Did you used to have more videos from this session posted? About a year ago I found a whole series of TVZ from this time period singing songs in a room like this. Now this is the only one I can find.
Touching, touching piece always loved Rita. Who could help it? So, tender and so loving and so, so, deep. A generous woman. Definitely, one of God's keepers. Trust this, it is from Thy King of Kings. b Rex:) 02
I knew Townes. He was a pretty cool guy. They printed my portrait of Townes in The Handbook of Texas Music. That's been the pinnacle of my career in the Austin music business. Of course all of my experiences in Austin's music world have been most memorable.
Four months ago I wrote about a little memory I had of Townes, and I have read most of the thoughts others have written since I wrote my little piece...I never talked to the man in that little bar in Texas, and he didn't have much to say either. As I sat and drank my beer and drank his words, I had no idea that he would someday become a fairly popular musician, but I knew I was hearing a young man way older than his years and what he didn't say in conversation, was all in his music.
One of my favorite TVZ songs. Nice to see Townes doing it............. such a shame his life................................ I've always wondered where the lyrics for this song came from, I can almost see Caroline working at Gypsy Sally's. We always said Ta-Come-See............. where is TaKuumSA ??
@nancycrowden Tecumseh was an Native American chief from the Ohio Valley area. Don't know if there is an actual Tecumseh Valley. Could just be from Towne's imagination.
Just looked him up because while i've heard other artists mention him, i knew almost nothing about him. Conclusion: what a fucking junkie. His entire pathetic story revolves around him being high or drunk. It's just one really long story about him letting bad people take advantage of him. Insulin shock therapy?! What the FUCK were his doctors (and parents) thinking? At some point you've got to pull your head out of your ass. I think that'd be obvious for a guy that aced the SAT. Just sayin'.
@jaksspring97 I'm not an addict. Nor do I know many. But it's pretty clear that chemical dependency is a disease. Sure, some people can clean themselves up and leave the disease in their past. But I wouldn't trash a man for not being able conquer addiction anymore than I'd trash a man for not being able to conquer cancer.
That's the way they did things back then, shock therapy etc......................... call it the dark ages or whatever. TVZ was one of the greatest songwriters ever........................... his pain reflected in his lyrics. If you don't like it.............. leave it alone and don't listen.
New to TVZ, but I see a new yearning for him in this land, if this Utube is anything to go by. No wonder, his genius was to leave us the songbook for these American times.
I always kept my view camera at the studio and too bad to. Townes, Blaze, Calvin Russell, Jubal Clark, and several others came to sing on my patio. I lived on the Bouldin Creek in South Austin. Their music would resonate off the river bank. They liked that. Old songs, new songs, songs in the making. Luckily I did photograph all of them in the studio and I'd get my own private concert right there. They played their tunes while I set up my lights. Those were the days my friends. .
emmylou has given me a lot of stuff to enjoy and introducing me to his music is something that i appreciate very much indeed - he follows a great tradition in writing folk music that tells heartfelt tales of life around us all..a great loss indeed and thanks for your efforts in keeping good music available..keith
@HGCAdam, I understand. Townes had that effect on many. I used to see him around Houston as a young man.
I was blessed with one of the highlights of my life when I met Townes, just 4 mos. before his untimely death... I was on the road working outside of Reno and went to see him in Verdi, Nv., just a "wide spot in the road". A most memorable evening...
Partner, you're in good company. I'll tell you one thing, it don't matter where you're from or where you're going, there's always a home somewhere here in Texas for everybody. That home's called a honkey-tonk.
Back in 1962, on a dog day afternoon in Wichita Falls Texas, while stationed at Sheppard Air Force Base, I was walking the lonely streets of Wichita and as I passed the open door of this little bar. Out through the open door I could hear this voice singing words phrased like I had never heard(the song was LUNGS). I went in, and there set this tall skinny guy playing for about eight people. I stayed for over a hour until he quit. His words and his phrasing are in my brain even now! RIP Townes!!!
Not so sad and hopeless, but he's telling us to pay attention, listen and really see each and every person that comes across our path in this life. Because each and every one has a story to tell worth listening to. In the process we become richer for knowing these stories. Our hearts swell with joy and ache with sadness sometimes, but we're better for knowing their stories. And, sometimes we get to tell our story, hoping someone will listen. We need story tellers to tell us how it's done.
His life and songs remind me alot of Ramblin' Jack Elliott.. If you haven't heard of him, give him a listen. He was a true rambling folk singer/song writer from the 50's and 60s and he's still on tour in his 70's. I like Towne's songs better though I think, (definitely his singing. :)
Check out the documentary done on his life too. "The Ballad of Ramblin' Jack Elliott ". Well done.
