Chris Whitley 1960-2005

I had fully intended to give my full rant about the U.S. Thanksgiving holiday season kicking into high gear this week, but upon visiting Chris's website and the message board, ranting about something as pointless as the holiday seems lame.

As noted below, Chris had been diagnosed with terminal lung cancer, and this fucking tenacious illness took him on Sunday Nov. 20. As noted on his website, Chris passed over surrounded by lots of love and hopefully in as little pain as medically possible.

It really goes without saying that this just fucking sucks. This would be the second time I've found out about the passing of one of my fave artists while at work, the other being Elliott Smith. Elliott's passing was in much different circumstances, but the fact remains that they've both left us, to never create new material. Our lives will be much more empty because of this fact, yet I hope to find comfort in the wealth of material that Chris was able to put to tape.

Rest in peace, Chris.

Thank you for sharing your art with the world.