Today being the 14th anniversary of Townes Van Zandt's passing, I am going to take a look at his top twenty songs. I was only going to do ten, but it was hard enough narrowing it down to 20. They are in order, but that order might change from day to day.
If you have never listened to Townes, I implore you to take a few minutes and listen to some of these songs in their entirety. All of his work is available on iTunes and Amazon, so spring for a few bucks and make yourself a sampler. That's how I got started, and now I own everything he ever did in the studio and much of his live work.
20. Tower Song
19. Tecumseh Valley
18. At My Window
This is the first five minutes of the film "Be Here to Love Me." It's interesting because it is intercut with his early idea for the song. The actual song starts at about 1:00. Below is a live performance of the song.
17. A Song For
I actually prefer the studio version, but it won't allow embedding. But if you go to youtube, you can find it.
16. Colorado Girl
15. (Quicksilver Daydreams of) Maria
There are two studio versions of this. The best one isn't on youtube, but can be found on the album "Townes Van Zandt."
14. Brother Flower
13. Delta Momma Blues
12. Buckskin Stallion Blues
"This song is half about a horse and half about a girl...and I still miss the horse."
If you've read my previous post, you already know the name of the horse.
11. Rake
10. Mr. Mudd and Mr. Gold
Warning: Off Color Joke Precedes Song
9. Waiting Around to Die
8. Rex's Blues
7. For the Sake of the Song
The video lies. This version is from the album "Townes Van Zandt."
6. Only Him or Me
5. Flyin' Shoes
The studio version is on the album "Flyin' Shoes," and is really cool.
4. No Place to Fall
3. To Live is To Fly
2. Pancho and Lefty
Willie Nelson and Merle Haggard made this song a hit, but Townes wrote it.
1. If I Needed You
Emmy Lou Harris made this a hit, but Townes wrote it.
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