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The Tennessean, TVWeek

Texas Singer-Songwriter, an Americana Icon, Dead at 74

May 17, 2016  •  Post A Comment

A Grammy Award-winning Texas troubadour who became one of the icons of Americana died today at 74. The Tennessean reports that Guy Clark died in Nashville after a long illness.

Clark, a member of the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame, died after experiencing declining health for years, including a long battle with cancer.

His songs were recorded by music giants including Johnny Cash, Emmylou Harris, John Denver, George Strait, Jimmy Buffett, Lyle Lovett, Jerry Jeff Walker, Brad Paisley, Willie Nelson and Kris Kristofferson, among many others.

A disciple of Townes Van Zandt, Clark was born in Monahans, Texas, and grew up in the Lone Star State. He later settled in Nashville, where he became a towering figure in a circle of Nashville-based roots music stars that included Harris, Steve Earle, Rodney Crowell, Mickey Newbury and Billy Joe Shaver.

In the liner notes to Clark’s “Craftsman” collection in 1995, Robert K. Oermann wrote: “The patron saint of an entire generation of bohemian pickers, Guy Clark has become an emblem of artistic integrity, quiet dignity and simple truth.”

Clark’s vast output of songs included classics such as “L.A. Freeway,” “Desperadoes Waiting for a Train,” “Boats to Build,” “That Old Time Feeling,” “The Randall Knife,” “Dublin Blues,” “The Cape” and “Stuff That Works,” co-written with Crowell.

As recently as 2014, Clark won the Grammy Award for Best Folk Album for “My Favorite Picture of You.”

Here’s a clip of Clark performing his composition “The Cape” …

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