The Blind Owl's Lyrics: A Question

Here we'll address a question sent via email, from Blind Owl fan Glen. He asks:

The lyric "My Dear Mother left me when I was quite young" in On The Road Again fascinates me.I wonder whether it is a personalized reference to Alan`s real mother leaving the Wilson household when Alan was a toddler.Or is the lyric simply pulled out of an old blues song.?What do you think?

This is a great question, considering that many of Alan's lyrics contained "seeds" of blues poetry, or were inspired by specific blues songs. This particular lyric can indeed be heard in songs by other blues performers. The topic of the departure or death of the mother is a common theme in blues; Charley Patton, for instance, sang about wondering where his mother is now that she's dead and gone, and imagines her "dancing 'round the throne" in the heavenly realms. Booker White sang about standing at his mother's grave. Other songs refer to rejection by the singer's mother, which is a little more in line with Alan's lyric (Alan goes on to say that she has called him a "wicked son").

However, we know that Alan did not randomly select lyrics, nor did he simply sing songs whose musical attributes appealed to him. In interview, he consistently expressed the feeling that he wanted to sing songs whose lyrics had some personal meaning to him. He seemed to feel that it was, on some level, inauthentic for him to sing lines that he could not personally relate to. (It's important to remember that he did not hold this requirement for all singers, and pointed to Bob Hite as a contrasting example: an artist who could comfortably sing something traditional like "I was born in Alabama, and raised up in Tennessee," with no lack of feeling or emotion, but with no direct personal correspondence to the lyric.)

Ergo, Alan was left with two choices: to select only those blues lyrics which had some personal meaning for his own life, or to write his own lyrics. Eventually he would head more and more in the latter direction. When "On the Road Again" was recorded, however, he was at the stage of synthesizing highly traditional blues elements with his own innovations - such as use of the tambura instrument - and was still using a lot of "borrowed" lyrics and phrases. This included the reference to his mother leaving him. Since he did experience a separation from his mother in youth, we can safely conclude that while he knew this line as a traditional blues phrase, he invoked it for a very specific and personal reason.

In other words, the direct answer to Glen's question is: "Both. The lyric was pulled out of an old blues song, but chosen for a reason that reflects Alan's early experience."

It's also worth noting that since Blind Owl Blues has been published, more information has been discovered about Alan's family situation and early life. Author and Senior Alanologist Rebecca Davis Winters says, "When I was originally researching the book, I was only able to track down a few of Alan's family members. Those that I interviewed had some hesitations, shall we say, and were not always forthcoming with a lot of detail. I can understand their feelings on this as Alan's life has so often been misunderstood and misrepresented by the media. Since the release of the book, there have been a couple of family members who have contacted me and offered clarifications and details. While it's not appropriate for me to put all these details into the public sphere, I can say that I'm glad the book meets with approval from some of Alan's relatives."

Regarding the maternal relationship that inspired "On the Road Again", Winters says, "I'm pleased to report that Alan did continue to have contact with his biological mother, Shirley, throughout his life. When the book was published, I was a little unsure about their continued relationship - as the relatives willing to interview were not very forthcoming with details - and the text reflects this. However, the separation of his biological parents certainly did affect Alan on a deep and profound level; hence his healthy expression of his feelings in 'On the Road Again'. But we also know that he had a great relationship with his stepmother, Barbara. So, while I am no psychologist, I think it is safe to say that despite Alan's melancholy lyric, we need not think of him as an orphaned child."

Learn to play "Going Up the Country" on guitar

Alanologist Bob Walters has put together this analysis of the guitar part from "Going Up the Country". Thanks, Bob, for this great information!

Want to learn more? Join the Blind Owl Wilson group on Facebook, where Alanologists are constantly studying the works of this great genius!

See Blind Owl memorabilia and more on Facebook!

Blind Owl fans can now connect on Facebook and learn more about this amazing musician.

Check out the Blind Owl fan group here.

Alan "Blind Owl" Christie Wilson on Facebook

And you can also join Facebook to connect with Blind Owl biographer and leading Alanologist Rebecca Davis Winters.

Blind Owl Heaven

As part of our Blind Owl art series, we're pleased to present "Blind Owl Heaven, an original drawing by Doug Brown. Here, Alan Wilson has pitched his tent in a peaceful abode, enjoying the beauties of Nature while charming an owl and surrounded by his favorite musical instruments.

Image is copyright 2010, Doug Brown; unauthorized reproduction is prohibited.

Do you have Blind Owl-related art, poetry, or essays you'd like to share? Let us know! Thanks to Doug for sharing his art; we hope he and many others will be inspired to create more in the coming year!