Coe's rebellious attitude, wild image, and unconventional lifestyle set him apart from other country performers, both winning him legions of fans and hindering his mainstream success by alienating the music industry establishment. Coe continues to be a popular performer on the country circuit.
Coe was born in Akron, Ohio. His favorite singer as a child was Johnny Cash. After being sent to the Starr Commonwealth For Boys reform school at the age of nine, he spent much of the next 20 years in correctional facilities, including three years at the Ohio Penitentiary. Coe claimed he received encouragement to begin writing songs from Screamin' Jay Hawkins, with whom he had spent time in prison.
After concluding another prison term in 1967, Coe embarked on a music career in Nashville, living in a hearse which he parked in front of the Ryman Auditorium while he performed on the street. He caught the attention of Shelby Singleton, owner of the independent record label Plantation Records and signed a contract with his label.
He is the father of Tyler Mahan Coe, who created the country music podcast Cocaine & Rhinestones. He has a daughter, Shelli Coe Mackie, and is father-in-law to the late Michael Mackie, formerly of Texas band 'Thunderosa'.
Coe's musical style derives from blues, rock, and country music traditions. His vocal style is described as a 'throaty baritone'. His lyrical content is often humorous or comedic, with William Ruhlmann describing him as a 'near-parody of a country singer'. Stephen Thomas Erlewine describes Coe as "a great, unashamed country singer, singing the purest honky-tonk and hardest country of his era […] he may not be the most original outlaw, but there is none more outlaw than him".
Coe's lyrics frequently include references to alcohol and drug use, and are often boisterous and cocky. Coe's debut album Penitentiary Blues was described as "voodoo blues" and "redneck music" by Allmusic's Thom Jurek. It focused on themes such as working for the first time, blood tests from veins used to inject heroin, prison time, hoodoo imagery, and death. The album's influences included Charlie Rich, Jerry Lee Lewis, Bo Diddley, Lightnin' Hopkins, and Tony Joe White. Coe later explained to Kristofer Engelhardt of Review: "I didn't really care for some of the country music until people like Kris Kristofferson and some of those people started writing songs. They had a little more to say than just, 'Oh baby I miss you', or whatever. I don't do anything halfway. Once I got into country music, I went back and researched it, and learned everything there was to know about it. I could do impersonations of Roy Acuff, Ernest Tubb, Hank Snow, Marty Robbins, just about anybody. I knew just about all there was to know about country music."
Coe's first country album, The Mysterious Rhinestone Cowboy, has been described as alt-country, 'pre-punk' and "a hillbilly version of Marc Bolan's glitz and glitter". Credited influences on the album include Merle Haggard. In his early career, Coe was known for his unpredictable live performances, in which he would ride a Harley-Davidson motorcycle onto the stage and curse at his audience. Coe has also performed in a rhinestone suit and a mask which resembled that of the Lone Ranger, calling himself the 'Mysterious Rhinestone Cowboy'.
The album Rebel Meets Rebel featured a song, "Cherokee Cry", which criticizes the United States government's treatment of Native Americans. When asked why he did not write more political songs, Coe replied, "I live in my own world, not thee world. I just write songs about what affects me in everyday life. At one point I wrote a song that was sort of a protest about when they were talking about drafting women into the military. It was about my son making it past the draft, but my daughter didn't. And I've done Farm Aid."
In his review of Coe's 1987 album A Matter of Life...and Death, Allmusic's Thom Jurek wrote, "Coe may have had some hits, but it is records like this that make one wonder if there was not a conspiracy to marginalize him and make him fail. Coe is a brilliant songwriter well into the 21st century, and deserves to be lauded along with the likes of [Willie] Nelson and [Waylon] Jennings and Kristofferson and Newbury – and even Cash."
Roll on 18 Wheeler
David Allan Coe Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Roll on long.
Roll on daddy till you get back home.
Roll on family.
Roll on crew.
Roll on momma like I asked you to do.
And roll on 18 wheeler Roll on
Roll on high way.
Roll on long.
Roll on daddy till you get back home.
Roll on family.
Roll on crew.
Roll on momma like I asked you to do.
