Kathleen may refer to:

People with the given name Kathleen:

• Kathleen (given name)

Places:

• Kathleen, Georgia, USA
• Kathleen, Florida, USA
• Kathleen High School (Lakeland, Florida), USA
• Kathleen, Western Australia, Western Australia
• Kathleen Island, Tasmania, Australia
• Kathleen Lumley College, South Australia
• Mary Kathleen, Queensland, former mining settlement in Australia

Other:

• The Countess Kathleen and Various Legends and Lyrics (1892), second poetry collection of William Butler Yeats
• Cruises With Kathleen, non-fiction outdoor literature by Donald Hamilton
• Kathleen Ferrier Award, competition for opera singers
• Kathleen Mitchell Award, Australian literature prize for young authors
• Plan Kathleen, plan for a German invasion of Northern Ireland sanctioned by the IRA Chief of Staff in 1940
• Tropical Storm Kathleen (disambiguation)

This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the same title. If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article.

Josh Ritter
Ritter with the Love Cannon String Band Wexford, Ireland on October 20, 2009
Background information
Born	(1976-10-21) October 21, 1976 (age 35) Moscow, Idaho, United States
Genres	Folk, Alternative Country, Rock
Occupations	Musician, Songwriter, Author
Instruments	Acoustic guitar, electric guitar, piano, lute, violin
Years active	1997–present
Labels	Signature Sounds V2 Sony BMG/Victor
Associated acts	The Frames, Hilary Hahn
Website	joshritter.com

Josh Ritter (born October 21, 1976) is an American singer-songwriter, guitarist and author who performs and records with The Royal City Band. Ritter is known for his distinctive Americana style and narrative lyrics.^[1] In 2006 he was named one of the "100 Greatest Living Songwriters" by Paste magazine.^[2]

Early life[link]

Ritter was born and raised in Moscow, Idaho, a college town in the north central part of the state. As a teenager, after hearing Johnny Cash and Bob Dylan’s “Girl from the North Country” on his parents' copy of Nashville Skyline, he attempted to write songs on a lute that his father had built, before abandoning the lute and buying his first guitar at K-Mart.^[3]

Ritter graduated from Moscow High School in 1995^[4] and attended Oberlin College in Ohio to study neuroscience, but later changed his major to the self-created "American History Through Narrative Folk Music". At the age of 21 Josh recorded his first album Josh Ritter at a recording studio on campus. After graduating, Josh moved to Scotland to attend the School of Scottish Folk Studies for six months.^[5] Josh then moved back to Idaho for a few months, before moving to Providence, Rhode Island, then Somerville, Massachusetts, where he worked temporary jobs and played at open mic nights. During this time, Ritter sold copies of his album and was spotted by Glen Hansard and his band The Frames, who invited him to return with them to Ireland. As an early sign of his success to come, Ritter found on the trip to Ireland that his album sold particularly well at open mics there. With the money from merchandise sales, Ritter was eventually able to quit his day job and devote himself to music full-time.

Career[link]

A year and a half after recording Josh Ritter, Ritter recorded his second album Golden Age of Radio for $1000 and self-published it. The album was recorded in three different studios: Soundgun in Philadelphia, Electric Cave in New Hampshire, and a friend's basement studio.^[6] While promoting Golden Age of Radio, he met Jim Olsen, head of independent record label Signature Sounds, who offered to remaster and re-release the album after hearing Ritter play. The song "Me & Jiggs" was subsequently released as a single in Ireland, where Ritter was quickly becoming a word-of-mouth success, first opening for The Frames, then headlining his own shows. Ritter's third record, Hello Starling, produced by former Frames guitarist Dave Odlum, debuted at #2 on the Irish charts.^[7]

Ritter, left, in concert with long time bassist Zack Hickman

In 2003, Ritter shared top billing with the French Kicks at Sepomana, the annual music festival produced by WRMC 91.1 FM. Ritter and Ron Sexsmith headlined the Friday night singer-songwriter event at the Hotel Viking at the 2004 Newport Folk Festival. He also appeared at Oxegen 2005, and has headlined with artists such as Joan Baez, who later released her own version of Ritter's song "Wings" on her album Dark Chords on a Big Guitar. He was signed by a British label, V2 Records, in 2005 and Hello Starling was subsequently re-released. He began performing and touring in a crossover duo with the classical violinist Hilary Hahn in 2005.

