In preparation for his sold-out concert at the Cynthia Woods Pavillion to honor The Woodlands Township's 50th-anniversary celebration, I was honored to join a discussion with Four-Time Grammy Award Winner Lyle Lovett. He generously spoke at length with Tonya Bulter of The Woodlands City Lifestyle and me about how his roots in the area have influenced him. Growing up in Klien, the artist shared fond memories of Conroe, the importance of having family support, and what young artists need to thrive. Lyle, as he asked to be addressed, grew up on part of his grandpa Klien's farm, where his roots run as deep as the ain't ancient oak that still stands there. Although Grandpa Klien was retired, his sons continued to farm the land that Lyle now owns. Here's more of what he shared.
Lyle:
And so I grew up on the farm and was able to work in the hay field and work in the dairy barn. I had a real appreciation for the farm life, mainly because of how it involved the entire extended family. Everybody pitched in, everybody helped. So it was a wonderful way to grow up.
One of Lyle's first passions was motorcycles. He grew up working on, riding, and racing them. Like farming, this was a family affair; they were all members of the Trail Riders of Houston. His dad's family was from Sheppard, Texas, so with them, he would ride parts of the Sam Houston National Forest and go up FM 1375 in New Waverly to ride the wooded trails there. As a result, he is very familiar with Conroe, plus his first job was here.
Lyle:
The first motorcycle shop I worked in, just the summer after my eighth-grade year, was Conroe Cycle Center, which is now Cycle Shack North. My mom's first cousin, Sonia Klein, and her husband bought that shop, and they gave me a job. I didn't really work behind the parts counter or anything, but I polished bikes and swept the floor. I was just eager to work in the motorcycle shop in any way I could.
His early love for the adventure and freedom of racing motorcycles eventually made room for Lyle's next life's passion, music. Lyle has more than a dozen studio albums under his belt. These include standouts like "Lyle Lovett and His Large Band" and "The Road to Ensenada," milestones for the accolades they received, the stories they tell, and the boundaries they push. Still, you don't have to look further than North Houston to trace his musical roots.
Lyle:
It was the summer of 1976, and my high school buddy, Bruce Lyon, Bruce was a year ahead of me in school, he was class of '74 at Klein, and Bruce and I learned some songs together. And we got a gig playing two nights a week at a restaurant on FM 1960 across from Champions, called The Mariner.
Bruce and I played on Tuesdays and Saturdays all summer long, and that was the first time I had ever gotten paid to play, and it was just a great experience. And from then on, when I went back to school that fall, I just kept playing. I would call around and ask for gigs, and got a few and just kept playing from then on. I played somewhere just about every week after that.
It was the beginning of a career and passion that has spanned decades. From the beginning, he was drawn to perform.
Lyle Lovett:
There was something really motivating for me about having something booked, having a place to play. And it helped me in terms of focusing my music energy. It helped me focus on learning songs. It helped me focus on practicing. It gave me a reason to do all that beyond just the joy of it, and I enjoyed all that process.
Looking back, Lovett sees a life painted in the rich hues of creativity, a career built on respect for musical traditions while constantly pushing their boundaries. He's seen decades of dedicated fans who found pieces of themselves in songs like "If I Had a Boat" or "That's Right (You're Not from Texas)."
At 66, Lyle Lovett reflects on a life well-lived, a career that has left an indelible mark on Americanicana/Folk music, and a legacy that continues to inspire new generations of musicians who dare to color outside the lines. His journey is a testament to the power of passion, perseverance, and the support of loved ones.
Lyle is deeply thankful for his parents' unwavering support, which has been a crucial factor in his success. He acknowledges that none of it would have been possible without their encouragement and belief in his talent.
Lyle Lovett:
They worked really hard all their lives, and they gave me the chance to do things. They made choices based on what they had to do, and they gave me the chance to make choices in my life based more on what I wanted to do.
So I was just really lucky that my parents were supportive. And oftentimes my parents and my buddy Bruce Lyon's parents were our entire audience in those early days, but I was grateful for that.
There are artists who've repeatedly grown up in this area and gone on to have very successful musical careers. Cody Johnson and Park McCullum are but two of the most recent examples. So I asked Lyle why so many kids who grow up here go on to greatness.
Alison:
Because you talked about parental support, do parents see someone making it and then give their kids more encouragement? (laughing) Or is it something in the water?
Lyle Lovett:
I don't know, and I'm often asked that. There are a lot of performers who seem to come from Texas. And so I'm often asked, who knows really why? But I do know this. There are places you can play in Texas. There are places you can get a gig. And that really is the secret to developing your interest, and developing your skill, and just developing yourself as a performer is just the sheer doing of it. And in so many other places, and especially in the music business centers, places like Nashville, or Los Angeles, or New York, performances seem to have to have a point to them beyond just playing. People are doing a showcase to make an impression on someone from a record company or a publishing company.
But in Texas, there are places that you can just play. And there seems to be an audience for performers just because they're playing. And I think that might be a reason that there are so many performers from Texas in general, is that people get to do it. You get to do it, and people get to be good at it.
Alison:
In Conroe, you can go to a restaurant and hear live music almost every night of the week.
Lyle:
Well, there you go.
Alison:
... There are opportunities …
Lyle:
That's right. And that's really the only way to develop that. They don't teach performing in school, not that kind of performing, and you have to go and do it. And either you like it enough to stick with it, and you get enough encouragement as I did. I got enough encouragement at every baby step that I kept wanting to take the next one. And that really seems to be the way it happens. It never is an overnight kind of thing, but it always takes that kind of opportunity and encouragement.
Perseverance, passion, encouragement, and opportunity are all things to be thankful for, indeed. If you'd like to see Lyle perform, visit LyleLovett.com for the latest details.
PULL QUOTE 3
"They made choices based on what they had to do, and they gave me the chance to make choices in my life based more on what I wanted to do."
"It was a wonderful way to grow up." - Lyle Lovett
"The first motorcycle shop I worked in... was Conroe Cycle Center, which is now Cycle Shack North."