I could never understand people's attraction to TVZ. It seemed to me to be so sad, such a self destructive soul. I always thought that it was sad the way people worshipped him. Then I heard Nancy Griffith do this song and it became one of my favorites without ever knowing it was TVS's. They i heard If you Needed Me. So I began to see how people could love the talent wout approving of hte behavior that destroyed it. I saw the light I guess.
I saw him some years ago in a small pub in Preston...never heard his stuff before.He wasn`t in a good way and ,being at the front,we caught him a few times as he lost balance.
My impression was of a stunning guitar player with lots of interesting stories to tell.
However a catalogue of songs about mistakes and wrong decisions was difficult to listen to.
A pal spoke to him afterwards and he was polite and gracious ....real nice bloke.
My favorite song EVER written, for whatever that is worth. Steve Earles version still gives me chills every time I hear it. If you don't just get sucked into the world that Townes created with every song there is no hope for you as far as appreciation for song writing goes. How could you possibly dislike this song? What a talent.
@badtux I agree with what you say but when I listen to his music, it is so pure and perfect and I just cant believe there is no more, maybe people like Townes just needed to change the world a little and move on, I don't know... anyhow, take care!
@MrJuliesguy I know someone who was one of TVZ's friends. He still misses TVZ all these years later. From what he told me, TVZ was a tormented soul determined to drink himself to death, and it broke the hearts of everybody around him but you can't force a man to stop drinking, short of putting him in a padded cell -- he'll find a way. And BTW, TVZ never made much money, nobody knew his name when he was alive. No exploitation there.
@MrJuliesguy I've seen several documentaries on Townes and people did try to help him. It was so sad to even see the documentaries so I can't imagine how awful it must have been in real life.
@coltoncullen04 Yeah, country music has now become just like every other generic form of music, country pop bullshit, I'll admit I like allot of music today and older music, but music as a whole is just getting worse and worse.
i love this and everything townes ever did as i sit back with this drink in my hand i wish he was still with us today so i could see him live i miss you townes
I think Townes was just another amazing songwriter, but at the wrong side of the stick. I wish he was alive and not some legend of poetic tragedy, cause he wasn't so different from many others. I love Townes Van Zandt, but I wish documentaries like "be here to love me" didn't make him out to be so tragic. I feel like Townes was not doomedly fucked up, but rather just unhealthy enough to kill him. It's so sad, but he should be alive and not so poetically tragic.
hauntingly beautiful.saw hin in glasgow not long before he died. unforgetable. i also had the pleasure of singing this song with his son j t when he was in glasgow for one of the tribute gigs. god bless you townes. your music will live on.
In 1962, while stationed at Shepperd AFB, Witchita Falls Tx., on a Saturday of boring nothingness, I went into town to try and fill my day with something that might take my mind off of being away from my home in Oregon. Walking by the open door of a bar in Witchita Falls, I heard the voice of a singer who sounded just like I was feeling. I went in, ordered a Lonestar and sat for over an hour while listening to words put to music, like I had never heard before. TVZ captured life in his music!!!!!
Influential in the sub-genre referred to as outlaw country, his Texas-grounded impact stretched farther than country. He has been cited as a source of inspiration by such artists as Bob Dylan,[27] Neil Young,[62] Lyle Lovett, Emmylou Harris,Nanci Griffith, Cowboy Junkies, Vetiver, Conor Oberst of Bright Eyes, Simon Joyner, Caleb Followill of Kings Of Leon, Steve Earle, Hoyt Axton, Tindersticks, Devendra Banhart, Norah Jones, Robert Plant & Alison Krauss, the Dixie Chicks, and Garth Brooks.
@beaverwithachainsaw Shit..the last few words you wrote made me realize I may have found a twin. I've nearly thrown it all away...still now since I've discovered Townes, I seek tears at night in the wee hours..and by them am healed to face the next day. I've never felt I belonged anywhere no matter where I've trodden...seems we belong right here my friend.
Absolutely amazing..... I've heard the Nancy Griffith version before, but not this. This is raw and real. He was one hell of a songwriter. And a hell of a man.
Simple, stark and stripped of any showbiz schtick, here's a clip showing the naked writing talent and perfectly attuned delivery skills of an exceptional singer/songwriter. If ever there could be an auditory equivalent of 'the prisoner's last meal' this comes pretty close with the depth of feeling it evokes. Love or loathe this music genre - but respect the straightforward honesty of Townes' performance.
im from england, i dont listen to this genre of music, but this is amazing, this guy was mentioned my caleb from kings of leon, his lyrics are outstanding! :)
@kneurotic138 never in my life met a soul...who knew exactly how I felt...God willin' I'll get to shake his hand someday...Seems there's a biblical quote about if a man might bring a soul to God, that man would be saved. Townes it seems to me by now is right up there where he never dreamed of being. Some curse the internet, but it has kept this one around another day.
