Townes Van Zandt
Rear View Mirror
Album · Folk · 1993
If you were lucky enough to stumble across master songwriter Townes Van Zandt in a small Texas club, here's how he sounded. The intimate setting, with just acoustic guitars and fiddle, makes this a prize for fans. Much of the set catches him in a romantic or philosophical mood. ("To Live’s to Fly" covers both.) "Pancho & Lefty" makes for an exuberant opener, but Van Zandt doesn't shy away from his darker side, wailing through the most disconsolate song in his catalogue: "Waitin' 'Round to Die".