Stevie Ray Vaughan Helicopter Crash — Alpine Valley, East Troy, Wisconsin

Stevie Ray Vaughan was killed in a helicopter crash at Alpine Valley Music Theatre near East Troy, Wisconsin, in the early hours of August 27, 1990. He was 35 years old. The helicopter, which was carrying Vaughan back to Chicago after a concert, crashed into a ski slope hill in dense fog shortly after takeoff. Vaughan had just performed a show at Alpine Valley alongside Eric Clapton, Robert Cray, Buddy Guy, and his brother Jimmie Vaughan — a bill that represented the finest blues guitarists of the era sharing a single stage. His final song was a jam on 'Sweet Home Chicago.'

Stevie Ray Vaughan was the most important blues guitarist of his generation — a Texan prodigy whose incendiary playing revived mainstream interest in the blues during the 1980s. Albums like Texas Flood (1983), Couldn't Stand the Weather (1984), and In Step (1989) demonstrated a technical mastery and emotional intensity that drew direct comparisons with Jimi Hendrix. He had recently overcome a severe addiction to cocaine and alcohol, and In Step — his first sober record — was his most critically acclaimed work. His death came at the moment when his playing, his health, and his creative vision had all reached their peak.

Alpine Valley Music Theatre at 2568 County Road D continues to operate as an outdoor concert venue. A memorial to Vaughan stands on the shore of Lady Bird Lake in Austin, Texas — the city he adopted as home and where he built his musical career. His grave is at Laurel Land Memorial Park in Dallas.