Weadmire.net Blog

The fabulous musician Ry Cooder was born today in 1947. We admire him but presently we do not have a t shirt to prove it. In the mid – late 70's I particularly admired Mr Cooder, everything he did musically was witty, perfect and visionary. For example I believe his album Bop Till You Drop was the first album to be recorded digitally. The sound rack he composed and played for Paris Texas was absolutely ground breaking, similarly that for Southern Comfort. His playing on the 1986 film Crossroads was extraordinary. Classy, dignified, talented, self effacing, modest. We certainly admire Mr Cooder.

For many months after I bought Bop Till You Drop I played it every day. I can recall feeling withdrawn and a little restless if I missed my fix. The next album Borderline brought him to the UK with a little known John Hiatt. The concerts were a revelation. Half way through the set I saw Ry Cooder declared the band as really being put together by John Hiatt and promptly handed Hiatt the initiative. This was real generosity. The following day I bought everything by Hiatt that was available.

Presently we do not have a Ry Cooder t shirt but we have a Hiatt t shirt. John Hiatt is an extraordinarily prolific poet, something like 25 original albums all lyrically driven. As a singer songwriter I would put him ahead of any that you might classify as the best: Dylan, Guthrie, Cohen, Springsteen, Newman just about anyone who has had their moment and strung 12 songs together for an album that has had some mass appeal. None of them has done it 25 times not to mention writing about subject matter that seems to know no bounds.

So it's Ry Cooder's Birthday but John Hiatt gets the t shirt