Tim Barry at the Prophet Bar

The night Tim Barry came to town...

Tuesday night headline billing - the Prophet Bar in Deep Ellum

Longtime followers of the east coast punk scene might recall Avail, a Richmond-based punk band whose frontman was Tim Barry. I'd missed out on their work, having lost most of my interest in punk after the 1980s. Thanks to testimonials from a couple of friends, however, I am no longer oblivious to Barry's solo career. One listen to his songs "Avoiding Catatonic Surrender" and "Church of Level Track" (both of which are available on his Myspace page at: http://www.myspace.com/timbarryrva ) told me immediately that I'd been missing out on something GOOD. I found his sound to be a natural fit with a lot of the alt-country, folk, and roots-rock stuff I've been listening to during the past few years. Barry's stuff goes well with the likes of James McMurtry, the Old 97s, Ray Wylie Hubbard, and Chris Knight.

The lyrics to some of Barry's songs express a sense of cynicism and bitterness -- perfect anthems for the morose, the forgotten, the disenchanted. Others feature a more optimistic counterpoint as Barry, a part-time hobo, celebrates the freedom and adventure of life on the road and rails. Some of his songs condemn materialism and consumerism, and instead extol the virtues and value of friendship and family.

It wasn't just Barry's music and freight-hopping experiences that attracted my interest. The cover and sleeves of his cd's feature railroad-themed photos and art, including stencil artwork by buZ blurr. Barry pays tribute to the "Colossus of Roads" freight car moniker on his album "Rivanna Junction"; the title of each song is named for a Colossus icon caption.

Song title inspiration - the Colossus caption which inspired the title for one of my favorite Tim Barry songs

Barry's friendship with the late Travis Conner (of "Conrail Twitty" moniker fame) intrigued me further, as did the knowledge that another well-known moniker -- one I've been seeing for several years -- is drawn by none other than Mr. Barry himself. So when I found out that a bar in Deep Ellum had booked Barry for a Tuesday evening performance in March, I knew I had to be there...

Miss L was ready for her initiation...

We arrived in Deep Ellum early enough for dinner, and got to the Prophet Bar just as the doors were opening. First on stage was a local act, the Driftin' Outlaw Band. Their brand of high-octane, high-velocity country reminded me of Speedtrucker. The Driftin' Outlaws knocked out a mix of original songs and cover tunes, the highlight of which was "Ghost Riders in the Sky".

Driftin' Outlaw Band

Up next was Ninja Gun, an alt-rock act from Valdosta, Georgia. Their sound reminded me of the Connells, For Squirrels, or maybe the Gin Blossoms -- listener-friendly, mostly up-tempo alt-rock with a slight blend of punk and country elements, nothing too heavy. I liked them enough to buy one of their cd's after the show.

Ninja Gun

Finally, Tim Barry took the stage, wearing a black "Conrail Twitty" tribute t-shirt. Surveying the sparse crowd, he quickly deduced that the audience would benefit from a more intimate performance. He unplugged and climbed down from the stage to perform his first song, "Idle Idyllist", on the floor, as the crowd formed a circle around him. In 20-plus years of seeing live music, this was one of the coolest concert experiences I've ever witnessed.

Tim Barry on stage - Prophet Bar in Deep Ellum

Barry returned to the stage for the remainder of his performance, except for "Church of Level Track", when he again joined the crowd on the floor....


Joining the crowd for an up-close performance. The small crowd brought to mind a concert t-shirt slogan I remember from long ago: "Did you miss ______ (fill-in-the-blank)? Then you f*cked up!" Miss L and I were proud to say that we did NOT miss Tim Barry.

Barry's voice wasn't in great shape, and he apologized profusely for the hand injury which hindered his guitar-playing abilities (he had injured it in a fight a few weeks earlier). We thought we might even get an opportunity to see his fighting skills for ourselves; a tense moment developed when an obnoxious member of the crowd yelled an obscene remark between songs. Barry put him in his place, though, and the guy shut the hell up.

Barry merch

But overall, it was one of the more enjoyable shows I've been to in a while. It was great to hear live performances of some of my favorite songs of his -- and we even had a few minutes to talk before he started his set. On stage or off, Barry came across as one of the most honest and genuine people you could ever hope to meet. Like me, you might have missed out on Avail. But you don't have to miss out on his solo stuff.

