Local Music Network

Thoughts of Vic from local musicians and fans

Editor's note: We asked local musicians as well as fans of Vic Chesnutt to share their thoughts about him, or favorite songs/lyrics, and what his words have meant to them.
Kevn Kinney
(Drivin' 'n' Cryin')
My favorite memory of Vic came from a few years ago when I opened for Lynyrd Skynyrd for three nights at the Tabernacle in Atlanta. It was just me and my acoustic guitar. The first night went pretty good, so on the second or third night - I can't remember which - I invited Barrie Buck and her boyfriend to go with me.
Barrie said, "Let's see if Vic wants to go." So she asked him and he said yes, so we all got in my conversion van and drove to Atlanta. I had a TV in the van at the time, so we watched old "Star Trek" episodes all the way downtown. We carried Vic up to the Tabernacle balcony so he could watch Lynyrd Skynyrd. It was a great night. Drivin' n' Cryin' played at the Tabernacle the other night (26 Dec.) and I spent the whole night looking up at the balcony, thinking Vic was watching.
I really loved Vic and his work - he's probably the best I've ever known. He could take any phrase and turn it into a song. He could take an engineering diagram and turn that into a song. There was no word he couldn't work. I'd like to think that right now, he's running and jumping and flying around the room.
Dave Schools
(Widespread Panic), Athens
Vic had an uncanny poetic ability to make light of dark subject matter as well as to expose the darkness inherent in all things light.
As a songwriter he sure could stretch a syllable across some chord changes and wrap the whole phrase in a beautiful plaintative melody.
And let's not forget his words, which were often better than a thousand pictures.
As a friend he never let me down as I could always count on him for a different sarcastic or cynical way of looking at things. Frustration with Vic's foibles usually turned into a spasm of bitter laughter in the end.
Vic played guitar like a brute. He was a rock star.
John Bell
(Widespread Panic), Athens
Over the years, I felt so humbled in Vic's presence that I was never comfortable enough to achieve a true chumminess with him - not to say that was my choice to make. A person could see one's hidden self a little better in his company, while he was pointing out other, more important things - Vic was both a mirror and a projector (sometimes projectile). He was a blast to share a stage with, performing with a mixture of insight, humor, and bawdiness that was his alone. Vic Chesnutt is one of the greatest explorers, revealers, and songsters I've ever met.
Daniel Hutchens
(Bloodkin), Athens
I consider myself a songwriter - it's what I do. And Vic set the bar for that. He was as good as it gets. His songwriting was a high level of poetry mixed with his very personal, down-home voice. Anyone could hear Vic. (His songwriting) wasn't academic and it wasn't talking down to anybody. He was truly a great songwriter, a character and a good guy.
I hadn't been able to spend much time with him for several years now, but he was a lynchpin of the music community in Athens and it's going to seem kind of empty now. I don't know how you make up for that.
Col. Bruce Hampton
Vic was a most unique person - a total genius. He was the star of "Sling Blade," to say the least (the 1996 film directed by Billy Bob Thornton). The only person I can think of who was as unique as Vic was Thelonious Monk. It was always wonderful to see him and hear him play. This is a hard one, for sure. Even though I hadn't talked to him in years, we were close friends without talking. He left us way too young.
The great songwriters got what he was doing - Elvis Costello was said to be a big fan of his. My wife and I were friends and fans of Vic and Tina's, and I'm still reeling. I hope he's in a great new dimension now because he certainly gave so much to so many people.
Dave Marr
(Star Room Boys), Athens
What keeps coming back to me about Vic, amid all the remembrances of his obviously immense talents as a songwriter, was that the guy was one of the best singers I've ever heard in my life. He was amazingly gifted in that regard. I think of him like I would Willie Nelson or Bob Dylan, guys who have voices that if people aren't paying attention, they think those guys can't sing. But they can sing, and they sing with perfect pitch and a wonderful sense of melody.
Every time I ever heard Vic sing, I was bowled over by the talent he had for that, on top of everything else. And it was an unlikely gift, since he had minimal use of his lungs. But that was just another aspect of his talent.
Dodd Ferrelle
Athens
I did not know him well, but I had the opportunity to play at his "Sweet Relief" benefit at the 40 Watt many years ago. I was able to spend a little time with Vic after we played "Isadora Duncan." It was a special privilege and a special night that I will treasure.
As I was playing with the kids in the park this afternoon and thinking about Vic, I realized that he was that rare Southern writer who is so close to their creations that the words seem to be whittled right from their own bones.
Jean Spencer
Athens
My favorite Vic song has always been "Florida" from "West of Rome." A beautiful, beautiful song and sadly a propos now.
Florida
Florida, Florida, the redneck riviera
Florida, Florida, there's no more pathetic place in America
yes a man must make unpopular decisions, surely from time to time
and a man can only stand what a man can stand
it's a wobbly volatile line
Florida, Florida, the water table is f***ed
Florida, Florida, there's no more perfect place to give it all up
a man must take his life in his own hands
hit those nails on the head
and I respect a man who goes to where he wants to be
even if he wants to be dead
Florida, Florida, its a tropical paradise
Florida, Florida, there's no more perfect place to retire from life
Kenley Young
Kenley Young and the Open Fires, Columbia, S.C.
I feel fortunate to have seen Vic Chesnutt perform this past year at Art Bar in Columbia, S.C. I first encountered his music in high school, when I got a copy of "Sweet Relief II: Gravity of the Situation," a 1996 tribute album featuring heavyweight '90s acts covering Chesnutt's songs. I was immediately hooked, and not just because of the music, but because of the quotes in the album's liner notes from the featured artists - many of my favorite bands of the day gushing with praise for this man I'd never even heard of. I'm so glad they introduced me to his talent.
Among Chesnutt's many excellent songs, "Supernatural" is a particularly incredible gem, and I perform it occasionally at shows. He will be missed, but he has left a wonderful legacy. Songwriters can learn a lot about their craft from his work.
Tom Gilroy
New York
In Vic's songs, even when he joked, he haunted.
But in "Aunt Avis," (from "Drunk") Vic confronts the haunters and asks them for help - not for peace of mind or to be left alone, but to be reminded how to be "good."
"Help me great Uncle to hear the talk, show me Aunt Avis with your ageless chalk, scratch it out for me on my cloudy retina/help remember how to be good, how to continue when I feel I really shouldn't."
It'

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