New 20/Feb/15: Club de Wash, Madison, WI 10/28/95 - Setlists and comments by Harvey: 10/28/95.
Subject: TVZ Berlin 11/8/96
Date:
Wed, 13 Nov 96 11:38:54 +0100
From:
Alexander Kadner
To:
coopl@bcc.orst.edu, Frank.Ohl@IfN-Magdeburg.DE
Hi!
Thanks a lot for Your help - I’d have missed the Concert otherwise. As for a
review and songlist, I’ll do my best.
Over the years you get to read quite a few things about Townes, most of them
album notes and such, but somehow they miss the point. The concert in Berlin
showed the ‘darker’ side of Townes, that album covers just politely allude to.
The concert was poorly advertised and the place was really nothing special.
The audience was the mix I remember from the first time I saw Townes play in
Frankfurt two years ago: People from different backgrounds, different ages,
actually as diferent as they come, except that there were no yuppies present
(would You have expected any?). The place was depressing and the general
mood seemed to be depressed as well. Let’ s just forget about the guy who
played before Townes: He was neither very good nor really bad, he was just
not what everyone had come for. Some in the audience left little doubt about
that.
Townes really didn’t change anybody’s mood, he just took it to a different
level. I started suspecting something when someone exchanged the barstool
that was already on the stage for a chair. When Townes came in he started
the his performance saying ‘So I’m in Berlin. If you’d been where I have
been, you’d be glad to be anywhere....’ Then he played a strange version of
‘Loretta’ about half tempo, voice shaky a guitar chord every once in a
while. The way he did it was like reading poetry rather than singing. The
man was blind drunk.
Before playing ‘Blaze’s Blues’ he told a story about how they buried Blaze
and then dug him up again because he still had the pawn ticket for his
guitar in his suit. I’m not sure I believe this, but it’s a good story
anyway. The way he told it was ... impressive (or very weird depending how
you look at it): He was struggling for words, frequently stopping and you
could never be sure that this story would actually go anywehere. The real
message, supposing there was one, was not in the words. It’s sad to say
that Townes failed to really capture the audience. Rather, he appeared to go
through the motions doing more or less what he’d done the othe time I’ve
seen him, which was an outstanding concert. This time I was torn between
disappointment, compassion and amazement. I also admired the courage it must
have taken to face a crowd when in such a sorry condition. Townes did his
best, but that didn’t make it a good concert. It was something completely
different, and I’m glad I’ve seen it.
I guess, if one wanted to find out where all these sad and beautiful songs
come from, it was there to be felt. I won’t put into words, Townes does it
better.
You asked for a songlist. Sorry to say, but my memory is not what it should
be. The songs I remember include:
Loretta, Blaze’s Blues, Two Girls, Pancho and Lefty, Katie Belle and
Tecumseh Valley
"""""
(0 0)
!
\_/
Alexander Kadner Institut für Neurobiologie
Brenneckestr 6
39118 Magdeburg
Germany
Tel:0391-6263332
Fax:0391-6263328
-------- Original Message --------
Subject: Townes schedule
Date: Thu, 5 Apr 2007 13:10:41 -0700 (PDT)
From: Tony Gilliam
To: coopl@bcc.orst.edu
Hi Len,
I was just poking around the internet trying to
find something my 55 yr old mind had forgotten when I
stumbled across your Townes schedule. He left Challis
after his 10-13-95 show for a 10-14-95 show @
University of Montana in Missoula, MT and 10-15-95
show in Bozeman, MT for Vootie Productions I think it
was. I believe that was the last show of that tour.
You could check with Vootie and I'll bet they'd
remember as I talked to the guy who booked Townes up
there when I was in Bozeman seeing Greg Brown a few
years ago.
There were other shows in Oregon, two of which I
attended in Eugene after missing the one in Portland
at the Euphoria Tavern. I didn't know he was in town
till the next day when one of my emplyee's sister told
me he'd played the night before, but was going to play
in Eugene that night and the next. I left for Eugene
immediately. This all took place either late
summer/early fall of '77, or spring of '78, and all I
can recall is that it was warm, pleasant weather.
He played in Eugene at a place called The Place.
When I last saw Townes he told me all he remembered
of the show was threatening(while on stage)to go home
and blow his cheating (Cindy) wife up. We had a real
good time hanging out for two nights. He was
traveling with Ruester Rowland and Owen Cody.
I didn't meet Harold till '95 when he and Townes
came to Challis, as the Portland/Eugene deal was when
Harold's knee swelled up and and they left him in the
VA hospital in Portland while they finished the tour
in Eugene. When they came back to Portland to
retrieve Harold is when Townes went into Harold's
hospital room and told him his problem was stress,
worrying about the bills and such on the tour, and
then Townes took all the receipts and such from the
tour and opened the window and threw them out. Harold
told me when I met him that this is a true story, that
the swelling in his knee went down and they released
him from the hospital.
Hope you are well,
Tony Gilliam
Challis, Idaho
-------- Original Message --------
Subject: from Tim Easton
Date: Thu, 9 Jul 2009
From: Tim Easton
To: coopl@bcc.orst.edu
Hello..
I was trying to research the Townes life tour page to see what
the date was that I played with him in Columbus, Ohio...
you didn't have it so I called the promoter. He had it,
along with a bunch of stories!
It was August 21st, 1995 Columbus, Ohio Barley's with Tim Easton
A total train wreck of a gig. Townes had just come back from Europe.
Played terribly. 16 people asked for their money back.
He sat in the front row for my set but I didn't recognize him.
Thought he was a homeless guy.
I knew a bit about Travis style and Lightnin Hopkins style picking
so he took to me just fine. I had one of those For The Sake Of
The Song books I had purchased from Butch Hancock at Lubbock Or Leave It
and Townes signed it "Tim, take the money and run."
Tim
--
//www.timeaston.com
