Angela Strehli did not just sing in the Austin blues scene; she helped build it. Born in Lubbock, Texas, in 1945, she taught herself bass guitar and harmonica before ever stepping up to a microphone, then took a 1966 trip to Chicago to see Howlin' Wolf, Muddy Waters, and Buddy Guy in their electric element. Back in Texas she formed the Fabulous Rockets with Lewis Cowdery, sang backup for James Polk and the Brothers, worked with the band Storm alongside a young Jimmie Vaughan, and in 1972 co-founded Southern Feeling with W.C. Clark and Denny Freeman. When Clifford Antone opened his Austin nightclub in 1975, she took the job of stage manager and sound technician, mixing monitors for visiting Chicago legends and becoming the most trusted musical mind in the building.

This episode follows Strehli from the soundboard to the studio: the 1986 Stra ...