@steele917 Don't ever give up friend . . . this world isn't all sorrow and hopelessness . . . there is beauty and life all around you . . . you just have to look up. It took me many years of pain and misery to realize this . . . I'm glad it wasn't too late. Townes was an absolute master songwriter and singer . . . I'm not surprised he touched you in this way . . .
Townes was once asked why he wrote so many sad songs, and retorted, "they're not sad, they're hopeless." I submit that it's possible for a song to be both sad *and* devoid of hope. Tecumseh Valley is such a song. And Townes in this video, near the end of his long slide to a drunken death, voice cracking from the pain of it all, was just the poet to sing it as it should be sung.
@badtux perhaps he may have been called to witness to the world the sad, hopless side of life brought so vividly into his soul. Don't know indeed but maybe the words and music poured forth as he slid further down. Folks will talk of his addictions...but indeed if one might give a listen...one would realize he was both blessed & cursed
@badtux you know nothing about real life if you think this man is giving up.He is only showing to the public his own kind of belief in what is right and wrong.Thank God when he was around,we didn't have to be politically correct.Today, He would be lucky to be able to sing this in the shower without some one turning him in as a subversive.
only ever knew Dead Flowers from Big Lebowski. Love it, but never followed up until a FB recommended him. Now it turns out I need to buy at least one new cd. Amazing.
thanks for putting up my work.,im not able to do anything with it because of a law suit by his x . im just glad that his fans can really see him up close and personal
this was a very interesting after midnite taping
you can see more of my video work on my page here at you tube.
Really, better then Dylan !! If Townes were here I can't believe he'd even agree with that statement. Townes is the real deal no doubt, but he never came close to reaching Dylan's level, nobody has...
I agree TVZ is better than Dylan but that is my taste and preference. With that said, who would ever agree that they were or are the "best" in anything. Admitting or not doesn't mean much, especially in terms of something so subjective. You like Dylan, good for you, for many though TVZ is king
i cant put into works how much Townes music affects me, of all the musicans of his genre he really is the one that time and again moves me to tears, and that something for a rough ass welsh country boy to admit. i saved up and bought a Gibson SJ-200 just because i saw Townes playing one on the 'be here to love me' DVD. I've stopped playing electric guitar and have been learning to finger pick until my fingers have turned solid.
Thanks for posting that intermodal-I was beginning to think I had gone soft, being a relatively new TVZ fan-I couldn't figure out why I kept having to hold back tears during his songs. I was sitting with my acoustic at the dinner table tonight after we ate, trying to sing Pancho and Lefty and couldn't even get through it without choking up-and that's not even a really sad one. I have found a new hero, and will be brushing up on my fingerpicking skills as well.
Tom,
Did you used to have more videos from this session posted? About a year ago I found a whole series of TVZ from this time period singing songs in a room like this. Now this is the only one I can find.
Dee
deebuss23 1 month ago
Moral of the story: If you're a miner, have a son instead, and save everyone a lot of trouble.
spuzzmacher 1 month ago in playlist Music Tuesday - The Little Willies
Touching, touching piece always loved Rita. Who could help it? So, tender and so loving and so, so, deep. A generous woman. Definitely, one of God's keepers. Trust this, it is from Thy King of Kings. b Rex:) 02
harleybunt 1 month ago in playlist Music Tuesday - The Little Willies
gets me everytime
mspubquiz83 3 months ago
awesome !
waesnet 3 months ago
"Her ways were free and it seemed to me the sunshine walked beside her."
oilslicked 4 months ago
I knew Townes. He was a pretty cool guy. They printed my portrait of Townes in The Handbook of Texas Music. That's been the pinnacle of my career in the Austin music business. Of course all of my experiences in Austin's music world have been most memorable.
austinphotographer 4 months ago
a while back i went back & read some reveiws of some past shows. there was one
from ann arbor mi. that said townes strugglged to get through the first three songs
then broke down & spent the next 30 min. sitting on the side of the stage weeping.
what a brilliant & troubled soul. you almost have to be to be that good. R.I.P
polishpaulie 4 months ago
Four months ago I wrote about a little memory I had of Townes, and I have read most of the thoughts others have written since I wrote my little piece...I never talked to the man in that little bar in Texas, and he didn't have much to say either. As I sat and drank my beer and drank his words, I had no idea that he would someday become a fairly popular musician, but I knew I was hearing a young man way older than his years and what he didn't say in conversation, was all in his music.
SuperSpike68 5 months ago 4
One of my favorite TVZ songs. Nice to see Townes doing it............. such a shame his life................................ I've always wondered where the lyrics for this song came from, I can almost see Caroline working at Gypsy Sally's. We always said Ta-Come-See............. where is TaKuumSA ??
He is missed.
nancycrowden 5 months ago
@nancycrowden Tecumseh was an Native American chief from the Ohio Valley area. Don't know if there is an actual Tecumseh Valley. Could just be from Towne's imagination.
