number 65
when i got out of prison in 1964 (or 65) the guard at the gate said to me; "you'll be back." i replyed, "no, i won't." to which he said, "your kind never changes." i just smiled and said, "you have no idea just how wrong you are."
that little exchange has always stayed with me and now here i am so many years later on my 65th birthday headlining the tropicana on the strip in las vegas. what a long strange trip it has been ... to quote the grateful dead. the adventures, the women, the sex, the money, the travels, the ups and downs of a life fully lead. my body may be scarred from the knife wounds, the shrapnel from the gunshots, the car wrecks and the beatings but, my brothers and sisters, my heart is happy and my soul is full of love and gratitude.
i told the story of how i escaped from los angeles county jail last night and we got it on film and if it is any good i am going to post it on you-tube; i told it very well and it is, in itself, a great fucking story.
bruce springstein had a song, "glory days" about how people get old and instead of doing something with their life in the now, spend their time talking about the past. while my past has some very interesting (to say the least) events, i feel as if my story is not over yet and glory days are still in front of me. i may have mentioned this before but it bears repeating, my son, hudson, came to me for advice on something and he said the reason he was asking me is that i am the only person of my generation that he knows who is happy with their life. and i am; happy with my life, my wife, where i live, what i do and where i am going. i have some of the greatest friends any man could hope to have, my children are bright, beautiful and successful, my grandchildren are healthy and happy. who could ask for anything more?
anyway, number 65 has come and gone and i am still here. see ya down the road.
that little exchange has always stayed with me and now here i am so many years later on my 65th birthday headlining the tropicana on the strip in las vegas. what a long strange trip it has been ... to quote the grateful dead. the adventures, the women, the sex, the money, the travels, the ups and downs of a life fully lead. my body may be scarred from the knife wounds, the shrapnel from the gunshots, the car wrecks and the beatings but, my brothers and sisters, my heart is happy and my soul is full of love and gratitude.
i told the story of how i escaped from los angeles county jail last night and we got it on film and if it is any good i am going to post it on you-tube; i told it very well and it is, in itself, a great fucking story.
bruce springstein had a song, "glory days" about how people get old and instead of doing something with their life in the now, spend their time talking about the past. while my past has some very interesting (to say the least) events, i feel as if my story is not over yet and glory days are still in front of me. i may have mentioned this before but it bears repeating, my son, hudson, came to me for advice on something and he said the reason he was asking me is that i am the only person of my generation that he knows who is happy with their life. and i am; happy with my life, my wife, where i live, what i do and where i am going. i have some of the greatest friends any man could hope to have, my children are bright, beautiful and successful, my grandchildren are healthy and happy. who could ask for anything more?
anyway, number 65 has come and gone and i am still here. see ya down the road.
posted by Ron Shock | 4:02 PM
3 Comments:
Hope you had a good show. I live in Vegas but cant get to the show tonight. Was just watching some old Bill Hicks shows and remember the story where you 2 and Bill Silva were in Baton Rouge and got chased from the club.. Well to me thats the stuff legends are made of. Well thanks for the laughs. Winter is coming Ron, button up, its cold out there.
Happy Birthday, Boss.
May you have as many more as you wish.
thanks scotty.
john, actually it was lake charles not baton rouge and that story i combined with another gig to come up with "outlaw biker titty bar" story which is basically what happened in lake charles but i moved it to the bikers bar. why? 'cause it makes a better story.
when bill and i are breaking out the window on my truck because i had locked the keys inside i kept thinking, "if we survive, this is a great story!"
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