My ear picked up on the voice, "Is that Robert Earl Keen?"
Sho nuff  
Unrated....till now. 

REK!!!  Can't ever get enough.  Retired from the road this year, already miss seeing him live.

What is the release year of this album? 

Off all the great REK songs to play....blech....not my fave

Love me some REK, Jr.

Especially the early stuff.

I'm gonna go see the ol' boy over in Santa Cruz. He's playing The Catalyst with Hayes Carll opening for him. Should be a good time.

Wonderful story, great song, good artist....winning combination.
Born not far from here.

Re: Lyle & REK as college roomates...listen to his "Front Porch Song" about sitting on their porch, across the street from a church, playing guitars in their boxers on a Sunday morning.

Man this guy's performance reminds me of Townes Van Zandt... it's very very good!

Bill, you've just been tearing it up with these last four songs. Great stuff!

Great track from an amazing TEXAS country singer/songwriter... Reminds me of college in Fort Worth and lazy, car bar roadtrips to New Braunfels...ah!

Stefen wrote: Very nicely said.

Another discovery made through RP. I love the way the story weaves, reminds me of Joe Ely somewhat.

princeofpeoria wrote: Bob and Lyle were roommates when they were at Texas A&M. How those jarheads didn't run off those two 'weirdos' escapes me. c.

The man outside he works for me, his name is Mariano He cuts and trims the grass for me he makes the flowers bloom He says that he comes from a place not far from Guanajuato That's two days on a bus from here, a lifetime from this room. I fix his meals and talk to him in my old broken Spanish He points at things and tells me names of things I can't recall Sometimes I just can't but help but wonder who this man is And if when he is gone will he'll remember me at all I watch him close he works just like a piston in an engine He only stops to take a drink and smoke a cigarette When the day is ended, I look outside my window There on the horizon, Mariano's silhouette He sits upon a stone in a south-easterly direction I know my charts I know that he is thinking of his home I've never been the sort to say I'm in to intuition But I swear I see the faces of the ones he calls his own Their skin is brown as potter's clay, their eyes void of expression Their hair is black as widow's dreams, their dreams are all but gone They're ancient as a vision of a sacrificial virgin Innocent as crying from a baby being born They hover around a dying flame and pray for his protection Their prayers are all but answered by his letters in the mail He sends them colored figures that he cuts from strips of paper And all his weekly wages, saving nothing for himself It's been a while since I have seen the face of Mariano The border guards they came one day and took him far away I hope that he is safe down there at home in Guanajuato I worry though I read there's revolution every day...

I love the lyrics about a noble man, though surely not a nobleman.

Although I\'ve moved a lot since then, I spent my first 18+ years in Texas...and I\'ve seen this guy 4 or 5 times. Good if you\'re in the mood, and a Texas tradition... /tips back a can of Lone Star

Gives me goosebumps. REK is a master that we should definitely hear more from.

oufason wrote: Man, I agree. He's amazing. A little known fact to most (discounting you, being a Texan) one of REK's best friends is Lyle Lovett; they were pickin' buddies in college. A lot of his material covers stories and experiences they shared. I really don't think his well is dry just yet though it hasn't rained in a while. Seeing him this week, though not my first time, was a great time and a wonderful show.

Just saw him in Tulsa the night before last. Great show. Great man!

superfido wrote: I hear Seasons in the Sun by Terry Jacks. This track used to be my benchmark for maudlin sentimentality, but Mr Keen and his anthem to his white guilt is my new standard for crassness masquerading as authentic compassion.

People hate to be told they don't get something when they don't like it... get very indignant. As someone who frequently rolls his eyes at comments on these pages and thinks "they don't get it", I am pretty clear that I don't Get this song. Everyone here as been pretty positive about it and I was looking for some negative balance. I can't interpret the lyric very well and maybe that is spoiling my enjoyment.... whatever, I don't get it. Darn I hate that.

Sounds great on the headphones today! And he's a Texas A&M grad!

Reminds me of kenny rogers kind of.

jeroly wrote: Disagree, and fire that fact checker!

dewhead wrote: moi assui!

I like the song a lot, but I feel like it just sort of ends. Maybe that's the point?

Catch him live if you ever get the chance. Always puts on a fun show, covers a lot of musical ground, all of it good.

No matter where we're from, we're all the same inside, right?

