To Live's to Fly: The Ballad of the Late, Great Townes Van Zandt [Hardcover]

John Kruth (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 5, 2007

At last, the authorized biography of Townes Van Zandt (1944-1997), who wrote such unforgettable songs as “Pancho & Lefty” and “If I Needed You.” Born to a wealthy oil family in Ft. Worth, Texas, hounded by alcoholism and an unshakable depression, Van Zandt pursued a nomadic existence following his muse, whatever the cost to himself, friends, and family. Based on exclusive interviews with everyone who knew Van Zandt, including his best friend Guy Clark and colleagues like Steve Earle and John Prine, To Live’s To Fly is a compelling portrait of a complex, haunted artist.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Finally, the first official biography of singer-songwriter Townes Van Zandt (1944-1997) arrives; unfortunately, the life story of this troubled Texas troubadour is nearly as grueling to read as it was for Van Zandt to live. Kruth (Bright Moments: The Life and Legacy of Rahsaan Roland Kirk) deserves credit for interviewing scores of family members, friends and associates, but his efforts are diminished by oddly alternating first- and third-person narratives, awkward transitions and text cluttered with excessive quotes. In addition, many anecdotes and quotes from Van Zandt lack attribution. That said, Kruth (a veteran musician himself) shines when providing perspective on the evolving American folk scene and in dissecting numerous albums (some issued after Van Zandt's New Year's Day death at age 52). To be sure, Van Zandt's outrageous penchant for gambling, alcohol and women, not to mention his irresponsible career management, make him a less-than-sympathetic character; more insight into why-rather than countless tales of how-would have made this bio a more worthwhile read.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

Not unlike fellow alt-country inspiration Gram Parsons, Townes Van Zandt was born rich yet became an iconic country singer and countercultural hero. Discovering Leadbelly, Mance Lipscomb, and Lightnin' Hopkins at an early age, he was an ardent "Elvis fan and a good Elvis mimic" to boot. Recognized reasonably widely as "a living legend, albeit more often than not an unknown one," he got fellow alt-country icon Steve Earle's nod as "the best songwriter in the world," which sentiment Earle said he'd "stand on Bob Dylan's coffee table and say." Van Zandt famously replied, "I've met Bob Dylan's bodyguards and if Steve Earle thinks he can stand on Bob Dylan's coffee table, he's sadly mistaken." Self-deprecating, wistful, haunted by a rasher of demons, Van Zandt died young, leaving behind such songs as Willie Nelson's hit "Pancho & Lefty" and influencing many younger performers. Kruth's enthusiasm for Van Zandt is obvious throughout his detail-laden yet very readable book, which well might revive Van Zandt's memory. Mike Tribby
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 344 pages
• Publisher: Da Capo Press (March 5, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0306815532
• ISBN-13: 978-0306815539
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.1 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (19 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #131,895 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #17 in Books > Biographies & Memoirs > Arts & Literature > Composers & Musicians > Country & Folk

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A bumpy ride, but worth the fare., May 12, 2007

By 

D. V. Beck "DVB" (Minneapolis) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

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This review is from: To Live's to Fly: The Ballad of the Late, Great Townes Van Zandt (Hardcover)

Hang in there with this one. Kruth gets off to a shaky start, with one early chapter consisting entirely of an account of a drunken Guy Clark essentially telling the author to go to hell. But the narrative acquires power and tragic beauty as one of the most talented songwriters of all time slowly destroys himself with alcohol and drugs. The end of Van Zandt's life will look all too familiar to anyone who's ever watched an alcoholic ride the disease to the end of the line - the sheer horror of reaching the point where he can't continue to drink, and can't quit drinking, either. If you haven't already done so, you may want to steep yourself in Van Zandt's music before you read To Live's to Fly. Besides being required for anyone who gives a damn about the art of songwriting, I'm pretty sure this is a prerequisite to sticking out this tale to the bitter end.

14 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Valuable only for the Missing Years 1975-1983 Chapters, November 18, 2007

By 

King of the Gypsies "King of the Gypsies" (The Romanian Mountains) - See all my reviews

This review is from: To Live's to Fly: The Ballad of the Late, Great Townes Van Zandt (Hardcover)

Ummm.... I just read this book cover to cover on a plane from Atlanta to San Francisco. I should say, I am a long time Townes fan, I own it all. I had the pleasure of meeting Townes once, a wonderful experience.

I did not get the sense the author was even a fan of Townes music. Also, I don't think he understood the depth and beauty of Townes lyrics. Several major pieces in Townes canon were neglected, such as his masterpiece, the song "High, Low, & In Between", or the latter day piece "Cowboy Junkies Lament", the author talked about the song, but not the lyric itself. Several song lyrics were misquoted, or labeled wrong.

The part about Guy Clark.... it felt like the author was trying to gain credibility by letting the reader know how hard it was to gain Guy Clark's trust (Guy was a life long friend of Townes, and a brilliant songwriter). In fact, if seemed Guy decided to contribute next to nothing, other than that one scene, and I would bet money Guy did not like the way he was presented. In fact, Guy Clark's wife refused to speak to the author, and she spoke to Townes on the phone everyday.

Also, entire passages in the book were lifted from Townes in between song talking, him in his own words, yet they were not credited as such.

The book also dwelt on the liquor and drugs. The songs it spoke of were the obvious ones. I feel an artist like Townes deserves better than this.

The one redeeming factor is that the book filled in a lot of the details from the "Missing Years" 1975 to 1983, when Townes disappeared from sight. This was a real gem, this history that had been lacking for so long.

If you want to know about Townes find a copy of "Last Rights" or the UK Version called "Documentary". A radio interview with Townes telling stories, and him singing his songs in between.

The "Old Quarter" is good, but "Live at Union Chapel" is better, and "Live and Obscure" is breathtaking. The studio records never quite worked, Townes was best live.

This book is not the last word on Townes, not by a long shot.

15 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars A lackluster effort based on even less research, April 3, 2007

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Folk Music Fan - See all my reviews

This review is from: To Live's to Fly: The Ballad of the Late, Great Townes Van Zandt (Hardcover)

The excitment I had when I got my hands on a copy of the new TVZ book matched the disappointment I suffered as I read through it. I did read the entire book - in part out of dumb dedication to my favorite songwriters & in part hoping that the book would improve. This book doesn't flow; it is a collage of events & quotes loosely organized by topic. Many of the quotes are identical to those printed in the 1970's issue limited edition songbook with this book failing to give credit to the primary source (perhaps appropriately so, but I have my doubts). The author's interpretations of certain songs are questionable in most cases and dead wrong in one specific case. Perhaps due to the author's clearly northwestern attitude towards Texas music or maybe because of his awkward writing style, several people of great significance in TVZ's life refused to provide interviews for this book. It is extremely telling that Susanna Clark refused as she was his best friend & closest confidant who knew him better than any of us. Though it is hard to recommend this book, it does aggregate a lot of quotes and anecdotes about Townes life in one place and that is helpful. The mediocre quality of writing, lack of primary research, and typical New York attitude do the memory of Townes a great disservice.