I explained that I was born in Austin, Texas, in 1970, to a 20-year-old father who did, and still does, a killer cover of "Me and Bobby McGee." My dad plays the song slower than Janis Joplin did. He pores over the lyrics, enjoying each rhyme, his voice heavy with that song's melancholy sense of loss. "Freedom's just another word for nothing left to lose," my dad will repeat, and then often add, "That may be the best song ever written." One Sunday morning, we skipped church to go see an early showing of the film Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid. For me, Kris has always been a part of the landscape of my country — an amalgamation of John Wayne and Walt Whitman.
---"The Last Outlaw Poet," by Ethan Hawke, Rolling Stone (4.7.09)
Kris Kristofferson, almost 73. The man himself is a statement for his changing times. The son of an Army major general. A high school and college athlete. Graduated summa cum laude, Pomona College. A Phi Beta Kappan. A Rhodes Scholar. A captain in the Army, ranger and helicopter pilot. Gave up the Army for Nashville. An accomplished songwriter and singer. Three Grammy awards. An accomplished actor and activist. A personal life of notable highs and lows. Changed with his times, followed his muse, made his statements.
This article in Rolling Stone by Nathan Hawke is a great reminder of one of America's originals.
http://www.rollingstone.com/news/story/27113898/the_last_outlaw_poet/2
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