REK is truely one of the best singer song writers of the past 20 years. Such insight and sharp wit. His creative well maybe running a little dry now, but masterpieces like this one gives him a whole lot of forgiveness.

poetic

...a song with some substace...yes...i like this....

jeroly wrote: I hate to be a newby and disagree, but I view it as a clarification. Song for Adam was written by Jackson Browne. Refers to a friend of his, Adam Saylor, with whom he left SoCal heading for New York. Song first appeared on debut album "Jackson Browne" a/k/a "saturate before using. JB and Warren Zevon and Eagles and others colloborated extensively with Linda Ronstadt in her early years. LR's song "Poor Poor Pitiful Me" was a WZ song, which he wrote about JB. Let's face it JB is magnificent songwriter and musician, but if you listen a lot, most of his work is incredibly introspective, moody and dark. There is a ray of hope in his works. He is one of my favorite songwriter-performers, but best taken in small to medium doses. His politics are a bit extreme for me, but I really respect and admire the counterpoint he provides to current political viewpoints. See Lives in the Balance. How many other songs have been so relevant for twenty years.

No. Nope. No sir. Not even close. Robert Earl Keen is a certified original Texas talent and ain't no one rippin' off nobody here. jeroly wrote:

Shesdifferent wrote: Mind you, that picture's 17 years old, but maybe you mean how he and his white hair look now. Nonetheless, how someone can't "cotton" REK is beyond me...awesome live, really good here. Likeable, at the very least.

He looks real nice but I just can't cotton to his music and voice.

Model songwriting, lyric and tune match perfectly.

How appropriate for this day and what a great song, REK is a goodin.............

What a "visual" song. I prefer the version from No. 2 Live Dinner but the original is good too.

Awright! This is the first time I've heard REK on RP. More REK! More REK! More REK!

A sincere, warm, tuneful voice; a human story to care about. Better than all else I have heard today. As to the McMurtry comment below, I want both versions!

I love a good story. This one, of Mariano, has, perhaps a happy ending. Someone of his description and moniker has been toiling in the Bronx; working for a tougher Boss, but making quite a good living in the horsehide business. I love a good story.

What a nice change to hear a song with a story, other than songs w/lyrics just about loooove. On the commerical radio stations - the songs...always about falling for someone. Enough already, I say! Thank you for some substance, REK.

This song seems to be a rip-off from 'A Song For Adam' by Warren Zevon, recorded by Jackson Browne...anyone agree/disagree?

Just wanted to add my 2 cents for REK. There are times when I wish RP were more like KPIG, and this is one of them.

samiyam wrote: This bears repeating. His shows were well worth the long drive.

This is just not where my head is at this late in the afternoon.

alicewonderland wrote: One can seldom get enough Robert Earl.

trekhead wrote: DISREGARD

..." A quart of TUNA!?!..." Wha?..... Less subtitles , please, se~nor Bill.... A 2.

Robert Earl Keen is coming to Wichita at the end of August. Thanks to RP I know who he is and will get tickets. Before RP I probably would not have gone, because I didn't know the artist.

Aahhh, thank you for playing this song! Such a sense of longing. I don't know a great deal of REK's material, but I've known this song for many years, and I've loved it dearly. I would definitely want to hear more REK.

One of the best from a very gifted songwriter. Thank you, this made my morning (although now I am homesick).

Miles wrote: I agree, more REK (Jr.), thanks.

I love REK! Keep him comin' please.

Good song...Good artist...Play more Robert Earl Keen!

This is "fine" music. Reminds me alot of home in the hills of Virginia. Please play more.

YAY! REK! I've been pushing for him on RP since hearing the original Levelland by James McMurtry. His version is well worth listening to.

GREAT! You have played Robert Earl Keen song two days in a row. You have finally discovered this Texas treasure who has attracted fans of all ages for the past ten years. As you review his songs you will notice he writes about REAL people who have REAL feelings. He is a great live entertainer. He has a national tour schedule. His concerts are packed with fans who sing the words to every song. His music is fun and ,at the same time, introspective. His best CD is Gringo Honeymoon covering important subjects such as fishing, barbacue, family Christmas reunion, and Big Bend. Another favorite is Corpus Christi Bay from Bigger Piece of Sky This is the ultimate guy party song.

I just listened to Melissa Block's interview of this guy on NPR a few days ago and wondered what a full song would sound like. Very nice. Intriguing artist. Thanks for the introduction.