Noteworthy for their three guitars lineup, the 'Truckers' are often associated with the Southern rock movement of the 70s and "jam" bands but are too cerebral and irreverent to sit squarely in either genre. Their lyrics often revolve around the working class trying to survive in economically-depressed small towns of the South.
Co-founded by Patterson Hood (son of bassist David Hood of the legendary Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section) and longtime friend and musical partner Mike Cooley in Athens, Georgia, in 1996. The two men had played in various other bands including Adam's House Cat which was chosen as a top ten Best Unsigned Band by a Musician contest in the late 1980s.
Together with a revolving group of musicians, Drive-By Truckers put out their first two albums, Gangstabilly (1998) and Pizza Deliverance (1999). Following their second release, the band embarked on a nationwide tour, resulting in a live album called Alabama Ass Whuppin' (released in 2000 by Second Heaven Records, re-released in 2002 by Terminus Records). They had an entertaining and informational website long before most bands had begun taking advantage of the internet as a promotional tool, and together with constant touring, they quickly developed a large and dedicated fan base both on and off-line.
After three years on the road a tight-knit group of musicians emerged and they began work on 2001's Southern Rock Opera. Southern Rock Opera is a double album executed as a song cycle. The album loosely uses the rise and literal fall of Lynyrd Skynyrd as a metaphor for the culture of the American South.
Self released on their own Soul Dump Records on September 12, 2001, Southern Rock Opera, quickly accumulated praise from fans and critics alike, including a four-star review in Rolling Stone. To take advantage of the positive reception, Southern Rock Opera was re-issued by Mercury and Lost Highway Records in July 2002. Soon after, Drive-By Truckers were named Band of the Year by No Depression.
Before they could record a follow-up to Southern Rock Opera, guitarist Rob Malone left and was replaced guitarist and songwriter, Jason Isbell. Originally from Greenhill, Alabama, during his five years with Drive-By Truckers, Isbell contributed a number of significant songs to the albums he worked on.
Due to changes at Lost Highway, the Truckers were released from their contract and signed with Austin-based record label New West, for the follow-up to Southern Rock Opera, 2003's Decoration Day. Like its predecessor, the album received broad praise from fans and critics alike. Although it isn't a concept album, the songs of Decoration Day explore a common theme of hard decisions in the context of marriage, incest, break-ups, revenge, murder, and suicide are major themes.
After years of producing and playing with Drive-By Truckers, bassist Earl Hicks left the band on December 22, 2003. Hicks was immediately replaced by studio bassist Shonna Tucker, then wife of guitarist Jason Isbell. Tucker had previously guested on Decoration Day playing upright bass on the Cooley-penned track, "Sounds Better in the Song".
In 2004, Drive-By Truckers released The Dirty South. Like Southern Rock Opera, The Dirty South was a concept album. The Dirty South further explored the mythology of the South, with songs focusing on Sam Phillips and the Sun Records crowd, John Henry and his hammer, and a three-song suite about Sheriff Buford Pusser.
After touring throughout 2004 and 2005, Drive-By Truckers found their way to the Fidelitorium Recording Studio in Forsyth County, North Carolina during late 2005. These recording sessions, once again produced by David Barbe, resulted in the band's seventh LP, A Blessing and a Curse.
Released on April 18, 2006, A Blessing and a Curse showcased Drive-By Truckers' ability to branch out into new territory, and can be seen as the band's attempt at shaking labeling by critics, detractors, fans, and followers, particularly the Southern rock label that has haunted the band since Southern Rock Opera. The album sounds less like Skynyrd, and more closely resembles the bare-bones British rock of the early 1970s such as The Rolling Stones and Faces. Tom Petty's influence on the band's sound is more prominent on this album as well.
In 2006, Drive-By Truckers reunited, both on-stage and on-record, with Athens-based pedal steel guitarist, John Neff. Neff first played with the band on their 1998 debut LP, Gangstabilly, and played pedal steel on three subsequent albums, 1999's Pizza Deliverance, and 2003's Decoration Day. Neff was featured heavily on the 2006 release, A Blessing and a Curse. During the next year, Neff began touring with the band as an unofficial sixth member.
