- published: 03 May 2014
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John Townes Van Zandt (March 7, 1944 – January 1, 1997), best known as Townes Van Zandt, was an American singer-songwriter. Many of his songs, including "If I Needed You" and "To Live Is to Fly", are considered standards of their genre. He had a small and devoted fanbase, but never had a successful album or single and even had difficulty keeping his recordings in print. 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. Much of his life was spent touring various dive bars, often living in cheap motel rooms, backwoods cabins, etc.
He suffered from a series of drug addictions, alcoholism, and bipolar disorder. When young, insulin shock therapy erased much of his long-term memory.
Van Zandt died on New Years Day 1997 from health problems stemming from years of substance abuse. The 2000s saw a resurgence of interest in Van Zandt. During the decade, two books, a documentary film titled Be Here to Love Me, and a number of magazine articles about the singer were written.
Townes Van Zandt playing a medley of his hit. This is "Pancho & Lefty" played at Uncle Seymour's place. Taken from the DVD extras on "Heartworn Highways". If you have any interest in this type of music you MUST BUY THIS DVD. It is outstanding in every possible way. It'll show you real country music the way it was . . . and should be. Not this overproduced, "all hat, no cattle", pop-music crap that Nashville has been barfing out for the last few decades. If you enjoy this kind of thing you'll really like the music at my Live365 channel. Check it out and "like" my page: www.facebook.com/JFrankParnells
Townes Van Zandt - Dead Flowers (written by JAGGER/RICHARDS) from the album Road Songs (wich is a cover album)
00:40 - 2. I’ll Meet You In The Morning 03:38 - 3. Hobo Bill 10:00 - 4. Where I Lead Me 13:16 - 5. Broke Down Engine Blues 18:30 - 6. For The Sake Of The Song 23:27 - 7. Nothing 26:16 - 8. Molly and Tenbrooks [by Bill Munroe] 29:45 - 9. Talking Thunderbird Blues 32:07 - 10. Pancho and Lefty 35:43 - 11. Mr Mudd and Mr Gold 38:23 - 12. Tecumseh Valley 42:51 - 13. The Ballad of Ira Hayes 46:43 - 14. (Quicksilver Daydreams Of) Maria 51:08 - 15. Tying Ten Knots In The Devil’s Tail
Upload mp3s @ http://www.mp32tube.com One of his greatest, and the best version imo
A solo sessions performance on the now defunct Austin Music Network. Directed by Dave Prewitt of CapZeyeZ Digital Media. Recorded @ uStream.Tv
Townes Van Zandt at his best. "Rake" never fails to move me, and I've been dying to make a video for this one. I tagged the URL of the Townes Van Zandt website onto the end of the video. If you buy your Townes stuff there the money goes to the family instead of to some faceless corporation.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Townes_Van_Zandt , John Reed - Guitar, Mickey White - Guitar, Spider Johnson - Saw, Booka Michel - Congas,
1. Intro 2. If I Needed You 3. Mr Gold and Mr Mud 4. Buckskin Stallion Blues 5. Talkin' Thunderbird 6. Short Haired Woman Blues 7. Marie 8. Snowin' on Raton 9. The Shrimp Song 10. Talkin' Karate Blues 11. Poncho and Lefty 12. Dollar Bill Blues Break 13. Loretta 14. Waitin' Around to Die 15. Nothin' 16. Texas River Song 17. Dead Flowers 18. (cut) Tecumseh Valley 19. Don't You Take it Too Bad 20. To Live is to Fly 21. Lungs 22. Blaze's Blues 23. Rex's Blues 24. (fragment) Our Mother the Mountain 25. Lover's Lullaby 26. (cut) Still Looking for You 27. For the Sake of the Song 28. Kathleen 29. The Catfish Song
A Private Concert: Holiday Inn, Houston (1988)
Townes Van Zandt is a singer songwriter, who did not have the success he deserved in his lifetime, but who now is recognised as being one of the best. He is perhaps best known for his song 'Pancho and Lefty'. That and 'Waiting Around To Die' are probably my favourites and are featured to good effect in the film 'Heartworn Highways'. This song, 'Lungs', is up there with them. It was recorded live at the Old Quarter, Houston, just Townes and his guitar. Anyone wanting to buy their first Townes CD, I would recommend that one. Check out Townes Van Zandt Central for CDs and merchandise, as it benefits Townes' family. The following is summarised from Wikipedia: 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...
