Zydeco king Clifton Chenier & His Red Hot Louisiana Band opened the club that weekend, while devoted spirits like Angela Strehli and several Port Arthur comrades made sure things worked and that the music was presented with the respect it deserved. That weekend also served notice that a different universe had arrived in Austin, one that would change the city forever. Before long the large room, formerly a furniture store, also became a clubhouse for just-beginning Austin bands like the Fabulous Thunderbirds and Stevie Ray Vaughan’s Triple Threat Revue. Antone’s changed everything in Austin, and pointed a way forward in spreading the blues. Before long, blues musicians all around the country were talking about the club, and hoping to find a way to play there. It ran on the premise that if Clifford Antone said something, you could believe it. There was never any doubt. With sisters Susan and Janelle and mother Georgette lending a hand, the bluesman and his family made a stand.
