You can be forgiven for wondering why, in this space, you're reading a think piece about a band from 2,000 miles away that broke up 30 years ago and never released an album.

Fair enough. But trust me.

We moved here in 1997, and, from the start, our Texas roots probably seemed exotic to some. Since part of my job at The Day is writing about music, the long shadow of the Lone Star State's rich sonic heritage resonated with many of you, and I've enjoyed a continual exchange of dialogue with y'all on the subject.

Too, I wrote a book called "Texas Music" - renowned in the publishing biz as one of the worst-selling tomes in the history of the printed word, but still - and, basically, long story short, a lot of you have wondered over the years who might be my favorite all-time Texas artist.

I'm not sure anyone could ever answer such a thing; the landscape's too fertile.

I'll tell you this, though: an all-original Austin rock band called Too Smooth is without question one of the best groups I've ever heard or seen. In their heyday, they could sell out their hometown 1,500-seat Armadillo World Headquarters three nights in a row. Promoters across the state frequently booked them to open for national touring acts because Too Smooth - not the headliners - would strengthen ticket sales.

Feloniously, Too Smooth had three different major label deals fall through before frustration kicked in and they called it a day in the early '80s.

Why am I telling you this now?

Because - finally! - archival studio and in-performance Too Smooth recordings, remastered and tweaked with modern audio technology and magician's skill by Sid Hagan and Jerry Worrell - are available on two monstrously great albums. "Still" captures much of the studio work on a double disc release, while "Alive & Kickin'" is, as the title suggests, concert material. (In an inspired move, "Alive & Kickin'" contains tunes from a 1976 performance in New Braunfels as well as old favorites played by the original quartet at a 2007 reunion set that proves the guys can still bring it in astounding fashion.)

At this point, I must say, over the years, not only was my band fortunate enough to share the stage a few times with Too Smooth, but I got to know and become pals with guitarist/vocalist Jeff Clark. I've written about the band more than once. Believe me, though: I was a massive fan and had seen them dozens of times before I ever spoke to any of them.

In context: during the Too Smooth '70s timeline, the most famous/successful Texas rock acts were ZZ Top, Johnny Winter, Edgar Winter, Steve Miller, Steven Stills, Point Blank and Bloodrock.

I prefer Too Smooth to any of them. On the one hand, they managed to compress everything great about Texas rock of that era: the joyous attitude, the roadhouse boogie backbone and fluid instrumental virtuosity. Further, their awareness and anticipation of other trends - chiefly the progressive hard rock of folks like Pat Travers, Rush, Boston, Judas Priest and Wishbone Ash - were adventurous and visionary.

You'll hear it at once on these recordings: guitarists Clark and Brian Wooten spin out kite-soaring twin figures that redirect Allman Brothers, and Wishbone Ash-isms in fresh directions. Bassist Danny Swinney and drummer Tommy Holden's lockjaw bottom-end nonetheless features giddy jazz melodicism. And all four effortlessly throw down four-part vocal harmonies like Freddie Mercury arranging "Long Train Runnin.'"

In terms of songs, Clark, Holden and Wooten wrote distinctly - and yet the band's joint arrangements filtered the disparate styles into an instantly recognizable Too Smooth identity.

At their most creative and irresistable, Too Smooth brazenly manipulated conventional song structure. "Leavin' It Up to You," "You Say When" and "Believe In Me," for example, abandon the verse/chorus/middle-eight construct and instead blast from one dizzyingly great idea to the next. The sections come out of nowhere, each different from the last, knocking you over the head with their inspired hookiness, and eventually causing you to laugh out loud when it all comes together in ways your ears never imagined.

In that spirit, over years of performances, Too Smooth also perfected intoxicating, instrumental, between-tune segues that became as familiar to fans as the songs themselves - and are thankfully represented on both discs.

The band's more traditional rock and pop songs will also blow your mind because, well, they're frankly better than what you associate with the radio hits of that era.

Admittedly, there was some great Texas rock 'n' roll then, and those hits are indelibly etched in your brain. But a few Smooth listens and you'll wonder how in the hell a lot of these songs weren't on the radio every five minutes.

Name any hard rock hit you enjoyed in 1975 - and then compare it to "Leavin' It Up to You," 'Let Me Be," "Texas Hospitality," "Man of Fortune" and "Nobody Knows Me Like I Do." You'll be stunned at the greatness.

Similarly, listen to the Smoothian balladry - "I Love the Way," "Lonesome Road Back Home," "You and I," "Where Has All the Magic Gone?" - and streamlined pop - "Here to Stay," "Soon Our Time Will Come," and "Friends." It's like coming across a time-capsule disc of music compiled by more famous bands who then locked it away because the stars didn't want to be shown up.

Is every tune on these albums eternally fantastic? Of course not. As with any artist's catalog, some are better than others.

Here's betting, though, if you acquire "Still" and "Alive & Kickin," you'll marvel that Too Smooth somehow missed out on platinum level stardom - and that they absolutely deserved just that.

To hear samples of "Alive & Kickin'" and "Still," go to myspace.com/toosmoothaustin. Both CDs are available for purchase from CD Baby.