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John Townes Van Zandt (1944 - 1997), best known as Townes Van Zandt, was a country-folk music singer-songwriter, performer and poet. Many of his songs, including "If I Needed You," "To Live Is To Fly," and "No Place to Fall" are considered standards of their genre. AllMusic has called him "one of the greatest country and folk artists of his generation."While alive, Van Zandt was labeled as a cult musician: though he had a small and devoted fanbase, he never had a successful album or single and even had difficulty keeping his recordings in print. In 1983 Willie Nelson and Merle Haggard covered his song "Pancho and Lefty", scoring a number one hit on the Billboard country music charts. Despite achievements like these, the bulk of his life was spent  touring various dive bars, often living in cheap motel rooms, backwoods cabins and on friends' couches. Van Zandt was notorious for his drug addictions, alcoholism and his tendency to tell tall tales. He suffered from manic depression and attempts to treat it with insulin shock therapy erased much of his long-term memory.Van Zandt died on New Year's Day 1997 from health problems stemming from years of substance abuse. The 2000s saw a resurgence of interest in Van Zandt. During the decade, two books, a documentary film and a number of magazine articles about the singer were created. Van Zandt's music has been covered by such notable and varied musicians as Bob Dylan, Lyle Lovett, Norah Jones, Steve Earle and The Meat PuppetsRecorded at the Blue Union Cafe, Norman, Oklahoma. Truly one of the greatest live recordings of Townes Van Zandt with his renowned band members Danny "Ruester" Rowland (lead acoustic guitar) originally from Guy Clark's band, Jimmie Gray (bass and vocals) from Waylon Jennings band the Waylors, and Owen Cody (violin/fiddle) from Billy Joe Shaver's band. This album was Tower Records Store magazine "Pulse" # 1 folk album of 1997.1. ) Pancho And Lefty2. ) If I Needed You3. ) For The Sake Of The Song4. ) Our Mother The Mountain5. ) To Live Is To Fly6. ) Lungs7. ) Flying Shoes8. ) No Place To Fall9. ) Dollar Bill Blues10. ) White Freightliner Blues11. ) Tecumseh Valley12. ) Don You Take It Too Bad13. ) Tower Song14. ) Rex's Blues15. ) Brother Flower16. ) Waitin' Round To Die17. ) Colorado GirlMet dank aan Motormuijs