Arts and Culture

Sonny Curtis, former member of The Crickets and writer of hits like “I Fought the Law” and “Love Is All Around," died on Sept. 19. Born in Meadow, Texas and cutting his teeth playing stages around Lubbock before making it big, Sonny Curtis is remembered as a mentor, role model, and friend by many in the community.

Meadow-born singer-songwriter, hall of famer, and former member of the Crickets, Sonny Curtis died after a sudden illness last weekend at 88 years old. Some of his most recognizable songs include I Fought the Law, More Than I Can Say, and the theme song to The Mary Tyler Moore Show: Love is All Around. Our reporter Samantha Larned has more on Curtis’ life and legacy.

The historic Wallace Theater in downtown Levelland held its grand reopening this weekend. Our reporter Samantha Larned has more on how the theater is bringing the community together. Lubbock's mayor Mark McBrayer and District 6 city councilman Tim Collins are hosting Coffee with the Mayor tomorrow morning. The event starts at 7 A.M. at the United Supermarket at 4th and Milwaukee.

First opened in 1928, the Wallace Theater in downtown Levelland closed in the 1980s. Now, after years of restoration, it is reopening its doors to teach the next generation of musicians and thespians.

In a new oral history, photographer Pat Blashill traces the music, art and culture that shook Austin in the late 1970s through the mid-80s.

Texas Tech University’s Goin’ Band from Raiderland launched its centennial celebration with Alumni Band Day at the Red Raiders’ season opener. The weekend was filled with events for returning members, but a highly anticipated halftime performance — uniting the current band with more than a thousand alumni musicians — was ultimately washed out by rain.

Saturday's opening game for the Red Raiders will feature a performance from multiple generations of Tech’s Goin’ Band. Our reporter Bishop Van Buren has more on the band's centennial celebration. CitiBus has announced the return of the Park N Ride Gameday Express at Texas Tech football games this season, offering roundtrip service to and from Jones AT&T Stadium for $6 per person. Passes are purchasable through the GoPass App. The Gameday Express will begin three hours before kickoff and continue until one hour following the end of the game.

San Antonio native and conjunto legend Flaco Jiménez has died at the age of 86.

Last summer, Lubbock’s city council voted to reduce funding for the First Friday Art Trail from the Cultural Arts Grant Program. Now, one year later, the council was once again tasked with approving the grant recipients recommended by Civic Lubbock, Inc. KTTZ's Samantha Larned reports this year's funding was approved with a unanimous vote from the city council after some changes to grant guidelines, including a restriction on "controversial" issues.

Lubbock City Council has approved the recommended recipients for the Cultural Arts Grant Program. Included in the recommendations was the First Friday Art Trail, one year after a controversial decision from the council that cut funding for that event. However, this year saw a change in the guidelines for the grant, restricting political and “controversial” programming.