They’ve all gone those singer songwriters of yesterday or are in the process of leaving But their songs remain in our hearts and psyches their words forever embedded in our souls They came like a breath of fresh air churning our souls dressed in dirty blue jeans, muddy boots with smelly sweat rough bearded faces extruding love for the bad guys but proving they were the good guys They were full of gall and grit not looking for fights but willing to kick ass they welcomed old highs with Tennessee Whiskey and Jack Daniels joyful times too few and hangovers too often, too many Sidewalks became obstacles in a cowboy’s walking stride even if one is a beloved singer alcohol messes with everybody with faces ending up making friends with concrete but singer-songwriters lived up to their reputations Don’t let them see you cry, Hank Williams said, let them hear it in a song Their music and words touched the inner me “He Stopped Loving Her Today” broke the hearts of everybody it was sung by the man with his soul buried in his voice George Jones twisted and bent the hell of notes till they cried and bled Kristofferson wrote from of a place where angels live he was fearless and pulled our hearts into the future writing his words and music from our hearts and lives we knew the love and pain expressed in his lyrics and music It will be a long time before we hear such insight again Johnny, Kris, Waylon, Willie, Merle, Johnny, Garth, Dylan and a myriad of many more gifted writers and singers who thrilled and delighted us with their talents and spirited lives lifted us to places where we could feel God crying And we cried until God commanded “PUT YOUR PAIN IN A SONG”!