Linklater and Me

I was asked by a friend -- a lovely young woman by the name of Suzanne, with whom I've been spending some very enjoyable evenings -- about my reference in a previous one of these "blogs" about a reference to my friend, critically acclaimed director Richard Linklater. I'm not one to drop names, but since it was asked I'll tell the story.
I met Dick many years ago when I was playing a week of shows at Pete's Peanut Bar in Austin, Texas. Dick and some of his friends had just finished shooting "Dazed and Confused," an excellent film starring a young newcomer that you might have heard of...one Ben Affleck.
Dick and his friends heckled me unmercilessly for an entire night, saying things like "Is this the Velvet Room?" and "Michael Feinstein called and he wants his act back...and Tony Bennett called Feinstein and said that he wants his act back!" Dreadful. One of the worst shows that I've ever done.
Anywho, afterwards they apparently felt a little bit bad and helped me drown my sorrows with a couple of bottles of Johnny Walker Red.
Since then our paths have crossed here and there, most notably when I was approached about singing a song in his film "Walking Life," a most ingenious animated film dealing with dreams. I was brought in to do a demo of Roy Orbison's gorgeous "In Dreams" to be used as they were editing. I knocked it out of the park! Dick wasn't there, but the sound engineer told me that, while he didn't really know who Roy Orbison is and had never heard the song before, he coudn't imagine anyone doing a better job with the material.
Needless to say, my song never made it into the final film. From what I understand, the studio pressured Dick and his producer into using a score entirely by The Tosca Tango Orchestra. While I was disappointed, I did understand. I mean, who doesn't like a good tango?
In any case, when I next saw Dick, I asked him about my version of "In Dreams." He said, "Too Blue Velvet" and strolled away into the night. I still don't know what that meant, but I suppose it's just part of his take on life's little mysteries that make him such an interesting auteur.