There are artists you admire from afar, and then there are artists who belong to a place. Joe Ely belonged to Lubbock. He passed away yesterday, and he will be missed…and remembered.
I can’t properly speak for latter-day Joe Ely. I can’t give you a full biography, a complete discography, or neatly package his long, influential career. What I can do is tell you what Joe Ely meant to us back in the day — to the kids of West Texas who were coming of age when music felt dangerous, exciting, and wide open.
When Joe released Musta Notta Gotta Lotta in 1981, it felt like a rocket launch out of Lubbock. Sure, we knew Joe before that. We’d seen him, heard him, and understood he was something special. But that record? That was the moment Joe became ours. He was the prince we selected to represent us during a wild time in music history.
Joe Ely Belonged on the Same Shelf as the Giants
This was an era when punk was still raging hard, metal was exploding, and new sounds were coming from every direction. And somehow, in West Texas bedrooms and car stereos, Joe Ely fit perfectly alongside Blizzard of Ozz and Diary of a Madman by Ozzy, Tattoo You by the Rolling Stones, and Ghost in the Machine by The Police. For us, Joe wasn’t “local.” He was on the same level as all of them.
Joe ran with the Clash when they came through town. He sat in with the Eagles during the Hotel California sessions. And when Hi-Res dropped in 1984 — helped along greatly by our own Eddie Beethoven — Joe truly blew up around these parts. He anchored Tornado Jam and brought friends like Stevie Ray Vaughan, Linda Ronstadt, and Joan Jett to Lubbock, helping put the city on the national music map in a way few ever had.
Joe Ely Was A Musician’s Musician — And Proud of It
The truth is, no one who ever saw Joe Ely perform walked away unchanged. Somehow, though, he never rose far beyond the “musician’s musician” label. And honestly? That always felt intentional. Joe embraced the life of a troubadour, switching styles as easily as he changed dirty jeans, chasing songs instead of charts.
He moved to Austin in the early ’80s, but the road between there and Lubbock stayed short. Joe never forgot where he came from — and more importantly, he never let Lubbock forget him. My own good fortune followed his, when he called a bunch of us from the Lubbock squad to appear in his “Don’t Mess With Texas” video. It was a small thing, but that’s who Joe was. He honored Lubbock. He always called on Lubbock.
Joe Ely is gone now, but legends don’t really leave. They stay in the grooves of old records, the memories of packed rooms, and the pride of a city that knows one of its own helped change the sound of American music forever.
Joyland Nostalgia: Photos That Bring Back the Best Lubbock Memories
Joyland was a quirky, vintage treasure that Lubbockites enjoyed for generations. It is deeply missed, but lives on in memories, and in great photos like these.
Gallery Credit: Renee Raven
41 Breathtaking Photos From The Tallest Building in Lubbock, Texas
Lubbock looks amazing from the tallest building in town.
Gallery Credit: Chrissy