Townes is sitting on the front steps of his home, petting his eager dog, Geraldine.
"I had this interview in North Carolina," Townes says, "with this guy who went to high school and worked part time for the local radio station. He was real nervous and didn't know how to work his cassette (recorder) and was running out of tape. I told him, 'I tell you what. I'll tell you a question to ask me, and you ask me that question. And right before you ask I'll flip on the cassette, and then you ask the question and as soon as I'm through answering you flip it off and we'll save tape.' He says, 'Okay, that's a good idea.' So he had it all ready, and I said 'Ask me if I have any interest in botany.' He says, 'Botany?' and I said, 'Yeah, botany. Ready, go!'
"And he says, 'Mr. Van Zandt, are you interested in botany?' And I said, 'Nope' and he flipped it off. I said, 'Ask me if I'm interested in aviation. Go!' 'Are you interested in aviation Mr. Van Zandt?' 'Nah.' It went on like that until the Baptist preacher whose office that was--we were using it as a dressing room--came and made me clean up all the wine bottles." getLevitation: Townes Van Zandt