Townes Van Zandt

[Golden Smoghead]

I was reading an old Steve Earle interview the other day and ran across this line:

 

"Townes Van Zandt is the best songwriter in the whole world and I'll stand on Bob Dylan's coffee table in my cowboy boots and say that."

 

I laughed aloud, but anyway I ran a search on VC here and didn't get any results for Townes anywhere.

 

Just pointing out that Townes was one of those fantastic songwriters that were forerunners to the great Americana music being made today. AND, you probably know at least one of his songs -- he wrote "Pancho and Lefty" which was later popularized by Willie and Merle's cover. My favorite song by him is "Tecumsah Valley" and I recommend checking it out.

 

Just wondering if there's any other out-of-Nashville types YOU think don't get enough play here in VC. Other folks I might throw out include Rickie Lee Jones, Lucinda Williams, Mary Chapin Carpenter, Paul Westerberg, John Hyatt, John Prine.

[aricandover]

I'm partial to Blaze Foley, he was good friends with Townes.

[W(TF)]

Townes was a monster songwriter, check him out. He was also a walking train wreck.

 

I'd suggest Rear View Mirror or In The Beginning as good ones to start. Also the DVD that came out last year is pretty fine.

 

For a slight Wilco connection -- TvZ apparently "discovered" rock at age 50, by which point his place as a legendary figure was forever secure. He was recording an album with Sonic Youth when he died on New Years Day 1997. Way before his time but thank God we had him for a long time and many many excellent records. Although I didn't become a fan until a few years ago, I "miss" Townes more than any other dead musician I listen to.

[socbret]

Townes Van Zandt befriended me on facebook the other day.

[Tweedling]

GUY damn CLARK

[aricandover]

anyone interested in checking out a dark corner of "americana", should give Johnny Dowd a listen.

[tugmoose]

TVZ gets lots of love here. Live at the Old Quarter is essential listening. A lot of his studio stuff is a mite overproduced, as was the way of the late 60s and 70s. Check

out from Heartworn Highways. Be Here To Love Me gives you TVZ warts and all.

[mjpuczko]

townes is great. i would've loved to have been in nashville in the late 70's/early 80's. hanging with guy, townes & earle at the clark's house.

[W(TF)]

Here's another great one.

 

 

 

Btw, TvZ is one of the few artists Dylan has covered. He's done Pancho and Lefty many times, the performance of it at Bonnaroo '04 was pretty amazing.

[LouieB]

I was reading an old Steve Earle interview the other day and ran across this line:

 

"Townes Van Zandt is the best songwriter in the whole world and I'll stand on Bob Dylan's coffee table in my cowboy boots and say that."

 

I laughed aloud, but anyway I ran a search on VC here and didn't get any results for Townes anywhere.

 

Just pointing out that Townes was one of those fantastic songwriters that were forerunners to the great Americana music being made today. AND, you probably know at least one of his songs -- he wrote "Pancho and Lefty" which was later popularized by Willie and Merle's cover. My favorite song by him is "Tecumsah Valley" and I recommend checking it out.

 

Just wondering if there's any other out-of-Nashville types YOU think don't get enough play here in VC. Other folks I might throw out include Rickie Lee Jones, Lucinda Williams, Mary Chapin Carpenter, Paul Westerberg, John Hyatt, John Prine.

Townes got regular shout outs here over the years. He is certainly not unknown to VCers or anyone else. The fact remains that many VCers are not that into country music in general and alt.country has fallen out of favor a bit. The Bob Dylan's coffee table is a funny quote. About the time that surfaced I saw Earle open for Bob Dylan. (It was quoted on the front of a Townes album also.)

 

The only reason you wouldn't have gotten any results on Townes may be that this site has crashed several times over the years and perhaps the files that could be reached by the search engine you used.

 

If anything Townes' fame has grown expedentially since he died. He was far less known prior to his death than he is now. (And doesn't everyone know he wrote Pancho and Lefty??? Somewhere I came across a copy of Willie and Bob doing it too. Bob has covered many other artists including Warren Zevon.)

 

LouieB

[dannygutters]

The guy who wrote the recently released Townes Bio was interviewed on soundcheck on NPR this weekend. The interviewer kept coming back to the question of why if everyone claims Townes is the great songwriter is he not as recognized as Dylan or even Cohen.

