Favourite Songs of Heartache: Jen Mize & Darren Cross

This Sunday, Dec 4th is the final Heartbreaker Sessions for 2016 (we’ll be back early in 2017) so we’re hoping that plenty of alt-country and folk lovin’ types will come down to The Bearded Tit in Redfern, Sydney for live sets from Darren Cross and Jen Mize plus the usual cosmic country, troubadour picking, folk strumming and country-rock shaking DJ tunes from myself and Daz.

Let’s raise a glass to the fine music of 2016 and some of the sad losses to the music world.

Before that all happens I asked Darren and Jen to choose three of their favourite songs of heartache.

First up, Darren’s selections:

Willie Nelson – Always On My Mind

‘Little things I should have said and done
I just never took the time
You were always on my mind
You were always on my mind’

Something about Willie that just cuts through all the usual cowboy bullshit… every word and quaver seems effortlessly natural but with sad intent – you can believe Willie. He stuffed up. He lost the girl etc.

Leonard Cohen – The Partisan

About one of the messed up wars. ‘Then we’ll come from the shadows’ – it’s the ultimate revenge anthem from the after-life. Darker than that? Its more powerful because Leonard is truly singing the words. It’s understated but the power in his delivery hits me like a ton of bricks… biblical in a prophetically evil way. R.I.P.

‘Oh, the wind, the wind is blowing
Through the graves the wind is blowing
Freedom soon will come
Then we’ll come from the shadows’.

Townes Van Zandt – Nothing (Private concert, Holiday Inn ’88)

This is my favourite performance and rendition by Townes Van Zandt.
Stripped back in some budget hotel room – a real troubadour singing obviously about addiction and fucked up, love gone wrong and apparently the Last Temptation Of Christ.
This guy was the real deal.

‘Hey mama, when you leave
Don’t leave a thing behind
I don’t want nothin’
I can’t use nothin’