"Pancho & Lefty"

1972. Townes Van Zandt.

recorded it tonight about 1am...it's nearly 4am now. Can't switch the head off at the moment. This song has just seeped into my bloodstream over the last couple of days and I just had to purge myself. Warts, mistakes...just like the subject. Shucks, even took the hat off for this one. Seems there's just nowhere to hide when you try and sing "Pancho & Lefty"...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TO9NfapntZE

dedicated to the Cloverdale Kid.

So so so amazing. I have a soft spot for sad songs on the Ukulele (seems like more of a challenge don't it?) and you nailed this one mate- one of my all time favorite tunes, and the first one me and Mel learned in it's entirety.
Beautifully played and sung, and what a great song to run out when your head won't switch off. Hate to say it, but I am kind of glad it kept you up all night.
Thanks for this one (thanks for all of them)- it is fantastic.

My hat is off as well.

Awesomely done, sir!!! In addition to playing a truly lovely rendition, you once again show how eclectic and excellent your tastes are!

Great job.

I'm a big TVZ fan and this is one of his best..... you do it justice. It's hard to make his tunes sound heartfelt, I think, but I can tell you really got into this one. Lovely picking on the breaks, just great all around. Thanks very much for posting, have to come back to the well on this one.....

You are the man Eugene!! I am a TVZ fan myself. Very nicely done.

I saw this thread and thought "What could be better than Eugene doing this classic?" Wonderful.

First heard this done by Emmy Lou Harris. Great tune. Better than the one that was keeping ME up last night..

Jon, You never cease to amaze me. What a talented, humble man you are. Proud to be acquainted, my friend!

Allen

Jon, I got chills. I agree with TCK that slower sad songs are tougher to portray on this instrument. You sure did it. You da man!

Aloha Bruddah Eugene,
Another one you sneaked by me..almost missed it tonight...love that style you have and you have a very pleasing voice.....which makes any song you sing sound soo good..thank you for sharing..
MM Stan Take Care and Hope you feel better too..Many Blessings..

Quite simply superb!

Wow! That was touching! I learned to play Townes Van Zant's "Waiting Around To Die" which is another mighty sad song. I like playing the sad ones, even though I'm a happy-go-lucky guy.

that was a beautiful performance, you got lot of talent

Jon, I am speechless. Everyone else have said it all. Thank you for sharing with us. This one moved me to tears.

wow you guys. Thanks so so much from the bottom of my heart. Funny, you never really know how a song will sound to others...what works and what doesn't. Really wasn't expecting these kind of comments at all. I guess I always have a soft spot for these types ofsongs and sure can relate to Townes Van Zandt's stuff more than most. They are draining, emotionally, to play when your guts is in it...but I'm just so pleased that you guys seemed to pick up on that quiet desperation there.

It is a song that really fits well at the moment for me. There is much going on inside and out down here at the moment. Weird too, just to personalise it a little more, most of you know that TVZ had lung cancer which killed himin the end due to years of physical abuse of his body. My life may not be that extreme but it is very similar path, and I too am having some lung issues at the moment as a result of similar abuse. Thankfuly I recently gave up smoking and I hope that some repair can and will take place.

Just on the bridge melody... Though it's not part of the song, when I played it through just on the chords, it felt like it just needed something extra to give the song some light and shade...and melody. I guess I like to add some flavour like that to most songs I play, just to put an individual stamp on it and colour it up a bit. That melody line literally just happened. I sat down to record it and just started playing it. Weird how you can work for hours on a song and really struggle to make something up that fits, and then you can just start playing something and it happens. Played around with those notes for maybe 20 minutes and just recorded it once. few mistakes but no energy to do it again. The descending nature of that melody line works cause it kind of reflects the trajectory of the song I guess.

Sheez...I'm rambling again. Just wanted to say thanks everyone.

Aloha Eugene,
As with all health issues and the unknown..we all get excited and worried.. I feel your emotional unrest...Hope you get some rest and play your uke for distraction until you get the results..
and hope it is nothing too serious.. Take Care and God's Blessings...Sending the hawaiian healing vibes your way...to Tassie mate... MM Stan