Coming next: beginning another road trip...

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np: BaD Radio on KTCK 1310 "the Ticket"

Really late road trip re-cap

In Whiskey, Texas, just because a vacation trip took place 3 months ago doesn't mean you won't get a chance to read about it. Coverage of my October vacation to Kansas City begins now.

I had a week of vacation scheduled for the third week of October. Anxious to be out on the road during my favorite season to travel, I planned out an itinerary which would allow me to visit a friend in Kansas City and do plenty of sightseeing along the way. It would be a typical Whiskey road trip... run & gun, spontaneous changes, no motel reservations, and maximum productivity of limited time. That's how I roll, baby... and this is how it went down.

On the road: Highway 80 in east Texas

Tuesday, October 20 - Surrealville Sojourn

I was on the road just after sunrise with a goal of reaching Gurdon, Arkansas by mid-afternoon. In Gurdon, I would meet buZ blurr, the retired railroader who draws the "Colossus of Roads" railcar icons.

It was a great day to begin a road trip. I traveled east and north at a leisurely pace, stopping to photograph church signs, ghost signs, the Texas & Pacific depot in Marshall, and various other small town scenes, before arriving on buZ's doorstep at the appointed time.

Marshall, Texas: Texas & Pacific depot and steam locomotive display

Texarkana church sign: Shouldn't this say "Tweet God"?

I've been noticing the Colossus of Roads monikers for many years; the Colossus is one of my favorite drawings out on the rails. Every time a train passes by, I watch intently, hoping to see one. A couple years ago, buZ and I began corresponding via mail and e-mail. In fact, he originally contacted me through this blog after I posted some Colossus photos.

buZ and his wife really rolled out the red carpet for my visit and made me feel welcome. After a visit in their home, buZ provided me with a guided tour of Surrealville (that's Gurdon in buZ nomenclature). We stopped by the railroad depot, the yard, and his art studio... and even made it out to the family farm in "Surrealville West" so I could view the "Rust Never Rests" / "Fill the Ford Fully" works-in-progress.

Colossus Ground Zero: buZ blurr and Colossus drawings in Gurdon, Arkansas.

Driving to Surrealville West with buZ.

buZ blurr with 1950 Ford, part of the "Rust Never Rests" project. buZ welcomes contributions of old keys to "Fill the Ford Fully" in an effort to confound future archaeologists.

It was a pleasure and privilege to finally meet the man behind the moniker, and learn more about his background in railroading and his modern-day artistic endeavors. It was definitely one of the highlights of my trip. Thanks, buZ...

Surrealville scenes: empty chair in open field...

Signs of Surrealville...

chainsaw mailbox

I would tie up for the night in nearby Prescott, and planned to spend the next morning tracking down operations on a local shortline, the Prescott & Northwestern Railroad. Stay tuned...

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np: Cross Canadian Ragweed - "Boys from Oklahoma"

Springtime in Texas

I can't think of many better ways to celebrate springtime in Texas than being out by the tracks, enjoying clear skies, a cool breeze, and green landscapes (and they're getting greener with the recent rains we've had). M joined me on April 5 for an afternoon north of Ft. Worth.

Pacing a KCS GE through Ponder

BNSF officers' special south of Krum. This was our mission for the day, but we saw lots of other good stuff, too...

M was glad to be along for the ride.

Sunday benchings

car load of wheels

Southbound grain loads south of Krum

When the train stops, we practice our dance moves...

Grain empties in Saginaw

Coming next... ??? Stay tuned.

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np: Husker Du: "Don't want to know if you are lonely"

birthday benching

I had a birthday a few days ago. In the past, I've spent parts of several birthdays photographing trains and rail subjects. I maintained that tradition this year -- but with a twist. The primary target of this year's efforts would be freight car sketches and monikers. In fact, I didn't photograph a single locomotive. But I found some interesting stuff...

Colossus of Roads - "Hide & Cry" Earlene

Golden West squares & Colossus

Bookman - XXX NOLA

Whistle Blower - Pluto Demoted

The Solo Artist

This seems like a good time to plug my Flickr stream at www.flickr.com/photos/whiskeytexas. You'll find lots of shots from my benching (watching trains, photographing monikers and graffiti) expeditions, an album of railroad logos, and more. My collection is always growing...

