Perfection

  Billy Bragg was through town a few weeks back as part of PNCA's (Pacific Northwest College of Art) Idea Studio.  Interview/conversation then a concert format.  Completely sold out before I made up my mind to buy tix, but Barbara convinced me to come down early and see what might happen.  Turned out there were lots of unsold tickets and getting in was no problem at all.  

I hadn't been a big Billy Bragg fan, though Barbara is.  To the extent that she's offered him up a place to stay when he's been here before - didn't turn out that he took her up on the offer - but she did have the experience of her Brit husband Brian nonchalantly tossing out the message "Billy Bragg called".  She returned the call of course.  But we didn't hang out with him post show.   

I've always categorized him in reference to his protest songs and wasn't really familiar with the other side of him, the one that deals with human relationships.  And out of the blue comes this song

Something Happened

Do you know what love is?

Love is when you willingly

Place someone else's priorities

Above your own.

Do you know what lust is?

Lust is when you actively

Force your own priorities

On someone else.

And I'm completely blown away.  So spare, whittled down to the essential thought,  two questions and two answers, paired to his hauntingly beautiful guitar.   The "solo" version is much more evocative than the "band" version.  The cd - Mr. Love and Justice - has been in my car changer since the show and it isn't coming out anytime soon.