I'd only ever heard the Johnny Cash version of Boy named Sue - I had no idea it was written by Shel Silverstein. Makes perfect sense now. I'll have to check out the rest!
Two things about A Boy Named Sue. 1: Shel Silverstein was good friends with Jean Shepherd, the writer and narrator of "A Christmas Story." Shepherd had shared stories of his troubles growing up in small-town Indiana as a boy named Jean, which inspired Shel to write the song. 2: Shel wrote and recorded a sequel to A Boy Named Sue, and it has not aged well at all. https://youtu.be/VG8G1z0CTE8?si=BSmM6-j-zS-mCl11
The Silverstein pick is the right call for the top spot. "Boy Named Sue" is funny all the way through and then the ending sneaks up on you as something genuinely moving, which is a harder trick than it looks. The comic delivery earns the emotional payoff in a way a straight ballad couldn't. The Christopher Cross detail is its own small surprise too: the guy who wrote soft sailing songs filling in for Ritchie Blackmore is not information most people carry around. Good week of listening.
I'd only ever heard the Johnny Cash version of Boy named Sue - I had no idea it was written by Shel Silverstein. Makes perfect sense now. I'll have to check out the rest!
Same!
I love that you picked to listen to both Kriss Kross and Chris Cross.
And Kris Kristofferson. Ken thought about look for some other Christian Cross to close the week
Two things about A Boy Named Sue. 1: Shel Silverstein was good friends with Jean Shepherd, the writer and narrator of "A Christmas Story." Shepherd had shared stories of his troubles growing up in small-town Indiana as a boy named Jean, which inspired Shel to write the song. 2: Shel wrote and recorded a sequel to A Boy Named Sue, and it has not aged well at all. https://youtu.be/VG8G1z0CTE8?si=BSmM6-j-zS-mCl11
The Silverstein pick is the right call for the top spot. "Boy Named Sue" is funny all the way through and then the ending sneaks up on you as something genuinely moving, which is a harder trick than it looks. The comic delivery earns the emotional payoff in a way a straight ballad couldn't. The Christopher Cross detail is its own small surprise too: the guy who wrote soft sailing songs filling in for Ritchie Blackmore is not information most people carry around. Good week of listening.