Flew to Houston alone. Bagged a rental car and drove up to Conroe Texas listening to KPFT. Larry Winters scorching out the real news to the faithful. He played Ballad of Ira Hayes.
Did the "in the round" thing with Eliza Gilkyson and Ray Wylie Hubbard. OK. A Little awkward.
That in the round "pass the guitar" thing is more of a Nashville idea. It's hard to get the flow going. I'd prefer to sing all new songs - but you have to think about entertainment now and then. The adventures in the skin trade. Up at 6am to fly back. Listened to this collection of old Jerry Lee Lewis country songs that came out on Raven. Killer stuff from the killer. He sings the hell out of a batch of great hontytonk songs. Try his version of Mickey Newbury's "She Even Woke Me up to Say Goodby." Man. "Baby packed her soft things and she's leaving....lord she didn't mean to make me cry...." Arrived in El Paso and walked over the border bridge to the Easter corrida. Bullfight. Finally it all came in focus. Cormac McCarthy once told me "they're never any good!" As he skittled away in a book store. This time there was catharsis and beauty and color. The decent into the well. The attainment of the Aztec Head in the Kentucky Bar. Blanco Tequila 100% Agave. The giant stuffed Eagle starring down. Ana Gabriel on the jukebox. The Paisano del Norte quartette in the mercado singing "Valentine de la Sierra." The walk back over the bridge as the wind was holwing at 38 degrees. La Fiesta Brava. Restored my faith in those few times when God opens the door a half inch and glimpse a moment of eternity and art. Jesus walking on the water. Ali in Zaire. Dylan singing "Desolation Row" at the Hollywood Bowl in the mid sixties.
The bloom on an old agave. La Fiesta Brava.
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3 comments:
That story about McCarthy (heard it a couple of times now) makes me wonder...
What did he mean? Is he less ready to face el muerte than his books would have you believe? Is he, in short, a phony?
Such moments are rare and precious, the times you can step away and say "that was a poem!"
Thanks for posting the word on Gaffney. We'll do what we can.
TR . . . great narrative, punched with prose. The ink flows more like blood . . .
" A little more truth in the land of overpaid fame, a devalued dollar and a Disneyland economy".
-ST.
Yes, Larry Winters does a hell of a show - always worth listening to. Reading your walk cross the border was vivid - I got shivers thinking about the 38 degree walk home. Brrrr. Thanks again, I always enjoy the time spent listening to you, whether on CD, cassette, blog, or the best way, at the Mucky Duck!
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