And roll on 18 wheeler Roll on
Well its Wednesday evenin, mommas waitin by the phone. It rings but its not his voice. It seems the highway patrol has found a jack-knifed rig in a snow bank in Illinois. But the driver was missing and the search had been abandoned cause the weather had every thing stalled. And they had checked all the houses and the local motels. When they had some more news theyed call. And she told them when they found him to tell him that she loved him and she hung up the phone singing.
Roll on high way.
Roll on long.
Roll on daddy till you get back home.
Roll on family.
Roll on crew.
Roll on momma like I asked you to do.
And roll on 18 wheeler Roll on
Momma and the children will be waiting up all night long. Thinking nothing but the worst is coming with the rining of the telephone. Oh but the man upstairs was listning when momma asked him to bring daddy home. And when the call came in it was daddy on the other end asking her if she had been singing the song, singing.
Roll on high way.
Roll on long.
Roll on daddy till you get back home.
Roll on family.
Roll on crew.
Roll on momma like I asked you to do.
And roll on 18 wheeler Roll on
Roll on high way.
Roll on long.
Roll on daddy till you get back home.
Roll on family.
Roll on crew.
Roll on momma like I asked you to do.
And roll on 18 wheeler Roll on
18 wheeler 18 wheeler 18 wheeler 18 wheeler Roll on roll on roll on...
"Roll On 18 Wheeler" is a song about a truck driver's life on the road and the sacrifices he has to make for his family. It starts with the singer bidding goodbye to his father who is about to drive his 18-wheeler on a Midwest run. The song also shows the family's longing for their father and how they cope with the void his absence causes. The chorus of the song is the children singing the song their father taught them to sing, wishing him a safe journey back home.
The second verse brings forth the fear that every family of a truck driver has. It is Wednesday evening, and there's no news about the father. The highway patrol has found a jack-knifed rig in Illinois, but the driver is missing, and they have no clue about his whereabouts. The mother and the children are worried sick and waiting for news. The lyrics illustrate the pain of waiting and hoping while anticipating the worst.
Line by Line Meaning
Roll on high way.
Keep moving forward on the road.
Roll on long.
Keep traveling for a long time.
Roll on daddy till you get back home.
Keep driving safely and return home to the family.
Roll on family.
Keep the love and support of the family going.
Roll on crew.
Keep the bond and support of the crew intact.
Roll on momma like I asked you to do.
Keep the spirit of the family together in the mother's heart.
And roll on 18 wheeler Roll on
Keep the big rig moving down the freeway.
Well its Monday morning he's kissin momma goodby, he's up and gone with the sun.
The father leaves early every week on a routine work trip.
Daddy drives an 18 wheeler, and he's off on a mid-west run.
The father is a trucker on a long haul in the Midwest.
And 3 sad faces gather round momma, they ask her when daddy's comin home.
The children miss their father and ask when he will return.
Ah but he calls them every night and tells them that he loves them.
The father calls home each night to express his love for his family.
He taught them this song to sing.
The father taught his children a song to remind them of him while he is away.
Well its Wednesday evenin, mommas waitin by the phone.
The mother anxiously awaits a phone call from the father.
It rings but its not his voice.
Someone else answers the phone, not the father.
It seems the highway patrol has found a jack-knifed rig in a snow bank in Illinois.
The authorities found a crashed truck in a snow bank in Illinois.
But the driver was missing and the search had been abandoned cause the weather had every thing stalled.
The driver was missing and the weather conditions were causing delays in the search.
And they had checked all the houses and the local motels.
The authorities had searched all nearby accommodations for the missing driver.
When they had some more news theyed call.
They will share any new information once they have it.
And she told them when they found him to tell him that she loved him and she hung up the phone singing.
The mother expresses her love for the father and sings the song he taught their family.
Momma and the children will be waiting up all night long.
The mother and children will wait up all night for news of the father.
Thinking nothing but the worst is coming with the rining of the telephone.
The family worries that any call may bring bad news about the father.
Oh but the man upstairs was listning when momma asked him to bring daddy home.
The family prays for the father's safe return home.
And when the call came in it was daddy on the other end asking her if she had been singing the song, singing.
Finally, the father calls and asks if the family had been singing the song he taught them.
18 wheeler 18 wheeler 18 wheeler 18 wheeler Roll on roll on roll on...
The song ends with a chant to continue the journey in the big rig.
