Toby Keith: Rest in Power.....Really....I Mean It

The death of Toby Keith leaves me, like so many events at my age, with mixed emotions.

At only 62, he feels like an older contemporary now. But back in college when I came to adore Toby, he was a sexy, older singer that made me feel woo'd and charmed when he sang about wishing he was a cowboy. He was a country boy that seemed both innocent and world-weary with dreamy eyes and a deep vibrato. I just knew that his hands were rough from work but his heart was warm. It had to be.

On "He Ain't Worth Missing" he gave us girls hope for the next terrible boy that would only break our hearts again. And boy, were we ready for it! He made us want to give that good friend a try.....the boy we kept pushing to the waiting line. Maybe he could be the one!

Later as an adult and a divorcee, his lament of a lost marriage in "Who's That Man" cut me right to the quick. Even though Toby was married to his wife, Tricia, since the 80's he seemed to really get how a broken marriage and a broken home felt.

But then later, something changed. I began to see Toby as someone else. A mean guy. A guy who picked fights. A guy who picked on the weak and was full of his on ego. He egged on the vitriol toward The Chicks and pretty much ruined them. Sure, other folks piled on, but believe me, Toby lead the charge.

Then he saber-rattled with the best of 'em on songs like "Courtesy of the Red, White and Blue" subtitled, btw, as "The Angry American". Y'all. I was a grown-ass woman when 9/11 happened so believe me I tell you that I understand the fear, the patriotism and the utter confusion and breakdown of the time. But was this song the answer? Not to me. But make no mistake, most peeps loved it. It was the rallying cry of resilience of the early 00's.

And maybe that's why people loved it. And maybe it's what kept him battling for so long as he later struggled with stomach cancer. Reports say he died in his sleep. Bless him. And I mean that. I think he may be one of the few men that you could say "Rest in Power" and mean it.

Lay your hat down, Cowboy. Your workin day is done. Thank you for the music. I mean it.

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