Friday, August 28, 2026

Hitch a ride with the wind

Back in the late 80s, my life pretty much imploded. No need to go into details, but at the time a friend gave me some advice. “[Bas Bleu], you don’t have a job, you don’t have a place to live, but you do have a nice car. Why don’t you go somewhere?”

So I packed up my gold Celica and hit the road—I-40 and then I-10, to be precise. I had 10 cassette tapes, and one of them was Trio, the collaboration between Dolly Parton, Linda Ronstadt and Emmylou Harris. I have no recollection of the other nine, but I about played (and sang) Trio to death on that trip (which eventually brought me back to California, but only for another year before I moved East).

I’ve got plenty to say about Dolly Parton, who died this week at age 80, but while I’m still collecting my thoughts, here’s “Wildflowers”, from the album, which Parton wrote and which she said is about her own journey as she left Sevier County, Tenn., and went out into the world.

Which she undeniably conquered with love, generosity and joy.


 

©2026 Bas Bleu

 

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