"He'll settle down, in the quiet little town..."

I was saddened by the news of Gerry Rafferty's death two days ago. I cannot say that I am his fan, to be honest. I cannot even say that I know much about him. It was through his wonderful song Baker Street in the late seventies of the last century that I came to know his name. I was mesmerised by the saxophone solo, the lyrics as well as the singer's interpretation whenever I heard it played on the radio. In that pre-Internet era , it was not easy to gather information about a pop singer or group, so one just took a song and its performer(s) on its merits. I have to say that I am mourning Gerry Rafferty as the singer of the song more than Gerry Rafferty the person.

Baker Street is considered by some as a timeless piece and one of the best existentialist songs ever recorded. It is ironic that while the song is about an alcoholic who is a rolling stone with no direction and struggling with his dream of owning a house and giving up drinking, in real life Gerry Rafferty was also plagued by the bottle. He died on 4 January 2011 from liver failure due to alcoholism.

"He's gonna give up the booze and the one night stands
and then he'll settle down, in the quiet little town and forget about everything"

I wish Gerry Rafferty has now settled down in a "quiet little town" somewhere, and would like to thank him for leaving us with that immortal song.