I’ve written about the extremely charming Julie previously. Among her many other charms one my favorite things about her was that she lived in Austin. I’ve been trying for years to cultivate friends in that town so I can have a friendly couch to crash on if I ever get down there for South By Southwest. But it seems that whenever I do befriend an Austinite they don’t stay there long enough for me to impose on their hospitality.

Such is again the case as last week Julie quit her job and moved to Marfa to start her excellent adventure. Which is great for her, I wish I could get away with running off to a remote artist colony. That would be a high-quality midlife crisis for sure. But I have responsibilities so once again I need to have my midlife crisis vicariously through others and turn my envy into a Cover Freak post.

Andy Prieboy “On The Road Again” (Canned Heat)
This version of the song leaves out the lyric about being tired of crying, which is for the best since I don’t think that Julie was crying at all when she was on the road to Marfa. I believe that she was quite happy and excited.

Andy Prieboy used to sing for Wall Of Voodoo after Stan Ridgway left the band. I loved that band whoever was singing and I love this hard driving Canned Heat cover.

Giant Sand “El Paso” (Marty Robbins)
A little-known fact about Marfa is that the movie Giant was filmed there. So in tribute to the town’s cinematic heritage here’s Giant Sand with a rambling cover of a song about another West Texas town.

R. Stevie Moore “Cruising For Burgers” (Frank Zappa)
Given the state of the economy, I’m pretty amazed that Julie has a job only a couple of days after moving to Marfa. She’s the cook (among other things) at a roadhouse called Padre’s. So if you’re ever cruising for burgers in Marfa, stop on by and Julie will take care of you.

Don Ho “Shock The Monkey” (Peter Gabriel)
Apparently one of the signature dishes at Padre’s is the Don Ho Burger. It sounds delicious and it also provides an opportunity to unleash one of the weirder covers in my collection. Which is saying a lot.

The Texas Tornados “Volver, Volver” (Vicente Fernandez)
Years ago I was reading a novel that contained an exchange between a Texan and a non-Texan. The Texan was bragging about how big his state was, saying “I can get in my car and drive all day and still be in Texas.” To which the other man replied, “Yeah, I used to have a car like that.” It’s a little over 400 miles from Austin to Marfa, and I am impressed that you can drive that far and never leave the state. Julie’s road trip was such a Texas-centric affair that I had to include a song from one of my favorite Texas bands.

Volver means “return.” It’s the song of a man who feels compelled to return to the woman he left. I hope that Julie eventually feels compelled to return to Austin, but I have a feeling that if she does go back it will just be to visit and she won’t be bringing her couch with her.