Contributed by Katherine Y. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Dr. Craphead
on Damn I Wish I Was a Nigger
The song is not by David Allan Coe
Niggerhatingme
on Nigger Hatin Me
I like sugar and I like tea
But I don't like niggers, no sir-e
There are two lone things that'll make me puke
That's a hog eating slop and a big black spook
You know it, 'cuz I show it
Like a barnyard rooster I crow it
And the NAACP would sure like to get
A hold of nigger hatin' me.
Roses are red and violets are blue
Niggers are black and you know that's true
But they don't mind 'cuz what the heck
You gotta' be black to get a welfare check.
.And I'm broke, no joke. I ain't got a nickle
For a coat and I ain't black you see, so Uncle
Sam won't help poor nigger hatin' me.
Jigga-boo Jigga-boo where are you? I was
Here on the woodpile watching you. Jigga-boo
Jigga-boo come outdoors. No! I'sa scared of the
White man way down south.
You know it, 'cuz I show it. Stick your black
Head out and I blow it and the NAACP can't keep
You away from 'lil 'ol nigger hatin' me.
Mirror mirror on the wall who is the blackest
Of them all? A man named King it ain't no doubt
And he's causin' lots of trouble with his baboon
Mouth. Oh no it's he's a done it, caused by the
Trouble he's a brewin' and the NAACP can't win if
The white man stick with nigger hatin' me.
Hey Mr. President what'd ya say? When are we
Whites gonna have our day? The niggers've had
Theirs for such a long long time. I'm a white
And it's time that I had mine.
You know it, 'cuz I show it. Stick your black head
Out and I blow it and the NAACP can't win if the
White man stick with nigger hatin' me.
Nigger hatin me'
Nigger hatin me'
Nigger hatin me'
Nigger hatin me'
All true, how's the death count in chimpcago? https://heyjackass.com/
Ben - Moderator
on Nigger hatin me
Meaning of this line above has now been corrected
Matt
on Nigger hatin me
Who ever did the meaning lines is funny... woodpile is a real term, and when it says jig aboo come out doors, he imitates a poor sounding guy saying he's afraid of the racist whites from the south cuz if they even show themselves in public, they were a target. This is a bad song about the unspoken truth
cemegonuts
on You piss me off...you fuckin' jerk
This is not David Allen Coe. It is a song written by Gaye Delorme and performed by Garry Lee and Showdown.
Teresa Warnke
on Pick Em, Lick Em, Stick Em
Are there any decent constitutional lawyers in the house?
Mr. Coe has been barred from performing in most public forums.
He is one the last surviving Outlaws of country music. Although, Nigger Fucker has racist theme, Mr. Coe was defended by his life long friend, Charlie Pride, who inspired the song, all of his days. They were close friends until the end.
David Allen COE is elderly and we don't have long to have an opportunity to see him perform. What is more is that he deserves to use his constitutional right to free speech.
Some would like to have this song and many more that feel are offensive removed from existence. I am not a racist and recognize the foulness of the song, but, I am mature enough to turn off music or any other media that I don't like.
Personally, the Brian Adam's song, "Rum to You", makes me sick, as does Reba Macy tyre's, "Fancy" and "Whoever's in New England".
Ms. Macy tires songs if a mother pimping out her daughter and an abandoned housewife faithfully waiting for her man to return from fucking his mistress hurts women. The Brian Adam's song also hurts women. I do not for a minute believe that this music should never be heard again. It does provide opportunity to discuss these things with younger people.
I am going to delete my YouTube music account because they removed DAC for it's content. I did have much respect for YouTube for it's American spirit and patriotism even though the way they pay their talent is nonsensical. One deletion is a demonstration of what will follow. Eventually this could lead to less freedoms for all of us.
Please don't fall into the currant popular victim trend. Turn off music you don't like and get on with your day.
Or stand up to censorship of the arts.
Thank You,
Teresa Warnke
Rodan
on Cum Stains on the Pillow
Dribble it on her nose!
11inthemoney
on Itty Bitty Titty
Young sex is the best
11inthemoney
on Itty Bitty Titty
Shucks it's cool.
Rodan
on Cum Stains on the Pillow
Another AWESOME DAC song that makes me bellylaugh!!!