On the Porch: Life and Music in Terlingua, Texas

by W Chase Peeler

In sunbaked Terlingua, Texas (pop., a few hundred), residents joke that there is a musician under every rock. Located ten miles from Mexico in one of the remotest corners of the United States, the town had a recording studio before it had a school, a well-stocked grocery store, or even a water utility. Open jam sessions are a daily ritual, and some songwriters make a living from their craft despite being thousands of miles from New York or Nashville. Why does such a tiny and isolated place ring with singing and guitars? Based on more than two years of on-the-ground research, On the Porch tells the story of this small but remarkable community. Chase Peeler invites us into the music, introducing us to a cast of characters as unique as the town itself. He reveals how novices and experts perform together—a rarity in contemporary America. He recounts the devastation brought on by a border closure and describes how music is once again uniting people across the Rio Grande. He considers the impact of gentrification in an off-the-grid paradise, and how this threatens to transform a precarious musical ecosystem. On the Porch is a celebration of human musicality, of the role that music plays and can play in our lives, both in Terlingua and beyond.

256 pages, Hardcover

Published September 14, 2021

Reviews

[June · Rating 5 out of 5]

The author has captured the essence of a small West Texas town and the surprisingly deep roots of it's music culture that is one of it's strongest foundations. On the Porch is well written, insightful, tender, interesting, complex and quite astute. An excellent book!

[Jaime Dickerson · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you have an interest in the Bug Bend region of Texas, grass roots Texas music, or the strange and beautiful town of Terlingua, this is a terrific book!

[Paige Fuhrman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Take me back to Terlingua rn @Corissa @Ashley