Descriptive Summary
Erickson, Roky.
Erickson, Roky, Papers
1993-1994
Materials are written in English.
2010-162
3 in.
Dolph Briscoe Center for American History, The
University of Texas at Austin
Three draft copies of Openers II: The Lyrics of Roky Erickson compose the Roky
Erickson Papers, 1993-1994. Two drafts contain handwritten notations. Roky Erickson
is an Austin, Texas, musician, known for his psychadelic and heavy metal rock
styles.
Biographical Note
In 1965, Austin, Texas, musician Roger Kynard “Roky” Erickson helped form The 13th
Floor Elevators, the first self-described psychedelic rock band. The next year, their song You’re Gonna Miss Me became the band’s first and
only hit single. After Erickson was diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia, the band
split up, and he spent several years in the Rusk State Hospital for the Criminally
Insane after being arrested for marijuana. Following his release, Erickson formed a
new band called Bleib Alien, renamed later to Roky Erickson and the Aliens,
performing and releasing albums through the 1980s. The 1980s and 1990s brought the
release of several older recordings and the publication of his lyrics in Openers (1988) and Openers
II (1995). By the 2000s Erickson’s younger brother Sumner established a
trust to aid in medical treatment and legal aid to receive royalties for songs
written as a solo artist and in other bands. In 2005, the documentary You’re Gonna Miss Me about Erickson's life premiered at
Austin’s South By Southwest Film Festival, and later that year Erickson performed
his first full concert in 20 years at the Austin City Limits Music Festival.
Sources:
Erickson, Roky. Biography. Roky Erickson. http://www.rokyerickson.net/index3.php#bio (accessed July 2,
2010).
Drummond, Paul. Eye Mind: The Saga of Roky Erickson and the
13th Floor Elevators, The Pioneers of Psychedelic Sound. Los Angeles:
Process Media, 2007.
Scope and Contents
Three draft copies of Openers II: The Lyrics of Roky
Erickson compose the Roky Erickson Papers, 1993-1994. Two drafts contain
handwritten notations.
Related Material
See also the following books in the Briscoe Center Library:
Erickson, Roky. Openers. Austin, Tex.: Pyramid
Publishing Company, 1972. Call number TXC-ZZ PS 3555 R4645 O636 1972.
Erickson, Roky. Operners II: The Lyrics of Roky
Erickson. Los Angeles: 2.13.61, Inc., 1995. Call number ML 419 E744 O6
1995.
Drummond, Paul. Eye Mind: The Saga of Roky Erickson and the
13th Floor Elevators, The Pioneers of Psychedelic Sound. Los Angeles:
Process Media, 2007. Call number TXC-Z ML 421 T55 D78 2007.
Ortman, Jack. The Roky Erickson Story. Austin, Tex.:
Mediaprice, 1986. Call number ML 419 E744 R6 1986.
Access Restrictions
Unrestricted access.
Use Restrictions
Unrestricted use.
Index Terms
Subjects (Persons)
Erickson, Roky.
Subjects
Psychedelic rock music -- Texas.
Rock musicians -- Texas.
Psychedelic rock music -- United States.
Rock musicians -- United States.
Places
Austin (Tex.)
Preferred Citation
Roky Erickson Papers, 1993-1994, Dolph Briscoe Center for American History, The
University of Texas at Austin.
Processing Information
This collection was processed by Laurel Rozema, July 2010.
Detailed Description of the Papers
Inventory
2.325/A92a
Three drafts of Openers II with
handwritten notes, 1993-1994