Oh, man—the world lost a beautiful melody this week. Songwriter-guitarist
and all-around musical magician John Renbourn has died of an apparent heart attack.
He was 70.
I knew him as a principal in Pentangle,
a group that wove traditional folk songs through modern world rhythms and
produced a unique, haunting sound. I’ll admit that his voice was not his strong
suit, but lordy, could that man play the guitar.
Renbourn had a puckish sense of humor, which emerged in
interviews over the years. He claimed that he came to music as a means of
avoiding obligatory boxing and cross-country running at his school. If so,
hurrah for us, because we won. I can’t think of anything by him that’s not a
delight.
Renbourn never stopped—his body was discovered on
Thursday, because he failed to show up for a gig. There’s a man who lived his
passion.
And here’s an example for you to remember him by:
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