I don’t believe in fate and I certainly don’t believe in the gods, but it’s an eerie coincidence that moments after Bankrupt & The Borrowers finished their set, the heavens opened up and the rain began. Back in early October, a house fire took the life of Bankrupt guitarist/trombonist Jon Pettis and the band opted to cancel all their upcoming shows… save for today’s Fun Fun Fun Fest slot. The heavy hearts of the band, their friends and family, and their fans were echoed in the gray skies and maybe that rain was one last cry in honor of Jon. Given the opportunity to say goodbye to their late bandmate, the band took the stage to an unreleased acoustic recording of one of Jon’s song. Standing quietly, with heads bowed, bassist Blue, guitarist Cadgers, and drummer Osteo let Jon’s beautiful voice be heard one last time from the stage before the surviving trio ripped into a few songs in his honor. Sadly, the loss of Jon was reinforced by the gaping holes left when his parts went unplayed – but that didn’t stop diehard fans from singing along just like they had at countless other Bankrupt & The Borrowers shows over the past couple of years. Obviously aware that paying homage to Jon would require someone to one day take his place on stage, the boys were joined by friends from The Bridge Farmers, The Van Buren Boys, and The Bread for a number of songs from their debut EP Beers on the Bible. If we never get to hear “Sweetheart”, “Jodi”, and “I Love You Baby” live again, today’s performances will remain as a lasting memory of how unbelievably great Bankrupt & The Borrowers were. By the time the set came to a crashing climax – with the band surrounded by friends singing backing vocals and the crowd joining in – I was left with the hope that Blue’s smile meant that maybe, just maybe, this isn’t the last time we’ll see these guys together. Let’s hope not. But more importantly, let’s hope the surviving members of the band and their families smile again in the months and years to come. If today was it, thank you. RIP Jon and long may you run, Bankrupt & The Borrowers.
My first Bankrupt experience was their CD release show at Mohawk in July 2008. I’ve been a huge fan since, probably attending a total of 15-20 Bankrupt shows (and filming 4 of those). For their final set at Fun Fun, I was part of a 4-man camera crew… and as I was setting up my camera to film this band for the last time, that acoustic Jon song came on. I started tearing up and I just kept my head down as I quietly adjusted camera settings with tears obscuring my vision.
I have so many great memories with this group of drunkards and starving artists. I know I’ll continue to see the guys around, whether it’s Cadge playing guitar with The Bread, Osteo checking IDs at Red 7, or Blue running sound at Mohawk. These guys as individuals are an integral part of the Red River scene. But a part of me will always mourn for what could’ve been. RIP Jon.
Thanks for sharing that with us Ajay. It’s amazing that a small band could impact so many of us this profoundly. I’m very thankful that I had the chance to play a couple of shows with them and get to know them a bit.
I hope you’ll share the entire show once you’ve gotten it edited down, if that’s something you (and the band) feel comfortable doing. In the interim, I managed to get one entire song shot in HD during the show Sunday. Doug has linked to it here:
http://www.austinsound.net/2009/11/10/watch-bankrupt-and-borrowers-dumpster-live-at-ffffest/
Thank you for putting up the review and the footage… I know I speak for so many of us back east and all over that loved jon so very much and were not able to be there for this special show. thank you for making it possible for us to be a part of it. Reading and watching what you posted gives a small glimpse into what was by all accounts an amazing and worthy tribute for our dear friend.