when i'm not doing foxymorons stuff i make web pages at a place called echomusic here in nashville. most of the time i do sites for regional independent artists but every once in a while i do a site for a more established artist. this fall i'm gonna be doing a website for guy clark. he's a texas singer/songwriter legend along the lines of willie nelson, towns van zant, and steve earle. you know, those rebel country dudes of the 70's that broke all the slick country pop rules of the day. this week i got to go over to guy's house and talk about the website. it was really interesting to me so i thought i'd share it with you.

my boss and i hop in the car and start driving toward west nashville. that's my hood! i ask him where guy lives and he tell me "over by target." target? i was thinking we'd be driving into the country or something. he was on the cover of no depression last month and read some of the article. i just assumed he'd be out in the sticks writing songs and making guitars. it turns out he lives in a regular neighborhood probably slapped together in the 80's. i figured, since he's living here he'll at least have a big texas truck out front. nope. just a regular old oldsmobile from the early 90's.

when we get to the front door there's a note scribbled on the glass that says come downstairs. we barge in and head downstairs. he meets us at the bottom. he's much taller and skinny than i imagined. i guess about my height in fact. he immediately guides us back upstairs for coffee. on the way to kitchen i see a familiar painting. the blue shirt painting from the cover of old number one. there it was, hanging in the hallway. that was kinda surreal. the house isn't terribly clean and it definitely reeked of cigarette smoke. guy holds a coffee cup under the hot water for about a minute. he's very slow and deliberate in his words and actions.