At My Window

Townes Van Zandt

Product Details

• Audio CD (December 1, 1992)
• Original Release Date: 1987
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Sugarhill
• ASIN: B000000EVY
• Also Available in: Audio Cassette  |  Vinyl
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #47,256 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com essential recording
The first and best album the late Texas singer-songwriter Townes Van Zandt made for Sugar Hill Records, this 1987 set mixes older material ("For the Sake of the Song") with fresh material (the instant classic "Buckskin Stallion Blues"). As is usually the case with Van Zandt albums, the originals shine. The funky "Ain't Leavin' Your Love" comes complete with an unlikely saxophone solo, while "Catfish Song" boasts the kind of gospel melody that marked this gentle, hard-living man as one of the finest songwriters to have ever worked in a country-folk vein. His voice--never the acquired taste of a Jimmie Dale Gilmore or Bob Dylan--had lost some of its certainty and range by this time. Fortunately, what's absent in reach is more than offset by a very appealing world-weary hue. This set features a raft of first-class supporting players, including bassist Roy Huskey Jr., fiddler Mark O'Connor, and guitarist Mickey White. Horn accents abound in the arrangements, and the whole session hangs together in a warm, rewarding way. Van Zandt's last studio album stands as his final bona fide classic. --Robert Baird

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A true masterpiece, August 13, 1999

By	Brian Watson (Texas) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This CD is one of the best from Townes in my opinion, and that's saying a lot. From beginning to end, virtually every song on this CD is alone worth the price of the CD. And although a lot of folks argue different viewpoints on the varying production qualities of Townes' recordings, to me this one is the best produced. Not too sparse, not overdone, but balanced very well between the excellent lyric representation and backing music. Even as a fan of many different styles of music, I highly, highly recommend it.

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This album just isn't getting enough reviews..., June 16, 2005

By	Glenn Fink (Arlington, VA United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This is one of my favorite albums of all time. It's a mellow one to be certain, but highly invigorating nonetheless.
Having heard Townes Van Zandt at length by chance - I had a friend with all original vinyl albums from the 70's and I sat and listened to all of them during a weekend stay - I went and got this, which I hadn't heard yet. While other reviewers are entitled to their opinion, I don't think the production on this album is marred - I think it's very restrained and quite well done. It's all acoustic instruments with some tasteful horn and string arrangements in a few spots, far more understated than they had been on the early Townes records (including For The Sake of The Song). This album is class, and practically every song is a mini masterpiece. While the amazon review mentions that Townes re-recorded old songs for the album, only one song is actually re-recorded - For The Sake Of The Song - and I think it's an improvement over the original, which suffered from overproduction in its original form.
Townes was one of the most gifted songwriters the USA has ever produced, and his catalogue is well worth investigating. This album (or perhaps Live at the Old Quarter) would not be a bad place to begin your foray into this man's career. Thanks Townes, for writing such excellent material and treating it right.

9 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Jack Clement at it again..., June 12, 2002

By	Jason Kennedy (Fort Worth, Texas) - See all my reviews

Well, tarnishing Townes' first album, For the Sake of the Song, with overproduction and inappropriate arrangements was not enough for Cowboy Jack. No, he had to do the same thing, although in a little different manner, with different instruments, to At My Window. Before, it was mostly drums and percussion. This time Clement enlists the aide of the sax and flute and uses them in very distasteful arrangements. Almost every song after track 3 is marred. Clement should have learned his lesson the first time-Townes's songs should stand on their own. However, the poor production does not completely destroy the album and Townes songs still shine, albeit with just a little less lustre. While I wouldn't use this album to initate a new TVZ fan, it is still a welcome addition to the TVZ catalogue.