Honey put down that fly swatter and pour me some ice water

Let those words pour over you and then sink into all your nooks and crannies. Lyle Lovett is molasses. His singing gets right to my core. His music or passion or storytelling reaches my soul.

Don’t tell me that all you know about Lyle is that he was married to Julia Roberts. And I’m sure the divorce was her fault or her short sightedness or something equally repugnant. And to be friends, we must agree that she was lucky to have him and not the other way around. (My cousins were extras on the movie Pelican Brief filmed in New Orleans. And Julia made these poor souls carry around umbrellas everywhere so she wouldn’t get hot. It was August in New Orleans. It was hot. So right there, I have proof. Julia isn’t all she’s cracked up to be. Straight from my cousins mouth to your ears.) I loved Julia in Steel Magnolias, too but that isn’t the point.

The point is that at 60 years old in the Atlanta Symphony Hall with his Large Band, Lyle Lovett lit up the place. He danced sublimely with Francine Reed and hinted at political dissonance by singing his songs about South of the border. He lets his ankles turn in ever so awkwardly and coyly. My heart melts all over his cowboy boots.

He embodies what makes me proud of the South. That voice. The modern cut of his suit pants making me wonder how in the world he got his cowboy boots on underneath there. Dreaming of being a cowgirl right along side of him. Riding on a horse on a boat– better than Pippi Longstocking herself. Unable to stop myself from feeling the blues and swinging or bopping to his deep drawl. Tears gush as he croons about his love knowing all about him in Nobody knows me Like my Baby. Feeling grief and despair and coming right back up again to feel community and goodness wrapped up in fried chicken. He loves Texas and makes his home come to life. He can profess an undying love and have a girl in every port in the next minute and yet he is undeniably charming. And I loved him.

For me- Lyle is right up there with Obama. Well, Obama still comes in first but if I was to make anyone a sandwich on a lazy Saturday morning it would be for either Lyle Or Barak.

I really think you might feel a tad better if you clicked the words in red so you can hear some delicious music and let your soul heal better than your favorite Starbucks order could. Better than a hot bath. The kids are going to spill the coffee or interrupt the bath anyways- so listen to these songs. George said that hearing Lyle sing his favorite song If I Had A Boat was the happiest moment of the past year for him. Gidge is a great observer of life and when he can pin point the happiest moment of the past year- I stop and I listen and I thank the heavens that I was there with him in that soul quenching space – the happiest of his year. Heed the advice of me and Gidge- listen to Lyle. Go hear live music. Sing your favorite song. If you don’t need our suggestions, that is cool. Send us your recommendation in the comments. Imagine a bank of songs that could rescue us from dreariness and hard days. Let’s do it. Let’s create a musical bank – well I guess it is more like a credit union. And next time you get Starbucks eat a cake pop for MIm.

Forgot who Mim is? Gidge? Click on Cast of Characters and refresh that memory. Peace out and thanks for reading.