I Confess, I Digress

I talked to my sister last night. A rare occurence, but one that’s becoming less so. I’m happy about that. Anyway, I was telling her what was going on in my life: work, a breakup that just happened, the subsequent movings out/in, and the fact that I found out yesterday I have viral conjunctivitis. So not only am I under quarantine, but I can’t even take antibiotics to get better sooner! Yahoo! And my sister, never one for subtlety, replied, “Man, Matt, you’re just a mess, aren’t you?”

And so I was reminded of my first year in Richmond. I hung out at the Village Cafe at least three nights a week, drinking coffee and soaking up the atmosphere until they closed at two in the morning. The jukebox they had in there, right next to the phone booth, was really something to write home about – it had something for everyone in every mood. That winter, when I was dealing with shit in my life, I dropped out of school and spent days wallowing in self-pity. But every night, I’d drag myself to the Village, have a dozen cups of coffee, pop a few dollars in the jukebox, and play this old Tom Waits album they had lying around. Apparently this album, “The Early Years,” collects a few sessions he did back in 1971 before he was, well, the Tom Waits we all know and love and try to imitate before we end up in a coughing fit (cf. “Hoist That Rag”). This is closer to John Prine‘s stuff, but it’s damn good to sit around a city diner late on a winter night, keeping warm by drinking shitty coffee and listening to “Goin’ Down Slow.”

But I’m a bit older now, and barely wiser, and I’ve met Loudon Wainwright III, and so I’m more likely to listen to his music now. You probably know him best as Rufus‘s father, but he’s an amazing songwriter in his own right; one of my favorites ever, actually. He bounds from tragic to hilarious, usually within the same song, and no matter what kinda mood I’m in his stuff always makes me feel better. Plus, his lyrics and sense of wordplay are really unmatched by anyone I’ve ever heard. He’s also one of the rare singer-songwriters whose live shows are eons better than his recordings. You might have to do some archaeology to find his albums, but it’s really worth it; he still tours, too, and comes through Virginia about once a year. Wainwright is also amazing because he’s been making albums for 35 years and still produces stuff that’s on par, if not BETTER THAN what he wrote back in the 1970s. Beat that, everyone except Bruce Springsteen. So here’s something from his 1986 LP “History.”

See you hep cats tomorrow!

Tom Waits – Goin’ Down Slow

Tom Waits – Hoist That Rag

Loudon Wainwright III – I’d Rather Be Lonely