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Month: August 2006

The Americana Music Conference

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The Americana Music Conference is happening on Sept 20-22 in Nashville with lots of workshops, parties and over 130 artists playing including atists such as Dave Alvin; Elvis Costello and Allen Toussaint; Alejandro Escovedo; the Cherryholmes; the Derailers; Ruthie Foster; James Hunter; Kieran Kane, Kevin Welch and Fats Kaplin; Jim Lauderdale; Claire Lynch; Delbert McClinton; James McMurtry; Buddy Miller; Mindy Smith; Marty Stuart and his Fabulous Superlatives; Paul Thorn Band; Tony Joe White and more than 120 more!

I’m attempting to attend as the lone delegate from Twang Nation, I mean how can I turn down meeting the man who personally built Chet Atkins’s own guitars (Gibson Luthier) and tips on pimping your chaps, okay I made that one up. Be there!

Be Here to Love Me: A Film About Townes Van Zandt

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Townes Van Zandt was a Texas singer/songwriter who’s talent equaled the tragedy in his life. “Be Here To Love Me” is a wonderful id heart-breaking documentary of Townes by Director Margaret Brown.

Born in Fort Worth, Texas to an oil-wealthy, aristocratic family, he traveled during his youth around Texas and Colorado. He was the third-great-grandson of Isaac Van Zandt, a prominent leader of the Republic of Texas. Van Zandt County in east Texas was named after his family in 1848.

Townes was diagnosed early in his twenties with manic-depression and was treated with insulin shock therapy, which erased much of his long-term memory. Much of the isolation and passion that ran as themes in his songs seems to be somewhat attributed to these treatments.

The film features a stellar cast of alt.country legends that knew Townes or have recorded his songs – Willie Nelson, Kris Kristofferson, Guy Clark, Joe Ely, Steve Earle and Emmylou Harris – along with Townes’ three wives and four children, all tell tales of brilliance, loneliness and heartache of a man bent of destruction that died far too young.