A Meditation on "35" by Bill Callahan
by Patty Yumi Cottrell

Bill Callahan is a friend to everyone. A conjurer of mortal joy, he shows us how a song can be a mirror, a map of encounter, a shrine to solitude. We were thirty-five once, all of us, reading books by Herman Melville, David Berman, William Vollman (so many -man/men!), hoping they would tell us how to live or at least why. Why should we live? Listening to Bill's new song "35" I take a walk with a friend to the edge of the future where there's precision in pathos and the light out is pink like berries (not the frozen yogurt franchise). Bill's voice, clarion and wise, reminds me to pay attention and to be more careful with others because most of us are gentle, small, and desiring things for ourselves. We might not notice this ever. It's okay to get lost, to hang out in the murk, Bill reassures us. We're lucky to have a guide. The moon is over my shoulder like a lantern on the path back, clearing.

"35" is now available on all streaming platforms and Bandcamp, listen by clicking the link above. Gold Record drops on September 4th!