Bobby Charles

It all started when my son Matt went to a Tyler Childers concert in Brooklyn and heard him sing the song Tennessee Blues. Matt has a knack for knowing what music I might like so he sent me a link to the video. I replied, “If you like that song then I’ve done something right.” On investigation I learned the song was written by someone named Bobby Charles in 1972 and also covered by Kris Kristofferson, Tompall Glaser, Marshall Chapman, and several others. I learned to sing and play it. It’s a lovely country tune.

On another occasion, I went to see the California Honeydrops. They invited Lindsay Lou on stage and she sang a song called All The Money -- a funky Cajun groove. I was totally into it and learned to play that one too. Come to find out, it was written by someone named  -- Bobby Charles.  Who is this Bobby Charles guy?

Matt sent me another song, Waymore’s Blues by Waylon Jennings. I replied simply with a “?”. What I didn’t know was Matt was fixing to name his first son “Waylon.” Now that’s not a name to be taken lightly. It makes a statement.  Anyway, Shannon McNally, a singer guitarist I’ve recently discovered, just released an entire album of nothing but Waylon covers. As I was researching her career I see she did another album of covers all written by – Bobby Charles! She covered his I Spent All My Money (Loving You) and -- you guessed it -- Tennessee Blues.

So I looked up Bobby Charles. Robert Charles Guidry is from Abbeville in rural Louisiana. As a young man he wrote See Ya Later Alligator. Fats Domino declined it but Bill Haley & the Comets made it a huge hit. Now "after while crocodile" is an automatic response. Fats Domino invited Bobby to a show in New Orleans. But Bobby had no way to get there, which prompted him to write Walkin’ To New Orleans. Fats Domino recorded that one – another big hit. While Bobby was not much for traveling and preforming, he did find his way to Wookstock, NY where he jammed with Dr. John, members of The Band, and others. After settling down back in Louisiana, his house burned down and then the next one got blown away in a hurricane. Bobby Charles died of cancer in 2010 at that age of 70.

Full disclosure, part of my interest in Bobby Charles is his name. My father was Robert (Bob) Edward Fleming. My father-in-law is Bobby Clayton McKinney. And I am Brian Charles Fleming. See Ya Later Alligator!

Pissing Contests

In Matthew McConaughey’s book Greenlights, he tells the story of a pissing contest involving his dad and brother. Not a figurative pissing contest, mind you -- a literal one. 

“You see that mark on the wall Mr. Fred just left?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Think you can piss over it?”

“Hell yeah,” Pat replied, then dropped his tighty-whities below his knees, put both hands on his pecker, aimed it at the mark, and let if fly. Pat cleared Fred Smither’s six-seven mark by two feet.

“That’s my boy!! I told y’all my boy could piss over Fred’s head!”

Now that I am a man of a certain age, I wont be challenging anyone to a pissing contest. My stream aint what it used to be. It’s sad when a young man beside me at the urinal starts blasting away with his fire hose, finishes, and then the next guy starts and finishes while I’m still dribbling.

Yeah I’m seeing a urologist about it. And I’ve seen the future and it aint pretty. When my dad got old he couldn’t completely empty his bladder. So he had a procedure done to fix it. Now my father-in-law is having plumbing problems. He gets backed up for days, goes to the ER, gets a catheter, and then walks around with a bag of piss strapped to his leg. Gettin’ old aint for cowards!

I complained when my wife bought a new garden hose without my input. But I gotta say it’s a good one. Now most evenings you will find me slinging my hose around watering the flowers, shrubs, and trees – even seeing how high up the side of my house I can spray. Who me overcompensate? Nah, just keep livin’!