Guy Clark, Texas Troubadour Legend, Catches His Train - Plus, Guy Clark's 10 Greatest Songs5/19/2016  by Julian Spivey Singer-songwriter Guy Clark died at 74 on Tuesday (May 17) after a lengthy illness. His death obviously hasn’t gotten the same amount of attention as legends like Merle Haggard, David Bowie and Prince and never will, but in his circle of music (Texas country/Americana) Clark was a musical God. The term troubadour gets thrown around a little too much in music these days, but Guy Clark was a real-life troubadour who the New York Times referred to as “a king of the Texas troubadours” in the obituary published on Tuesday. There was Guy Clark, Townes Van Zandt and Jerry Jeff Walker. Names that might not be recognized by the majority of music listeners, but should be for one to truly consider themselves a true music lover, especially if a fan of singer-songwriter folk or Americana – which is what “Texas Country” really was in the mid-to-late ‘70s and into the ‘80s. Clark wrote songs that would become No. 1 hits in the ‘80s like “Heartbroke,” which Ricky Skaggs took to the top of the charts, and “She’s Crazy for Leaving,” which co-writer Rodney Crowell took to No. 1. He also wrote stuff covered brilliantly by the likes of The Highwaymen, Jerry Jeff Walker, Jimmy Buffett, Lyle Lovett, Vince Gill, Alan Jackson, Brad Paisley and many more. Known maybe more as a songwriter, it’s his own performances of these songs that might not be as well known, but almost always come off as the greatest versions. It’s no surprise that the originals often turn out to be the best versions, because you’re going to get a little more of the feeling and emotion behind the tunes coming from the scribe himself. What separates the good songwriters from the great and legendary ones like Clark is the ability to truly craft a complete short story to music. Few were better at this than Clark. Just listen to a song like “Desperadoes Waiting for a Train,” originally appearing via Jerry Jeff Walker’s cover on his 1973 album Viva Terlingua (a classic everyone should have), which tells a complete story of a boy and his hero from childhood all the way to adulthood when he watches his hero fade away. I’m not sure there’s ever been a greater song written about enjoying life and then watching it fade away. The song was inspired by a grandfather-like figure named Jack, who was the boyfriend of Clark’s grandmother. Oddly enough the storyline of “Desperadoes Waiting for a Train,” which was covered by the country music supergroup The Highwaymen (Johnny Cash, Willie Nelson, Waylon Jennings and Kris Kristofferson) and became a top 20 hit in 1985, is something that made me think of Clark’s last days. The imagery he was able to invoke in this song is truly like few others I’ve ever heard, which is why if I were to sit down and quickly compile a list of the 100 greatest songs ever written I’d probably include this piece of songwriting perfection. A week or two before Clark’s death I’d see an article on savingcountrymusic.com about how Clark wasn’t doing well health-wise and was living in an assisted living facility. This reminded me of how the hero fades away in the song: “The day before he died, I went to see him/I was grown and he was almost gone/So we just closed our eyes and dreamed us up a kitchen/And sang another verse to that old song/Come on, Jack, that son-of-a-bitch is comin’/We’re like desperadoes waiting for the train.” Guy Clark finally caught that train. 10 Favorite Guy Clark Songs10. "Texas Cookin'"
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