[MRM]

I like that version of Roland. It has a slower, more somber pace and tone that fits the subject and reflects Warren's diminishing days better than the more raucous original version.

I first heard of Warren from the cooler kids in high school and got into him in college when I had better access to music in the Walkman cassette tape era. My first live concert was seeing him at First Avenue in Minneapolis with one of my best college buddies and fellow Warren aficionado. I didn't know many other Warren Zevon fans, so it surprised me a little to see thousands of middle class middle American boys who all looked like me and dressed like me show up to his concert. When he played Rolland everyone was singing softly with him and a few waived cigarette lighters over their heads. It was surreal, almost like a campfire singalong, where with half closed eyes you could imagine the audience resting for the evening somewhere outside Stanleyville.

Interestingly, according to Warren's wife's book, that concert appears to be the night Warren met and began his affair with Elanor Mondale. She was a local news reporter at the time and apparently met him back stage.