Phillip Austin will perform at General Duffy's Watering Hole on Friday evening.

Phillip Austin is bringing his solo acoustic act to General Duffy’s Watering Hole at 6:30 p.m. Friday. Austin will perform a more intimate version of the usual outlaw country sound his band Sleepless Truckers is known for.

Austin describes outlaw country as “songs about the poor, hard-living working class, the good times and the bad, the beauty of life and the sorrows, songs about mama, trains, trucks, prison and getting drunk. That’s what outlaw country is to me.”

You’ll usually find Austin performing with the rest of the Sleepless Truckers, a five-piece band Austin formed with the goal of preserving old-school outlaw country. He said he wanted to “introduce it to the new generations, revisit it for the old ones and share [his] own personal story through the songs [he’s] written.”

Much of the inspiration for his songs and style come from his experience traveling across America in search of a new place to call home after spending 10 years in

Nashville “pickin’ and grinnin’ in the Broadway honkytonks.”

“I grew up in Oklahoma, did a stint in the Navy and by no accident found myself out here (in Central Oregon) in 2017 after leaving Nashville in my search for the perfect beer and music scene,” said Austin.

Austin found what he was looking for — a place that serves great local beer and musicians that bring their all to the stage.

“I couldn’t have asked for a better group or found them anywhere else but here,” said Austin. “I’ve played with the best in the world and I promise you won’t find a better tighter group than what we’ve got right here.”

So if you’re looking for an intimate, raw performance of outlaw country by a local talent, head to General Duffy’s this Friday evening. “The beers are always cold and they’ve got some of the best food trucks,” Austin said about the venue.