I’m embarrassed to admit it, but I had no idea who Vic Chesnutt was before his passing on Christmas Day (which was from a suicide of muscle relaxants. Baclofen maybe? Can you overdose from that?). Vic Chesnutt was an accomplished musician and a low-level quad (not a paraplegic as his Wikipedia profile incorrectly states).
And Vic was a folk singer. A “singer songwriter.” He was from Georgia, a Southern boy and was paralyzed at age 18 in a car accident. In 1990, he recorded his first album (“Little”), and became friends with Michael Stipe of R.E.M., who produced two of his albums after that. It wasn’t until 1996 though when Vic became well-known in his genre. Sweet Relief II: Gravity of the Situation, a tribute album to Vic Chesnutt, featuring covers performed by alternative bands like Live, Indigo Girls, Garbage and R.E.M, is what catapulted Vic into notoriety.
I always get depressed as Hell whenever someone with a near-identical injury to mine offs themselves (despite the fact that I can‘t fault them). But with Vic deciding to take too many pills on Christmas morning, despite his critical success, it makes me think….is our existence really that bad? Why Vic? Did you miss playing the guitar fluidly that badly?
I know everyone with paralysis has different levels of what they can tolerate. I don’t even blame a guy with a paralyzed foot if he takes his own life. That experience can be bad too; especially if all he knows. It’s all relative you know?
Anyways, I’m rambling here. I plan on downloading a bunch of Vic Chesnutt songs to see what he’s all about. What should I start with? What’s good?
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