Upon arrival, they discovered that their seats had been taken by members of Clapton's crew, agent Bobby Brooks, bodyguard Nigel Browne, and assistant tour manager Colin Smythe. Peter Jackson, one of Clapton's tour managers let Vaughan know that three seats were reserved for himself, Jimmie, and Connie. Stevie Ray, Jimmie, and his wife Connie made their way to their reserved helicopter, a Bell 206B Jet Ranger booked by Omniflight Helicopters and manned by Jeff Brown, a 42-year-old veteran pilot. According to Double Trouble drummer Chris Layton, Vaughan's last words to him were, 'I love ya.' ĭew was settling on the windshields of the four helicopters waiting to transport the performers back to Chicago. Moments later, Peter Jackson, Clapton's tour manager, said that the weather was getting worse and they had to leave soon.
He felt 'terrified, yet almost peaceful.' īackstage after the show that evening, the musicians talked about playing together again, particularly with Clapton for a series of dates at London's Royal Albert Hall in February and March 1991.
On the morning of August 26, 1990, Vaughan told his band and crew members about a horrible nightmare in which he was at his own funeral and saw thousands of mourners.
