“Troubadours have always been more important and influential than theologians and bishops.”
- Brennan Manning
Hey, it's Steve Forbert's birthday today. Who's that? Well, let me tell you. By people who care, Forbert is one of the most revered of the old school troubadours…. those who scratched out a vagabond existence for the love of playing their music.
Forbert was born in Meridian, MS in 1954. He was consumed by music growing up and began playing guitar at 10 and writing songs in his late teens. He moved to New York City in his early 20s and did the whole “play wherever they'll let you” thing. Before long, his talent being what it was, he was noticed and signed to a recording contract. In 1979, on his second record he got his break when his song Romeo's Tune charted at #11 on the Top 40. He credits it, his only chart song, with the career he's had since because, he said, it gave him “a ticket into the show.” Early on he was labeled by journalists, like so many others have been, as “the new Dylan.” It's a silly moniker and those tagged with it always agree that it is. It's almost a curse. They just want to be themselves. They know, as we all do, there will only ever be one Dylan. I read Forbert's memoir Big City Cat which documents his life in music. He's never been a “star” and never wanted to be. He's been happy it seems just out there doing what he loves for a small but devoted audience for 50-years on.
Also, Ted Nugent (1948) and Taylor Swift (1989) share a birthday today. How funny is that? They should go on tour together. Taylor could play Ted's Stranglehold and he could rock Teardrops on My Guitar. It would actually be interesting - the musical event of the century.
I saw Ted at Kemper Arena in Kansas City in 1977. I jokingly tell people that my hearing hasn't been the same since. Here's an aside, did you know Kemper Arena is named after the family of Ellie Kemper, Erin on The Office and also the star of Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt. She's from a prominent multi-generational bunch of philanthropists in the KC area.
More Ted stuff: I knew a woman who was an American Airlines flight attendant. I was talking to her on the phone one day, back in the mid-90s, and she was telling me about a recent layover she'd had in Nashville. She said, “Guess who got on the elevator with me at the hotel?” and I said, I'm not kidding, “Ted Nugent.” Long pause…"Yes!…How did you know that?!" I do not know.
Last Ted: Back in 1997, Kendra and I were in Anchorage, AK at a big outdoor, Bass Pro-ish kind of place. Across the way who do I see looking at bows, yes, unmistakably Ted. I stuck to my policy of never bothering the famous and well-known should I cross paths with one. I went about my business.