Pat Green is about to do something no Texas artist has been allowed to do since Jerry Jeff Walker.
The Fort Worth-based country star will record a new live album — Live from the Center of the Known Universe: Luckenbach Texas — during two concerts at Luckenbach dance hall on Nov. 7 and 8. It marks the first live album at the venue in more than 30 years, and the first time since Walker that the iconic Hill Country dance hall has allowed another artist to record there.
A press release frames it as a result of the venue’s high standards: “This marks the first time since Jerry Jeff Walker that the iconic Texas venue has allowed another artist to record a live album.”
Walker’s history looms large. He recorded Viva Terlingua! there in 1973 — the first record Green says he ever owned — and Viva Luckenbach! in 1994. For Green, Luckenbach is personal. He has played the dance hall 16 times before, and married his wife Kori there in 2000.
“Luckenbach has been part of my story for a long time,” Green said. “These songs just feel different when you play them in a place like this.”
It’s also Green’s first live album in more than two decades. His last was Live at Billy Bob’s Texas recorded Dec. 4, 1998.
The new project, which will be released Nov. 13, is described as capturing “the raw energy and authentic Texas spirit that have long defined both Green’s career and Luckenbach’s legacy.” Early singles “Carry On (Live from the Center of the Known Universe)” and “Three Days” have already hit streaming.
“I’ve always wanted to do another live record and capture the songs that have built such a strong bond with fans over the years,” Green said. “These are the songs that I get paragraphs upon paragraphs of how people relate, the ones that people sing every word to.”
Limited tickets remain for both nights at patgreen.com. VIP tickets include entry to the dancehall itself; general admission will hear the music from outside, with views through the windows and picnic table seating.
This is a landmark Texas Music Map pin: Luckenbach Town Loop, Fredericksburg — where Texas songwriting history keeps getting written.