P.G. SIX - “High, Low & In Between” (2002)

I saw Patrick Gubler, otherwise known as P.G. Six, cover this Townes Van Zandt song at the Unitarian Meeting House in Amherst, MA back in the mid-aughts. At a time when everyone was getting pretty heavy into their New American Weirdness, Gubler kind of stood out in his own humble, beardless way. Never one for fashion or for facial hair, Gubler was more of a modest character, a kind of nerd’s nerd. If you saw him on the street, you’d never guess he ran with some relatively big dogs.

I had already long been a big Townes Van Zandt fan, but something about Gubler’s fragile performance of “High, Low & In Between” made me appreciate the power and beauty of this song in particular. I finally tracked down the 7” Amish Records released back in 2002 with the cover track on the b-side. Although it doesn’t quite live up to my memory of seeing Gubler perform it, it’s still worth sharing.