Not Fade Away

ROKY ERICKSON

Psych-rock avatar (1947–2019)

“IT’S almost unfathomable to contemplate a world without Roky Erickson,” declared superfan and fellow Texan Billy Gibbons of ZZ Top. “He created his own musical galaxy.” As frontman of the 13th Floor Elevators, the Austin renegades he co-founded in 1965, Erickson was the untamed proto-punk with the howling voice who embodied the raw essence of the first wave of psychedelia. The band issued three studio albums, though debut single “You’re Gonna Miss Me” remains Erickson’s defining moment. Diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia in the late ’60s, Erickson’s subsequent recording career was hampered by bouts of mental illness. He became more visible in later years, collaborating with Mogwai, The Black Angels and Okkervil River (who backed him on 2010’s True Love Cast Out All Evil). In 2015 he reunited with the 13th Floor Elevators at Austin’s psychedelic festival, Levitation, named in the band’s honour.

ELLIOT ROBERTS

Manager of Neil Young and Joni Mitchell (1943–2019)

IN October 1967, 24-year-old Elliot Roberts made a decision that would shape his life. Acting on a tip-off from Buffy Saint-Marie, the junior talent agent went to see the unsigned Joni Mitchell at the Cafe Au Go Go in Greenwich Village. He was bowled over.