-If you're looking for a collection that captures the breadth of Van Zandt's recording career, I'd recommend the double-disc "Texas Troubador" collection. If you're looking for a collection that captures the depth of his troubled soul, this is the one. Utterly beautiful in its darkness. Perhaps the most consistently eerie and true collection of TVZ yet released.
-Not sure i've ever heard music that was so mired in an unyielding hopelessness, but every now & again you'd see some light get through, and in those moments you felt really good because the bad moments were so bad. I can't sum up Townes Van Zandt any better than that. These aren't songs that are gonna lift you up and carry you away on angels' wings. These are songs about being just about as low as one can get among the living. And make no mistake, these aren't hokey blues numbers with clever turns of phrase and wry lyrics. The heartbreak and loneliness bleeds through the music and pours out from between some lyrics that might not seem all that depressing, if not for the musical delivery of a man beset on every side by the typical demons of 20th century America. It is said that Jay Farrar has been heavily influenced by TVZ, and i can see that. The world-weary warble of Jay's voice is heavily informed by Van Zandt's dusty drawl. But what Jay can't touch (and I'm admittedly a huge fan of Farrar) is the honestly hopeless yet fearless, almost gothic, tone that always seemed to come so naturally to Townes Van Zandt. It wasn't an act, it wasn't a put-on. As for this release, it's apparently a companion piece to a documentary film about the man, a work i have not seen but can believe in its vitality. The songs included on this 2-disc set seem chosen to accentuate the tragedy of the artist, and the bleak world he called home. It's as good an introduction as I can think of.
sold! Be Here to Love Me ~ Townes Van Zandt (Audio CD)