Townes Van Zandt performs At My Window and Snowin' on Raton live with a full band in 1987.
Album : A gentle evening with Townes Van Zandt (2002). Recorded live in New-York in November 1969. Best version of Rake. Lyrics : I used to wake and run with the moon I lived like a rake and a young man I covered my lovers with flowers and wounds And my laughter the devil would frighten The sun she would come and beat me back down But every cruel day had it's nightfall I'd welcome the stars with wine and guitars Full of fire and forgetful My body was sharp the dark air clean And outrage my joyful companion Whisperin' women how sweet did they seem Kneelin' for me to command them And time was like water but I was the sea I'd have never noticed it passin' Except for the turnin' of night into day And the turnin' of day into cursin' You look at me now, and don't think I don't know What all ...
The event was organized by Susanna Clark (Clark's wife) as a benefit for the Interfaith Dental Clinic, an organization that works to "restore, protect, and improve the oral health of uninsured, low-income, working people and their children in the greater Nashville area." In the liner notes, Clark says, "When I asked Guy, Townes, and Steve to help me raise money for the Interfaith Dental Clinic, I had no idea what a stir it would cause." The recording took place on September 3, 1995, at The Bluebird Café in Nashville, a nationally renowned venue for songwriters. The owner and manager, Amy Kurland, described the show as "one of the best" in 19 years.[12][13] The concert took place 15 months before Van Zandt's death. Just as in his Live at the Old Quarter 22 years earlier, Van Zandt's humo...
All Along the watchtower Dutch TV-program broadcast 1992 Video Taped and audio ripped by HH Live performances Paradiso Amsterdam 1991 01. intro about blues 00:00 02. If I needed you 09:10 03. interview # 1 02:44 04. Marie 04:36 05. Interview # 2 08:56 06. Nothing 12:10 07. intro to Pancho and Lefty 15:24 08. Pancho and Lefty 18:41 09. interview 22:18 10. Tecumseh Valley 24:37 Radio Studio 3 Hilversum The Netherlands November 1990 11. Buckskin stallion blues 29:18 12. Dollar bill blues 32:33 13. No place to fall 35:26 14. Marie 38:52 15. Nothing 43:55 16. If I needed you 48:05
Townes Van Zandt, Bayerischer Rundfunk, Munich, Germany, 1995-11-20 1 Snake Mountain Blues 2 Interview 3 St John The Gambler 4 Interview 5 A Song For 6 Interview 7 Katie Belle Blue 8 Interview 9 The Catfish Song
www.youtube.com/qtv Songwriting legend in his own right Steve Earle sits down in Studio Q to talk about Townes Van Zandt the late songwriting legend and the influence he had on his music and life.
Townes Van Zandt Interview (about life on the road & Doc Watson) & "If I Needed You" -- excerpt from NRK (Norwegian Public Television) program "Roots", 1992 -- complete program episode streaming at https://tv.nrk.no/serie/roots-92/FHLD50000192/15-06-1992 Copyright Disclaimer Under Section 107 of the Copyright Act 1976, allowance is made for "fair use" for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, and research. Fair use is a use permitted by copyright statute that might otherwise be infringing. Non-profit, educational or personal use tips the balance in favor of fair use.
Audio excerpt from a 1970 appearance on KPFT, Pacifica Radio in Houston, Texas, as he was interviewed by radio hostess, Juliet Brown. Includes Townes reporting breaking news about the Beatles and concludes with live performance of Nothin' . No footage here, just audio from the good old days, with random Townes photos to view.
From the DVD Townes Van Zandt Be Here To Love Me
[Lyrics Townes Van Zandt - Black Widow Blues] I got a black widow spider for mama, Lord Got a diamond-backed rattler for pa Well, I got me a woman down in New Orleans Got a friend in Arkansas Got a morning full of make believe Got an evening full of time I've got the hands, pretty lady Gonna make you grieve Lovin' gonna make you mine Ain't never seen your town before And I won't be back again I need me a place to hide my face From the howlin' of the wind I got the blues sewn into my jacket sleeve Got a goatskin full of wine I got the hands, pretty lady Gonna make you grieve And the lovin' gonna make you mine So light the lantern above your door And hold your curtains wide Take the ribbon from your hair And lay it by your side And I ain't looking for a ...