In 2006, Ritter released his fourth album The Animal Years. 2006 also saw the release of Ritter's first full-length live album and DVD In The Dark - Live At Vicar Street which was recorded over two nights in May 2006. Ritter released his fifth album, The Historical Conquests of Josh Ritter, in 2007. Both The Animal Years and Historical Conquests received warm critical reception^[8][9] with Stephen King calling The Animal Years the best album of 2006 in his column for Entertainment Weekly.^[10] In support of Historical Conquests, Ritter appeared as a musical guest on such high profile television shows as Late Show with David Letterman in America and Later... with Jools Holland in Britain.^[11][12]

Ritter re-issued his second and third, Golden Age of Radio and Hello Starling on April 7, 2009 and January 17, 2010 respectively. Each re-issued albums were packaged as two-disc deluxe editions. The deluxe editions contain both the original studio album as well as solo acoustic versions of all the original tracks, live and remixed bonus songs, and never-before-seen photos and artwork. The deluxe editions also feature liner notes written by Ritter fans, including Dennis Lehane and Cameron Crowe.^[13][14]

In Autumn 2009 Ritter toured with Love Canon String Band, where he reinterpreted his songs with a band composed of banjo, double bass, mandolin and guitar. This tour included three nights in Whelans Dublin, where he performed his albums Golden Age of Radio, Hello Starling, and The Animal Years in full.^[15] In 2009, Ritter also provided the soundtrack for the documentary film, Typeface, by Kartemquin Films.

Ritter's sixth album, So Runs the World Away, was released April 23, 2010 in Ireland and May 4, 2010 worldwide.^[16] The vinyl version of the album had an earlier release on April 17, 2010 as a part of Record Store Day celebrations. The vinyl record came packaged with a CD version of the album as well.^[17] To promote the album, Ritter made the song, "Change of Time" from So Runs the World Away, available for free download from his website on February 8, 2010.^[18] The song also appeared in the March 23, 2010 episode of the television series Parenthood. In support of the new album Ritter toured with his newly named The Royal City Band - starting with six dates in Ireland - including a sell out performance at the newly opened 2100 capacity Grand Canal Theatre in Dublin^[19] and continuing with an extensive tour of the United States.^[20] So Runs the World Away largely garnered positive reviews.^[21][22] "Change of Time" was featured on the Parenthood soundtrack in August 2010, and quickly became a fan favorite. The song was also featured in the trailer for the 2011 Natalie Portman film, The Other Woman.^[23]

On February 15, 2011 Ritter reissued The Animal Years on vinyl and as a two-disc deluxe edition on CD. The deluxe edition contains both the original studio album as well as a solo acoustic version of the album. The bonus disc includes four b-side recordings, two videos, new artwork, and liner notes by author Tom Ricks.^[24]

During his early 2011 tour, Josh Ritter released an EP album of previously unreleased material from the So Runs the World Away recording sessions, titled To the Yet Unknowing World. Ritter began streaming the EP for free on his website as well as made it available for digital purchase on February 8, 2011.^[25] To the Yet Unknowing World hit Apple's iTunes and record stores February 15, 2011.^[26] In February 2011, Ritter and his band continued their extensive tour in support of So Runs The World Away touring America and Europe.^[27] During his European tour in April 2011, Ritter released his third live album, Live at The Iveagh Gardens. The limited edition two CD and one DVD set is a live recording of Ritter's performance of 21 songs at the Dublin venue on 18 July 2010.^[28]

Personal life[link]

Josh Ritter married Dawn Landes, a fellow musician, in Branson, Missouri on May 9, 2009.^[29] However, in a February 2011 interview with the Boston Herald, when asked about Dawn Landes, Ritter said "we’ve actually decided to split, which is hard, but is going to be better in the end".^[30]

On November 22, 2009, Ritter played at a Benefit Concert at Moscow Junior High School in Moscow, Idaho for Jim LaFortune, an Earth Science teacher at the school struggling with a brain tumor. LaFortune was one of Ritter's teachers. Ritter attended the school from the 7th through the 9th grade.^[3]

Apart from music, Ritter also has interests in writing. Ritter has claimed many different writers as influences on both his songwriting and fiction work. Some of his favorite authors are Flannery O'Connor, Philip Roth, and Dennis Lehane (who wrote the intro for the Deluxe Edition of Hello Starling). The title of Ritter's sixth album, So Runs the World Away, comes from a line in the third act of Shakespeare's Hamlet.^[31] Ritter's own novel, Bright's Passage, was published by Dial Press on June 28, 2011. Ritter has said of the novel, "Besides my songs, Bright’s Passage is the first [written] work I’ve wanted anyone to see".^[32] Ritter has said that "It’s about a kind of sweet normal guy from West Virginia. He goes to the first World War and he comes back and he has an angel. And it’s about him and this angel escaping this wildfire for five days. It’s sort of this short little comedy".^[33]

The Royal City Band[link]

In 2010, Ritter's band members - some of whom had been performing with him from the early 2000s - were given the name "The Royal City Band" (a reference to the song "Thin Blue Flame" from The Animal Years).