 

He couldn't really answer the question directly, but it seemed to boil down to a combination of townes's anti-carrear minded-ness, the man wrecked every chance he got, substance problems and sound at a time when that sound wasn't really hip. But like Louie said, he's gotten more props since he died.

 

The film is quite good, and live at the old quarter is pretty much a greatest hits album.

[mjpuczko]

as great as i think townes is, his songs all sound the same after a while to me. at least dylan, waits & a few others changed up styles. i can only listen to so many slow/minor key country songs.

[GtrPlyr]

as great as i think townes is, his songs all sound the same after a while to me.

 

He definitely had a very particular way of writing and singing, and didn't really deviate from that sound too much over the years. He did bring a directness and honesty that was refreshing though, plus he could kill you with those heartbreaking songs. Dylan and Waits are great but I don't think either can do the sincere and sad quite like Townes could.

[mjpuczko]

that's for sure. his writing style was very heartbreaking & honest. i for one have to be in the mood for him

[Littlebear]

Townes' Our Mother the Mountain (1969) is in my all-time Top 10. Townes is of those who move me the deepest. It doesn't stand on the lyrics only. It's a whole thing, the words, how they're written and delivered, the rhythm, the music, the voice, the way he plays guitar.

[W(TF)]

as great as i think townes is, his songs all sound the same after a while to me. at least dylan, waits & a few others changed up styles. i can only listen to so many slow/minor key country songs.

 

Musically...Townes did folk, country and blues. And did them all extremely well, especially for a completely self trained musician who took up guitar in his 20's.

[LouieB]

GUY damn CLARK

Guy Clark is certainly one of Townes biggest promoters....and luckily much more alive...

 

anyone interested in checking out a dark corner of "americana", should give Johnny Dowd a listen.

You know it.

 

Nearly all singers have a style that becomes identifiable after awhile and Townes certainly had an identifiable style. (A Leonard Cohen song is clearly one of his no matter who singes it, same with Richard Thompson, etc. etc.) Some of Townes songs are clearly better than others. Listening to the sum total of his Tomato years studio work can be a bit overwhelming. Many songs do sound alike, but the stand outs are incredible.

 

LouieB

[aricandover]

that Townes/Blaze song was awesome, thanks for posting it.

 

I just got an e-mail update on Johnny Dowd:

 

"There's a Hole in Heaven Where Some Sin Slips Through," the Townes van Zandt

tribute album released by Glitterhouse Records, includes Johnny's rendition of

"Brand New Companion." Sylvie Simmons wrote in MOJO: "It's a sad truth that the

words 'tribute album' and 'recommended' are rarely seen together, but this is an

excellent record for two reasons: the material and the musicians.The acts here

seem hand-picked to cover a broad Americana swathe. . . from folk-blues (Marah)

to rock (Steve Wynn), country (Jon Langford and Sally Timms) to Johnny Dowd

(weird, heavy, vaguely Bowie-esque)." The album is available through amazon.com.

 

definitely going to check that tribute out.

[Atticus]

Be Here To Love Me gets regular play in our POS dvd player. When the wife's not home anyway.

[LouieB]

I just got an e-mail update on Johnny Dowd:

 

definitely going to check that tribute out.

This does look good. has this been released in Europe or what??

 

There is at least one other tribute to Townes that is pretty good, but more mainstream than this.

 

 

LouieB

[W(TF)]

Interesting...

 

I also like the posthumous 'collaboration' release A Far Cry From Dead a lot.

[aricandover]

Looks like Langford did the cover art.

[LouieB]

Looks like Langford did the cover art.

Yea, it has that Langfordian style. He has done many covers for things of late. Actually I have an album or two I am shocked that he did the cover art for including Cash Money and Hound Dog Taylor.

 

In any event I nearly ordered this thing off Amazon, but maybe it will be available soon domestically.

(Did this thread prove yet that VC knows and loves Townes enough or are we still a bunch of know nothing rubes????)

 

LouieB

[GtrPlyr]

(Did this thread prove yet that VC knows and loves Townes enough or are we still a bunch of know nothing rubes????)[/i]

 

LouieB

 

And I'm sure even more people would have weighed in about Townes if he hadn't already been discussed so much over the years already. Needless to say, a good portion of people who listen to Wilco know and love Townes

[kathyp]

I started with High Low and in Between and found it a bit too "gospel-y" at first, but now I love it. Fat Possum recently released a bunch of his albums, so they should be pretty easy to find now, if they weren't before.