Guy Clark has been one of the most revered songwriters for over forty years. Over the span of his career he has created a body of work using stories, vignettes, characters, and places in time; to create songs that personify the lens through which he observes the world. Many artists write songs with distinct lyrics, but in the great Guy Clark songs every single word is infused with meaning. Not verse by verse, but word by word his songs weave their way into the listener’s inner thoughts. At 71 he is a cancer survivor and recently lost his longtime wife and soul mate. Susanna Clark was often the subject of his songs (one of my favorites is “Baby Took a Limo to Memphisâ€). The title cut of his new album, “My Favorite Picture of Youâ€, is more than a tribute to her; it is a passionate message to her. In typical fashion he gives us a glimpse of her as a full person. A person who he loves, but he loves her whole nature. In fact to listen to the song, it seems it was taken on a day that she was annoyed at something he did. He is showing the reality of lasting relationships, at the most personal level. He loves her feisty side, as much as her soft side. I use the present tense because, though she is no longer with him, his love for her obviously is.
Shouldn’t Guy Clark be slowing down? It seems the answer is no. This new release contains a collection of songs that rank with any of his previous work. For example “Cornmeal Waltzâ€, takes us to a time of dancing in an old dance hall with fiddles playing. It is so perfectly described, you can almost see yourself there. “El Coyote†tells the true story of an unscrupulous trafficker of illegal aliens, who abandoned a truck filled with 18 people that suffocated in the dessert heat. It is told from the perspective of the victims and is a gut wrenching tale. “Good Advice†is a sarcastic tune everyone can relate to. “Funny thing about good advice, everybody’s got some. Good advice is hard to take and bad habits are hard to break…Don’t start preaching between the lines. Give me something that I can useâ€. Another stand out is “Rain in Durangoâ€. It is the story of a girl who is travelling and searching, and is on “the back side of wrong and the wrong side of goneâ€. The tracks on “My Favorite Picture of You†are as passionate and intentional as any he has previously penned. Guy Clark is part storyteller and part poet. He has few equals in either of the two facets. It also seems he has no intention of stopping.
About the author: Chip and his family live in Birmingham, AL. Roll Tide!