dhanners623 Posted June 7, 2021 Share Posted June 7, 2021 (edited) Been awhile since I posted anthing; it has been a hectic couple of months. Now living in Manchester UK, maybe permanently. Anyway, this is a tune I've been kicking around in one form another for a couple of years. It is about Blanche Barrow. Wife of Buck Barrow. Sister-in-law of Clyde Barrow, as in "Bonnie and Clyde." By all accounts, she was the only member of the Barrow Gang who wasn't a psychopath. She also was the only member of the gang to live to old age, dying at 77 in Dallas in 1988. There's no indication she ever even held a gun. She was sentenced to 10 years in prison as an accessory, but she was out in five. I've toyed with this song in first-person, but I'm a guy singing as a woman and it just doesn't work. (Yeah, John Prine pulled it off in "Angel From Montgomery" but a) he was John Prine and b) literally the first words of the song are, "I am an old woman...") This version is in third-person, which I think works. Figured my J-35 reissue would work well on the tune. Clyde and Bonnie met their end in 1934; two years later, the first J-35s emerged from Kalamazoo. Edited June 7, 2021 by dhanners623 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robroy Posted June 7, 2021 Share Posted June 7, 2021 That’s a great song, thanks for sharing ! I live in France if you’re ever over here look me up. cheers Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dhanners623 Posted June 8, 2021 Author Share Posted June 8, 2021 13 hours ago, robroy said: That’s a great song, thanks for sharing ! I live in France if you’re ever over here look me up. cheers Thanks! Re: France. Will do. What are the gigging opportunities there for Americana/folk music? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robroy Posted June 8, 2021 Share Posted June 8, 2021 1 hour ago, dhanners623 said: What are the gigging opportunities there for Americana/folk music? Actual paying gigs are scarce but I live in wine country near Bordeaux and usually get paid with a case of wine which works for me. People seem to like American music. cheers Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BoSoxBiker Posted June 8, 2021 Share Posted June 8, 2021 (edited) That was a very good listen. I think the perspective choice you made was a good one. I was thinking of the last line repeated, changed for perspective of course, and it only could be sung by a female. Not anything political, but she was a she, and the woe and sorrow would have to be convincing. Musically, it sounded like you did something just a little different. No idea what it was. It sounded nice is all I know. Edited June 8, 2021 by BoSoxBiker Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ratherbwalkn Posted June 8, 2021 Share Posted June 8, 2021 Good one, thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dhanners623 Posted June 8, 2021 Author Share Posted June 8, 2021 Thanks, all. I appreciate it. Living in Kuwait and then Cyprus, gigging opportunities were few and open mics were extremely rare. When I lived in the U.S., I could workshop a new song at an open mic and tell in a couple of minutes whether a song worked or not. Without those opportunities, my songwriting kind of hit a feedback loop. I had very little outside input, so I appreciate any insights, pro or con, that you guys have. Living in Manchester, I'm hoping there'll be more opportunities to play out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lars68 Posted June 9, 2021 Share Posted June 9, 2021 United or City? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dhanners623 Posted June 9, 2021 Author Share Posted June 9, 2021 7 minutes ago, Lars68 said: United or City? I’ve been asked that several times and have to admit I don’t follow football, yet — even though my stepson who lives here actually played pro soccer in the U.S. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lars68 Posted June 9, 2021 Share Posted June 9, 2021 (edited) 3 hours ago, dhanners623 said: I’ve been asked that several times and have to admit I don’t follow football, yet — even though my stepson who lives here actually played pro soccer in the U.S. Football and music might very well be the two topics to master, if you wan’t to fit in with the locals. I’ve only been to Manchester once, but that city has had a great impact on my life. I follow United closely and have been a HUGE fan of The Smiths since 1983 (even though the singer Morrissey has turned out to be pretty much a moron in the last couple of years…). I’ll give the song a listen when I get a chance. Lars Edited June 9, 2021 by Lars68 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lars68 Posted June 9, 2021 Share Posted June 9, 2021 David, I just listened a couple of times and I now remember having heard this before. You must have posted a version of this song earlier. You might have changed the lyrics or the melody some, but I remember the storyline. Either way, I really like how it flows and how you tell the story. Very engaging, and I like how you decided not to go the “easy” route with a “Bonnie & Clyde” song. Didn't we talk about the recent Netflix movie with Kevin Costner about Bonnie and Clyde last time you posted this song? I think we did, but if not, and you haven't seen it, it's great! Lars Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dhanners623 Posted June 9, 2021 Author Share Posted June 9, 2021 4 hours ago, Lars68 said: David, I just listened a couple of times and I now remember having heard this before. You must have posted a version of this song earlier. You might have changed the lyrics or the melody some, but I remember the storyline. Either way, I really like how it flows and how you tell the story. Very engaging, and I like how you decided not to go the “easy” route with a “Bonnie & Clyde” song. Didn't we talk about the recent Netflix movie with Kevin Costner about Bonnie and Clyde last time you posted this song? I think we did, but if not, and you haven't seen it, it's great! Lars As I said, it is a tune I've been kicking around for awhile, so there are (or were) other versions out there. The previous versions have all been first-person. And this one has a new verse or two and other verses have been combined or condensed. All in all, I consider it a fairly significant rewrite. Still haven't seen the movie, but we have it saved in our Netflix queue. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rbpicker Posted June 10, 2021 Share Posted June 10, 2021 Well done David. Good storytelling. Thanks for posting this. roger Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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