Members:^[34]

• Josh Ritter - Lead vocals, guitar
• Zack Hickman - Bass, guitar, tuba, strings
• Sam Kassirer - Piano, keyboards, organ, accordion
• Austin Nevins - Guitar, lap steel, baritone
• Liam Hurley - Drums, percussion

Discography[link]

Albums[link]

• Josh Ritter (1999, self-released)
• Golden Age of Radio (2000, re-released 2002, Deluxe Edition 2009)
• Hello Starling (September 9, 2003, re-released 2005, Deluxe Edition 2010)
• The Animal Years (March 20, 2006 in UK, April 11, 2006 in US, Deluxe Edition 2011)
• The Historical Conquests of Josh Ritter (August 21, 2007 in US, October 1, 2007 in UK)
• So Runs the World Away (April 17, US (Vinyl Release - Record Store Day), April 23, 2010 in Ireland, May 4, 2010 in U.S./World)
• Bringing in the Darlings (February 21, 2012 in World)

Live Albums[link]

• In The Dark - Live At Vicar Street - Live Album/DVD (November 24, 2006 in Ireland, February 5, 2008 in U.S.)
• Live at the 9:30 Club (April 19, 2008)
• Josh Ritter & The Royal City Band, Live at The Iveagh Gardens (April 2011)
• Josh Ritter: Live at the Record Exchange (2006)

EPs[link]

• Me & Jiggs EP (2002 in Ireland only)
• Come & Find Me EP (2002)
• 4 Songs Live EP (February 22, 2005)
• Good Man EP (August 18, 2006, Ireland only)
• Girl in the War EP (August 29, 2006 on iTunes, November 27, 2006 in UK)
• Live at The Record Exchange EP (January 30, 2007)
• To the Yet Unknowing World (February 8, 2011)
• Bringing in the Darlings (February 21, 2012, February 17, 2012 in Ireland)

Singles[link]

• "Hello Starling (Snow Is Gone)" (May 31, 2004, UK single)
• "Bright Smile" (2004, Irish single)
• "Man Burning" (2004, Ireland promo-only single)
• "Thin Blue Flame" (2005, US promo-only single)
• "Girl in the War" (April 11, 2006)
• "Lillian, Egypt" (May 29, 2006, UK single)
• "Wolves" (July 25, 2006, promo only)
• "Mind's Eye" (October 15, 2007)
• "Right Moves" (December 17, 2007)
• "Empty Hearts" (March 31, 2008)
• "Real Long Distance" (May 5, 2008)
• "Change of Time" (March 16, 2010)
• "Lantern" (2010)

Other contributions[link]

• Sweetheart: Love Songs (2004, Hear Music) - "Tonight You Belong To Me, featuring Blake Hazard"
• Acoustic 05 (2005, Echo) - "Kathleen"
• The Cake Sale (2006, Oxfam Ireland, Yep Roc Records) - "Vapour Trail"
• Acoustic 07 (2007, V2 Records) - "Girl in the War"
• House M.D. (Original Television Soundtrack) (2007, Nettwerk) - "Good Man"
• 1% For The Planet, The Music (Vol. 1) (2010, One Percent for the Planet) - "Great Big Mind"
• Broken Hearts & Dirty Windows - John Prine Tribute Album (2010, Oh Boy Records) - "Mexican Home"
• Americana 2004 UNCUT "Wings"

Notable performances[link]

In January 2010 Ritter opened at New York City's Radio City Music Hall for Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova of The Swell Season.^[35]

Josh Ritter performed at the South by Southwest Music & Media Conference and Festival, March 18, 2011 at the Historic Sanctuary of St. David's Episcopal Church.

References[link]

External links[link]

• Official website
• Official blog
• Official fansite
• Official MySpace page
• Josh Ritter collection at the Internet Archive's live music archive
• 2009 interview
• Josh Ritter "So Runs the World Away" Review www.AwaitingTheFlood.com

John Townes Van Zandt^[1] (March 7, 1944 – January 1, 1997), best known as Townes Van Zandt, was an American Texas Country-folk music singer-songwriter, performer, and poet. Many of his songs, including "If I Needed You," "To Live is to Fly," and "No Place to Fall" are considered standards of their genre.

While alive, Van Zandt was labeled as a cult musician; though he had a small and devoted fanbase, he never had a successful album or single, and even had difficulty keeping his recordings in print.^[2][3] In 1983, six years after Emmylou Harris had first popularized it, Willie Nelson and Merle Haggard covered his song "Pancho and Lefty," scoring a number one hit on the Billboard country music charts.^[2][4] Despite achievements like these, the bulk of his life was spent touring various dive bars,^[5] often living in cheap motel rooms, backwoods cabins, and on friends' couches.^[3] Van Zandt was notorious for his drug addictions,^[6] alcoholism,^[6] and his tendency to tell tall tales.^[7] When young, he was diagnosed with bipolar disorder, and insulin shock therapy erased much of his long-term memory.^[8][9][10]

Van Zandt died on New Years Day 1997 from health problems stemming from years of substance abuse.^[6] The 2000s saw a resurgence of interest in Van Zandt.^[2] During the decade, two books, a documentary film, and a number of magazine articles about the singer were created.^[2] Van Zandt's music has been covered by such notable and varied musicians as Bob Dylan,^[11] Norah Jones,^[12] Lyle Lovett, Steve Earle and Cowboy Junkies.

