Lyle Lovett one of many star s in Texas music

Across America, numerous cities are known for their musical heritage — Detroit’s “Motown Sound,” Seattle’s grunge scene, Nashville’s country “Music City” status, and too many blues towns to name. But only one state has a broad but clearly defined musical identity — Texas.

While the actual range of musical styles found within Texas is immense, there is a sense of pride and shared identity among most of the artists who call the Lone Star State home. The question is whether “Texas music” is a social construct for marketing purposes or a solipsistic entity that emerged from a series of unique events and happenings.

Even Texas songwriters have a hard time explaining their collective identity. Joe Ely, a Lubbock resident since he was 11 years old, ponders the question of what makes Texas music unique and abundant.

“It puzzles me as much as anyone, why would you go down that bumpy road?” Ely said. “But the potholes are worth it if you get a good song.”

He continued: “I started traveling around looking for the well where all these great songs came from, and I realized it was right around me. Folks in Texas kind of ‘paint’ stories in songs. They describe the environment, the places and the people.”

The rich history and diverse cultural blending found throughout Texas make a fertile ground for song. Ely reflects on the vastness of his home state and its people.

“In East Texas you have a lot of Cajun influence, including the blues from New Orleans that got to Houston. From South Texas to San Antonio you find Mexican music, where Doug Sahm discovered Tex-Mex and blues. Out west you have the cowboy songs that developed over the years around the campfires. I love a good story, and Texas is full of good stories, many left over from the cowboy days. Gamblers, pool hustlers — they make better subjects than bankers.”

Lyle Lovett sees a similar phenomenon in creating good songs and how musical opportunities in Texas nurture that creativity.

“There are the little things that happen between people, it can be nothing or everything that inspires a song. But if the music is right, everything else will take care of itself,” he said. “In Texas there are plenty of places to play music, but there’s not a lot of music ‘business’ going on. This allows you to focus on the live audience and perfecting the performance of the songs.”

Many artists are content to stay in Texas, but Ely, Lovett and a few other Texans got their national break at Nashville’s MCA Records, some with music executive Tony Brown.

“It was an interesting time in Nashville,” Lovett said. “Tony went to bat and signed me and gave me lots of leeway in the studio. 1986, around the same time that Steve Earle and I released our debut albums, Nanci Griffith was on the label, and Tony produced her work.”

Ely had two separate runs at MCA, with critical acclaim but no big sales. He is unconcerned with numbers.

“I never thought much about making a living, and have enough ambition to fill a thimble,” he said.

Both Ely and Lovett recorded songs by other Texas artists throughout their careers, and Lovett has been particularly emphatic in his support. 1998’s double CD “Step Inside This House” was almost entirely of songs written by Texas songwriters, including well-known artists Townes Van Zandt and Guy Clark, and obscure, regionally popular writers David Rodriquez and Steve Fromholtz. On Lovett’s newest release, “Natural Forces,” he includes seven tracks written by Texas artists.

“I only had a handful of new songs I liked enough to put on my new album, so I started thinking about work by my favorite Texas singer/songwriters that would complement these new songs,” he said. “Actually, I’m not trying to represent Texas, it’s just that these people are my favorites from anywhere.”

Some names on “Natural Forces” may be unfamiliar to the general public, but they all play some role in Lovett’s musical history.

“Don Sanders was known as the ‘Mayor of Montrose’ [a Houston suburb with music clubs],” Lovett said, “and both he and Tommy Elkses, along with Townes and Guy, were kind enough to let me open for them when I started out.”

Ely’s musical journey has also resulted in some serendipitous encounters, as he describes a chance meeting with a future legend.

“One day in Lubbock I picked up Townes Van Zandt hitchhiking from California back to Houston,” Ely said. “He had a backpack full of copies of his first album with him. I gave him a ride, and he gave me an album. I listened to that thing for months.

“About that time I started working with Butch Hancock and Jimmie Dale Gilmore, and we somehow recorded an album of our songs. In 1970, it was like a miracle.”

The original Flatlanders’ album was only released on eight-track tape, but it is licensed and reproduced in every format.

“We never got any money from it,” Ely said, “but at least it is out there.”

When asked who his favorite Texas artist is, Ely stated: “Butch Hancock is the best songwriter in the world. He is able to structure songs, use words in a way nobody else can, and tell amazing stories.”

When Lovett was asked the same question, he hedged.

“I cannot do it, they are all so important in their own way, including all the guys we have talked about, and the Flatlanders,” he said. “They are all threads of the same fabric.”

Concert preview

Lyle Lovett and his Large Band.