Laneysaywhat 4 months ago
@Laneysaywhat I'm from Lafayette, Indiana, went to Tecumseh Jr High. I've googled Tecumseh Valley......... nothing.
nancycrowden 3 months ago
What a performance.God rest his soul!
BJShaverman 5 months ago
Thank you for posting this, tomkgallacher.
writersblock26 5 months ago
i love the way he seperates his (well tricky) fingerstyle from his vocals (well emotional) its the kinda musician i aspire to be.
5stringdropout 5 months ago
Brilliant.
wrenwright 5 months ago
Just looked him up because while i've heard other artists mention him, i knew almost nothing about him. Conclusion: what a fucking junkie. His entire pathetic story revolves around him being high or drunk. It's just one really long story about him letting bad people take advantage of him. Insulin shock therapy?! What the FUCK were his doctors (and parents) thinking? At some point you've got to pull your head out of your ass. I think that'd be obvious for a guy that aced the SAT. Just sayin'.
jaksspring97 5 months ago
@jaksspring97 I'm not an addict. Nor do I know many. But it's pretty clear that chemical dependency is a disease. Sure, some people can clean themselves up and leave the disease in their past. But I wouldn't trash a man for not being able conquer addiction anymore than I'd trash a man for not being able to conquer cancer.
JohnRC4 5 months ago
@JohnRC4 amen
Fugly58 5 months ago
@jaksspring97
That's the way they did things back then, shock therapy etc......................... call it the dark ages or whatever. TVZ was one of the greatest songwriters ever........................... his pain reflected in his lyrics. If you don't like it.............. leave it alone and don't listen.
nancycrowden 5 months ago
amazing *****
DieGwinners 6 months ago
New to TVZ, but I see a new yearning for him in this land, if this Utube is anything to go by. No wonder, his genius was to leave us the songbook for these American times.
UChewbANNA 6 months ago
I always kept my view camera at the studio and too bad to. Townes, Blaze, Calvin Russell, Jubal Clark, and several others came to sing on my patio. I lived on the Bouldin Creek in South Austin. Their music would resonate off the river bank. They liked that. Old songs, new songs, songs in the making. Luckily I did photograph all of them in the studio and I'd get my own private concert right there. They played their tunes while I set up my lights. Those were the days my friends. .
austinphotographer 6 months ago 3
@austinphotographer I meet Townes once. Liked the guy! Seemed like an old freind, right off. Sorry I can't sit down and play with him.
tominspeedway 6 months ago
If ever anything deserved to be called an "American Masterpiece", this is it. Rest well, Townes, and thanks from the heart.
yvwic50 7 months ago 2
emmylou has given me a lot of stuff to enjoy and introducing me to his music is something that i appreciate very much indeed - he follows a great tradition in writing folk music that tells heartfelt tales of life around us all..a great loss indeed and thanks for your efforts in keeping good music available..keith
keifyd 7 months ago
I wish I could have met this man. Changed my life.
HGCAdam 7 months ago
@HGCAdam, I understand. Townes had that effect on many. I used to see him around Houston as a young man.
I was blessed with one of the highlights of my life when I met Townes, just 4 mos. before his untimely death... I was on the road working outside of Reno and went to see him in Verdi, Nv., just a "wide spot in the road". A most memorable evening...
piknfish 7 months ago
God bless this man.
dprimetime69 7 months ago
Awesome artist, great songs.
Thanks for sharing.
meloderon 8 months ago
Every time I listen to this I get goosebumps.
MrLittlestevewaco 8 months ago
Comment removed
MsIfuckinghateyou 8 months ago
When is someone going to do a motion picture on Townes' life & music?
Haven't we seen enough zombies & vampires?
thetruthwillsetufree 8 months ago 2
@thetruthwillsetufree There have been made 2 already actually :) "Be here to love me" and "Heartworn Highways".
titusbeertsen 8 months ago
@thetruthwillsetufree , a movie was made a few years back, "Be Here To Love Me". It was well done I thought, check it out...
piknfish 7 months ago 2
Comment removed
MsIfuckinghateyou 8 months ago
great folksong sparse and to the point. life is hard but if you got poetry in your soul there's romance in dusty corners. thanks for posting.
boxcanyon100 9 months ago 2
Dont get much better than this!
coolanddark 9 months ago
@superSpike68
Partner, you're in good company. I'll tell you one thing, it don't matter where you're from or where you're going, there's always a home somewhere here in Texas for everybody. That home's called a honkey-tonk.
MiddleWelder 9 months ago
@zombieman62 Will you marry me?
beachglassqueen 9 months ago
@zombieman62 Will you marry me?
beachglassqueen 9 months ago
Back in 1962, on a dog day afternoon in Wichita Falls Texas, while stationed at Sheppard Air Force Base, I was walking the lonely streets of Wichita and as I passed the open door of this little bar. Out through the open door I could hear this voice singing words phrased like I had never heard(the song was LUNGS). I went in, and there set this tall skinny guy playing for about eight people. I stayed for over a hour until he quit. His words and his phrasing are in my brain even now! RIP Townes!!!
