A Guitar, A Stool, And A Cowboy Hat
Duo With Dartanyan
As I approach my fiftieth Substack post ( this is #49) I’ve been thinking about the special moments over the years where my path crossed with that of Dartanyan Brown. We first met during the Seventies while out entertaining small town Iowans on the Touring Arts Team, sponsored by the Iowa Arts Council. We would roll into these little towns with a van full of seven or eight artists and spend two days working with the local talent….sharing our knowledge of music, dance, puppetry, ceramics, poetry & painting. Dartanyan and I immediately clicked and would often share our performances, blending my folk and country style with his jazz, rock and blues roots. In 1981 we put together a duo performance at the Blanden Art Museum in Fort Dodge called Billy Buffalo meets Dr. Jazz.
1981 Dartanyan Brown & Shadric at the Blanden Art Museum.
Photo by Maxine Peet. Fort Dodge Messenger
It wasn’t until 2009 that we got a chance to follow up that performance with another show at the Blanden we dubbed Dr. Jazz Revisits Billy Buffalo. In preparation for this gig we recorded some tunes in my home studio, including one I had just written called A Guitar, A Stool, And A Cowboy Hat. He played some fine electric bass and I sang and played the guitar parts. It has to do with an aging musician who still wants to play some gigs, but just can’t handle the stress of keeping a bunch of band members happy. Here’s the tune:
1. A guitar, a stool and a cowboy hat, that’s all I need to put on my act
I used to take a whole band out on the road, but I’m gettin’ too tired, to carry that load
It’s back to the basics, the simplest way….a guy can still go out to sing and play….
A guitar, a stool and a cowboy hat.
2. My guitar’s a Martin, from ’72…the stool’s from Menards…it’s a little too new
The hat goes back to my ramblin’ days….it’s crinkled and dirty, like my rowdy ways
I still like to yodel…..occasionally….I’ll sing a little hillbilly harmony….
A guitar, a stool and a cowboy hat.
Bridge:
So let me take you with me on a trip outside the city in the cooling rain….
I’ll tell y’all a story ‘bout a boy who looked for glory and he tried in vain…
It’s a comfortable reminder that those days are all behind me….anyway
3. A guitar, a stool and a cowboy hat…that’s all I need to pull off my act
I’m makin’ money and I’m havin’ some fun…all by myself….old number one…
But if you still like….melody…you can join right in and sing with me
A guitar, a stool and a cowboy hat….
A guitar, a stool and a cowboy hat….
© 2009 Shadric Smith All Rights Reserved Supposed To Be Music
2009 The Blanden Art Museum. Fort Dodge, Iowa. Photo by Debbie Smith
In 2019 Dartanyan invited me to sing another original tune with him at his retrospective concert at Grinnell College. That was an honor for me and he made a cool video out of our performance.
This song seems even more timely now.
Dartanyan is also posting some cool stuff on Substack, and is the reason I got started telling these musical stories. Here’s a link to his page:
https://substack.com/@dartanyan
So thanks to my friend and musical cohort…..Dartanyan Brown. And thanks to you folks who have read this far and listened to some of the music we’ve made. Have a great day!