Most people who care probably already know, but Warren Zevon died last weekend after battling inoperable lung cancer for the better part of a year. To avoid wasting ink on the same old obit details, Muse decided to pay tribute to the underappreciated rocker with a list of some of his more memorable songs.
‘Lawyers, Guns and Money’
Probably the most popular Zevon tune, after ‘Werewolves of London.’ Somehow, the poor protagonist manages to bag a waitress who’s ‘with the Russians, too,’ while racking up gambling debts with Cuban gangsters and being forced into hiding in Honduras. These are the true dangers of communism.
‘Desperados Under the Eaves’
Possibly Zevon’s most beautiful song, though it’s not without his trademark morose, self-deprecating wit. Best line: ‘And if California slides into the ocean/ Like the mystics and statistics say it will/ I predict this motel will be standing/ Until I pay my bill.’
‘Roland the Headless Thompson Gunner’
An incredibly weird and violent (and hilarious) revenge tale about a Norwegian soldier who gets his head blown off by a traitorous comrade in the Congo, only to hunt the guy down across Africa from beyond the grave.
‘My Shit’s Fucked Up’
Like a lot of Zevon’s later work, this one focuses on the repercussions of all those decades of hard drinking, chain smoking and hell-raising. Most of the lyrics unfortunately can’t be reprinted in our August publication, but it’s damn funny.
‘Detox Mansion’
A rollicking number about shackin’ up with Betty Ford and friends, making life in the clinic sound like a preschool-from-hell for irresponsible celebs. Best line: ‘I’ve been rakin’ leaves with Liza/ Me and Liz clean up the yard.’
‘I’ll Sleep When I’m Dead’
A fairly recent Zevon compilation took this as its title, which might as well have been the man’s mantra. It immediately conjures images of a piss drunk Zevon, probably hanging out with good pal Hunter Thompson, shooting pistols randomly into the darkness of the woods outside the house good times.
‘Poor Poor Pitiful Me’
More archetypal Zevon self-deprecation: early talk of attempting suicide is decidedly half-assed, suggesting he masochistically enjoys getting crapped on by all the women in his life. Best line: ‘She really worked me over good/ She was a credit to her gender/ She put me through some changes, Lord / Sort of like a Waring blender.’
‘Mr. Bad Example’
Man, what a jerk this guy is. After working as a laywer and blowing his fortune (made from hair transplants) on gambling and hookers, Mr. Bad Example ran off to Australia, where he exploited the aborigines he hired to work in the mines.
‘Werewolves of London’
If you’ve only heard one Warren Zevon song, this is probably it. It’s not his best, and suffers from its novelty song reputation, but like most of his stuff, it’s equally catchy and comical, with a touch of the absurd.
‘My Ride’s Here’
Unfortunately, some latter-day Zevon ended up sounding a bit heavy-handed; the central metaphor in this track, released less than a year-and-a-half before his death, is so obvious, it hurts. Still, he managed to pull off a lot of it with aplomb, proving that even at the end, Warren was still one badass MF capable of writing a pretty tight song.