Biography[link]

Early life[link]

Townes Van Zandt was born in Fort Worth, Texas, to a wealthy oil family. He was the third-great-grandson of Isaac Van Zandt, a prominent leader of the Republic of Texas and second great-grandson of Khleber M. Van Zandt, Confederate Major and one of the founders of Fort Worth.^[8] Van Zandt County in east Texas was named after his family in 1848. Townes' parents were Harris Williams Van Zandt (1913–1966) and Dorothy Townes (?-1983).^[13] He had two siblings, Bill and Donna. Harris was a corporate lawyer, and his career required the family to move several times during the 1950s and 1960s.^[14] In 1952 the family transplanted from Fort Worth to Midland, Texas, for six months before moving to Billings, Montana.

At Christmas in 1956, Townes' father gave him a guitar, which he practiced while wandering the countryside.^[15] He would later tell an interviewer that, "watching Elvis Presley's October 28, 1956, performance on The Ed Sullivan Show was the starting point for me becoming a guitar player... I just thought that Elvis had all the money in the world, all the Cadillacs and all the girls, and all he did was play the guitar and sing. That made a big impression on me."^[1] In 1958 the family moved to Boulder, Colorado. Van Zandt would remember his time in Colorado fondly and would often visit it as an adult. He would also later refer to Colorado in the songs "My Proud Mountains" and "Colorado Girl."

During his youth, Townes was noted as a good student and active in team sports.^[16] In grade school, it was recognized that Van Zandt had a genius IQ and his parents began grooming him to become a lawyer or senator.^[9] Fearing that his family would move again, he willingly decided to attend Shattuck School in Faribault, Minnesota.^[17] He received a score of 1170 when he took the SAT in January 1962.^[18] His family soon moved to Houston, Texas.

Van Zandt was accepted into the University of Colorado at Boulder in 1962. In the spring of his sophomore year, his parents flew to Boulder to bring Townes back to Houston, apparently worried about his binge drinking and episodes of depression.^[9] They admitted him to the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston, where he was diagnosed with manic depression. He received three months of insulin shock therapy, which erased much of his long-term memory.^[8][9] Afterwards, his mother's "biggest regret in life was that she had allowed that treatment to occur."^[10] In 1965 he was accepted into the University of Houston's pre-law program. He soon after attempted to join the Air Force, but was rejected due to a doctor's diagnosis that called him "an acute manic-depressive who has made minimal adjustments to life."^[9] He finally quit school for good around 1967, having been inspired by his singer-songwriter heroes to pursue a career in playing music.

Early musical career[link]

In 1965 Van Zandt began playing regular shows at the Jester Lounge in Houston for $10 per night.^[19] There he met fellow musicians Lightning Hopkins, Guy Clark, Jerry Jeff Walker, and Doc Watson. His repertoire consisted mostly of covers of songs written by Hopkins, Bob Dylan, and others, as well as original novelty songs like "Fraternity Blues."^[20] In 1966, right before his death, Harris Van Zandt had encouraged his son to stop playing covers and write his own songs.^[21] In 1968 Van Zandt met songwriter Mickey Newbury in a Houston coffee shop. Newbury persuaded Van Zandt to go to Nashville, where he was introduced by Newbury to the man who would become his longtime producer, "Cowboy" Jack Clement.

Among Van Zandt's major influences was Texas blues man Lightnin' Hopkins, whose songs were a constant part of his repertoire. He also cited early Bob Dylan and Hank Williams as having had a major impact on his music. Van Zandt also cited such varied artists as Guy Clark, Muddy Waters, Mozart, The Rolling Stones, Blind Willie McTell, Tchaikovsky, Richard Dobson, and Jefferson Airplane as influences.^[1]

For much of his career, Van Zandt maintained a flippant attitude towards the recording process, with songwriting being his primary concern.^[22] As a result, his regular producer Jack Clement would take creative license, turning some of Van Zandt's early albums into uneven and wildly over-produced affairs.^[23] 1968's For the Sake of the Song features "harpsichords, flutes, martial drum beats, and a whole host of backup singers that would make the most overproduced Southern Gospel album hang its head in disgrace."^[23] Clement has since expressed regret over some of his production choices.^[23]

1970s[link]

The years between 1968 and 1973 would prove to be Van Zandt's most prolific era.^[2] He released five albums during the time period: Our Mother the Mountain, Townes Van Zandt, Delta Momma Blues, High, Low and in Between, and The Late Great Townes Van Zandt. Among the tracks written for these albums were "For the Sake of the Song," "To Live is to Fly," Tecumseh Valley," and "Pancho and Lefty." These songs would eventually raise Van Zandt to near-legend status in American and European songwriting circles.^[2] In 1972 Van Zandt recorded tracks for an album with a working title of Seven Come Eleven, which would remain unreleased for many years due to a dispute between his manager Kevin Eggers and producer Jack Clement. Eggers either could not or refused to pay for the studio sessions, so Clement erased the master tapes. However, before they were deleted, Eggers snuck in to the studio and recorded rough mixes of the songs on to a cassette tape. Tracks from the aborted Seven Come Eleven debacle would later surface on The Nashville Sessions.

