First things first, fuck cancer. Fuck cancer right in its stupid fucking cancer face. 

My good friend and family member died today from, you guessed it, cancer. He was 44 years old, with kids. What the fuck is that shit? What a stupid cunt of a fucking disease. Dude was tough as nails. I’ve never met anyone tougher. In fact, he’s tougher than your dad, grandpa, and you. He could’ve beat the living piss out of all of you. I don’t care who you motherfuckers were or are. This dude was the toughest fucking thing to walk this earth. This earth? Actually, no. I’d even put him up against aliens. He would’ve turned those little fuckers into purple pancakes. But, more than likely, they would’ve ended up together, crowded around a small table, splitting their second bottle of whiskey, telling stories about the fucked up universe; that was more his style.

He loved this album. We took a road trip and, as two avid music lovers, figuring out what album to play on the way was a picky situation. We agreed and listened to this album, from front to back again, and again, and again, the entire fucking way. That dry sunny air with pavement flying by us, two acoustic guitars flung into the backseat, and a thick meaty smile spread across his face with teeth thick as dice, that’s how I’ll always remember him. 

In the last of his days on earth, barely able to strum and fucked the right up on enough drugs to choke a horse, he picked up his acoustic guitar and played the song “Dead Man” from this album. Choice lines from the song:

“Dead man, dead man believe […] You’re a free man at last. At last, dead man, you are free.”

I’m really impressed with hospital beds now of days. The fact that the bed continued to stand under the sheer weight of those massive balls is nothing short of a miracle. 

Is this album good? It’s one of the best folk albums to have ever been made, bar none. The album title alludes to the John Fahey album The Transfiguration of Blind Joe Death. And Vincent refers to Vincent O’Brien, a close friend of Ward. The album is about Vincent’s life and death. 

I hope you don’t mind if I leave you with some parting words from the strongest fucking guy I’ve ever met. And, if you do mind … fuck the right off. Here they are:

“Don’t ever give up. Keep going.”