The other night I watched a documentary on Townes Van Zandt.
He was a wreckless, depressed, alcoholic drug abuser.
He was diagnosed with bipolar disorder when he was young
and underwent shock therapy which affected much of his
long term memory.
He was an incredibly intelligent man, being groomed to become a successful law student
when his diagnosis halted all of this.
His mother always regretted allowing the shock therapy to take place.
Even though he struggled with all of this, he penned some of the most beautiful songs ever written.
His passion for all of the subjects in his poetry (that's what I would call his songs)
was so intense and full. Many people have covered his music
including Lyle Lovett, Emmylou Harris, Merle Haggard, Willie Nelson,
The Be Good Tanyas, Bob Dylan, Steve Earle, Nora Jones,
the list goes on.
So this week is a song for a true songwriter who
didn't allow his illness to stifle his work.
In fact it quite did the opposite and gave him reason to write some incredible music.
Have a great weekend all...