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np: Public Enemy - "Move!"

celebrating Deuce Seven

I didn't quite know what to make of the first Deuce 7 drawing I saw, on the side of a boxcar up in Roanoke a year or so ago. With its beady eyes and menacing mandible, it looked like the head of an ant -- but with parted and wispy hair. The number "27" (which at the time I did not realize was his signature) punctuated the sketch. A month or two later I noticed another one... and then another... each sketch was different from the last, but all were drawn in the same recognizable style -- a combination of street art, fantasy art, and hobo moniker -- unlike anything else rolling out there on the rails today.

My first sighting of a Deuce 7 - Roanoke, TX on the UP

A search through a few of the flickr pages devoted to freight car graffiti and paintstik sketches revealed further insight into the art, style, and modus operandi of the enigmatic "Deuce 7". Not only is he an accomplished artist; he's also a train-hopping advocate -- one who enjoys the freedom of ticket-less travel aboard freight trains from city to city to practice his "art", which includes oilbar drawings, aerosol paintings, and other mixed media, usually -- but not always -- applied to the steel and aluminum canvases of North America's railcars.

Wizard's Gang - dated 10/08 (just two months before I saw it)

Most of his sketches and paintings depict fantasy creatures and structures, elaborately drawn with clean, crisp lines and recurring patterns, sometimes with a cubist influence. Stingray shapes and the faces and heads of insects and crustaceans appear repeatedly, as does an expressed passion for travel and transportation -- by rail in particular, but also by air and sea. The work of M.C. Escher appears to have been a source of inspiration in some of his sketches of buildings and structures.

A fairly typical "Deuce 7" oilbar sketch

"Relaxing with oilbars in Petersburg, Virginia"

Enid , Oklahoma

a rare catch? A Deuce 7 drawing on a tank car

Deuce describes his work in the video documentary "Reefr Madness" (viewable on Youtube)...

"My style of painting is geared for all types of people, mainly hippie mushroom girls trippin' in the woods."

Keep up that unique style, Deuce... I'm not a girl, I'm not into 'shrooms, I ain't trippin' in the woods... but it should suffice to say that I dig your work, man... and I'll be watching the rails, hoping to see more.



Visit Deuce 7's flickr pages here at the link below; you'll find that the scope of his work runs far beyond freight car sketches and aerosol graf.
Deuce 7 on Flickr

Or check out another Deuce 7 "fan" site here:
MD11 Forever - Deuce 7 gallery

"Reefr Madness" on Youtube (part 8 of 8, includes about 2 1/2 minutes of Deuce footage beginning at 03:00)
Reefr Madness - Part 8

Enjoy... keep an eye out on the rails... and if you a Deuce painting or drawing, send me a photo.

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np: Minor Threat - "Out of Step"

details & dating

Behind the locomotives

Recently, I stopped for a few minutes south of Tower 55 near downtown Fort Worth to watch a Union Pacific freight roll by. With the locomotives heading directly into the sun at solar noon, and a distracting background of freeway overpasses, the resulting photo wasn't much to get excited about. But I had my camera ready all the same, just in case I happened to notice an interesting railroad logo or moniker as the cars rolled past. The phrase, "Sign up now; graffiti contest ends soon" came to mind as I counted no fewer than 15 monikers gracing the sides of the cars.

Wonder what's behind this trio of UP units...

... no less than 15 Paintstik sketches and signatures...

Repeat visitors to this blog will recall that I have discussed freight car monikers (hobo & railway worker drawings on the side of freight cars) before:

July 5, 2008
February 6, 2008
January 10, 2008
December 22, 2007
July 25, 2007

I continue to watch for them and photograph the ones I find interesting, whether I've seen them before or not. As I complete the 13th year of my railroading career and grow increasingly weary of look-alike locomotives on the Class One megasystems, freight car scrawls are something that help me stay interested in going back to the tracks to watch trains.