SuperSpike68 10 months ago
im dating a caroline from spencer...across the hill.
Treadsoftly14 10 months ago
Not so sad and hopeless, but he's telling us to pay attention, listen and really see each and every person that comes across our path in this life. Because each and every one has a story to tell worth listening to. In the process we become richer for knowing these stories. Our hearts swell with joy and ache with sadness sometimes, but we're better for knowing their stories. And, sometimes we get to tell our story, hoping someone will listen. We need story tellers to tell us how it's done.
mellorslover 10 months ago 15
@mellorslover
Amen from a fellow songwriter and friend of a friend ...
skotski54 10 months ago
@mindcontrolhands Van Zandt is Dutch
imaStonesFan 10 months ago
This has been flagged as spam show
I know i can see by looking at him he is got a lot of Indian in him but the origin of that last name "Van zandt (i think) is dutch.
great song and song writer btw! He`s one of my favorite artist.
imaStonesGirl1 10 months ago
Comment removed
imaStonesGirl1 10 months ago
My heart skipped a beat.
TheSuperintendant 11 months ago
Genius. RIP.
Invicta60 11 months ago
March 7, 1944: birth of Townes Van Zandt, American musician and songwriter (d. 1997)
mkworkman 1 year ago
i am so lucky to have seen townes sing this song in the union chapel london. i will never forget that night
mrnavajojo 1 year ago
wow ,1st song I've heard from Townes ,brilliant
harrrbo 1 year ago
they say alcohol can cause hair loss, I don't think that rings true with Townes, lol.
The best songwriter ever, if you dont see that, then you are living under a rock.
wheelmanstan 1 year ago
His life and songs remind me alot of Ramblin' Jack Elliott.. If you haven't heard of him, give him a listen. He was a true rambling folk singer/song writer from the 50's and 60s and he's still on tour in his 70's. I like Towne's songs better though I think, (definitely his singing. :)
Check out the documentary done on his life too. "The Ballad of Ramblin' Jack Elliott ". Well done.
Doubter5 1 year ago
I could never understand people's attraction to TVZ. It seemed to me to be so sad, such a self destructive soul. I always thought that it was sad the way people worshipped him. Then I heard Nancy Griffith do this song and it became one of my favorites without ever knowing it was TVS's. They i heard If you Needed Me. So I began to see how people could love the talent wout approving of hte behavior that destroyed it. I saw the light I guess.
bartleythepig 1 year ago
@bartleythepig
I saw him some years ago in a small pub in Preston...never heard his stuff before.He wasn`t in a good way and ,being at the front,we caught him a few times as he lost balance.
My impression was of a stunning guitar player with lots of interesting stories to tell.
However a catalogue of songs about mistakes and wrong decisions was difficult to listen to.
A pal spoke to him afterwards and he was polite and gracious ....real nice bloke.
Hope that he found the peace he deserved.
absonus 10 months ago 3
Wow. Thank you, Mr VanZandt. RIP
Pleaver 1 year ago
My favorite song EVER written, for whatever that is worth. Steve Earles version still gives me chills every time I hear it. If you don't just get sucked into the world that Townes created with every song there is no hope for you as far as appreciation for song writing goes. How could you possibly dislike this song? What a talent.
habsfan101010 1 year ago
A song where you stop and listen or just stop.
weavehole 1 year ago
@badtux I agree with what you say but when I listen to his music, it is so pure and perfect and I just cant believe there is no more, maybe people like Townes just needed to change the world a little and move on, I don't know... anyhow, take care!
MrJuliesguy 1 year ago
his musical echo was so deep......so deep......
tokenannie 1 year ago
This has been flagged as spam show
Ive done a small bunch of Townes covers and would really appreciate if anyone would check 'em out and give me some feedback.
Thanks Oli.
fredjenner 1 year ago
who the hell disliked this song??
matajuegos01 1 year ago
@matajuegos01
One person is a soulless p#ssy.
FredC1968 1 year ago
Music like that has to come from the heart. With that much pain in his life maybe it was best to let him go. Hope you found the peace you needed TVZ
reagentearl 1 year ago
You know what pisses me off? There were so many people in his life that could have helped him not die but they just exploited him - now he's dead
MrJuliesguy 1 year ago
@MrJuliesguy I know someone who was one of TVZ's friends. He still misses TVZ all these years later. From what he told me, TVZ was a tormented soul determined to drink himself to death, and it broke the hearts of everybody around him but you can't force a man to stop drinking, short of putting him in a padded cell -- he'll find a way. And BTW, TVZ never made much money, nobody knew his name when he was alive. No exploitation there.
badtux 1 year ago
@MrJuliesguy I've seen several documentaries on Townes and people did try to help him. It was so sad to even see the documentaries so I can't imagine how awful it must have been in real life.
