"When I Ran Off and Left Her"
When I ran off and left her
She wasn't holding a baby
She was holding a bottle
And a big grudge against me
I tried to learn from the psychiatrist
How to stay calm and minimize risk
But I should've kept all those appointments
I'm gonna need 'em, I'm coming disjointed
When I ran off and left her
I didn't look backwards
Till I was halfway to Chattanooga
On the Atlanta connector
That's when I started flashing
On the little things that she did
All of her little sayings and I started to wig
I should've kept all those appointments
I'm gonna need 'em, I'm coming disjointed.
By Vic Chesnutt
DBT Track #64 "When I Ran Off and Left Her"
Moderators: Jonicont, mark lynn, Maluca3, Tequila Cowboy, BigTom, CooleyGirl, olwiggum
DBT Track #64 "When I Ran Off and Left Her"
I have nowhere else to go. There is no demand in the priesthood for elderly drug addicts
Re: DBT Track #64 "When I Ran Off and Left Her"
This song was included on the Record Store Day cd Sometimes Late At Night. It was written and originally recorded by the legendary Vic Chesnutt. I believe it is also included on the Vic Chesnutt tribute album.
From the beginning Drive By Truckers have written about the destructive nature of relationships. Side One of Gangstabilly opens with "Wife Beater" while Side Two starts off with Why Henry Drinks. Two of Cooley's earliest songs are "Panties in Your Purse" and "Love Like This". When it comes to finding fault or blame, The Truckers do not single out the male gender. Women are as capable as men at destroying a household. This honest realism is one of the things that makes DBT's music so compelling.
"When I Ran Off and Left Her" is Vic Chesnutt's take on the same themes. Chesnutt's approach is different from Hood and Cooley's. This song is more in the tradition of Jonathan Richman's songs about relationships with mentally unstable women. Songs like "She Cracked" and "Hospital" are about a man's attraction to a psychologically disturbed woman and the illusion that he can somehow save her. Codependency is not just about women chasing after drunk and abusive men. Certain men are drawn to crazy chicks like a moth to a flame.
The opening line -- "When I ran off and left her she wasn't holding a baby. She was holding a bottle and a big grudge against me" -- is brilliant. The expectation of a song with that title is that it will be some sort of confessional from a man who did his woman wrong. But this line gives us the image of a drunk and dangerous woman. The narrator has to get the hell out of there, not just for his own sanity, but maybe to save his own life. He knows the situation is screwed up. He steps on the gas and gets the hell out of Dodge.
But halfway to Chattanooga he starts to think about her and he begins to have second thoughts. He misses her already. That's when he realizes that he is just as unhealthy as she is. It takes two people to make a destructive relationship. We may be more prone to lay the blame on the drunk and abusive party, but the other person has to own up that they are attracted to crazy.
It is interesting how out of all the songs in Vic Chesnutt's body of work, Drive By Truckers chose this one. This song, which seems so simple on the surface, deals with the psychological complexities of artists and their relationships. I've been around music scenes and other arts communities for most of my adult life. One thing I have noticed is that many male artists -- musicians, writers, painters -- have an almost compulsive attraction to psychologically damaged women. I have been there myself. I don't know if it is the artistic temperment itself or something stranger. Perhaps the feelings or emotions expressed in a song, poem or story hold out the promise of healing and both parties buy into the illusion that being romantically involved with an artist can replace the hard work of dealing with our issues. Or can a partner's insanity function as some sort of muse?
From the beginning Drive By Truckers have written about the destructive nature of relationships. Side One of Gangstabilly opens with "Wife Beater" while Side Two starts off with Why Henry Drinks. Two of Cooley's earliest songs are "Panties in Your Purse" and "Love Like This". When it comes to finding fault or blame, The Truckers do not single out the male gender. Women are as capable as men at destroying a household. This honest realism is one of the things that makes DBT's music so compelling.
"When I Ran Off and Left Her" is Vic Chesnutt's take on the same themes. Chesnutt's approach is different from Hood and Cooley's. This song is more in the tradition of Jonathan Richman's songs about relationships with mentally unstable women. Songs like "She Cracked" and "Hospital" are about a man's attraction to a psychologically disturbed woman and the illusion that he can somehow save her. Codependency is not just about women chasing after drunk and abusive men. Certain men are drawn to crazy chicks like a moth to a flame.