In 1975 Van Zandt was featured prominently in the documentary film Heartworn Highways with Guy Clark, Steve Earle, and David Allen Coe. His segment of the film was shot at his run-down trailer home in Austin, Texas, where Van Zandt is shown drinking straight whiskey during the middle of the day, shooting and playing with guns, and performing the songs "Waitin' Around to Die" and "Pancho & Lefty."^[24] His soon-to-be second wife Cindy and dog Geraldine (a large, "keenly intelligent" half-wolf, half-husky) are also featured in the film.^[25]

In 1977 Live at the Old Quarter, Houston, Texas was released. The album showcased Van Zandt solo at a 1973 concert before a small audience, and less elaborately produced than many of his early records.^[26] The album received positive reviews,^[27] and is considered by many to be among the best albums that the songwriter ever released.^[23][27][28] Several points on the album showcased his dry sense of humor, a feature that also showed in some of his songwriting.

In the mid-1970s, Van Zandt split from his longtime manager, Kevin Eggers.^[2] He found a new manager, John Lomax III (grandson of the famed folk music historian John Lomax), who set up a fan club for Van Zandt.^[29] Though the club was only advertised through small ads in the back of music magazines, Lomax immediately began to receive hundreds of impassioned letters from around the world written by people who felt touched by Van Zandt.^[29] Some of the letters described how his material often served as a crutch for those who were dealing with depression.^[29] In the summer of 1978, the singer fired Lomax and re-hired Eggers. He soon after signed to Egger's new label, Tomato Records.^[2] The following year, he recorded Flyin' Shoes; he would not release another album until 1987's At My Window.

Despite critical acclaim, Van Zandt remained a cult figure. He normally played small venues (often to crowds of fewer than fifty people) but began to move towards playing larger venues (and even made a handful of television appearances) during the 1990s. For much of the 1970s, he lived a reclusive life outside of Nashville in a tin-roofed, bare-boards shack with no heat, plumbing or telephone, occasionally appearing in town to play shows.^[25] Steve Earle would later say that Van Zandt's primary concerns during this time period were planting morning glories, listening to Paul Harvey's radio show, and watching the sitcom Happy Days.

1980s - 1990s[link]

Several of Van Zandt's compositions were recorded by other artists, such as Emmylou Harris who, with Don Williams, had a #3 country hit in 1981 with "If I Needed You," and Willie Nelson and Merle Haggard, the pair taking "Pancho & Lefty" to number one on the country charts in 1983. Van Zandt had a small cameo appearance in the video for the song. In his later years he recorded less frequently, his voice and singing style altered in part because of his lifestyle and alcoholism. However, he continued writing songs, such as "Marie" and "The Hole."

According to Susanna Clark, Van Zandt turned down repeated invitations to write with Bob Dylan.^[30] Dylan was reportedly a "big fan" of Townes and claimed to have all of his records; Van Zandt admired Dylan's songs, but didn't care for his celebrity.^[30] The two first met during a chance encounter outside a costume shop in the South Congress district of Austin, Texas, on June 21, 1986.^[30] According to Johnny Guess, Dylan later arranged another meeting with the songwriter. The Drag in Austin was shut down due to Dylan being in town; Van Zandt drove his motorhome to the cordoned-off area, after which Dylan boarded the vehicle and requested to hear him play several songs.^[31]

In May and June 1990, he opened for The Cowboy Junkies during a two-month-long tour of the United States and Canada, which exposed him to a younger generation of fans.^[1] As a result, he wrote the song "Cowboy Junkies Lament" for the group, with a verse about each respective member of the band.^[32]

Death[link]

Van Zandt continued writing and performing through the 1990s, though his output slowed noticeably as time went on. He had enjoyed some sobriety during the early 1990s, but was actively abusing alcohol during the final years of his life. In 1994 he was admitted to the hospital to detox, during which time a doctor told Jeanene Van Zandt that trying to detox Townes again could potentially kill him.^[33] He grew increasingly frail during the mid-1990s, with some long-time friends noting that he seemed to have "withered."^[34]

In the spring of 1996, he was contacted by Sonic Youth's Steve Shelley, who informed Van Zandt that he was interested in recording and releasing an album for him on the band's Ecstatic Peace label, funded by Geffen.^[35] Van Zandt agreed, and sessions were scheduled to begin in Memphis during late December of that year.

On December 19 or 20, Van Zandt fell down the concrete stairs outside his home, badly injuring his hip.^[33][36] After lying outside for an hour, he dragged himself inside and called his ex-wife Jeanene, who sent their friends Royann and Jim Calvin to check on him. He told the couple that he had sustained the injury while getting out of bed, and refused medical treatment.^[36] They took him back to their home, and he spent the Christmas week on their couch, unable to get up even to use the bathroom.^[36]

