John Prine | Tristan Peavey
Someone said John Prine was “too country for Bob Dylan and too folk for Johnny Cash”. I always thought of John Prine as “your favorite songwriter’s favorite songwriter”. He had a song for every feeling that someone was able to connect with. He never had a number one hit, he only won one grammy, but he wrote a catalogue of timeless songs that will resonate with generations to come.
I wish I could tell you that my mom was listen to John Prine songs while I was in the womb, but I didn’t find him until I was 19 years old. I was fresh out of my freshman year of college where I did nothing but listen to rap music at a fraternity house and skip class, so my dad thought it was best for me to spend a year at home. I was lucky enough to pick up a job at a restaurant a cousin of mine was opening up working as a line cook. I was mad, confused, and had no clue what I wanted to do with my life. I was sitting at home before work one day and somehow stumbled on a song called Angel from Montgomery. The man singing had a unique voice. I hadn’t ever heard anything like it. He didn’t have what most folks would call a great voice, but the lyrics stuck with me. I listened to it a couple more times then headed into work. We were catering a party that night, and I finished my prep work and had a couple hours to kill and I just sat at the bar and dove into his self titled album. Song after song on it just kept resonating with me. I quickly fell in love with is way of describing the human condition, with a song for every emotion I had ever felt, and songs for emotions I knew I would feel. Not long after, I found out the other guys working in the kitchen with me were all John Prine fans. We played a lot of John Prine in that kitchen. It became a comfort during a tough time in my life.
As I made my way through his catalogue, the old cliché of “he doesn’t have a bad song” was true for me. I couldn’t find a single one. As time went on, I started to realize how many of my favorite artists he had written songs for, had covered his songs, and claimed him to be a huge inspiration for them. He wrote “Never Even Called Me By My Name” for David Allan Coe, Johnny Cash covered Paradise and Sam Stone, George Strait had a number one hit with “I Just Want to Dance With You”. Sturgill Simpson, Tyler Childers, Jason Isbell, Justin Vernon, Kacey Musgraves, My Morning Jacket, The Avett Brothers, Old Crow Medicine Show, and countless others claim him as an inspiration.
I was fortunate enough to get to see him live once. I found out two days before the show he was playing in Meridian, MS from my sister. I immediately got a ticket and went to the show by myself. I was probably the youngest person in the crowd by 20 years. At 71 years old, John Prine played a two and a half hour show for a packed hall with more energy than most performers I had ever seen. He finished the show with one of my favorite songs, “Lake Marie”. As the final chorus ends and the band comes to a crescendo, John Prine dances off the stage and the crowd cheered and clapped for five minutes without stopping. Seeing my favorite performer in person just once will always be one of my favorite memories.
John Prine’s music impacted countless lives. He could make you laugh and cry in the same song in a way that I have never heard anyone else do. John Prine just passed away from complications with COVID-19 a few hours ago. I felt like I should write something for the artist that impacted more than any other. In his final album, The Tree of Forgiveness, his last song was titled “When I Get to Heaven”. He sings:
And then I'm gonna get a cocktail, vodka and ginger ale
Yeah, I'm gonna smoke a cigarette that's nine miles long
I'm gonna kiss that pretty girl on the tilt-a-whirl
'Cause this old man is goin' to town
Smoke that nine-mile cigarette John.
Thank you for all the tears, laughs, and memories you’ve given me and everyone else. Y’all stay safe, stay indoors, and help slow the spread of this horrible virus.
