RIP Poodie, RIP.

IN MEMORY

Randall "Poodie" Locke 1952-2009 "'There are no bad days' was the slogan Poodie Locke, Willie Nelson's stage manager of 34 years, put on a sign outside his Poodie's Hilltop beer joint in Spicewood, Texas. But (May 5th) was a dark one for members of the extended Willie Nelson family as Locke was found dead of an apparent heart attack at his home in Briarcliff, about 30 miles west of Austin. He was 56. A 12-year old Locke met Nelson, from nearby Abbott, in Waco. Before hooking up with Willie just before 'Red Headed Stranger' blew up, Locke was a roadie for B.W. Stevenson. You were lucky if you knew Poodie Locke, a larger-than-life folk hero who epitomized, behind the scenes, the humor and humility... his boss presented onstage. You can be sure there is devastation in Willie World. A member of the immediate family, Willie's spiritual kid brother, has passed on. There's a little less love out on the road. But, as Poodie knew better than anyone, the road still calls." - from Austin360.com