Tag: Happy to Be Here

Todd Snider Live in Nashville 2010

Singer-Songwriter Todd Snider passed away unexpectedly in November 2025 after some recent odd news. We remember his music and a live show from 2010.

Todd Snider passed away at age 59 on November 14, 2025 after a few weeks of strange news on social media from his Instagram account and from his record label Aimless, Inc. First, his Instagram account posted on November 3, 2025 that Snider was cancelling tour dates after he had been violently assaulted in Salt Lake City, Utah. Not long after that, news broke that Snider had been arrested in Salt Lake City at the hospital where he went after the assault. By reports, he had been discharged but then returned to the hospital saying he was not well enough to leave and things escalated from there. He was charged with disorderly conduct, threat of violence and criminal trespassing.

While we still were waiting on any more verifiable news about the assault and arrest, Snider’s family and friends revealed that he had passed away. They noted that he had been “quietly suffering from an undiagnosed case of walking pneumonia.” His publicist later confirmed that Snider had died from pneumonia. Aimless, Inc. wrote:

“He relayed so much tenderness and sensitivity through his songs, and showed many of us how to look at the world through a different lens. He got up every morning and started writing, always working towards finding his place among the songwriting giants that sat on his record shelves, those same giants who let him into their lives and took him under their wings, who he studied relentlessly. Guy Clark, John Prine, Kris Kristofferson, Jerry Jeff Walker.”

Todd Snider had been touring in support of his latest album High, Lonesome and Then Some. He leaves behind a wonderful collection of albums, many of which he recently re-recorded as acoustic versions with the stories behind the songs (giving the downloads away for free on his website). I first discovered his music in 200 with Happy to Be Here, and 2003’s Near Truths and Hotel Rooms remains one of my favorite live albums.

The outpouring of sorrow and love for Snider has been a testament to how his music touched many lives. He never had a major hit and many reports on his death struggled to figure out what Snider song to put in their headlines (For example, Hollywood Reporter headlines “Alright Guy”; Deadline headlines that his song “Just Like Old Times”” inspired the 2020 film Hard Luck Love Song; San Antonio Express-News mentions “Beer Run” in its headline, etc.). But many loved his music. If you know artists like Todd Snider and Jerry Jeff Walker, you get it.

While the circumstances of Todd Snider’s death leave us with many questions. his music leaves us with much joy. Whether you are a fan or new to his work, check out this great Nashville live show The Storyteller – Todd Snider Live from Nashville (with Great American Taxi). The show was recorded at the James K. Polk Theatre on February 20, 2010. The title captures that he always was a great storyteller, and we hope he is somewhere telling Jerry Jeff some new stories. RIP.

Leave your two cents in the comments.

Well, Here We Go Again

Happy New Year! We wish everyone a happy new year, and especially for those who had a long year, we wish the new year brings good changes. One of my favorite songs about struggling through a year is Todd Snider‘s “Long Year,” the lead track from his excellent 2000 CD, Happy to Be Here.

“Long Year” captures someone struggling with alcohol addiction. The singer tells about attending a meeting and not knowing what to say. In the chorus, he notes “It has been a long, a long, long year” and wonders “How did I get here?” By the end of the song, though, he ends up back in a bar, thinking to himself, “Well, here we go again,” as he faces another long year.

The above video by Kathy Hatch was shot at Duggan’s Pub in Homer, Alaska on April 27, 2007. Yelp reports that the bar apparently had its own long bad year and is no longer open.

So be careful in your celebration, and have a good year.

What is your favorite song with “year” in the title? Leave your two cents in the comments.

  • It’s Been a Long Year
  • Todd Snider Live in Nashville 2010
  • D.B. Cooper and Todd Snider
  • Bringing in a Brand New Year
  • I’ll See You In My Dreams: Goodbye 2020, Hello 2021
  • Picture Show Online Tribute to John Prine

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    D.B. Cooper and Todd Snider

    On November 24, 1971, a man using the alias “Dan Cooper” boarded an airplane in Portland, later claiming he had a bomb and demanding money before he disappeared forever after parachuting out of the airplane.

    In 2011, Newspapers reported that the F.B.I. had a “credible” lead in the mysterious case of D.B. Cooper. Once again, though, authorities remained baffled about the identity and fate of the famous hijacker.

    Although I was around when Cooper disappeared, my interest in him peaked with a great song about the hijacker by Todd Snider.

    The Hijacking

    DB Cooper
    FBI Composite Sketch of “Cooper”

    On November 24, 1971 — the afternoon before Thanksgiving — a man boarded a flight in Portland, Oregon under the alias “Dan Cooper.” The name was later misreported into legend as “D.B. Cooper.”

    On the flight, Cooper handed a note to a flight attendant.  In the note, he claimed he had a bomb and asked for parachutes and $200,000 in twenty-dollar bills.

    At a stop at the Seattle-Tacoma airport, officials met the demands, and Cooper released the passengers. After refueling, the plane once again took off with Cooper and the crew on board. At some point during the flight, Cooper apparently opened a door.  Then, he parachuted out of the plane with the cash into the night and a raging storm.

    Cooper was never found, and in later years various discoveries contributed to the puzzle. For example, in 1980, a boy found some packets of the ransom money on the banks of the Columbia River near Vancouver, Washington. Through the years, other findings have often raised speculations.  But usually it would turn out the evidence was not connected to the hijacking.

    In 2011, reports indicate that the F.B.I. identified a suspect in the case, although he is now dead. They are doing further investigation, so we will have to wait and see whether there is a real breakthrough or just another false lead like all the others.

    June 2016 Update:  In June 2016, the FBI closed the case on the hijacking, leaving the mystery of D.B. Cooper unsolved.

    Todd Snider’s Song

    Todd Snider The best thing about the Cooper news is that it gives me a chance to post one of my favorite Todd Snider songs, aptly named “D.B. Cooper.” Todd Snider is a singer-songwriter who tells great stories with his songs. Snider has noted that one of his greatest influences is Ramblin’ Jack Elliott, and it shows in his music and presentation.

    A Washington Post recent review of Snider’s latest live CD, Todd Snider Live: The Storyteller, explains that Snider may be “the most likable man in music.” The article reports that Snider is “one hell of a performer, having built up a cult following thanks to nearly 20 years of concerts that double as side-splitting storytelling sessions.”

    Snider’s song “D.B. Cooper” from the CD Happy to Be Here (2000) recounts the story of D.B. Cooper fairly accurately.  He does combine a bit of poetic license and childhood memory to make the tale an excellent song.

    In writing the song, Snider perhaps found a small connection to D.B. Cooper, who began his strange journey at an airport in Portland, Oregon.  On October 11, 1966, Snider was born in Portland.

    And perhaps because the hijacking occurred in the 1970s and the song was released prior to the events of 9/11, one accepts the tradition of making the outlaw a hero a little bit more than we might have at another time. “Not far away from the City of Roses / A light shined from a house out in the rain / It was D.B. Cooper / Drinking champagne.”


    You may hear the original full-band version from the album at this link.

    What do you think happened to the real D.B. Cooper? What is your favorite Todd Snider song? Leave a comment.

  • Todd Snider Live in Nashville 2010
  • Well, Here We Go Again
  • It’s Been a Long Year
  • Picture Show Online Tribute to John Prine
  • Which “Beer Run” Song Came First?
  • Ramblin’ Jack and “Don’t Think Twice”

    • (Some Related Chimesfreedom Posts)