Tim Buckley and Lowell George

Tim and Lowell are forever linked by dying on the same date just four years apart.

I was really pissed off when I found out Tim Buckley passed away. I knew him pretty well after shooting him many times at various clubs and arenas in Vancouver. Even though I was only there for a year and a half, Tim seemed to come up to play almost every month. I had planned to make my move to LA in early July and Buckley was one of the musicians I was counting on to help me break in to the big pond with my photography. Not to mention, he was fun to shoot and I always loved it when he would give me a hard time...which was every time I saw him. Then he had to go and kick it just a few days before I was leaving for L.A. Oddly enough, I almost kicked it the following week, after coming down with a serious case of spinal meningitis the day I was literally getting into my packed car to leave.

So, hanging out with Tim and his band in L.A. was not to be. I'm thankful that I got to know him and photograph him when I did. This picture is one that I found in sheet of unmarked negs, so it's not in my book.

Tim Buckley

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This is one of my favorites from Tim...the Fred Neill song Dolphins...



Ever wonder where Jeff Buckley got his looks and voice? Look no further...




And this is the date we also lost the amazing Lowell George. If you never got to experience Little Feat live with Lowell...well...I feel sorry for you. They were an amazing live band.

I remember the day Lowell died like it was yesterday...I was driving down Topanga Canyon, not far from where Lowell lived, when I heard the shocking news of his death on the radio. Just like that same sad feeling we all experienced a few days ago.

Lowell George

4/13/45-6/29/79

One of my Little Feat favorites...



And if you don't think this is brilliant...well, you just don't know...



I'm really, really missin' both these guys.



You can see lots more pictures and learn more about Tim Buckley, Lowell George and the 46 other musicians in my tribute book, Everybody I Shot Is Dead.

Lowell George

It's Lowell George's 64th birthday today. Don't know him? He was the founder and lead singer/guitar of Little Feat. Never heard of Little Feat? Well, they were about the best live band ever. Their double live album, Waiting for Columbus (which includes a photo I took of Lowell on the inside cover), is considered to be in the top 3 live albums ever recorded.

So put on your dancing shoes - or maybe your Sailn' Shoes - and celebrate the late great Lowell George.

Lowell George

4/13/45-6/29/79

You can see lots more pictures and learn more about Lowell George and the 47 other musicians in my tribute book, Everybody I Shot Is Dead.

In Other News

I relieved my Lowell George depression by printing out my George Harrison pictures. My 11 color photos and twice as many black & white George Harrison pictures, thank you very much.

I was about to do the layout for George and Harrison (ha ha, get it?), but then decided to dig into my Michael Bloomfield section and finish the print-outs I started last month. Aack. His computer folder is in complete disarray. How appropriate. I started with his pictures a year ago February. I don't have that many - more lost pictures and another reason you'll read about in the book - but still, it's a mess. Reminds me of the time he sent me to his house to look at his artwork. Since he decided not to be there, I had to look through the house on my own. His bedroom looked like his computer folder. In other words, so bad that I had to take a break and write this post. Enough said.

When I'm done with this post, I'll probably flake on Michael and do the layout for George. The Beatle. I'm thinking it will flow easily. And easy is exactly what I'm looking for right now.

In other news...

I found Fred Kaplan's email address. Due to Dave Chamness not giving up. Thank you, Dave. You will be rewarded. It was his second to last stab that did the trick. I emailed Delta Groove and they emailed back his personal email address. I'll send him a note tonight. Yay...I don't have to drive all the way to Laguna to track him down.

I also heard back from Tim Renwick (through Brian Mathieson) about Peter Wood. Tim played in several bands with Peter, including the Al Stewart Band when I shot him. He didn't have the birth and death dates I'm looking for but he did go into how he died:

"The dates for Peter I'm not sure of. I know he died when he fell over and knocked himself out during a solitary drinking binge (it seems he was a secret drinker - schnapps being the drink of choice - so oblivion seeking, the motivation) I think the actual cause of death in such cases is hyperthermia. It was very tragic, at the time there had to be a `whip-round` to pay for his funeral expenses I was told. Those of us in the UK did not hear of his demise for a while as he'd separated from his wife and was hiding away a lot."

Very sad. Peter was a sweet fun-loving guy, as you will see by his photos (and the ones he took of me) in the book.

And finally, since I can't find my Lowell George color pics, the least I could do is confirm the identity of which son (we think it's Forrest) is in the photo with Lowell and Mo Ostin. I was going to ask Dave Chamness to take care of this for me - since he seems to have a lot of slack time -but I went ahead and found an email for George's daughter's manager. He sent the photo on to her and I am waiting to hear back.

Later.

It's Days Like This...

...that really bum me out.

When I do a layout for a musician in my book, the first thing I do is print out all the photos I have of them. Four to a page and then I cut them up so I can sort through them, look at them all at once and pick the pictures I want for the book.

I just finished all the Lowell George photos. I have 39 to pick from...but I'm really bummed because I am missing all of the live color shots. I know I took them. One of them is on the inside of the Waiting For Columbus album. See? It's right there:

I'm trying to get a copy of that shot through the record company. I really want to put it in the book, since Lowell said it was his favorite picture of himself.

Why the fuck didn't I take better care of my stuff?