Jack and Dusty Hill, doesn’t he appear to be the happy one?

Take note of how short their beards were at the time.
As for the concert, it was really one of the most memorable concerts I had ever seen. The album Deguello had come out in the summer of 1979, just as I started at the station. I can remember how the album cover smelled! It was not just the typical cardboard, it was very shiny and had a distinctive plastic smell and was sort of embossed. We played “I Thank You,” “Cheap Sunglasses” and “I’m Bad, I’m Nationwide.”
And who opened the show that night? Austin’s own Van Wilks, who was also managed at the time by Bill Ham. I met him for the first time at the Geezinslaws’ CD release party at the Texas Roadhouse in early 2006. He played guitar on their classic version of “Stairway to Heaven.” Very nice guy. And I have a picture of us together somewhere in this house, too.
I’m discovering a problem with this blogging thing . . . there’s always another picture or story I want to share! Now that I’m writing this story, I’m also remembering the great autograph I got from Billy Gibbons that night. It had cactus and shadows and took up the whole page. Where have I put these things? I look forward to the day that all my papers are enshrined in the Janice Williams Memorial Library. It will be wonderful when someone else has catalogued them all and I can easily go find every picture and memory.









