Long Live the Dive

It’s 11:30 a.m. on a Wednesday, and a handful of regulars cluster together at the bar of Showdown, grabbing beers and maybe some lunch while “Mission Impossible” plays soundlessly on the TV.

The jukebox switches from the B52s to Shania Twain. The ceiling fan overhead has an almost nasal, rhythmic squawk. Showdown’s interior has a colorfully-layered, lacquered-over feel to it, the kind of patina one would expect from a dive bar that has been around since 1977.

In a way, Showdown is the quintessential Texas dive bar, but it is by no means alone. Call them roadhouses, cantinas, taverns or beer joints, these neighborhood bars are like islands unto themselves, a comforting sanctuary for every person who wanders through its doors.

This dive bar crowd — its regulars and their stories — brought San Marcos-author Anthony Head and photographer Kirk Weddle to chronicle their legacy in their book “Texas Dives: Enduring Neighborhood Bars of the Lone Star State.” Within its pages, Head and Weddle shed the Hollywood perception that dive bars are seedy dens of ill-repute by showing them for what they are at their heart.

“A dive bar is a place where people still meet face to face and talk,” Head said. “They still come together and have fellowship. It just so happens to be over a couple of drinks.”

In the book’s foreword, Jesse Dayton writes, “These were and still are the gathering places in Texas that the local holy rollers have always warned the local flock to stay away from. They’re colloquial and fiercely tribal places where the working class can drink a cold one, play pool for 50 cents, shoot the bull, and celebrate and commiserate life with old friends about a pay raise or a layoff, a divorce or a new sweetheart, or hold a tear-jerking memorial for a fallen soldier.”

Writing this book, which Head and Weddle began in 2010, took them all across the state, from The Goat in Dallas to Shorty’s Place in Port Aransas and 10 other dives in between, including Showdown in San Marcos and Riley’s Tavern in Hunter.

What they discovered in their 12-year journey is that these dive bars are remarkably enduring. From hurricanes to global pandemics, these neighborhood bars remain a tenacious bastion against the constant chaos of change.

“This place has outlasted the jewelers next door,” Head said of Showdown. “It’s outlasted the service station over there. It outlasted Paper Bear. [Dive bars] anchor neighborhoods for a long time. Time doesn’t stop in a dive, but it moves really slow. These guys don’t hold onto trends, because they aren’t looking outside and saying, ‘What do we need to do to bring in more people?’ They’re sticking with comfort and familiarity and cheap drinks. How is that a bad business model?”

In order to celebrate the existence of these oft-misunderstood dive bars, Head and Weddle are planning a 13- stop book tour this month, beginning with Riley’s Tavern on Saturday, July 30.

“This is going to be so much fun,” Head said. “We are wrapping this book tour in a music tour. We’re bringing a singer/songwriter from Austin. Her name is Sid Grimes. She’s an Americana, Texana singer/songwriter. We’re going back to the bars that we first put in the book, because they were the ones who helped us.”

While it is true that dive bars stand steadfast against the outside pace of the world, no good thing can last forever. For example, as Head writes in the book, his original hometown hangout was the Triple Crown (RIP) which closed its doors back in 2017. Other dives Head and Weddle featured in their book also met with their demise.

“A lot of them closed during the pandemic,” Head said. “Two of them didn’t reopen. Two of the owners died very recently, so there are updates to be presented during this tour. We’ll be honoring these places.”

Honoring this legacy is the recurring theme of Head’s book. With Weddle’s unfiltered photography and Head’s honest and hilarious words, they expose the true nature of these neighborhood institutions.

“People love dive bars,” Head said. “Dives can be very welcoming. The bartender wants to be a good bartender. The owner wants the place to be clean. I’ve had arguments with people about how dirty and sticky dive bars are, and I’ve said, ‘Find one. Find me one.’ Because they still get inspected by the State Board of Health like every other restaurant. The patrons are loyal, and the owners know that there’s a little group that is so not about chasing the dream. It’s showing up. It's slinging drinks and making people comfortable. How can that get this whiff of ill-repute where people now think dive is a bad word?”

Head and Weddle’s book goes a long way to set the record straight.

Anthony is the author of “SPIRIT: The Life and Art of Jesse Treviño” and other books. His writing has appeared in “Texas Highways,” “Austin American-Statesman,” “Bon Appétit,” “360 West,” “Robb Report” and “The Tasting Panel” among other national and international publications. He lives in San Marcos. Kirk Weddle has spent more than three decades as a professional photographer for commercial, corporate, and private clients. He’s known around the world for his iconic shot that graces the cover of Nirvana’s “Nevermind” album. He lives in Austin.

For Book Tour updates visit their event page at facebook.com/profile. php?id=100070636106414

To watch the Texas Dives Book Trailer, visit: youtube.com/watch?v=rdBxBNfzVeA

To order the book directly from the authors, visit wedhedbooks.square.site/