Posted on 04/02/2012 12:33:56 PM PDT by trailhkr1
Wow You heard him at his prime; a man full of a love of life. He'd been in and out of remission most of his adult life. He died of leukemia in September of 1984.
There's nothing like hearing a songwriter perform his or her own songs - and I loved to hear Steve perform "City of New Orleans.' Things in his life got a lot easier with royalties from that song after Arlo Guthrie sang it at the Newport Folk Festival. Jimmy Buffett recorded "Door Number Three" and the song you quoted from yesterday, "Banana Republics." And of course, he and John Prine wrote "You Never Even Call Me By My Name."
In Chicago, he'll always be loved for "The Dying Cub Fan's Last Request." In 1984, the Cubs played the Padres in the National League Championship Series (as Steve says in the song, "the last time the Cubs won the National League Pennant was the year we dropped the bomb on Japan . . ."). The Cubs won the first two games of best three out of five series at Wrigley, then traveled to San Diego for the remaining three games.
One radio station in San Diego played "The Dying Cub Fan's Last Request" 24/7 for the duration of the next three games (which the Padres won, denying the Cubs the pennant).
Steve Goodman was the ultimate Cubs Fan. It's a shame he never saw his Cubbies win the pennant.
Steve Goodman with The Dying Cub Fan's Last Request.
Here's Steve and his good (best?) friend John Prine singing one of my favorites, Souvenirs
Goodman's also the only guy I've seen who, in a live one-man show, broke a guitar string and kept playing and singing while he was replacing his string; he was an extraordinary acoustic guitar player. He brought Jethro Burns, the mandolin player of "Homer & Jethro" infamy, out of retirement to play with him, and the two of them tore up some classic Americana.
It must have been summer of 1983, then, because he’d have been at his last prayers the following year.
I’ve never really been able to appreciate John Prine.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-8YHGnehkZ0&feature=related
Here’s a recent live version with John Prine and Marty Stuart, one of the great musicians of our lifetime, and also a heck of a hair-do.
Actually, I win! I became a Grandma late yesterday. Sionnsar is beaming and oh so glad. I so thankful for a safe at home delivery.
Excellent news! Hearty congratulations to you and Sionnsar. I was just thinking of him yesterday, as I checked out my crop of stinging nettles. I can’t quite bring myself to whip up a memorial batch of nettle soup, no matter how nutritious and historically interesting it is ...
That’s a great big grandson! I’m glad the delivery was a success. Can I send them a check to help buy gazillions of diapers?
I'm trying to remember the details. He'd dealt with leukemia - and remissions - most of his adult life. If I remember correctly, the end of his life was abrupt and not a case of fighting a remission for long. I could be wrong; however, if my memory's correct, I could see him performing in concert in July or early August 1984 and passing away in late September 1984.
I’ve never really been able to appreciate John Prine.
I'm moved and completely taken in by 25% of John Prine's songs. The other 75%, I'll let other people enjoy, But the songs i enjoy, I enjoy immensely. I love his duets with others. I can listen to him singing his "The Speed of the Sound of Loneliness" with Nanci Griffith all day long (then again, I can listen to Nanci all day long and have done so many times. I used to listen to her play in the Catcus Cafe at UT when she was a student.)
Or John Prine and Iris Dement sing "In Sprite of Ourselves," but that's because of Iris, and it shows the business is incestuous. I first heard Iris and her unique haunting voice when she was a backup singer for Nanci on Nanci's "Other Voices, Other Rooms" concert tour, which was the prequel to the album for which Nanci recorded Prine's song "The Speed of the Sound of Loneliness." Small world.
I am so HAPPY for the entrance of a new piper!
I will see if I have something in my stash for a boy baby!
I will even open a bottle of bubbly and treat me to mimosas in honor of the occasion!
Grammas RULE!!
*Hug* (Pass it on!)
Neither of them played the intricate high guitar part of Steve Goodman, though - for all of the wacky songs Goodman wrote, he truly was an accomplished guitarist.