Determined to finish the album that he had scheduled to record with Shelley and Two Dollar Guitar, Van Zandt arrived at the Memphis studio being pushed in a wheelchair by road manager Harold Eggers. Shelley canceled the sessions due to the songwriter's erratic behavior and drunkenness. Van Zandt finally agreed to hospitalization, but not before returning to Nashville. By the time he had consented to receive medical care, eight days passed since the injury.^[33] On December 31, X-rays revealed that Van Zandt had an impacted left femoral neck fracture in his hip, and several corrective surgeries were performed.^[37] Jeanene informed the surgeon that one of Townes' previous rehab doctors had told her detoxing could kill him.^[33] The medical staff tried to explain to her that detoxing a "late-term alcoholic" at home would be ill-advised, but he would have a better chance at recovering under hospital supervision.^[37] She did not heed these warnings, and instead checked Townes out of the hospital against medical advice.^[38] Understanding that he would most likely drink immediately after leaving the hospital, the physicians refused to prescribe him any painkillers.^[39]

By the time Van Zandt was checked out of the hospital early the next morning, he had begun to show signs of DTs.^[33] Jeanene rushed him to her car, where she gave him a flask of vodka to ward off the withdrawal delirium.^[33] She would later report that after getting back to his home in Smyrna, Tennessee, and giving him alcohol, he was "lucid, in a real good mood, calling his friends on the phone."^[33] Jim Calvin shared a marijuana joint with him,^[38] and he was also given about four Tylenol PM tablets.^[39]

While Jeanene was on the phone with Susanna Clark, their son Will noticed that Townes had stopped breathing and "looked dead."^[33] He alerted his mother, who attempted to perform CPR, "screaming his name between breaths."^[33] Townes Van Zandt died in the early morning hours of January 1, 1997, at the age of 52. His official cause of death was "natural" cardiac arrhythmia.^[40] He died forty-four years to the day after Hank Williams, one of his main songwriting influences.^[41]

Two services were held for Van Zandt: one in Texas, mostly attended by family; and another in a large Nashville church, attended by friends, acquaintances, and fans.^[9] Some of his ashes were placed underneath a headstone in the Van Zandt family plot at the Dido Cemetery in Dido, Texas, outside of Fort Worth.^[9][42]

Personal life[link]

Relationships[link]

Van Zandt married Fran Petters on August 26, 1965; a son, John Townes "J.T." Van Zandt II, was born to them on April 11, 1969, in Houston. The couple were divorced on January 16, 1970.^[1] She would later remarry, changing her last name to Lohr.^[43]

He moved in with Cindy Morgan in late 1974, and the two married in Nashville in September 1978. They became estranged for much of the early 1980s, and were divorced on February 10, 1983, in Travis County, Texas. They had no children together.^[1] She would later remarry, changing her last name to Lindgram.^[44]

Van Zandt's third and final marriage was to Jeanene Munsell (born February 21, 1957). They met on December 9, 1980 at a memorial for John Lennon. When the terminally-ill Dorothy Van Zandt learned that her son had impregnated Munsell, she told him, "You're going to do the right thing and honor that baby."^[45] He soon after divorced from his estranged second wife, and married Munsell on March 14, 1983; their first child, William Vincent, was born ten days later. Another child, Katie Belle, was born February 14, 1992. Van Zandt and Munsell were divorced on May 2, 1994. However, the two remained close until Townes' death, and Jeanene became an executor of the Estate of Townes Van Zandt.^[1]

Around the time of their April 1993 separation,^[46] Jeanene Van Zandt coaxed the musician into signing over the publishing rights of his entire back catalog and recording royalties to her and their children.^[47] Townes's only source of income after this point was money received from concert engagements,^[48] and even then Townes would frequently visit his ex-wife and "give her all the money in his pockets."^[49] Following their divorce in 1994, his only worldly possessions were listed as a 1989 GMC Truck with camper shell, a 1984 Honda Shadow Motorcycle and a 1983 Starwind 22-foot boat named Dorothy; he also retained sole ownership of his family inheritance of "ownership in oil lease and mineral rights."^[50]

At the time of his death, he had begun a long-distance relationship with a woman named Claudia Winterer from Darmstadt, Germany.^[51] The two met in November 1995 during a concert of his in Hanau. Van Zandt told several friends that he planned on marrying Winterer,^[52] but the two never became formally engaged.

Addiction[link]

Van Zandt struggled with heroin addiction and alcoholism throughout his adult life. At times he would become drunk on stage and forget the lyrics to his songs. At one point, his heroin habit was so intense that he offered Kevin Eggers the publishing rights to all of the songs on each of his first four albums for $20.^[53] At various points, Van Zandt's friends saw him shoot up not just heroin, but also cocaine, vodka, as well as a mixture of rum and Coke.^[54] On at least one occasion, he shot up heroin in the presence of his son J.T., who was only eight years old at the time.^[25]

As a result of Van Zandt's constant drinking, Harold Eggers, Kevin's brother, was hired on as his tour manager and 24-hour caretaker in 1976, a partnership that would last for the rest of the singer's life.^[53] Although the musician was many years older than he was, Eggers would later say that Van Zandt was his "first child."^[53]

Van Zandt's battle with addiction led him to be admitted to rehab almost a dozen times throughout the 1970s and 1980s.^[55] Medical records from his time in recovery centers show that he believed his drinking had become a problem around 1973, and by 1982 he was drinking at least a pint of vodka daily.^[55] Doctors notes reported: "He admits to hearing voices, mostly musical voices," and "Affect is blunted and mood is sad. Judgment and insight is impaired."^[55] At various points in his life, he was prescribed to take the antidepressant Zoloft and the mood stabilizer lithium.^[46][56] His final and longest period of sobriety during his adult life was a period of about a year in 1989 and 1990.^[32]