MyMoppet52 1 year ago
I love this good country outlaw music. Texas musicians need to get back into the scene and show the world what it means to play country music.
coltoncullen04 1 year ago 20
@coltoncullen04 Yeah, country music has now become just like every other generic form of music, country pop bullshit, I'll admit I like allot of music today and older music, but music as a whole is just getting worse and worse.
chrissup19 6 months ago
@coltoncullen04 Of course THIS is Country music, Wild country music
etresanchez 2 months ago
just beautiful, i can't resist this intensity.
phoenixcube 1 year ago
1 dislike. What the hell is Miley Cyrus doing watching this video anyway?
evolution4648 1 year ago 4
He didn't go there to prove anything or because he wanted to. He went there because that's what you do if your name is Townes Van Zandt.
evolution4648 1 year ago
I only recently discovered this man, his music is so incredibly beautiful.
hanjomorren 1 year ago
i love this and everything townes ever did as i sit back with this drink in my hand i wish he was still with us today so i could see him live i miss you townes
hellbillydan 1 year ago
I think Townes was just another amazing songwriter, but at the wrong side of the stick. I wish he was alive and not some legend of poetic tragedy, cause he wasn't so different from many others. I love Townes Van Zandt, but I wish documentaries like "be here to love me" didn't make him out to be so tragic. I feel like Townes was not doomedly fucked up, but rather just unhealthy enough to kill him. It's so sad, but he should be alive and not so poetically tragic.
HerbySeas 1 year ago
@HerbySeas I agree...his music comes straight from the Heart. Sure he had Problems but who doesn't? RIP Townes ..We love ya man.
dalet63 1 year ago
this reminds me ...
asparwhite86 1 year ago
no video required. even on lousy computer speakers close your eyes and listen. great song by townes
smalljed 1 year ago
Someone recommended him to me. I like him more and more with every listen.
lizzyvance 1 year ago
Steve Earle's version of this on his acoustic album is beyond amazing.
darinfl1 1 year ago
hauntingly beautiful.saw hin in glasgow not long before he died. unforgetable. i also had the pleasure of singing this song with his son j t when he was in glasgow for one of the tribute gigs. god bless you townes. your music will live on.
207Emily 1 year ago 3
@207Emily Lucky you Emily!! One of, if not the best ever.
Warbrain88 1 year ago
This has been flagged as spam show
I thank the music Gods that be for storytellers like this one..who tell a simple yet profound tale that the soul is always able to recognise.
Townes broken...perhaps..I say open..raw & devoid of ego..and so ready for the next level before him.
maryblackchurch 1 year ago
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maryblackchurch 1 year ago
Comment removed
maryblackchurch 1 year ago
In 1962, while stationed at Shepperd AFB, Witchita Falls Tx., on a Saturday of boring nothingness, I went into town to try and fill my day with something that might take my mind off of being away from my home in Oregon. Walking by the open door of a bar in Witchita Falls, I heard the voice of a singer who sounded just like I was feeling. I went in, ordered a Lonestar and sat for over an hour while listening to words put to music, like I had never heard before. TVZ captured life in his music!!!!!
SuperSpike68 1 year ago 41
@SuperSpike68 WOW!!! Lucky you!
nancycrowden 5 months ago
i realy can't believe there are people out there
long way from okc 7'th and north harvey
and so i watch a video
and then
play my guitar getting old may not be so bad
love all of you
stay true
to
the music
lou
paschal421 1 year ago
touches my heart
marti72256 1 year ago
Thats right. He said "They're not sad, they're hopless. You dont think lifes sad?"
Tharix88 1 year ago
Such a powerful song about the long, slow death of a beautiful soul!!! This sounds like someone he really knew and loved!!!
trshev 1 year ago
Intimately incredible; incredibly intimate.
asalingerreference 1 year ago
beautiful..........townes your the man!
sarabarashhs 1 year ago
I'm a sucker for someone who sings sad songs. Townes had it in spades. I love the "fare thee well" line. Understated brilliance.
louisjwilliamsii 1 year ago
wow
boogiejuiced 1 year ago
Influential in the sub-genre referred to as outlaw country, his Texas-grounded impact stretched farther than country. He has been cited as a source of inspiration by such artists as Bob Dylan,[27] Neil Young,[62] Lyle Lovett, Emmylou Harris,Nanci Griffith, Cowboy Junkies, Vetiver, Conor Oberst of Bright Eyes, Simon Joyner, Caleb Followill of Kings Of Leon, Steve Earle, Hoyt Axton, Tindersticks, Devendra Banhart, Norah Jones, Robert Plant & Alison Krauss, the Dixie Chicks, and Garth Brooks.
mepaleoindian 1 year ago
This is the first time I heard this tune all the way through. What a beautiful beautiful song. Townes was the greatest, bar none.
