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Widespread Panic’s John Bell on “Saint Ex”: My wife Laura and I are great fans of “The Little Prince” by Antoine de Saint Exupery. It’s thought of as a children’s book but conveys some pretty heavy messages on many levels. A couple of years ago, my father sent me a New York Times article about an eighty-five year old German WWII pilot who realized he was the guy that shot down Saint Ex (a French pilot) in 1944. The plane Saint Ex was flying had been identified in 2004, ending the sixty year old mystery surrounding the author’s disappearance. Both pilots were on simple reconnaissance missions, and it was kind of a fluke that they happened upon each other. What I found intriguing about the situation is that the German pilot said Saint Ex was one of his favorite authors, and claimed if he was aware of who was flying the French aircraft, he wouldn’t have opened fire. I began reading more of Saint Uxupery’s works, and even though they’re translations, his insights about “Life During Wartime” are really profound and heartfelt – simultaneously caring about all humanity, while feeling compelled to fight for his country. Anyway, that’s what the song is about. One side note: Laura had always said “The Little Prince” story would be a good subject for a song…and it only took twenty years for the Band to put it together.

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