These days, monikers are attracting something of a cult following among graffiti artists and proponents, many of whom view and respect them as the "original" freight train graffiti, the forerunner of today's proliferation of aerosol spray graf. Witness the following albums on Flickr, for example:


http://www.flickr.com/photos/true2death/sets/72157603840278784/

http://flickr.com/photos/stealw0rker/sets/72157605242646773/

http://flickr.com/photos/seetwist/collections/72157600000655012/

Next time you get stopped at a crossing for an approaching choo-choo, instead of turning your car around and trying to beat it to the next crossing, stick around and watch. You never know what will be behind those locomotives.

Other detail shots...

ACI tag

Chicago & Eastern Illinois buzz-saw

Huh-huh... it says...

Whiskey goes dating

As my recent divorce progressed through its final stages, I began to wonder what kind of women (if any) I'd be able to attract when I began dating again. Chalk it up to low self-esteem and a battered sense of self-worth, but I just could not comprehend the idea of women being attracted to me or wanting to make me a part of their lives. But the combination of my weight loss, a new attitude a new "look", and support from my friends helped to restore my self-confidence to the point that I decided that I was ready. I quickly found that lack of interest was NOT going to be a problem. I also quickly discovered that not everyone who showed an interest was compatible with my wants, needs, and interests. But that's part of the fun of dating and meeting new people, right? Even though I didn't make a romantic connection with everyone I've met, I'm glad that I've made some new friends... at least one of whom holds a job with a certain amount of municipal authority (Pssst... hey, Detective R.W., do you think you could use your "influence" to convince a certain north Texas police department to dismiss my recent speeding ticket?)

A text message representation of my recent dating life. Alas, none of these women would end up being the "right one" for me.

So who is the "right one" for me? Well, I will admit to having met someone I've been spending quite a bit of time with lately. But I don't want to give away ALL my secrets all at once. Keep checking back and you'll learn more soon.

Sports scene

Thanks once again to WBAP's Hal Jay, who keeps Cowboys fans laughing when all we want to do is cry. Hal decided to make "lemondade" out yesterday's "lemon" (the loss to the St Louis Rams) thusly:

"I discovered yesterday that my tv would block a vodka bottle from being thrown through the wall!"

And...

"The local U-Haul dealer is offering a 25% moving discount to anyone who can prove that they're the Cowboys coach."

Well put, my friend... I have a feeling I'll be turning to Hal for some more cheering up during the next few Monday mornings.

Meanwhile, the Tampa Bay Rays have made it to the World Series. For those of you who are even more "casual" baseball fans than I am, or for those who just haven't been paying attention, four out of the four (yep -- all of 'em, 100%) expansion teams since 1993 have reached the World Series. This year it's the Rays, last year it was the Rockies, in 2003 the Marlins won the W.S. (and also won it in 1997, their fifth season) and in 2001 it was the D-backs (in just their fourth season).

And what have the Texas Rangers, the poster-boy examples of perpetual mediocrity in the AL West, done for us lately (besides being swept in consecutive divisional playoff series against the Yankees in 1998 and 1999 (and only winning one game against the Yanks in the '96 playoffs)? They've been in Arlington since 1972, are one of only three major league teams to have never played in the World Series, and have never even won a single playoff series. Now that the fourth expansion team of the past 15 years has reached the Series, Texas Rangers fans should be rioting in the streets. At least they have been voting with their wallets... the season attendance totals at "Rangers Ballpark in Arlington" -- below 2 million for the first time since 1995 -- should tell the owners everything they need to know... right?

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np: Moe Bandy - "Roll on, Big Mama"

September trains

It was a busier September than usual, but I still managed to get out a couple of times -- including the rainy morning of September 9 -- to do a bit of shooting.

Fort Worth & Western switching near Purina Jct. in Fort Worth.

BNSF wins the race... eastbound near the T&P depot on UP trackage.

On September 25, my friend Stephen stopped through town on his way from Houston to Omaha...

BNSF 4367 and crew limo at Birds siding in south Fort Worth.

A colorful consist - northbound on the Choctaw Sub over I-820 in Haltom City.

Is this the best place to stop and "get the shot"? Stephen takes to the shoulder of I-30 near downtown Fort Worth...

The sidewalk on Allen St. looked safer...

"Raildog" moniker

"Charlie D Brown"

Colossus

Thanks to everyone for their emails and encouragement in response to my October 8th entry. And thanks for looking... check back in a few days for more.

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np: 10,000 Maniacs - "Weather"