Townes Van Zandt - Pancho & Lefty (Official Audio)

Поділитися
Вставка
  • Опубліковано 23 гру 2024

КОМЕНТАРІ • 88

  • @skianddie
    @skianddie 10 місяців тому +17

    First heard around the campfire by a great guitar player and kayaker...alongside the river. My man has passed, now I will play this forever.

  • @NoName-cz3wn
    @NoName-cz3wn 9 місяців тому +24

    For all the sound-alike modern "country" singers, Townes voice isn't a dime a dozen, its 1 in 10000

  • @yungbayes6314
    @yungbayes6314 7 місяців тому +25

    it's weird when you realize this is your comfort song

    • @spladam3845
      @spladam3845 7 місяців тому +5

      Both versions have become my comfort song since my mom died. I don't even know why.

  • @retriever19golden55
    @retriever19golden55 2 роки тому +92

    A song that will last as long as people have voices to sing it. Perfect, Townes...rest in peace. Man, we miss you.

    • @jaredyandell1220
      @jaredyandell1220 Рік тому +7

      This was played at my dad’s funeral I picked it out for him

  • @andybarrett9887
    @andybarrett9887 11 місяців тому +47

    God, I love this song - and this is THE version

    • @Nick1921945
      @Nick1921945 9 місяців тому +3

      This is the best version for sure. soo good.

    • @agneshelary7658
      @agneshelary7658 3 місяці тому

      look at Jason Isbell's one.....

    • @reserrvoirman
      @reserrvoirman 2 місяці тому

      I like Townes version

  • @MichaelShook-x3p
    @MichaelShook-x3p 9 місяців тому +12

    Wow. Just drop dead stunning. Man, this guy was something else.

  • @nowthenzen
    @nowthenzen 10 місяців тому +13

    a master piece written and sung by it's master

  • @Blackrockjazzclub
    @Blackrockjazzclub Місяць тому +2

    You get pretty comfortable up on that coffee table once you've listened to a few of Townes's tracks.

  • @glidershower
    @glidershower Рік тому +20

    Amazing song. Thru listening one can make out the traitor was Lefty, and that Lefty is the singer himself, now feeling depressed in old age, and living alone and tormented with guilt, hoping to feel some redemption by at least not letting Pancho's story be forgotten every time he sings it.
    _But that's the way it goes. . ._

    • @Dostradamas
      @Dostradamas Рік тому +4

      Interesting take
      I always saw it as though losing his reckless partner was his slow death sentence

  • @Johnstone72
    @Johnstone72 10 місяців тому +8

    From when its deep down from a soul. There for all the honest world to feel. Perfect.

  • @kenneththompson8933
    @kenneththompson8933 Рік тому +14

    A song for all outsiders, the lonely & misunderstood. Outlaws till the end..

    • @paradisepipeco
      @paradisepipeco 4 місяці тому

      *_"We learned more from a three minute record.....than we ever learned in school"_*
      ~~ Bruce Springsteen

  • @4brens
    @4brens 6 місяців тому +14

    Sad when you hear at the end that very few are in the audience. He was tragically overlooked all due to his personal inner conflicts and subsequent erratic career path. Truly one of the greats.

    • @paradisepipeco
      @paradisepipeco 4 місяці тому +3

      Therein lies the inherent romance that distinguishes what we call "folk" music from rock, my friend. The say the word "melancholy" is a kind of joy rooted in sadness, like the memory of a loved one lost after the worst of the grief subsides.
      The sparsity of the crowd is consistent and in synchronistic harmony with the topic and tao of this song, as is the premature loss of the songsmith himself. Rest in great power, Townes. Namaste.
      *_"We learned more from a three minute record.....than we ever learned in school"_*
      ~~ Bruce Springsteen

  • @watching7721
    @watching7721 Рік тому +31

    This is a song where the greatness is obvious. In my opinion it's the singing that propels it to it's amazing quality

    • @artis1969
      @artis1969 Рік тому +4

      I came to Townes by way of punk rock. Among others, Joe Strummer from the Clash was a huge aficionado of American roots, spaghetti westerns and country. He originally named himself Woody in his early days in tribute to Woody Guthrie. I'm a sucker for a melody and a great hook as well. Townes has to be up among the greatest pure songwriters ever. When a song can make genres and styles obsolete, it's a great song. I wish I'd found him sooner.

    • @marionapoleoni4502
      @marionapoleoni4502 Рік тому +2

      Wow. Your reply was SO well written. I mean that . Townes is something special. All Time top 2 or 3 probably 1.
      This song/recording is the best thing ever laid to tape.

  • @MrNewman46
    @MrNewman46 Рік тому +8

    The genius who wrote the best song in country music....ty townes

    • @paradisepipeco
      @paradisepipeco 4 місяці тому

      The song far transcends any genre.