The opening line -- "When I ran off and left her she wasn't holding a baby. She was holding a bottle and a big grudge against me" -- is brilliant. The expectation of a song with that title is that it will be some sort of confessional from a man who did his woman wrong. But this line gives us the image of a drunk and dangerous woman. The narrator has to get the hell out of there, not just for his own sanity, but maybe to save his own life. He knows the situation is screwed up. He steps on the gas and gets the hell out of Dodge.
But halfway to Chattanooga he starts to think about her and he begins to have second thoughts. He misses her already. That's when he realizes that he is just as unhealthy as she is. It takes two people to make a destructive relationship. We may be more prone to lay the blame on the drunk and abusive party, but the other person has to own up that they are attracted to crazy.
It is interesting how out of all the songs in Vic Chesnutt's body of work, Drive By Truckers chose this one. This song, which seems so simple on the surface, deals with the psychological complexities of artists and their relationships. I've been around music scenes and other arts communities for most of my adult life. One thing I have noticed is that many male artists -- musicians, writers, painters -- have an almost compulsive attraction to psychologically damaged women. I have been there myself. I don't know if it is the artistic temperment itself or something stranger. Perhaps the feelings or emotions expressed in a song, poem or story hold out the promise of healing and both parties buy into the illusion that being romantically involved with an artist can replace the hard work of dealing with our issues. Or can a partner's insanity function as some sort of muse?
I have nowhere else to go. There is no demand in the priesthood for elderly drug addicts
Re: DBT Track #64 "When I Ran Off and Left Her"
If you haven't heard the original, get out & pick up Vic Chesnutt's album Drunk immediately. It's worth it just to hear Vic's phrasing.
Amazing song, I believe it's also the easiest song in Vic's catalog to adapt to the Truckers' sound. While probably not my favorite Truckers' cover, it's definitely my favorite song that they have covered. (If that makes sense)
Amazing song, I believe it's also the easiest song in Vic's catalog to adapt to the Truckers' sound. While probably not my favorite Truckers' cover, it's definitely my favorite song that they have covered. (If that makes sense)
E quindi uscimmo a riveder le stelle.
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Smarty Jones
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Re: DBT Track #64 "When I Ran Off and Left Her"
I think the cover's sound melds beautifully with the funk of "Used to Be a Cop" and "Go-Go Boots," making it a perfect cover to release with this album - kinda weird how Chesnutt's tribute neatly coincided with GGB's release.
I love love love Johnny Neff's pedal steel work on this.
I love love love Johnny Neff's pedal steel work on this.
SMITH: Either I'm dead right or I'm crazy!
SEN: You wouldn't care to put that to a vote, Senator?
SEN: You wouldn't care to put that to a vote, Senator?
Re: DBT Track #64 "When I Ran Off and Left Her"
I don't think this is on a Vic tribute album.
E quindi uscimmo a riveder le stelle.
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Kudzu Guillotine
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Re: DBT Track #64 "When I Ran Off and Left Her"
Smitty wrote:I don't think this is on a Vic tribute album.
Not sure if you're being sarcastic or not but Soul Asylum covered it for Sweet Relief II: Gravity of the Situation - The Songs of Vic Chesnutt that came out in '96.
Re: DBT Track #64 "When I Ran Off and Left Her"
Kudzu Guillotine wrote:Smitty wrote:I don't think this is on a Vic tribute album.
Not sure if you're being sarcastic or not but Soul Asylum covered it for Sweet Relief II: Gravity of the Situation - The Songs of Vic Chesnutt that came out in '96.
I was referring to the DBT version.
E quindi uscimmo a riveder le stelle.
Re: DBT Track #64 "When I Ran Off and Left Her"
I had never heard this song before. Here is a pretty clear version on Youtube with a kick ass guitar solo by Cooley.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T-q-3deQPIo
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T-q-3deQPIo
By the time you drop them I'll be gone
And you'll be right where they fall the rest of your life
And you'll be right where they fall the rest of your life