Woody Harrelson is among a team of producers behind an upcoming documentary on Austin’s Armadillo World Headquarters. The historic venue closed in 1980 and helped foster the city’s reputation as the Live Music Capital of the World, welcoming huge names including Willie Nelson, Linda Ronstadt, ZZ Top, Ray Charles and Bruce Springsteen.
“The Armadillo wasn’t just a music venue,” Harrelson told Deadline, which first reported the documentary. “It was where all kinds of worlds came together: artists, outlaws, hippies, students, dreamers, everyone under one roof. Careers got started there, genres mixed, and what really sticks with me is how it made people feel like they belonged.”
The Armadillo World Headquarters was located at 525½ Barton Springs Rd. from 1970 to 1980. Over 10 years, it helped establish Austin’s progressive country, or “Cosmic Cowboy,” sound. But it also was the center of several notable events in music history:
However, the Armadillo World Headquarters constantly faced financial difficulties and filed for bankruptcy in 1976. The building was sold out from under owner Eddie Wilson, forcing the club’s closure. A high-rise office building soon replaced the old armory that was AWHQ.
The documentary is still in development and does not have a release date but will be directed and edited by Los Angeles-based filmmaker David Brodie. Harrelson, a Texas native whose Austin-set series with Matthew McConaughey premieres in September, noted the kinship found at AWHQ as a big draw for him.
“People came for the music, but what they found was each other,” Harrelson said, according to Deadline. “The Armadillo represented something we don’t see much anymore, and that’s a big part of why I wanted to be involved with this film.”