  • @kyleshiflet9952
    @kyleshiflet9952 Рік тому +14

    So the story ends, we're told, " My favorite lyric in history it convays so much in just a few words

  • @rottenbeggar
    @rottenbeggar 2 роки тому +18

    The picasso of song 🎵 😍 👌

    • @marionapoleoni4502
      @marionapoleoni4502 Рік тому +3

      A Dutch Master (Renaissance).

    • @paradisepipeco
      @paradisepipeco 4 місяці тому +1

      Well stated, my friend. A much underrated comment, indeed. _(check my pages.)_

    • @paradisepipeco
      @paradisepipeco 4 місяці тому +1

      @@marionapoleoni4502
      Well stated. Have a cigar.

  • @DaveA7
    @DaveA7 Рік тому +21

    This is the best version of this song I have ever heard. People, please comment below if you think there's a better version and paste the link.

    • @timbaker4253
      @timbaker4253 Рік тому +6

      Willie Nelson and Merle Haggard take this song to another level

    • @angieheadlee5045
      @angieheadlee5045 Рік тому +8

      @@timbaker4253 Agree, there has never been a better version. It's magic..

    • @rmenezes08
      @rmenezes08 Рік тому +11

      @@timbaker4253 To each its own. I much more like this song stripped down and accompanied by the fiddle like this. Merle and Willie's sound too overproduced and pop-y for the tale they are telling.

    • @DaveA7
      @DaveA7 Рік тому +8

      @@timbaker4253 As much as I like Willie and as much as I do appreciate a good cover, nobody can play any song by Townes as good as Townes. This is the best version of this song.

    • @joejones9520
      @joejones9520 Рік тому +9

      i prefer the clip of him performing it from movie heartworn highways.

  • @asceticblur
    @asceticblur Рік тому +6

    Rest In Peace Townes.

  • @МихаилСергопольцев
    @МихаилСергопольцев 2 роки тому +50

    Living on the road my friend
    Was gonna keep you free and clean
    Now you wear your skin like iron
    Your breath's as hard as kerosene
    You weren't your mama's only boy
    But her favorite one it seems
    She began to cry when you said goodbye
    And sank into your dreams
    Pancho was a bandit boys
    His horse was fast as polished steel
    Wore his gun outside his pants
    For all the honest world to feel
    Pancho met his match you know
    On the deserts down in Mexico
    Nobody heard his dying words
    That's the way it goes
    All the federales say
    They could have had him any day
    They only let him hang around
    Out of kindness I suppose
    Lefty he can't sing the blues
    All night long like he used to
    The dust that Pancho bit down south
    Ended up in Lefty's mouth
    The day they laid poor Pancho low
    Lefty split for Ohio
    Where he got the bread to go
    There ain't nobody knows
    All the federales say
    They could have had him any day
    They only let him slip away
    Out of kindness I suppose
    The poets tell how Pancho fell
    Lefty's livin' in a cheap hotel
    The desert's quiet and Cleveland's cold
    So the story ends we're told
    Pancho needs your prayers it's true,
    But save a few for Lefty too
    He just did what he had to do
    Now he's growing old
    A few gray federales say
    They could have had him any day
    They only let him go so wrong
    Out of kindness I suppose

  • @cowboyschad5x778
    @cowboyschad5x778 Рік тому +4

    That’s Real Music.

  • @DrMatey215
    @DrMatey215 2 роки тому +7

    Pure American! The Best!

  • @ophergoodwin9236
    @ophergoodwin9236 Рік тому +6

    Honest and pure. Thank you.

  • @johnfitzgerald9245
    @johnfitzgerald9245 2 місяці тому

    I keep listening to this song on repeat. My very own "Lefty"-- he was left-handed, not really having anything else in common with the Lefty in the song-- passed away. He was Lefty and his brother or friend or whoever he was with at the moment was Pancho. It was our inside joke and now it'll never be shared between us again. This song brings up both happiness and grief for me and that's just the way it goes.

  • @SterbiusMcGurbius
    @SterbiusMcGurbius 2 роки тому +10

    Townes Van Zandt was such an amazing songwriter.

  • @gabrielgilliland
    @gabrielgilliland 2 роки тому +14

    Favorite song and recording of all time. Nothing has ever brought me this much nostalgia for no reason

  • @tomtealmoor
    @tomtealmoor 2 роки тому +6

    unbelievable. love u townes.

