It was a damned fine memorial. John's path crossed the paths of quite a few different types of folks from many arenas but, as is the way with his family, the music world is where his path wandered the most. So, the Continental Club was a fitting place to have a memorial. I was there. I'm a lawyer. I was the only person wearing a jacket over a button down shirt (even I was smart enough not to wear a tie). Drove to Houston and back, just for the day. Not a bad drive, and a good chance for us to just visit with each other, and be.
The energy was right. It was a celebration, and it was sad. It was hardest for those who loved him most and still do. And yeah, the musical tributes were spot-on. Yeah, there was a song that John had helped write, in smart-ass ironic form, called "Don't Stop Bereavin'" -- it got the requisite amount of laughs.
And Steve Earle proved again, in an actually understated, real, and personal way, why he's one of the great American storytellers....and he reminded us that John was one of those too. He and John have a life-long history together. And it broke his heart to lose John to the same disease that he has; he specifically mentioned his survivor's guilt. For the last number he sang, he started off telling us that he believes in God - he's not a Christian, mind you, but he believes. And that the core truth is that we are family, we are all in this together with each other. He told the crowd about how we all walk together. And then he sang Pilgrim:
As he strummed the last notes, my wife leaned forward, and in her pastor-speak, commented to me "that'll preach."
We were also able to see some old, old friends, and visit and tell stories, because that's what you do. Shit, the memorial reminded me -- clubbed me over the head, actually -- that we are our stories. In the end, we are our stories.
And storytellers, truly great storytellers, are the ones who make us immortal. John was one of those storytellers. And I was glad to hear the other real storytellers there, telling his story again.
Fare thee well, John.