LJT 25 FAQ

LJT PREVIEWS:

Monday and Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday

LJT MUST HAVES:

BEVERAGES:  Beer, Liquor (NO GLASS!), Bottled Water, Gatorade, Energy Drinks, Coffee.  There are items sold on site, but it is cheaper and more convenient to bring your own.

FOOD:  Anything you can think of that you’d take camping.  Stuff to grill out, stuff to make breakfast with, jerky, chips, snacks, fruit, non-perishable items.  The food from the vendors is excellent if you don’t feel like cooking out yourself.  There are options ranging from breakfast tacos to fajitas and burgers and many other delicious items.  But, plan to bring a good chunk of cash to pay for all of it over the course of the week.

ICE:  Ice will be lifeblood of your LJT experience.  It will keep your beer cold and your food fresh.  If you’re not one of the lucky folks with an electricity hookup, you’ll be using more ice than you ever thought possible.  Plan to arrive loaded down with as much ice as you can handle.  Then, plan to buy plenty of it while you are out there.  The rates for bags of ice are fair and you will become friends with the ice guys.

CLOTHES:  Keep your eyes on the forecast as you pack and plan to pack for all temperatures and conditions.  Rain showers and cold fronts have been known to pop up unexpectedly.  It can range from unbearably hot during the afternoon to unspeakably cold at night.  Flip flops are not advised.  It is best to wear comfortable boots or sneakers.  You will be doing a ton of walking and standing for long periods.  Make sure you pack a jacket or two and plan to change clothes 1-2 times a day depending on weather or other conditions.

MISC:  Bug spray, sunscreen, firewood (bring as much of your own in as you can, but there is some available for purchase), pop-up canopy tents for shade, bag chairs, wagons, coolers, flashlights, batteries, paper towels, baby wipes, hand sanitizer and more.

If you have any questions, post them in the comments and somebody will have an answer.  Or visit the official LJT FAQ.

Well friends, the calendar has rolled back around to bring us one of the most magical musical events of the year: Larry Joe Taylor’s Texas Music Festival. A week of music and memories being made onstage and around campfires with friends old and new.

Coined “Redneck Woodstock” by Roger Creager onstage at the 2000 festival and referred to as “Our own kind of Bonaroo” by Johnny Cooper in 2009, LJT’s Texas Music Festival is the ultimate festival for Texas and Red Dirt musicians and fans. Depending on how long you choose to stay, it’s several days of music, mullets, BBQ, chili, tents, flags, music, doctors, lawyers, college kids, high school kids, music, hippies, rednecks, old friends, new friends, “Goodnight Moons”, “Tequila Sunrises”, campfires, tents, boats, RV’s, campers, music, newcomers, legends, cowboys, fun, music and much, much more. Every crowd is represented and respected. The young college revelers are respectful of the older music fans and vice versa. The good time vibes fill the grounds of beautiful Melody Mountain Ranch.

You’re as likely to hear the best song you’ve ever heard from the guy camping next to you as you are to hear Reckless Kelly perform onstage. Cody Canada has been performing at LJT’s since he was a teenager. And it just might turn out the guy camping next to you and bumming beers is some guy named Abbott or LaRue. Music starts each day at noon with acoustic acts under a listening room tent where idle conversation is discouraged. The music transitions to the mainstage around 5PM for some of the most energetic sets from some of the best bands you’ll see all year. The nightcapping sets can grow pretty rowdy and are a ton of fun.

Additionally, this is the one festival where the artists truly hang out in the crowd the whole time and enjoy being a fan. Randy Rogers and Brady Black even began a hayride tradition several years ago that takes music in its purest form and shares it until sunrise.

It’s Texas Music nirvana, the event of the year, every year. Days full of no worries except making sure you get to the stage with enough beer to make it through the show. No cell phones, laptops or other such modern nuiscances. Just the open Texas sky, a sea of thousands of like-minded music fans from all over the country, and true serenity.

Words cannot express how special the Larry Joe Taylor festival is or how important it has been in exposing new talent and developing this scene. Who knows what will be discovered this year?

Also, check us out on Twitter (@galleywinter) as we’ll be updating as much as cell service will allow. See y’all at Melody Mountain.