MrBuk86 1 year ago
wow. a poet and his guitar. the most beatiful thing in the world.
YOBRO79 1 year ago 2
This breaks my heart every time. I don't why i keep listening to it. I guess i'm a masochist.
ignacionegrete 1 year ago
@ignacionegrete I reckon I am too, then...Townes' music is for all of us who are lonely in a crowd....
beaverwithachainsaw 1 year ago
@beaverwithachainsaw Shit..the last few words you wrote made me realize I may have found a twin. I've nearly thrown it all away...still now since I've discovered Townes, I seek tears at night in the wee hours..and by them am healed to face the next day. I've never felt I belonged anywhere no matter where I've trodden...seems we belong right here my friend.
steele917 1 year ago 2
love townes.
shovingwords 1 year ago
Absolutely amazing..... I've heard the Nancy Griffith version before, but not this. This is raw and real. He was one hell of a songwriter. And a hell of a man.
nwtrunner 1 year ago 2
@nwtrunner and my friend, man is something to be overcome.
DinkyBirdMusic 1 year ago
A song that always haunts me in its beauty and the story of one's life... Will always be one of my favorites..
dwightsusan 1 year ago
man listening to him just makes everything in music seem fake and phoney, this is as real and honest as you can get....
pldigout 1 year ago
Simple, stark and stripped of any showbiz schtick, here's a clip showing the naked writing talent and perfectly attuned delivery skills of an exceptional singer/songwriter. If ever there could be an auditory equivalent of 'the prisoner's last meal' this comes pretty close with the depth of feeling it evokes. Love or loathe this music genre - but respect the straightforward honesty of Townes' performance.
playitforpakare 1 year ago 5
such a stunning song, and the best performance i've heard of it
aritherock 1 year ago
harrison ford?
goodwitz 1 year ago
What a masterpiece.
Brilliant.
BeastieRic 1 year ago
the daughter of a miner !!
minotipo16 2 years ago
im from england, i dont listen to this genre of music, but this is amazing, this guy was mentioned my caleb from kings of leon, his lyrics are outstanding! :)
ainzzthree 2 years ago
@ainzzthree Listen to some of his other stuff as well, you will find so many roads lead back to Townes.
RADanny 2 years ago
this song is damn good
jonfinswife 2 years ago 4
i just watched BE HERE TO LOVE ME, man...i'm watching/listening to... this teary eyed and heavy hearted.
FahQposeurfag 2 years ago 5
GOG LOVE TOWNES!
venisfurs 2 years ago
Chilling....Townes really knew how to take songs into dark places, while still creating beautiful and serene melodies...
SouthLbkMade 2 years ago
Asked once why his songs seemed to be about lonely people, Townes replied that they were about hoplesnes, not loneliness.
Fugly58 2 years ago 2
One of the saddest and greatest songs I've ever heard.
tallboySR 2 years ago 5
One of my heroes. Holy shit is this a sad song...
kneurotic138 2 years ago
@kneurotic138 never in my life met a soul...who knew exactly how I felt...God willin' I'll get to shake his hand someday...Seems there's a biblical quote about if a man might bring a soul to God, that man would be saved. Townes it seems to me by now is right up there where he never dreamed of being. Some curse the internet, but it has kept this one around another day.
steele917 1 year ago
@steele917 Don't ever give up friend . . . this world isn't all sorrow and hopelessness . . . there is beauty and life all around you . . . you just have to look up. It took me many years of pain and misery to realize this . . . I'm glad it wasn't too late. Townes was an absolute master songwriter and singer . . . I'm not surprised he touched you in this way . . .
jubjub2112 1 year ago
Great. Awesome. Thanks.
frogsheath1 2 years ago
breaks my heart.. every time
phoenixcube 2 years ago
It's what we do after the death of hope that counts as an act of faith--or that's what I know from living past that point.
Bless this man's memory!
Roy
twohawksfucking 2 years ago 2
es una gran canción, nunca habia escuxado a este cantante
violinrojo9 2 years ago
one badass songwriter and singer
bakebake07 2 years ago 6
beautiful!
oldcrowmedshow 2 years ago 2
Townes was once asked why he wrote so many sad songs, and retorted, "they're not sad, they're hopeless." I submit that it's possible for a song to be both sad *and* devoid of hope. Tecumseh Valley is such a song. And Townes in this video, near the end of his long slide to a drunken death, voice cracking from the pain of it all, was just the poet to sing it as it should be sung.
badtux 2 years ago 73
@badtux perhaps he may have been called to witness to the world the sad, hopless side of life brought so vividly into his soul. Don't know indeed but maybe the words and music poured forth as he slid further down. Folks will talk of his addictions...but indeed if one might give a listen...one would realize he was both blessed & cursed
steele917 1 year ago
@badtux well said.
efbeckley 1 year ago
@badtux you know nothing about real life if you think this man is giving up.He is only showing to the public his own kind of belief in what is right and wrong.Thank God when he was around,we didn't have to be politically correct.Today, He would be lucky to be able to sing this in the shower without some one turning him in as a subversive.
