At the 1995 SXSW Softball Game and BBQ, a trio of kids from Oklahoma were singing for anyone who would listen. One writer recently recalled that day (in this story). Yup, Hanson came to Austin in ’95, and a couple of years later, ‘Mmm Bop’ was implanting its fiendishly tuneful melody into everyone’s head.
Look behind Hanson in this photo, at the big guy in a white t-shirt and glasses (and hair without any grey). That’s me, recovering from my second year as a panel volunteer. I do recall being struck by the initiative of these kids. It wasn’t until we found this photo in the wake of their success that I realized that I discovered Hanson. This shows that there’s much more to the SXSW BBQ than brisket, sausage and scintillating softball.
Photo by Greg Sells.