I first read this article in 2001 from the original Guitar World Magazine issue it came out in. My best friend, who is also named Stevie, was given a mint condition original copy by someone who worked for a guitar shop here in Des Moines, IA. The man had held onto the issue all these years thinking since SRV had passed away, that one day it would be worth a lot of money.

For many years, this man worked as a bartender in several bars around the area that were known for live blues, and he also played in several blues bands himself during the past 20 yrs or longer, and worked in the guitar shop teaching guitar lessons and getting to know the local community of musicians. Each night after working or playing, he would usually call a taxi to get home, sometimes he drank a lot while working or playing and that is how he came to know my friend Stevie, we were both taxi drivers.

Well, one night I was out with my friend Stevie for his birthday, and we ended up at this bar where the owner of the original magazine was tending bar that night. My friend whose birthday it was, knew this bartender pretty well, as one of his regular customers, riding in his taxi-but never had a chance to talk for more than a 15 minute cab ride.

Stevie and the bartender, (his name was Jeff) had often talked about how they should hang out sometime and they genuinely liked each other. It was pure chance that we walked into the bar he had recently started working in, it wasn't a blues club, it was a pool hall. Stevie and I loved to shoot pool a lot. Well, that night they finally had a real chance to be more social and they talked for hours over many beers. It was just the three of us in there that night for the last 5 hours before closing, and Jeff took notice of what a TRUE FAN my friend really was of SRV,

After the bar closed, as we hung out with him drinking and talking he asked us for a ride home, because he didn't wanna call a taxi, and then told us he had felt a strong message in his gut that he was supposed to gift something to my buddy for his birthday. My friend Stevie seemed to always be possessed by SRV's spirit while listening to his music or watching old videos of him, which this bartender witnessed that night as he plugged the Jukebox with dollars, playing every SRV song he could find.

My friend Stevie and I said of course we would give him a ride home and when we got to his place he asked Stevie to come in for a bit. He walked into his bedroom closet, took a box down off the shelf above his clothes. He pulled out the magazine and as he turned around to us, he seemed to be smiling and shaking his head, having some sort of last minute internal dialogue going on. Then he told Stevie, "I'm supposed to give this to you dude. I've held onto it all these years, and tonight I was given a sign that it was meant to be in your hands from here on out." He handed over the magazine and Stevie immediately teared up. He already knew all about the issue, being the fan he was. He even remembered seeing it on the news stand back the day it came out.

I seen Stevie Ray Vaughan here at a club called Head East, I think it was in 1980 or 1981. It was the first time I had ever heard of him, and also my first time I ever remember being mesmerized while watching someone play a guitar-and I grew up in a whole family of fantastic musicians, most of whom played guitar as well as other instruments-but that night has always stuck in my mind for many reasons. The biggest reason though was that night, Stevie Ray Vaughan showed me how a musician can truly be spiritually possessed by The Blues. I'll never forget his face and his eyes that night as he played for me, and every single time I watched him after that he had the same exact facial expressions while he played.

It's musicians like SRV who give you one of those moments of clarity, the moment in time where you know there is something much higher than us out there, someone who knows all and has planned every moment in time.

SRV: may you always rest in peace brother. I still cry for the loss we all share when we miss you, but YOU ARE STILL HERE WITH US AND ALWAYS WILL BE. Especially with Jeff, Stevie and myself.