So this Heartworn Highways documentary I watched the other week, I had originally obtained the soundtrack somewhere or another, mostly because of late '70s performances by David Allan Coe and Steve Earle. But I got blowed away by two dudes I had not listened to much - Townes Van Zandt and Guy Clark. Van Zandt is an alt.country pioneer (whatever the fuck that means), and having dug through more of his shit, I can honestly say the couple songs on this soundtrack, which were performed in some old black dude's rundown kitchen, are the only Townes Van Zandt you need to have.
But the Guy Clark stuff, it's some simple dude and a guitar chill ass shit, yet covering up an internal scream about "WHAT THE FUCK ARE WE DOING?" That's this song, smooth and acoustic and one scraggly voice, and it's trying to be laid back and enjoy the night air through the open window with the fucked-up screen so that there's mosquitoes flying around the light hanging from the ceiling, but there's a fucked up crazy world outside the window, way off in the distance, far beyond the crickets and bullfrogs, and if you get too quiet you can hear it. But rather than scream down that world, and ruin where you are, you just drown it out with your good-time lifestyle. Shit man, that's basically what this site tries to be; that's what I've basically been meander-writing about most all my adult life. And regardless of how fucked and fixed and engineered and fake and full of lies the real world is, you've got to drown it out in your little corner of it all, at the kitchen table, feeling your self be good.
STEAL "L.A. Freeway"
NEXT: I teach the center child Spanish with wacky music!
4 comments:
You have to get on Lyle Lovett's "Step Inside This House". Sings all of his favorite song growing up - a lot of Van Zandt, Hyatt, Clark.
I think you might have saved me some time/angst. I heard that Van Zandt song, "Waiting Around to Die" from that movie and I was like, "Yeah, this is alright."
And then I clicked on some other track and I wasn't feeling it. I figured someday I was gonna have to dig through the box to see what was inside, but it sounds like I can skip it.
yeah, that and "pancho and lefty" from this soundtrack, that's all you really need by him.
I just cannot get behind lyle lovett at all, anonymous, and I've tried a few times. dude is lacking something that my ear needs, or my ear is lacking something he has too much of, or something. it just ain't a good fit.
i got the soundtrack album but still aint seen the movie... its on my list of things to do... actually its on my list of things to buy next... when i stop buying other shit like old mags and vhs tapes and cassettes and old records and... well, you know
Post a Comment