Legacy[link]

Legal issues over Van Zandt's work[link]

In the years immediately following Van Zandt's death, his former manager and label owner Kevin Eggers issued fourteen albums of both new and previously unreleased material by the singer, all without consent of his estate (represented by Jeanene Van Zandt and his three children).^[57] Eggers also claimed a 50% interest in eighty of Van Zandt's songs. After nearly ten years of legal battles, the court sided with the estate, issuing "injunctive relief against Eggers, restraining him from reproducing or distributing any of Van Zandt's songs."^[57]

It was revealed through these proceedings that Van Zandt's annual income in the years before his death had climbed to over $100,000, thanks in large part to the royalties accrued from his songs being covered by Willie Nelson, Emmylou Harris, Merle Haggard, Cowboy Junkies, and other major music stars.^[58]

After Van Zandt's death, Harold Eggers (Kevin's brother, Van Zandt's longtime road manager), whose job it was to make sure Townes' shows were recorded, released many video and audio recordings from hundreds of the songwriter's concerts he kept in his possession over a twenty-year period. At issue was whether Eggers or the estate should be in legal ownership of the tapes.^[57] An out-of-court settlement in 2006 "essentially granted the Van Zandts eventual control over all of Harold Eggers' mastered recordings (once certain undisclosed obligations were met), while Harold Eggers retained a 50% ownership interest in seven of the albums at issue and a royalty interest in the remaining recordings."^[57] However, both parties eventually found fault with the settlement and the issue was taken back to court.

On October 21, 2008, a number of Van Zandt's personal possessions were auctioned off at The Northside in Akron, Ohio, at a benefit for Wrecks Bell, Van Zandt's close friend and bandmate who was the inspiration for the song "Rex's Blues." Bell was half-owner of the nightclub in Houston where Townes recorded his album Live at the Old Quarter. He now owns the "new" Old Quarter in Galveston, which was uninsured and destroyed by Hurricane Ike.^[59] The Old Quarter Acoustic Cafe reopened on December 11, 2008, after a series of benefit concerts held state-wide.

In music[link]

Van Zandt has been referred to as a cult musician and "a songwriter's songwriter."^[60][61] Musician Steve Earle, who met him in 1978 and considered Van Zandt a mentor, once called Van Zandt "the best songwriter in the whole world and I'll stand on Bob Dylan's coffee table in my cowboy boots and say that."^[60][62] The quote was printed on a sticker featured on the packing of At My Window, much to Van Zandt's displeasure.^[63] In the years following, the quote was often cited by the press, much to Van Zandt and Earle's embarrassment;^[64] in 2009, Earle told the New York Times, "Did I ever believe that Townes was better than Bob Dylan? No."^[64] But he later concluded at the end of the same article that, "As a songwriter, you won’t find anybody better." Earle has championed the songwriter on a number of occasions: his eldest son, Justin Townes Earle, also a musician, is named after Van Zandt;^[64] Earle wrote the song "Fort Worth Blues" as a tribute to the singer in the late 1990s,^[64] and in 2009 released an album titled Townes, which featured all covers of Van Zandt songs.^[64]

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 notable artists as Bob Dylan,^[30] Neil Young,^[65] Willie Nelson,^[66] John Prine,^[66] Lyle Lovett,^[67] Scott Avett of The Avett Brothers,^[68] Emmylou Harris,^[66] Nanci Griffith,^[66] Cowboy Junkies,^[69] Vetiver,^[70] Guy Clark,^[66] Devendra Banhart,^[71] Norah Jones,^[12] Robert Plant & Alison Krauss,^[72] The Be Good Tanyas,^[73] Josh Ritter,^[74] Gillian Welch,^[75] Garth Brooks,^[76] Conor Oberst of Bright Eyes,^[77] and Caleb Followill of Kings of Leon.^[78]

In 2012, Van Zandt was inducted into the Texas Heritage Songwriters Hall of Fame.^[79]

In July 2012 Neurot Recordings will release a three-way split CD in tribute to Van Zandt, featuring Neurosis singer/guitarists Scott Kelly,Steve Von Till and doom/stoner metal legend Wino.^[80]

In film and television[link]

Van Zandt's Roadsongs album version of The Rolling Stones' "Dead Flowers" was used during the final scene of the Coen Brothers' 1998 film, The Big Lebowski. The song was also included on the movie's soundtrack.

Since his death, Van Zandt's recordings have been licensed by his family for use in a number of films and television programs, including Stepmom, Six Feet Under, In Bruges, Crazy Heart, Leaves of Grass, and Deadwood.

In the film Country Strong, the Austin Statesman describes the character of Beau Hutton as the next "Townes Van Zandt."

