I was thinking about public meltdowns and I remembered wandering around Portland in 1999 in the middle of a month long manic episode.
I saw some old crippled bum playing a guitar up on 23rd. His left hand was completely withered into a frozen claw but he had the guitar on an open tuning and played it like a lap steel, his gnarled hand acting as the slide. He sang an old country song called Waterloo. Not the one by Abba, this one was a tad more dark. One of the verses was about a lovers suicide and how about everyone will meet their Waterloo.
Well, that old boy sang that song right through me. Looked at me and sang as only a broken old man can and it was the beginning of the end. I started crying and didn’t stop for about a month. I had some serious problems. But I got lucky and stumbled and tumbled through those dark crazy times. Had some good friends and some good therapy and it still took 12-15 years.
Anyway heres the Kinks doing a great live version of Waterloo Sunset. It doesn’t have anything to do with the original Waterloo song by Stonewall Jackson but its just too damn sweet not to share.
Peace and Om on the range to you all.
