“ You gotta believe that there’s a reason
that we surrender up our hearts
But there’s a vantage point and it takes some time to find
Where you can see how all the pieces fit
as you watch it fall apart”
-Stephen Bruton- Performed by Willie Nelson and Bonnie Raitt
In 2003 I walked out of a tiny record store in Wausau, Wisconsin with a CD Walkman and two albums that would end up changing my life and trajectory in the arts forever. I was about to embark on a road trip with my girlfriend and I was getting ready to get on the Lamers Bus in Mosinee and ride the five hours to Chicago where she stayed. We both had some time off over Thanksgiving and we took the train from Chicago to Detroit and then jumped in the car and headed South to Nashville, Tennessee. It was already getting cold in the Midwest and the interstate was lined with fresh sleet and snow as we snaked down through Michigan, Illinois, Ohio and Kentucky. The two of us were in the backseat while her cousin was driving. She was asleep against the window and her breath created occasional clouds of vapor against the cold surface. I slipped a CD into my Walkman and while staring out the window at the frozen cornfields and pastures Willie Nelson’s album Live and Kickin’ came flowing through my headphones. It features duets with some of my favorite artists. Norah Jones, John Mellencamp, Ray Charles, Shelby Lynne and Paul Simon. I loved the dedication and the apparent fun everyone was having and it was there that I first heard the legendary song, “Mamas, don’t let your babies grow up to be Cowboys”. It seemed that it was written about me and my rambling friends. And Willies guitar playing was incredible.
The second album I listened to on that trip is the one that ultimately got me. It is called Across the Borderline. It is produced by the legendary Don Was and features covers and originals performed by Willie and an impressive line up of musicians and songwriters, all legends in their own right. Bonnie Raitt, Bob Dylan, Sinead O’ Connor and many more. The song selection, the performances and the playing is exceptional. The production is sleek but not pretentious. It has all the qualities of a masterpiece. Willie rips on his trusty guitar “ Trigger “ and his voice is crisp and agile. He was, and still is a magnificent interpreter of songs. Willie turned 92 on the 29th of April and I was listening to a podcast called One by Willie where the host interviews one notable Willie fan each week about their favorite Willie songs. On the celebration of his birthday Bonnie Raitt talked about This getting over You, a beautiful song about love and loss. Bonnie is the queen of the blues singers and guitar players and she is as loved and respected as an artist can be. I always loved red heads, and even in her seventies, she is still one of the beautiful women I have ever laid my eyes on. During the episode I learnt that 1993 and the years leading up to it had been particularly hard for Willie Nelson. He had just turned fifty, record sales were dwindling and he was about to get dropped from his long time record label. On top of that he had lost his son to suicide a year or so earlier while his sister Bobbie, the piano player in his band, had also lost two sons of her own. Then there was also the relentless onslaught of the IRS to recoup outstanding taxes from him. One of these events can be enough to make a person quit but not Willie. During this hard time he did what Willie does best. He found a producer he could trust, called up his musician friends and let the music bring the healing, community and peace he so desperately needed. I will put money on it that Willie had no intention or even expectation about what this album was going to become for musicians and fans alike. In my opinion it is a masterpiece. Go on, download it and let it play. Listen to Willie’s version of the Paul Simon standard Graceland. Let him rip your heart out one song at a time. It is a blessing to live in a world where people like Willie and Bob Dylan are still walking the earth and writing new songs. They are still touring, out there on the road bringing their songs to young and old.
As an artist and songwriter Ive been following Willie’s example and started writing songs again. I’ve been going through a period of new inspiration and while rummaging through my boxes full of old photographs on the farm the other day it occurred to me that the songs were hiding in the pictures. Moments, mostly happy, captured during my last relationship. I grabbed a handful of pictures and threw them in my backpack. I go through them and let the songs flow through me. The beauty is that the songs are following a trajectory of a relationship that eventually ends but they are not filled with self pity. Something that I try to avoid at all costs whilst writing songs. All I am doing is describing the moments and what I felt at that time. The golden thread of this project is revealing itself without any effort. I feel that this collection of songs had to be written and the good thing is that I am still writing. The songs are like paging through a photo album. It describes moments and emotions we have all felt. There is no anger, malice or negativity in the songs. They just are what they are. Snapshots of Love and all its imperfections. Soon, I will call up my friends. We will start working on the songs, arrange them in a sequence that makes sense and once the album is complete, I will release it into the world. Who knows, perhaps it touches someone struggling with moving on, someone battling to navigate loss and longing and gives them some comfort in knowing that they are not alone in this world. One thing is for sure, I intend to make a beautiful, lasting piece of art filled with empathy and grace. Im looking forward to sharing it with you.
“ Sunsets make me cry, old pictures make me grin
But I don’t really care to see your face again
These are the things I say, but they’re so hard to do
Like getting over you.”
JB
