At around 4:30 in the morning on September 4, Eric Laufer, lead singer of rockabilly upstarts the Two Timin’ Four, was found dead on the side of Research Boulevard near Lamar in North Austin. According to police, the motorcycle he had been riding had been hit by a blue SUV and the bike was found nearly a mile away. As evidenced by the tribute held at the Nutty Brown Café on Saturday, Laufer was loved not only by the local music community, but nationwide. The sense of community was palpable in the Nutty Brown’s backyard amphitheater. The gathering of roots rockers and bikers was subdued but animated, the on-stage love matched by a feeling of great loss, but met with an undeniable sense of support.
Emotions ran highest when, in the early evening, the Four took the stage joined by a series of guest vocalists, including Big Sandy and Caroline Casey, one of the tribute’s organizers. The discovery of the night was Miss Lauren Marie, a Boston transplant with an impressively clear voice who joined the band for a couple of country-tinged tunes.
Laufer had friends beyond the rockabilly scene as well, like garage rockers the Ugly Beats and the Bellfuries, but most were there to see the killer 1-2-3 of Kim Lenz (she claimed it was her first appearance in Austin in nine years), Big Sandy and His Fly-Rite Boys, and Wayne “The Train” Hancock. Organizers said they reached the goal of $10,000 with all proceeds going to Laufer’s family to offset the costs related to his passing. Still, the overflow of affection and camaraderie among the bands and audience was the best tribute to Laufer, whose impact was obviously greater than his name.
This article appears in November 7 • 2008.