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Live At the Old Quarter, Houston, Texas

Townes Van Zandt

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iTunes Review

Texas troubadour Townes Van Zandt rarely sounded completely comfortable in the recording studio. Producers and backing musicians only served to complicate his Spartan melancholia. Alone onstage, Van Zandt settled in and delivered a relentless procession of tunes that offer brief bursts of hope amongst the tales of sorrow and dissipation. Van Zandt suffered bouts of clinical depression and drug abuse that further scarred and inspired his life. This collection from the Old Quarter, Houston includes his deadpanned jokes and his greatest hits and is arguably his finest hour. The much–covered “Pancho & Lefty” and “If I Needed You,” the hallucinatory stream-of-consciousness card game of “Mr. Mudd & Mr. Gold,” the quiet desperation of “Waiting ‘Round to Die” and the gloriously flat-footed “Two Girls” represent the depth of this much-acclaimed singer-songwriter. His sense of humor pops up for “Fraternity Blues” but it’s the farewell of “Tecumseh Valley,” “To Live Is to Fly” and “Lungs” that have made Van Zandt an American treasure.

Customer Reviews

Words Cannot Describe.....

I recall Joan Baez saying about Bob Dylan that some folks do not get him and could not care less about him, but, for those that do, he goes in really deep and he stays there. Well, I am a stone-cold Dylan fan and aficionado, but I discovered Townes Van Zandt about 5 years ago (thanks to "The Tennessean's" Peter Cooper), and, like Dylan before, he has gone in deep and he's staying there. I honestly am envious of anyone that is just discovering Townes' body of work. You will be rewarded many times over as you delve into the richness of his beautifully and meticulously crafted songs. "Live at the Old Quarter" is as good a place as any to start. It was recorded over a five night period in Houston, TX back in summer of 1973. And lucky for us that Earl Willis decided to hook up a Teac tape recorder and capture these amazing performances. I cannot think of a better live album in this genre - perhaps Live at Folsom. You will be struck at the perfect nature of these songs. It is as if, like it is said of Mozart, he wrote these songs like a scribe being directed from above. If by listening to this album you would like to explore TVZ deeper, my suggestion is this: Buy and play, in order (repeatedly) the following CDs - "Our Mother the Mountain", "Townes Van Zandt", "Delta Momma Blues", "High, Low and In-Between", "The Late, Great Townes Van Zandt", "The Nashville Sessions", "Flying Shoes", "Rear View Mirror", and "At My Window", and "No Deeper Blue". Then watch the superb documentary "Be Here to Love Me" by Margaret Brown. Do this and TVZ will go in deep and he'll stay there.

Incredible.

I cannot believe that no one has reviewed this album. This album is one of my all time favorites; townes pours his heart and soul into his music, and this is no exception. This is in my opinion his best album, and i think he is just as good as Dylan, who was also a big fan of his. One cannot possibly call themselves a fan of country/folk or actually just recorded music in general if they don't have a copy of a TVZ album.

Best Live Album Ever Recorded

I like'd TVZ but did not agree with some of the lofty statments the real dedicated fans made about his greatness, until I heard this album. I truly wish I could have seen this man do a concert. In fact if I find a blue guy in a bottle I would be one of the people clapping along to "who do you love".

Biography

Born: March 7, 1944 in Fort Worth, TX

Genre: Country

Years Active: '60s, '70s, '80s, '90s

Townes Van Zandt's music doesn't jump up and down, wear fancy clothes, or beat around the bush. Whether he was singing a quiet, introspective country-folk song or a driving, hungry blues, Van Zandt's lyrics and melodies were filled with the kind of haunting truth and beauty that you knew instinctively. His music came straight from his soul by way of a kind heart, an honest mind, and a keen ear for the gentle blend of words and melody. He could bring you down to a place so sad that you felt like you...
Full Bio

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