There have been several articles about Southern Rock on Identity Dixie. And while it would be impossible not to include Lynyrd Skynyrd, unlike all the others, the Ronnie Van Zant years stand alone as truly iconic, eclipsing all other bands in the genre.
It wasn’t just that Ronnie’s Skynyrd (even more than the Allman Brothers) did more to define a new genre of music than their peers nor was it simply because they were popular and cranked out multi-platinum back-to-back records and radio-friendly hits. It was because the look, the music, and a larger than life charisma came together for Skynyrd in such a way that people were irresistibly attracted to and wanted to be part of this “new thing.”
Of all the arts, music alone has the power to create sub-cultures that people can immediately adopt and use to signal to others that they’re a member of a particular tribe, complete with a look, a vibe, and an ethos. Everyone was playing catch-up with Lynyrd Skynyrd from the start.
While there was clearly an element of show business and playing up “we’re a Southern band,” it never became “Southern schtick” (unlike Nashville today). Watch any of the many interviews with the band and it is obvious that these were not affected personas but genuine men of the South.
But what exactly was it that Skynyrd captured from 1973-1977 that two generations later people in the South and rural America everywhere still viscerally connect with?
I propose three things.
The first is the land itself. This is perhaps the most prominent and recurring theme. Our existence on that land is something we’re told to enjoy but wear lightly and with respect.
The second big theme they defined and that still reverberates in Southern/country music today, is the “work hard play harder” swagger. Blue collar labor is part of life for men who haven’t been citified and a man accepts this because it’s what a man does.
The last is that Lynyrd Skynyrd authentically projected the proud but melancholy and bittersweet reality of life in the South, a life that was even then receding and the loss of which we may be powerless to stop.
This is not to lionize Ronnie, but the sentiments he captured have a depth to them and represent a spirit, that while beleaguered, is alive and kicking.
This is why I believe we will continue to TURN IT UP.
These selections (many more could have been used) are examples I think best support these themes. I would love to hear your thoughts and other examples.
1. “Four Walls of Raiford”
A song that explores the natural bellicosity, religiosity, and patriotism of the Southern soldier exploited and discarded by the government.
Well these last few years behind me
Oh Lord, have been so sad
I fought proudly for my country when the times were bad
Now they say I’m guilty, when they find me I must die
Only me and Jesus know that I never stole a dime
Well when Vietnam was over there was no work here for me
I had a pretty wife awaitin and two kids I had to feed
Well I’m one of America’s heroes and when they shoot me down
Won’t you fly old Glory proudly, put my medals in the ground
And I comin’ home to see you Jesus
Well it feels so close this time
Please take mercy on a soldier
From the Florida-Georgia line
2. “I’m a Country Boy”
The whole song is a rejection of city life and modernity but not as a Luddite rather by contrasting it with a better way.
New York City is a thousand miles away
And if you ask me, I’ll tell you that’s OK
Now I’m not trying to put the big apple down
‘Cause they don’t need a man like me in town
I pick cotton down on the Dixie line
Work hard all day tryin’ to make a dime
But that’s alright, that’s OK by me
‘Cause that’s the way that it was meant to be
3. “Simple Man”
The song speaks for itself. The overt acknowledgement of God and the trap of materialism is a theme that runs through a lot of Ronnie Van Zant’s lyrics and again connects with the “working man’s” ethic.
4. “All I Can Do Is Write About It“
Listen to this short interview excerpt with Ronnie before the acoustic (and best) version of this song.
“Where I live it’s really pretty there. You’ve got the Okefenokee Swamp and the Everglades. In the song I say you can see the concrete slowly creeping. As people from Florida, we don’t consider Miami to be a part of Florida any more. They’re just gonna build a Holiday Inn in the Okefenokee Swamp one day and Lord take me and mine before that comes, I don’t want to see it happen. Leave it be, it’s a beautiful place and don’t bother with it.”
5. “Cottonmouth Country“
The song was never released and I’m surprised how few fans have ever heard it. Plays on all the themes.
There is an old sayin’ everybody knows it’s True
Home sweet home is the place that’s best for you
I likes to travel, I do likes to roam
When I get that fever before I got to go back home
I’ve seen them city folks try to move in way down south
Try to tell them Swamper people, what it’s all about
I’ve seen them city people, try to live in the bayou
Mutual of Omaha had to pay all the fools
Way down south, down by the everglades
You got to be careful, of the gators and all the snakes
Just a word of a warning for travelers south bound
I said, Cottonmouth Country
No place to fool around
6. “Swamp Music“
Don’t make me choose between fishing and my dogs, woman…
Well, hey pretty mama
Lord, just take that city hike
Said go ahead pretty mama
Lord, just take your city hike
Well, I’d rather live with the hound dogs
For the rest of my natural born life
7. “The Ballad of Curtis Loew”
The end of this black reaction video I think explains (in part) why on more than a few occasions I’ve been with serious and formidable men who, with a six pack into a long evening, will get quiet and teary when this song plays. The long and complicated history of blacks and whites living together in the South warrants a dedicated essay.
Well I used to wake the morning before the rooster crowed
Searching for soda bottles to get myself some dough
Brought ’em down to the corner, down to the country store
Cash ’em in and give my money to a man named Curtis Loew
8. “Sweet Home Alabama“
I know, if only for that one line boo-boo’ing the Governor…but if something doesn’t stir in you when the flag drops at the first chorus, there’s something wrong with you.
‘Cause down in Alabama, you can run, but you sure can’t hide.
Love it!!!! “Four Walls of Raiford”hit a man hard. “Curtis Lowe”is a true representative of black/white reality in the South. It don’t get better than my homeboys from the best side, the West Side of JAX!
I think I was 13 and my sister 12 when we finally convinced Mama to let us buy our first Skynyrd album. Our Mama was and is a civil rights activist. She was nervous about the rebel flag, but then again, she’s Southern and she understands that it’s complicated. My sister and I were dancing to Sweet Home for the very first time, dancing around the living room like two little fools, when I looked up to see Mama looking at us, worry on her face. And then they sang that line about George Wallace, and Mama grinned and she got it. She never said another word about our Skynyrd records.