On the Ledge
The Legendary Stardust Cowboy — My Underwear Froze To The Clothesline
(Spider Records 45, 1987)
As longtime LH readers know, I spent the majority of my teenage years living in and around Lubbock, Texas, which is probably the closest thing I have to a hometown considering that I lived in 12 different houses by the time I was old enough to drink. (My dad’s job required a lot of moving.) As annoying as living in Lubbock often was as a teenager, it has its merits, and I largely have good thoughts about the place now even though I’m also quite happy that I don’t live there anymore. I’ll tell you one thing, though, Lubbock has a lot of hometown pride. The most minor celebrity to have come from the city has pride of place in the city’s civic heart, and there’s certainly been a lot of great musicians to have come from Lubbock: Buddy, of course, but also the Flatlanders, Terry Allen and Natalie Maines. Funny thing, though: I was nearly in my 30s before I found out that the Legendary Stardust Cowboy was from Lubbock. Best known for two things, the 1968 gonzo freakout single “Paralyzed” and the fact that David Bowie cribbed his surname for his character Ziggy Stardust, the Legendary Stardust Cowboy is every bit as much an outsider Texas musician as Roky Erickson or Jandek, but without the self-important fanboys. Good ol’ Norman Carl Odam is just too silly for that crowd, the sort of singer who considers an appearance on Laugh-In a highlight of his career. This track is the flipside to his 1987 single “Standing In A Trashcan (Thinking of You),” and it’s about as close as the Ledge ever got to a straightforward pop song.
–Stewart Mason
