As I mentioned in the previous article I wrote, I interviewed Jack Ingram a while back. I'm not sure why I'm thinking about it. But it's inspiring me so I'm going with it.
My little brother is very important and influential in my life. No one makes me laugh like me. I say little, but he's only a very little bit younger than me. He's graduating college this may as a fifth-year senior. He abhors conformity.
He had a thing a while back for wearing those "Mexican Wedding" shirts. Can't remember the other name for them. Well, I found one at Bealls so I bought it for him. He asked me, "Where did you get this?" I told him. "Oh great. Now I can't wear these anymore," he groaned. I asked why. "Because they're in department stores! do you know what that means?" "No." "They're trendy." "But I got it on the clearance rack! that means no one wanted it! and there were lots!" "Just stop."
He stopped wearing his pearl-snap 70s western shirts the year they became fashionable. He was wearing them two to three years before that. He cut his "fro" when that became snazzy. He takes nonconformity quite seriously. In fact, he dresses rather "regularly" in some sort of unexpected tshirt and jeans. But one best friend he's with is a "goth-like" person and the other is a "ranch-hand" like person. They're quite a set.
Back to Jack. Jack is what I call a "Texas" musican. It has its own sound. Not "hat" country. It's not Nashville. But it's got a rock sound and it's just all around different. He performed at Billy Bob's wearing a lavender tuxedo shirt. I asked him about it. I commented that I didn't think Willie (Nelson) would wear something like that. He laughed and then said he thought he would. He reminded me Willie got on stage with a bandana, two long braids, a t-shirt, jeans, and a guitar back when country meant a white stetson, rhinestones, sequins, and leather fringe. I recalled he is correct. Willie was a very self-confident man. He just did his thing, put it out there, and said, "like it or not." I think that's pretty cool. In fact, I think it's that very act that is so attractive -- his confidence in his personal style. It's not even an effort. It's just -- there. And it's fine.
BTW, I'm not a "country music" fan, before you get the wrong idea. I'm rather ecclectic with my music choices. I do happen to like the Texas sound. ( If you're interested in learning more about this very different classification of music, visit Jack's website at www.jackingram.net or find something by Robert Earl Keen, Cooder Graw, Lefty Frizzel, Townes Van Zandt, and Jerry Jeff Walker just to name a few. These are some pretty poetical musicans for the most part. For a good cross section, I recommend a cd called Texas Road Trip.)
In short, the whole "anticonformity" thing reminds me of that piece of "teacher flare" you see on the walls of homerooms round the country: If we were all born originals, why are we all dying copies?