Films and books about Van Zandt[link]

In 2006, the film Be Here To Love Me,^[81] chronicling the artist's life and musical career, was released in the United States. It was very well received, earning a 93% fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes.^[82] Georgia Christgau of the Village Voice called the documentary "sympathetic but frank."^[83] Eddie Cockrell of Variety called the film "a dignified and wistful look at the unusual life, difficult career and lasting influence" of Van Zandt.^[84]

A biography, titled To Live's To Fly: The Ballad of the Late, Great Townes Van Zandt by John Kruth, was released in 2007. It received mixed reviews, with Publishers Weekly lamenting that Kruth's "efforts are diminished by oddly alternating first- and third-person narratives, awkward transitions and text cluttered with excessive quotes... more insight into why - rather than countless tales of how - would have made this bio a more worthwhile read."^[85]

In April 2008, the University of North Texas Press published Robert Earl Hardy's biography on the songwriter, titled A Deeper Blue: The Life and Music of Townes Van Zandt. The book featured the fruits of over eight years of research, including interviews with Mickey Newbury, Jack Clement, Guy and Susanna Clark, Mickey White, Rex Bell, Dan Rowland, Richard Dobson, John Lomax III, Van Zandt's brother and sister, cousins, and all three of his ex-wives, and many others. It has been described by Kirkus Reviews as a "poignant, clear and vivid portrait."^[86]

Discography[link]

Studio albums[link]

• For the Sake of the Song - 1968
• Our Mother the Mountain - 1969
• Townes Van Zandt - 1969
• Delta Momma Blues - 1971
• High, Low and in Between - 1972
• The Late Great Townes Van Zandt - 1972
• Flyin' Shoes - 1978
• At My Window - 1987
• The Nashville Sessions - 1993 (recordings from the aborted Seven Come Eleven album, recorded 1972)
• No Deeper Blue - 1994
• Riding The Range( only two songs: Riding The Range and Dirty Old Town ) - 1996
• A Far Cry From Dead - 1999 (later-life studio guitar and vocal recordings posthumously overdubbed)
• Texas Rain: The Texas Hill Country Recordings - 2001
• In the Beginning - 2003 (studio demo recordings from 1966)

Singles[link]

• Waiting Around to Die/Talking Karate Blues - 1968
• Second Lovers Song/Tecumseh Valley - 1969
• Come Tomorrow/Delta Mama Blues - 1971
• If I Needed You/Sunshine Boy - 1972
• Honky Tonkin'/Snow Dont Fall - 1972
• Fraulein/Don't Let the Sunshine Fool Ya - 1972
• Greensboro Woman/Standin' - 1972
• Pancho and Lefty/Heavenly Houseboat Blues - 1972
• Pancho and Lefty/If I Needed You - 1973
• Who Do You Love/Dollar Bill Blues - 1978
• When She Don't Need Me/No Place to Fall - 1978
• Dead Flowers/Fraulein/Racing in the Street - 1993 (German CD single)
• Ain't Leavin' Your Love - 1999 (US CD single)
• Riding the Range/Dirty Old Town - 1996
• Snowin On Raton - 2001 (US CD single) -from Texas Rain
• Highwaykind - 2002 (CD single)

Live albums[link]

• Live at the Old Quarter, Houston, Texas - 1977 (recorded July 1973)
• Live and Obscure - 1989 (recorded in 1985)
• Rain on a Conga Drum: Live in Berlin - 1991 (recorded October 1990)
• Roadsongs - 1993
• Rear View Mirror - 1993 (recorded live Oklahoma, 1979)
• Abnormal - 1996 (reissued in 1998 with 3 tracks replaced)
• The Highway Kind - 1997
• Documentary - 1997
• Last Rights - 1997 (alternative version of Documentary)
• In Pain - 1999 (recorded live, 1994/1996)
• Together at the Bluebird Café w/ Guy Clark and Steve Earle - 2001 (recorded September 1995)
• Live at McCabe's - 2001 (recorded February 1995)
• A Gentle Evening with Townes Van Zandt - 2002 (recorded November 1969)
• Absolutely Nothing - 2002 (recorded 1991-1996)
• Acoustic Blue - 2003 (recorded 1994/1996)
• Live at the Jester Lounge, Houston, Texas, 1966 - 2004
• Rear View Mirror, Volume 2 - 2004 (recorded 1978/79)
• Live at Union Chapel, London, England - 2005 (recorded April 1994)
• Houston 1988: A Private Concert - 2005

Videos[link]

• Heartworn Highways - 1981
• Be Here to Love Me - 2004
• Houston 1988: A Private Concert - 2004
• Townes Live In Amsterdam - 2008 (recorded 11/12/91)

Compilations[link]

• Last Rights: The Life & Times of Townes Van Zandt - 1997
• Master - 1997
• Anthology: 1968-1979 - 1998
• The Best of Townes Van Zandt - 1999
• Drama Falls Like Teardrops - 2001
• The Very Best of Townes Van Zandt: The Texan Troubadour - 2002
• Singer Songwriter - 2002
• Texas Troubadour - 2002
• Legend - 2003
• Buckskin Stallion - 2006

References[link]