Gay Country Band Lavender Country to play Conor Byrne Pub on September 14th

Openly gay country artist and Olympic Peninsula native Patrick Haggerty will be playing a show with his band Lavender Country on September 14th at Conor Byrne Pub in Ballard. Other bands on the bill include Seattle’s own Wildcat Rose and Portland-based Jenny Don’t and the Spurs. For event and ticket information, click here.

Lavender Country formed in the early 1970s. The band consisted of Patrick and a few friends, and they released one self-titled album in 1973. The album was filled with queer country songs the likes of which the music world had never seen before: “Come Out Singin’,” “Back in the Closet Again,” and the well-known “Cryin’ These Cocksucking Tears.” The latter even saw radio airplay in 1973 on 107.7, known then as KRAB. (The DJ who played the song was subsequently fired from the station.)

Following the release of their album, Lavender Country traveled the west coast performing at numerous LGBTQIA+ events until their dissolution in 1976. Since then, the band’s only album has been reissued in 1999 and 2014, and the band has played several shows in support of the reissues. For more information on Patrick and Lavender Country’s story, visit the band’s website here.

Listen to “Cryin’ These Cocksucking Tears” below: