Mr. Hayes Carll from The Woodlands is one of our greatest treasures, and his country magic is making him a name all over America. We sat down with Carll to see what we could learn in 30 seconds.
Rocks Off: What is worst song in the world?
Hayes Carll: I really don’t know how to answer that question.
RO: What is the best lyric in the world?
HC: “From the rocking of the cradle to the rollin’ of the hearse/ The going up was worth the coming down.”
— Kris Kristofferson, “The Pilgrim, Chapter 33”
RO: Someone throws a beer bottle at you onstage. What do you do?
HC: Duck.
RO: Without worrying about space, time, or the laws of physics, what would be the ultimate gig to play?
HC: I’d start my gig at the Alamo on the night before it fell. Sing a few songs, blow some minds. Then I’d move on over to San Francisco to jump in on The Last Waltz and see what rock-star cocaine in 1978 was all about.
RO: What would you buy with a million dollars?
HC: A recording studio and a small entourage.
RO: What would you buy with your last dollar?
HC: I’d either give it away or buy a cigarette.
RO: If you could canonize another musician who would it be and of what would they be the patron saint?
HC: I think Ray Wylie Hubbard has performed a few miracles in his day. He could be the patron saint of lost souls and forsaken poets.
RO: What will be written on the plaque beneath the giant statue future generations erect in your honor?
HC: “He’s taller in person.”
Hayes Carll’s Burlesque Circus and Sideshow Freakout happens Friday at House of Blues, also featuring Corb Lund and Craig Kinsey.
This article appears in Dec 27, 2012 – Jan 2, 2013.
