In the late 1990's, I was a truck driver for J. B. Hunt, and I spent one day each month off the truck in El Paso, Texas, treating myself like a king at the Embassy Suites Hotel due the the grinding schedule I held all the other days of the month. As one of these days off developed, I began to have an impression that I should buy a guitar on the way into El Paso. I thought of Elvis, Willie Nelson, my big brother and James Taylor, all guitar players I'd known of. I had never owned or played the guitar my whole life, but I knew I needed to buy one that day, so I did and set up my first music lesson in my hotel room that night at 7 p. m.
As was customary, I put on my suit and tie and had the hotel limo drop me off the other side of I-10 for my movie and steak dinner at the local mall. When I returned to the hotel in the limo a few hours later, I noticed a white van with the rear doors open and musical instruments being taken out.
As I entered the lobby, I saw the back of James Taylor's head at the front desk checking in. Wearing a suit, I guess he thought I was with the El Paso Symphony (where I soon found out he was to play the coming day). I said, "James Taylor." He turned around, we shook hands, and he greeted me with his polite way. I talked with him on my impression of a need to buy a guitar on the way up the elevator and him being in the mental mix of inspirations to do so, and it was clear that he took a real interest in the cosmic dimensions at play. I invited him to sit in on my first guitar lesson, and he politely declined, citing a need to get set up for his event with the El Paso Symphony the next night.
We spoke in the atrium and crossed paths at the ice machine over the next day. He offered me free tickets finally at Will Call, but I had to decline, as I was due back in the truck that day.
It was one of those interesting stories you can only live.
Gene Chapman
