John Prine has the virus and is in critical condition.
I put a solo act together in the 70's before karaoke.
I sat in a small walk in closet 10 hours a day for 8 months and laid down all the instrumental tracks (acoustic guitar, bass, banjo, electric guitar and percussion) on a 4 track reel to reel tape machine. I'd mix that down to two tracks and add a vocal harmony or two on the two remaining tracks.
After I mixed a master from the 4 track to the two track, I spliced paper leader tape between the songs and made three master reels I could take on stage. The paper tape gave me a way to select any song I wanted from the tape in the machine because I could hear the difference in sound as it crossed the tape heads when I was fast forwarding or rewinding letting me know when the song I wanted was coming up without looking. I could continue singing and playing while this was going on. (I recorded 80 songs total)
About every 3rd song in a set, I would sing the lead and play guitar along with the tape.
I got an agent and went to work in the Los Angles and Orange County clubs.
When you're doing a live show, you want some fun songs and this guy wrote some fun stuff.
Here's one example
Please Don't Bury Me
Woke up this morning
Put on my slippers
Walked in the kitchen and died
And oh what a feeling!
When my soul
Went thru the ceiling
And on up into heaven I did ride
When I got there they did say
John, it happened this way
You slipped upon the floor
And hit your head
And all the angels say
Just before you passed away
These were the very last words
That you said:
Please don't bury me
Down in that cold cold ground
No, I'd druther have "em" cut me up
And pass me all around
Throw my brain in a hurricane
And the blind can have my eyes
And the deaf can take both of my ears
If they don't mind the size
Give my stomach to Milwaukee
If they run out of beer
Put my socks in a cedar box
Just get "em" out of here
Venus de Milo can have my arms
Look out! I've got your nose
Sell my heart to the junkman
And give my love to Rose
Give my feet to the footloose
Careless, fancy free
Give my knees to the needy
Don't pull that stuff on me
Hand me down my walking cane
It's a sin to tell a lie
Send my mouth way down south
And kiss my ass goodbye
Please don't bury me
Down in that cold cold ground
No, I'd druther have "em" cut me up
And pass me all around
Throw my brain in a hurricane
And the blind can have my eyes
And the deaf can take both of my ears
If they don't mind the size
