The idea behind Origins of a Song is to take a fictitious look at a scenario that may or may not have led to the birth of a select few of the most memorable of songs. This time, we’ll take a crack at the brilliant Townes Van Zandt’s classic folktale, Pancho & Lefty.

On a rickety porch attached to an old wooden house in the midst of a dusty Mexican desert town, a trio of old men adorned in cowboy hats, holsters, and full get up of western accoutrements, drink from bottles of Tecate as hey sway back and forth in their rocking chairs.

“It’s been a very long time amigo. What do you say you sing us a song,” asks the old federale.

“Nah, I don’t sing the blues anymore; I was a different person back then. Made deal with a devil or whatever it is they say about bluesmen,” Lefty says laughing to himself.

“Too bad, amigo; you had it in ya. So, what brings you back down here to Meheeco, Lefty,” ponders the other old federale.

“Oh… Redemption I suppose,” Lefty says lazily and half drunk as he ponders what he is doing there.

“What do you mean, redemption?”

“Well, I’m an old man now, but many years ago, I did something I’ve always regretted. They day I left town, I betrayed a friend.” Lefty returns pulling his lips together, breathing a deep sigh, and hunching his shoulders humbled.

READ ON for the conclusion of this month’s Origins of a Song…

“You mean that sorry old crackpot called himself a bandit, Pancho?”

“Yes, Pancho may have been a  crackpot, but he was my friend. And he could cut through the wind like a silver bullet and had reflexes like a black fly. You two never would have put him down without me tipping you off.”

“Excuse me, bendejo? We could have apprehended that  wannabe any day? Ain’t nobody tipped us off. He’s lucky we were kind enough to let him hang around as long as we did,”  the federale sternly retorts as his eyes light up.

“Oh really? So you don’t recall a little deal going down out behind Espuelas the night I left?”

“Hombre, we aren’t  the ones who scurried off to Ohio to hide with a little pouch of stolen pesos. Why don’t you enlighten us to where you got the bread for that little excursion anyway? I don’t suppose it had anything to do with robbing the ladies who worked upstairs, you pathetic little piece of basura?” the second old federale asserts, now clearly defensive.

“That’s not the story. You got it wrong ” Lefty responds angrily as he draws his six-shooter from his holster and aggressively jams it into the old federale’s upper chest.

“You didn’t have the cajones then and you don’t have ‘em now,” says the second old federale as he too draws his pistol from his side and spins it around his pointer finger before sarcastically and sarcastically pointing it at Lefty.

“Now what Lefty? There’s two of us you idiot. What do you plan to do now? Unless redemption for you is a dirt nap, you best be on your way,” the federale says unnervingly with the gun still pressed to his ribs.

Lefty just stares blankly for a tense few moments, clearly not sure about his next move.

“Why are you still here bendejo,” taunts the second federale.

Lefty slowly lowers and gun momentarily before turning in on himself and leaving the world with three last sarcastic words, “Kindness I suppose.”

Ryan Dembinsky

Ryan Dembinsky is a contributing editor for Hidden Track, where he focuses primarily on longer-form content and interviews. Ryan has contributed to a wide variety of music and sports publications such as Sports Illustrated, AOL Fantasy Football, Jambase, and Relix to name a few.

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