[Lyrics Townes Van Zandt - Black Crow Blues] Babe, don't lie l[G]onesome after I'm [Am]gone Don't mourn your y[G]oung life a[Am]way Just l[Dm]ower me down with a [G]prayer and a [Am]song [G]Just ?fore the breaking of [Am]day [G]Just ?fore the breaking of [Am]day END
[Lyrics Townes Van Zandt - Be Here to Love Me] Your eyes seek conclusion in all this confusion of mine Though you and I both know it's only the warm glow of wine That's got you to feeling this way, but I don't care, I want you to stay And hold me and tell me you'll be here to love me today Children are dancin', the gamblers are chancin' their all The window's accusing the door of abusing the wall But who cares what the night watchmen say The stage has been set for the play Hold me and tell me you'll be here to love me today The moon's come and gone but a few stars hang on on to the sky The wind's runnin' free but it ain't up to me ask why The poets are demanding their pay They've left me with nothin' to say 'Cept hold me and tell me you'll be here to love me today Just...
[Lyrics Townes Van Zandt - Billy Boney and Ma] Well, Billy went down to the battleground To find a little trinket he could call his own Didn't see nothin' lying around He decided he'd dig awhile Well he dug her up and he dug her down 'Fore too long he found some bones Poor little Billy couldn't make a sound When the bones sat up and smiled Oh Billy you seem like a fine young man No reason to be a tremblin' soul Come over here and shake my hand Make my proud acquaintance Well Billy he was stunned he could hardly stand Whether he could move he didn't know But he knew he had to formulate some kinda plan Or try the boneman's patience The first thing he wanted to do was breathe So he gulped in some of that battleground air Next thing he wanted to do was leave But Billy ...
[Lyrics Townes Van Zandt - All Your Young Servants] You live on your hill so high and so lonely You toss out your bread crumbs to those down below They think you're a king, but, believe me, it's only Because they're too blind to know There once was a time when your money had meaning Your diamonds had glitter, but now it's all gone It poisoned your laughter and muffled your singing You can't even see that it's wrong [Chorus] Your castle is dingy and dirty and dismal Your carpets are faded, your walls are all gray There's dust on your silver and cracks in your crystal All your young servants have drifted away So go back to your sadness, go back to your sorrow And I'll make my bed on a hill 'neath the sky And lay here a-listening till the sun comes tomorrow Counting th...
[Lyrics Townes Van Zandt - At My Window] At my window Watching the sun go Hoping the stars know It's time to shine Daydreams Aloft on dark wings Soft as the sun streams At days decline Living is laughing Dying says nothing at all Baby and I are laying here Watching the evening fall Time flows Through brave beginnings And she leaves her endings Beneath our feet Walk lightly Upon their faces Leave gentle traces Upon their sleep Living is dancing Dying does nothing at all Baby and I are laying here Watching the evening fall Three dimes Hard luck and good times Fast lines and low rhymes Ain't much to say Feel fine Feel low and lazy Feel grey and hazy Feel far away Living is sighing Dying ain't flying so high Baby and I are lying here Watching the ...
it was my last night in singapore last night. joo and i sat up on a hill and made music, including this impromptu medley of 3 townes van zandt songs for season 240 of the ukulele. the voice is a little rough from whiskey and cigarettes but i don't think townes would mind. thanks baby for filming this so beautifully against the backdrop of the fence and the city lights. i love you. the songs are: lookin for you nothin' tecumsah valley
Ride the blue wind, high and free
She'll lead you down through misery
Leave you low, come time to go
Alone and low, as low can be
Well, if I had a nickel, I'd find a game
If I won a dollar, I'd make it rain
If it rained an ocean, I'd drink it dry
And lay me down dissatisfied
It's legs to walk and thoughts to fly
Eyes to laugh and lips to cry
A restless tongue to classify
All born to grow and grown to die
So tell my baby, I said so long
Tell my mother, I did no wrong
Tell my brother to watch his own
And tell my friends to mourn me none
I'm chained upon the face of time
Feelin' full of foolish rhyme
There ain't no dark till something shines
I'm bound to leave the dark behind
Well, ride the blue wind, high and free
She'll lead you down through misery
Leave you low, come time to go
Alone and low, as low can be