Throwback Thursday--Steve Forbert

On a warm spring night in 1978, I was riding through Jackson, Mississippi, in a Ford Econoline van, on my first road trip as a St. Louis University baseball player. I may have been the only player awake, aside from the driver. I was in a contemplative mood when a song came on the radio, a song that hit me in the gut.

Tonight I Feel So Far Away from Home had fairly simple lyrics, very simple chords, very little production--but a whole lot of truth--all the elements of a great song performed by a great singer-songwriter.

It turned out the radio was broadcasting a 30-minute feature on Steve Forbert who was described as the "next Bob Dylan." (Of course, that had been Bruce Springsteen's title only a few years previous.) The Dylan comparisons were easy to make--Forbert came through the folk tradition, playing acoustic guitar and harmonica. His lyrics ranged from simple to profound, sometimes covering this whole spectrum in one or two lines.

Forbert grew up in Meridian, Mississippi, and he started playing guitar at age 10. As a young adult, he worked as a truck driver and played local clubs. Frustrated with where his life was headed, he took off for New York and began playing for free at Grand Central Station. Gradually, he earned some gigs at local folk clubs and eventually opened for the Talking Heads at the famous CBGB club. He signed a recording contract with a division of CBS records.

His first album, Alive on Arrival, did fairly well. The songs described his experiences of moving to New York. One of my all-time favorite lines is from his song, Big City Cat, where he sings: "I'm getting so skinny, it hurts to sit down."

Forbert's next album included his most commercially successful song, Romeo's Tune, which reached number 11 on the Billboard Top 40. (More recently, Keith Urban covered this tune.)

He continued to write and record great songs, but as the 80s progressed, the interest in singer-songwriters began to diminish. Forbert eventually lost his recording contract, but he never quit performing.

In 1985, I was doing my psychology internship in Philadelphia and saw him perform live. I loved his energy and humor. He clearly enjoyed what he was doing. In the late 80's, I was pleasantly surprised to see him come onstage to open for Edie Brickell and the New Bohemians in St. Louis. He has never seemed intent on large commercial success and he continues to perform at small and medium size venues.

Click the video below to hear him perform Going Down to Laurel. This performance is from 2007, nearly 30 years after his first album was released.

Here are some samples of his lyrics:

Ain't no saint, and I don't pretend to be, But I hope you found a friend in me.----January 23-30, 1978

I been livin' an' breathin' in the rat trap town
Tryna get over where the wall breaks down
Holdin' my head up with my thin tired arms
And all my rainbow dreams. --Steve Forbert's Midsummer Night's Toast

There's so many depressions plowed in your brain, trace 'em too far and they'll drive you insane...You're twisted so tight now you hardly can talk, get out in the daylight and go for a walk.--Thinkin'

If I seem a little crazy, well it's just because I am...But that ain't no call to talk behind my back...Sometimes I go derailin' when it's chaos in my mind...But all in all my wheels are mostly on the track.--Settle Down

Throwback Thursday--The Smiths

Today, I'm writing about a band that was seriously underrated and never achieved the wide recognition in the United States that they deserved.


The Smiths came out of the British punk rock scene it the 80's and turned the genre upside down. The lead singer went by the singular name, Morrissey. Morrissey had a beautiful and unusual singing voice that was not easily forgotten. He also was an incredible lyricist--Noel Gallagher of Oasis called Morrissey "the most literate songwriter of all time." 


Morrissey has been described as a "mope poet"--a depressed guy who spent all his time writing poetry in his bedroom. This depiction is quite accurate. The Smiths were born when guitarist Johnny Marr knocked on Morrissey's door and suggested they start a band. The two had met several months earlier. Marr needed a lyricist and Morrissey needed someone to write music.


The Smiths are known for weaving together lyrics that combine hopelessness, anger and humor. The word sardonic fits. Depressing lyrics were paired with pleasant, even fun, melodies.


Some examples of lyrics:

• "I was looking for a job and then I found a job...Heaven knows I'm miserable now..."
• "If a ten ton truck crashes into us, to die by your side, is such a heavenly way to die."
• "I decree today that life is simply taking and not giving...England is mine, it owes me a living."
• "Spending warm summer days indoors, writing frightening verse to a buck-toothed girl in Luxembourg..."
• "Burn down the disco, hang the blessed DJ, because the music they constantly play says nothing to me about my life..."

Surprisingly, they also had an occasional pleasantly optimistic song. One of those was Ask.





Johnny Marr powered the group with his guitar, and Morrissey had a histrionic and flamboyant presence on the stage.


The Smiths did not last long--they recorded together for only about 5 years. But their influence was immense. In the 80's, there was a broad divide between punk and dance (usually involving synthetic drumbeats). The Smiths brought melody and sophistication to the punk, and meaningful lyrics to dance tunes.


As a testament to their influence, consider this--a precursor to today's popular band, The Gaslight Anthem, was a band called This Charming Man. Where did Brian Fallon get that name? From a Smiths' song.