No1HillBilly 1 year ago
@badtux no you're a poet
mynillywita9milli 1 year ago
the times were hard and the jobs were few.
bobvillain 2 years ago 2
word that ring very true, even now
rikkidelreek0 2 years ago
Beautiful and yet so sad. Wonderful song
badgering123 2 years ago
Townes belongs on the pedastal with John Prine. I love them both. Any arguments???
fatherofthebride1 2 years ago 3
Two tremendously underrated songwriters, both American treasures.
Joeyland 2 years ago
Joeyland- But they're not underated, they're celebrated!
PrincessPignatelli 2 years ago
Viva La Townes !... :)
cbkspa 2 years ago 2
only ever knew Dead Flowers from Big Lebowski. Love it, but never followed up until a FB recommended him. Now it turns out I need to buy at least one new cd. Amazing.
dkbeyreis 2 years ago
hell, i do what i can do to fill the role of the "man's man"...
...and this makes me tear up every damn time.
kudos to you townes. you've made me remember just how beautiful ugliness can be.
JoeySweatsocks 2 years ago
WOW...i jsut here of Townes tonight researching poncho and lefty from Willie Nelson...
Townes was a genius. His songs are filled with soooo much wisdom of emotion. You can tell he has felt what his characters are felling.
Townes live on man...history should not forget your AMAZING contribution to music.
I slap myself for going 28yrs on this earth, and being from TEXAS, and just now learning of this Legend.
this beers for you Van Zandt
LovetheVayne 2 years ago 6
This is what's right with the world. Beautiful.
erezlevi420 2 years ago 2
I bawl like a baby everytime.
applequick 2 years ago
incredible.
christopherfarrell 2 years ago
thanks for putting up my work.,im not able to do anything with it because of a law suit by his x . im just glad that his fans can really see him up close and personal
this was a very interesting after midnite taping
you can see more of my video work on my page here at you tube.
hank sinatra
hanksinatra 2 years ago 3
Really, better then Dylan !! If Townes were here I can't believe he'd even agree with that statement. Townes is the real deal no doubt, but he never came close to reaching Dylan's level, nobody has...
jerry3759 2 years ago
I agree TVZ is better than Dylan but that is my taste and preference. With that said, who would ever agree that they were or are the "best" in anything. Admitting or not doesn't mean much, especially in terms of something so subjective. You like Dylan, good for you, for many though TVZ is king
70mjc 2 years ago
Dylan never reached Townes' leven and never could have.
ezekielwahwah 2 years ago 6
i cant put into works how much Townes music affects me, of all the musicans of his genre he really is the one that time and again moves me to tears, and that something for a rough ass welsh country boy to admit. i saved up and bought a Gibson SJ-200 just because i saw Townes playing one on the 'be here to love me' DVD. I've stopped playing electric guitar and have been learning to finger pick until my fingers have turned solid.
Pick it and it wont ever heal'
intermodal 2 years ago 8
Man can I use your own words?? I feel exactly the same and I'm a portuguese boy.
valverdista 2 years ago
Thanks for posting that intermodal-I was beginning to think I had gone soft, being a relatively new TVZ fan-I couldn't figure out why I kept having to hold back tears during his songs. I was sitting with my acoustic at the dinner table tonight after we ate, trying to sing Pancho and Lefty and couldn't even get through it without choking up-and that's not even a really sad one. I have found a new hero, and will be brushing up on my fingerpicking skills as well.
gonzo090909 2 years ago
gold - pure gold
bluntbabe2 2 years ago
THE best American songwriter.
Dylan is close, but TVS somehow makes it real.
Ldi
ldiedt 2 years ago 3
I was lucky to know the man.
austinphotographer 2 years ago
Yeah. Pretty damned incredible.
bgl00ney 2 years ago
Or it was a song by a group called a man called Horse, either way I think it vindicates my position
hinterling 2 years ago
I once heard a man called Horse sing a song, does that count?
hinterling 2 years ago
i am always amazed by townes, just wish i had found him sooner
billyf26 2 years ago 4
This is as good as it gets boys.......
SWC11 2 years ago 6
Amazing!
tracybruce1956 2 years ago 2
unbeleivable,raw emotion.
8315jw2 2 years ago 2
This has been flagged as spam show
he boned rush limbauhgh
EAOFIVE 2 years ago
what the hell does that mean?
raggajones12 2 years ago
This has been flagged as spam show
he was gay for cock
EAOFIVE 2 years ago
This has been flagged as spam show
this song sucks dick
EAOFIVE 2 years ago