I'll post notice of an upcoming birthday, if somebody would like to give me a Thing. I thought they were atrocious at the time, but now I'd love to own one in good condition. Then again, I'm a VW guy. A Wesfalia "Westy" VW Type 2 (the Type 2's what people call a "minibus") or a Karmann Ghia convertible wouldn't be so bad, either.
I think we should all get vintage VW Things and make them the official vehicle of the UT.
He did “Watching Joey Glow” at the performance I saw. Hysterical!
I need to pull up some videos of Nanci Griffith and Iris Dement for my daughters. Much better, musically, than Taylor Swift and some other performers they like. Taylor Swift is a beautiful girl and a clever songwriter, for her audience, but she’s a dreadful example as a vocalist.
Kinda makes you wonder if they think vocal chords are for knitting, crocheting, or making ties that bind something to something else.
*snart*
One of my favorite post-apocalyptic songs. I've performed it with guitar around many a campfire.
Nanci's politics don't agree with ours, and you DO NOT want her last four albums. She's odd - famous as a songwriter in the U.S., but a mega-star in the U.K. and a mega-mega-mega star in Ireland. She was chosen to narrate the Chieftan's video history and the Chieftan's are Ireland's national musical group.
She recorded From a Distance and went something like triple platinum with it in the UK two or three years before Bette Midler recorded it.
Nanci became most famous in the U.S. when she recorded two albums of folk music dedicated to her inspirations - Other Poets, Other Rooms (A Trip to Bountiful), and Other Voices, Too (A Return to Bountiful). Most of the songs are duets, but not necessarily with the people affiliated with the songs. She'll sing a duet with Arlo Guthrie and a Woody Guthrie song, but not necessarily the Arlo duet on the Woody song.
When she performed at Carnegie Hall, Nanci and the audience were surprised. She was suddenly joined onstage by (I forget the full list) people like Odetta, Bob Dylan, Arlo, Ian Tyson (of Ian & Sylvia), Guy Clark, and a host of others, who just held an impromptu hootenanny. Talk about getting your money's worth.
Iris has an odd - some people would say flat out weird - voice. She comes from a tiny, tiny holler in West Virginia. She's highly sought-after for duets, but her solo work is an acquired taste. Did I mention her voice? I don't agree with the theology, but try a song from her first album called "Let the Mystery Be." That's a live, living room-type version. Her voice is even stranger on the recording.
I'm not impartial on Nanci - I know her, slightly, and have for over 35 years now. So there's a little protectionism and self-interest in any recommendation I give. Just a full disclosure.
That was Iris Dement. And that answer is: Because that's Iris Dement's natural voice.
Leaning on the Everlasting Arms. Now if that voice isn't distinctive, then I don't know what is. Right up there with Emmylou Harris, Dolly Parton, and Willie Nelson for "I know who that is . . ."
Yahoo! I was a junior lifeguard. You have to have very specific competencies!
Gotta tell y’all something. I’m a firm believer in reimbursing artists for their intellectual property. Apparently, iTunes has been hacked and I’ve been dealing w/an ID theft issue for about a week now. Additionally, my puter seems to be ill. Therefore, if y’all have an iTunes acct, please check it and ascertain that your email address is current.
Please know that I am w/y’all in spirit!
If puter behaves, will upload and post pix of Crowbar.
Now I’ll be digging out little nuggets of Iris Dement from YouTube all evening, and pulling out .mp3s from them. Love the video/audio captures from the late 1980’s and early 1990’s. That’s how I first remember her.
Thanks for the suggestions, warnings, and advice! I knew Nanci Griffith was a major leftie ... we used to live in Texas, too.
I aspire to Emmylou Harris-ness, as a vocalist. Also Patty Loveless.
Thanks for the suggestions, warnings, and advice! I knew Nanci Griffith was a major leftie ... we used to live in Texas, too.
I aspire to Emmylou Harris-ness, as a vocalist. Also Patty Loveless.
She does have an extremely original voice.
I’m being kicked off the computer, but I may turn up later with some of my favorites.
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