Grandson Records in Gunter Hotel Room 414

Steven Johnson is returning to Room 414 of the Gunter Hotel in San Antonio to record a new album.

The three-day event runs from November 12 to 14, 2026. It marks the 90th anniversary of a 1936 session by Robert Johnson. Johnson was 25 years old and from Mississippi when he recorded there. The tracks from that session influenced later musicians, including Eric Clapton, the Rolling Stones, and Led Zeppelin.

Johnson, the grandson of the blues guitarist, will use the hotel’s Gunter Studio for the project. The Robert Johnson Blues Foundation will release the finished album. On Saturday, November 14, the hotel will host a showcase in the Crystal Ballroom. Pedal steel guitarist Robert Randolph will perform. He recently won a Grammy for his work with Preacher Kids. He will share the stage with Texas blues-rock guitarist Ally Venable and the Steve L. Johnson Band. Marco Cervantes, a professor at the University of Texas at San Antonio who performs as Mexstep, will host the event. Tickets begin at $59.

The hotel will host additional musical events throughout the weekend. On Thursday, November 12, producer Michael Ramos will lead tours of the Gunter Studio from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. Nicky Diamonds will perform in the Studio Lounge from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. The Aaron Stephens Trio will play at Bar 414 from 9 p.m. to midnight.

On Friday, November 13, members of the Robert Johnson family will speak in the Gunter Studio Lounge. Hector Saldaña will moderate the conversation from 6 p.m. to 7 p.m. Tomar and The FCs, along with Jordan Matthew Young, will perform in the Crystal Ballroom from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m. Nick Brown and The Blues Cruise will play at Bar 414 from 10 p.m. to 1 a.m. The Saturday ballroom showcase will run from 7 p.m. to 10:15 p.m. The Eve Monsees Trio will follow at Bar 414 from 10 p.m. to 1 a.m.

The Gunter Hotel reopened in 2025 after a renovation that cost $70 million. The property now includes a record lending library in the lobby and a music council. That group includes Adrian Quesada of Black Pumas, Will and Noel Bridges of Antone’s Nightclub, and Garrett T. Capps. Every guest room contains a turntable and a copy of King of the Delta Blues Singers.

Jiwon Choi, the hotel owner, stated that the property is honored to bring talented people together to celebrate the hotel’s history. He said the goal is to honor past artists and encourage future generations who may enter the hotel.