KINKY FRIEDMAN: R.I.P.

Very sad news. Kinky Friedman: R.I.P.  Known for songs like "Sold American," Kinky was a journalist, a songwriter, and mystery writer. He also ran for Texas governor.  I first saw him in the 70s when he performed in Berkeley: Kinky Friedman and the Texas Jewboys! But I got to spend some time with Kinky when he was the 1996 Left Coast Crime Guest of Honor in Boulder, CO, in 1996. Such a character. Theme of the convention: Murder with an Attitude! Kinky had a lot of that. He entertained us, made us laugh, and made us think. He will live on in his books and songs. 

From Rolling Stone:

Kinky Friedman, the eccentric country singer-songwriter whose musings, novels, one-liners and quixotic gubernatorial run made him a folk hero, died Wednesday at age 79 at his home in Texas.

“Kinky Friedman stepped on a rainbow at his beloved Echo Hill surrounded by family & friends,” a statement on X read announcing his death. “Kinkster endured tremendous pain & unthinkable loss in recent years but he never lost his fighting spirit and quick wit. Kinky will live on as his books are read and his songs are sung.” The cause of death was Parkinson’s disease, according to Texas Tribune.

Friedman’s oddball magnetism and “fearless Texas chutzpah,” as his friend Taj Mahal once described it, in his writings, stump speeches, songs, and interviews, cemented him as a media darling and a songwriter’s songwriter who befriended several presidents (George W. Bush, Bill Clinton) and considered Bob Dylan and Willie Nelson some of his closest friends. Read more here