The Tale of Tommy Gunn is a satirical antithesis to a fantasy yarn. The story is told through the distorted lens of Tommy, who is a broke, salty, New York underdog-type that thinks the American Dream of a musician lies in Nashville, TN. He leaves NYC for Nashville, and along the way he meets his soulmate, referred to as Valentine. Valentine, a saint-like vagabond, then joins him in his travels to the outskirts of Nashville, where they sublease a lake house. A Nashville recording studio cuts Tommy a suspiciously good deal to track his record and, as time goes on, Tommy has trouble paying these dues. It begins to become apparent that the studio is a money laundering scheme for a street gang. Tension from the incurring debt builds and subsequent stress on his relationship with Valentine intensifies. It all reaches a head when suddenly Valentine goes missing. Tommy is left contemplating whether Valentine had been kidnapped, murdered, or if she just ran away. In this time, Tommy is sent into a paranoid frenzy taking on the role of a star-crossed lover, wishing to die by the hands of the gang. The end of the tale leaves Tommy shot on the ground, repeating the hook penned in his first song, “now you really want to get close to me”.