Morrissey continues to perform as a solo artist. Until recently, Johnny Marr was part of the alternative band, Modest Mouse.


One more note--last summer, 500 Days of Summer was one of the top films of the season. The premise--a young man grew up depressed and hopeless, listening to The Smiths during his formative years. Then, he happens to meet a woman who loves The Smiths. In the film, Zooey Deschanel (of the movie, Elf, and of the musical duo, She and Him) covers The Smiths.

Spreading His Wings

I wrote this in June. Jesse is leaving for college this week, and I thought now is a good time to post this essay.

All across the country this summer, parents are accompanying their offspring to college orientations. These programs are designed for parents as much as for students, giving us practice at the next step in “letting go” of our kids.

As a psychologist, I have counseled many families in making this transition. I have frequently used the metaphor of birds building a nest, raising their young, and then watching them leave the nest.

A few years ago, we had a pair of robins build a nest on the basketball hoop right outside our breakfast room window. We watched the entire process unfold over a few weeks. It was bittersweet as we watched the youngsters fly away. The last one seemed determined to stay in the nest, but ultimately, he too found his wings.

For two steamy days this June, my wife and I accompanied our son to the University of Missouri. We tromped around campus in large groups, with parents and students separated for some programs, reunited for others.

It was hard to believe that, in just 8 weeks, this would become our son’s world. We alternated between excitement and anxiety. We flashed back to all the milestones over the past 18 years.

We attended programs on alcohol and drug abuse, student privacy rights, health issues—each session reminding us that our child is now considered by others, to be an adult. This same child had rarely even spent a night away from our home.

As the day was winding down, we felt some trepidation as Jesse would be spending his first night in the dorm. Both Barb and I felt unnamed and ambiguous emotions, but we did not speak about it, not wanting to bring forth these feelings.

As we walked with our group toward Jesse Hall, we noticed a tiny, seemingly helpless creature on the sidewalk.

This baby robin looked like it had a serious case of bed head. Its wings were small and undeveloped. It squawked at us and clearly did not even know how vulnerable it was. Barb looked at me and asked, “Shouldn’t we do something?”

I remembered reading that the mother bird stays nearby and may even continue to feed the little one.

I responded, “No, he’ll be okay.” Silently, I repeated that to myself.

Throwback Thursday--Suzanne Vega

I'm starting a recurring theme for my blog. Throwback Thursdays will feature brief tributes to some of my favorite musical artists. Today is Suzanne Vega. I bought her first self-titled CD just because it looked interesting. I loved the images in her lyrics and her simple singing style. She is best-known for the songs Luka and Tom's Diner. A little known fact is that Tom's Diner became the standard for developing the MP-3 recording format. Suzanne is still touring and recording today. Here is a video of her performing my favorite song of hers, Small Blue Thing. 

Lyrics:

Today I am
A small blue thing
Like a marble
Or an eye

With my knees against my mouth
I am perfectly round
I am watching you

I am cold against your skin
You are perfectly reflected
I am lost inside your pocket
I am lost against
Your fingers

I am falling down the stairs
I am skipping on the sidewalk
I am thrown against the sky

I am raining down in pieces
I am scattering like light
Scattering like light
Scattering like light

Today I am
A small blue thing
Made of china
Made of glass

I am cool and smooth and curious
I never blink
I am turning in your hand
Turning in your hand
Small blue thing

Music Revolution

A couple weeks ago, out of boredom, I "googled" my son, Jesse. Up popped several entries on a site called "bandcamp" that I assumed were for another Jesse. Upon further investigation, though, I found that my son had uploaded some of his original music to a website where the world could listen and download his songs for free.


I also found another online recording artist who credited Jesse for "producing the beats" for a song. I asked Jesse how he knew this other guy and he responded by saying he didn't know him--they had heard each other's music online and collaborated on a song.


This was one of those moments where I felt very old as I was hit with how quickly the world is changing. 


I grew up in a household with four older siblings. I can remember when The Beatles were on Ed Sullivan. It was only a few months later that my siblings saw the Fab Four at the new Busch Memorial Stadium in St. Louis. Back then, we had to wait for the occasional television performance to see our favorite musicians. We waited for the new album to come out to hear them. We generally bought albums because we heard the new hit single.


As I grew up, I got more and more into music. When I worked summers in the family business, I would buy a new album (or 8-track) every Friday. Sometimes I would buy something without ever having heard the artist, just because it looked interesting.


Nowadays, we can hear every song on an album before purchasing. We can watch performances for free on Youtube. 


Twenty years ago, musicians needed a major record label to be successful. That has totally changed. Artists can now promote themselves on MySpace and Facebook. They give away songs and videos to increase interest.


Beginning musicians can upload their music to internet sites and collaborate with people they have never met. Inexpensive technology and computers allow teens to utilize complicated production techniques in home recordings. Technology has "democracized" music recording. Anyone can write and record songs. Every artist can find an audience. 


Check out Jesse's newest original song--"The Dust Bowl." Jesse plays guitar and mandolin. He made the video from archival film footage.