The second last time I was in Japan I spent a lot of time in my head formulating a story of a man who was delivering sake on the devil's orders. Over the course of his deliveries the man drank more and more of the sake, and cheated the people he was delivering to more and more to compensate for his lasciviousness, until he met the ultimate delivery recipient, who was the devil himself. Unable to cover up his cheating ways, the man was finally exposed, only to discover his actions were exactly what the devil wanted of him.
Ah, I love a happy ending.
One of my great friends is the BBC 6 Music radio DJ Chris Hawkins. Like most of my friends, he exists more in virtual reality than in old-style physical, tangible reality. We have had a minor scuffle recently over Ryan Adams. I am willing to put Ryan Adams up as one of the greatest living artists, next to Bob Dylan, myself and possibly Gabriel Garcia Marquez. Chris, on the other hand, hates him. Chris is violently mistaken, of course. As evidence, I offer some of the lyrics to Ryan Adams’ “What the Devil Wanted”:
My idle hands
They are but tools
Apply them well
And you will loose
It’s what the devil wanted
What the devil wanted from me
Put your lover to your chest
Put all your fears to rest
Forever, baby
Ah, ah
Forever, baby
All my time is wasteful now
All my time is wasteful now
All my time is wasteful now
Ah, ah, ah, baby
