Butch Walker and the influence of Ponyboy Curtis & The Outsiders

Butch Walker – Stay Gold can be found on iTunes.

by Walter Price

In 1983 a film called The Outsiders captivated this small-town boy. A movie adaptation of the novel of the same name by S. E. Hinton. A classic coming of age tale of the have and the have-nots. The wealthy Socs and the Greasers, who are the low-cash everyday kids. Rivalries, love, loss. A Francis Ford Coppola film of angst that really got the 1980’s teen film heyday up and running.

This is now and the cherished characters from The Outsiders have continued their stranglehold on the hearts, minds, and memories of the fans who got it and never forgot. Singer-songwriter, producer Butch Walker remembers and cherish those names, Sodapop, Dallas,  Johnny Cade, Two-Bit Matthews, and Ponyboy Michael Curtis.

And these memories of the film combined with his own childhood in small-town Georgia, Walker has created a beautiful album Stay Gold. A direct ode to the moment, as he is dying, Johnny Cade says to Ponyboy, “Stay gold, Ponyboy. Stay gold.” Heartbreaking,

Stay gold, now my pony boy
Don’t let them get you down
While the locals work for taxes
remember You own this town
not a soul is gonna listen
Your scream won’t make a sound
With a world so black and white, boy…
Stay gold

The album Stay Gold isn’t heartbreaking. It’s an album of honest songs that, in my mind’s eye, could have had the creator thinking in cinematic scenes as he lays out his tales. Put it on, close your eyes and direct a movie of your childhood and let it be soundtracked by Butch Walker’s Stay Gold.

BUTCH WALKER

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