Happy Birthday...

...to Slaid Cleaves.

If you've never heard Slaid before, give a listen:



He sings a lot of what I'd call bummer songs, in which never is heard an encouraging word. That last video was about a divorce, here's one about dead miners:



This last one is about a gambler who's so far down on his luck that he plead for "just one good year" to get himself back on his feet:



These are three of my favorite Slaid Cleaves songs. Slaid's an acquaintance, I've seen him in concert a few times; he puts on a great show, usually travelling with just a guitar player; he plays guitar himself, too.

Give a listen. I think you'll like it.