  • @richardstones6445
    @richardstones6445 Рік тому +8

    "Townes Van Zandt is the best songwriter in the whole world and I'll stand on Bob Dylan's coffee table in my cowboy boots and say that." - Steve Earle.
    "I've met Bob Dylan and his bodyguards, and I don't think Steve could get anywhere near his coffee table." - Townes Van Zandt.
    (Seen on the Martin Guitar Forum by Robert Earl Keen Jr)

    • @paradisepipeco
      @paradisepipeco 4 місяці тому

      Thanks for posting. Your comment is as true as the song itself. _(try my pages.)_

  • @giovannimazzucchelli7487
    @giovannimazzucchelli7487 4 місяці тому +1

    the best storyteller I've ever heard

  • @marionapoleoni4502
    @marionapoleoni4502 Рік тому +2

    The pinnacle of everything. Greatest song and performance ever. TVZ

  • @MadMan731
    @MadMan731 Рік тому +2

    One of the great country artists

  • @aint_no_noise
    @aint_no_noise Рік тому +7

    So glad I started listening to townes. I had his name mixed up with another artist I don’t really care for. Buddy of mine played this at an open mic and it touched me. Obsessed since.
    ‘nobody heard is dying words’
    really is the ‘way it goes’ huh?

  • @noneyaas2669
    @noneyaas2669 2 роки тому +5

    Miss yah man

  • @susanvannorden6845
    @susanvannorden6845 11 місяців тому +1

    Only Townes

  • @Jonathan-mt9up
    @Jonathan-mt9up 9 місяців тому

    Love this version. The guitar work is outstanding. I think it may be two guitars.

    • @paradisepipeco
      @paradisepipeco 4 місяці тому

      I began as a pro player in my teens in Hollywood, in '67, doing backing acoustic work. I almost destroyed myself learning the guitar part to Judy Collins' "Suzanne" _(Leonard Cohen)._ I didn't learn until much later that it was two guitars on the record. _(But by doing so, I got a gig backing Mary McCaslin, who really NEVER needed additional backing.)_
      I can't be 100% sure, but I think this is likely one guitar, with a very unique touch. Based upon his mastery of songwriting, I believe anything was possible with this guy. Although this kind of picking is a specialty of mine and I could probably replicate this with one guitar upon my first try, I still can't be sure.
      I might be more certain if I was more familiar with Townes guitar playing and his live performances, however; but sadly, I am not. I haven't listened to much of him, I am a bit embarrassed to admit. I intend to rectify this oversight this very day, however. _(try my pages)_
      A perfect performance of a perfect song.
      _(P.S. I left a comment for you on "Father Christmas".)_

    • @paradisepipeco
      @paradisepipeco 4 місяці тому

      I posted a couple of days ago, I listened to some more Townes. I believe you are correct, we are probably hearing a second acoustic guitar on this track. I have also heard some of your playing, and you're a fine player, with a gift for choice of material. Namaste.

  • @burchgraphic662
    @burchgraphic662 Місяць тому +1

    🎉❤

  • @eduardoantunes3339
    @eduardoantunes3339 6 місяців тому

    Grande trovador

  • @billhudgens8111
    @billhudgens8111 2 місяці тому

    Anyone know who the fiddler player is? Beautiful playing.

  • @targettwentyone
    @targettwentyone Рік тому +1

    Dreams

  • @ruthdixon7807
    @ruthdixon7807 Рік тому +1

    it was emmylou harris' cover that brought van zandt his first real recognition.

    • @andybarrett9887
      @andybarrett9887 11 місяців тому +1

      Emmylou has always had immaculate taste

  • @gerardpascazio6938
    @gerardpascazio6938 7 місяців тому

    Emmylou Harris with Willie Nelson is my favorite

  • @МихаилСергопольцев
    @МихаилСергопольцев 2 роки тому +11

    Разъезжая по дорогам, мой друг
    Сохранишь свободу и чистоту
    Одевшись во всё кожаное, как в броню
    Вдыхая её стойкий, как керосина, запах
    Он рос не только маменькиным сынком
    Но и, похоже, был её любимчиком
    Она заплакала, когда покинул он её
    И погрузилась в тяжкое раздумье
    Панчо прослывёт бандитом
    Конь под ним ретив, блестит как сталь
    Его кольт всегда готов
    Защищать малоимущих
    Знаешь, Панчо настигнут враги
    В пустыне на границе Мексики, где
    Никто не услышал его предсмертных стонов
    Вот как оно вышло
    Да, федералы утверждали
    Разделаться с ним легко могли
    Зачем они его повесили тогда
    Из доброты, я полагаю
    Левша не пел свой блюз в ту ночь
    Чтобы скоротать её
    Песок, что ветер с юга нёс
    Поскрипывал на зубах Левши
    На следующий день выследят бедного Панчо
    Когда Левша отправился в Огайо
    С намерением купить еды, чтобы уйти
    Туда, где их никто не сыщет
    Да, федералы утверждали
    Разделаться с ним легко могли
    Зачем они его повесили тогда
    Из доброты, я полагаю
    Поэты расскажут, как Панчо предан был Левшой
    Когда тот поселится в гостинице
    Безлюдной, как пустыня, холодной, как Кливленд
    И наш рассказ подошёл к концу
    И лишь молитва сейчас поможет Панчо
    О Левше время сохранит немногое
    Он просто сделал то, что сделал
    И вскоре о нём забудут
    Команда серых федералов утверждала
    Разделаться с ним легко могла
    Зачем было глумиться так
    Из доброты, я полагаю

    • @nealsonalhambra341
      @nealsonalhambra341 Рік тому +1

      The line "Where he got the bread to go" =/= "С намерением купить еды, чтобы уйти".
      "Bread" used here is an American slang word for "money".
      «Хлеб», используемый здесь, является американским жаргонным словом «деньги».

    • @brendancoburn427
      @brendancoburn427 Рік тому

      They didn't hang him...Lefty shot him, took the money (bread!) and fled to old age.

    • @paradisepipeco
      @paradisepipeco 4 місяці тому

      I did not know it was possible to add another facet, or vision to the narrative of this song, but you have in fact done so, by adding a vision of the poetic timeless beauty of the archtypical motorcycle ride.

  • @terrancestrickland8542
    @terrancestrickland8542 5 місяців тому +2

    One man two seperate entitities. Bi polar opposites. Pancho is Lefty as Lefty is Pancho.

  • @UCqkdtMiE5ZquD_lF9prae4Q
    @UCqkdtMiE5ZquD_lF9prae4Q Рік тому +1

    Lyrics:
    Livin on the road my friend is gonna keep you free and clean
    Now you wear your skin like iron
    Your breath as hard as kerosene
    You weren't your momma's only boy, but her favorite one it seemed
    She began to cry when you said goodbye
    And sank into your dreams
    Pancho was a bandit boy, his horse was fast as polished steel
    He wore his gun outside his pants
    For all the honest world to feel
    Pancho met his match, you know, on the deserts down in Mexico
    Nobody heard his dyin words, ah but that's the way it goes
    All the Federales say, they could've had him any day
    They only let him slip away, out of kindness, I suppose
    Lefty, he can't sing the blues all night long like he used to
    The dust that Pancho bit down south ended up in Lefty's mouth
    The day they laid poor Pancho low, Lefty split for Ohio
    Where he got the bread to go, there ain't nobody knows
    All the Federales say, they could've had him any day
    They only let him slip away, out of kindness I suppose
    The poets tell how old Pancho fell, and Lefty's livin in cheap hotels
    The desert's quiet, Cleveland's cold
    And so the story ends, we're told
    Pancho needs your prayers it's true, but save a few for Lefty too
    He only did what he had to do, and now he's growing old
    ll the Federales say, they could've had him any day
    They only let him go so long, out of kindness I suppose
    few gray Federales say, they could've had him any day
    They only let him go so long, out of kindness I suppose

    • @BiggHogg870
      @BiggHogg870 9 місяців тому

      Lol it's not today's gibberish rap They're pretty clear words.

  • @cotiaratv3651
    @cotiaratv3651 7 місяців тому

    🌹

  • @BrunoHerbert_
    @BrunoHerbert_ 10 місяців тому +2

    Essa música é sobre dois bandidos mexicanos que o compositor viu na TV, duas semanas depois ele escreveu a canção. A letra fala de um cowboy chamado "Lefty", que vendeu seu amigo de trilha "Pancho" por dinheiro e anistia. Mas as ações de Lefty pesam muito em sua consciência. Na velhice, ele é atormentado pela culpa e fica sozinho, sem nada para ocupar seu tempo a não ser orações por perdão e redenção.

  • @daisymaefrench4041
    @daisymaefrench4041 Рік тому +1

    It's nice to hear another version of this song specially since it was done by the writer. As for myself, I prefer Willie singing it along with Merle Haggard.

    • @coogrfan
      @coogrfan 10 місяців тому +1

      Their version is wonderful, and probably my second favorite behind TVZ.

  • @hughbarton5743
    @hughbarton5743 5 місяців тому

    It is said that we all die

    • @paradisepipeco
      @paradisepipeco 4 місяці тому

      _"We are but a moment's sunlight, fading in the grass"_

  • @paradisepipeco
    @paradisepipeco 4 місяці тому

    I know a little about songwriting _(check my pages)._ This is among the very few greatest and most profound songs ever written, along with anything by Dylan, Simon, Springsteen, Petty/Campbell, Lovett, Hank, Prine, et al.