On April 5, 2007 Jason Isbell announced that he was no longer a member of the band. The following day, Patterson Hood confirmed the break on the official site. In his letter to the fans, Hood described the parting of ways as "amicable" and expressed the hope that fans would continue to support Drive-By Truckers as well as Jason's solo efforts. In the same letter, Hood announced that John Neff would become a full-time member playing both guitar and pedal steel.
Shortly after Isbell's departure, on April 20, 2007, Patterson Hood announced via the band's website that a longtime friend of The Hood Family, Spooner Oldham, would be joining the band playing keyboard for a string of acoustic performances called The Dirt Underneath Tour.
Drive-By Truckers performed as backup musicians for Bettye LaVette's 2007 album, The Scene of the Crime. The album went to #1 on Billboard's Blues Chart and was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Blues Album. Partly as a result of this collaboration, the Truckers went on to act as the backing band for Booker T Jones for his first recording in more than a decade. The album, Potato Hole, was well received by critics and it resulted in numerous shows together.
On January 22, 2008, the Drive-By Truckers' eighth album, Brighter Than Creation's Dark (named after a line in a Cooley song entitled "Checkout Time in Vegas"), was released in the US and went to #37 on the Billboard 200 album charts. Once again, David Barbe produced the album and artist Wes Freed provided the artwork. The album has nineteen tracks and features the first song contributions from bassist Shonna Tucker.
The band's ninth album "The Big To-Do" was issued on March 26, 2010 on ATO Records, the label founded by Dave Matthews and home to such artists as My Morning Jacket, Radiohead, The Whigs and Brendan Benson.
Cottonseed
Drive-By Truckers Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
To look in their unspoiled faces and their curious bright eyes
Stories of corruption, crime and killing, yes it's true
Greed and fixed elections, guns and drugs and whores and booze
It's been a while since I put on a suit of my own clothes
And even longer since I cast my shadow on a church house door
They say every sin is deadly but I believe they may be wrong
I used to have a wad of hundred dollar bills in the back pocket of my suit
I had a .45 underneath my coat and another one in my boot
I drove a big ole Cadillac, bought a new one anytime I pleased
And I put more lawmen in the ground than Alabama put cottonseed
I spent a few years on vacation, sanctioned by the state I mentioned
But a man like me don't do no time too hard to come back from
The meanest of the mean, I see you lock away and toss the key
But they're all just loud mouth punks to me, I've scraped meaner off my shoe
Somewhere, I ain't saying, there's a hole that holds a judge
The last one that I dug myself
And I must admit I was sad to lay him in it, but I did the best I could
Once his Honor grows a conscience, well folks, that there just ain't no good
There's a pretty girl out there said "Daddy, you stay cool tonight
All I need from you is to come home and be here by my side
Say what you gotta say to shut their Bibles and their mouths
If they was to tie a noose, they'd have to lay their Bibles down"
I ain't here to save no souls and even if I could
I could never save enough to put back half the ones I took
So if they rest in torment you can't say it's cause of me
They'd long been bought and paid for like that fool's in Tennessee
The Drive-By Truckers' song Cottonseed is a powerful narrative about the life of a corrupt, violent man who is sharing his story with a group of young, innocent minds. He tells them about the crimes he has committed, including fixed elections, drug and alcohol abuse, and murder. He goes on to talk about the wealth he amassed, carrying hundred dollar bills in his pocket and a .45 in his coat and boot, and how he put more lawmen in the ground than Alabama put cottonseed.
Despite his obvious guilt, the singer doesn't feel bad about what he has done. He spent time in jail, but he is not deterred by it, claiming that he is too mean to let it break him. He even confesses to burying a judge in a hole that he dug himself, feeling a twinge of regret but knowing he did what he had to do. The singer sees himself as a tough, self-sufficient man who doesn't need anyone else to tell him what's right or wrong. The song's dark message and gritty imagery paint a vivid picture of a man who has lived a violent, lawless life and isn't repentant about it.
Line by Line Meaning
I came to tell my story to all these young and eager minds
I'm here to explain my past and what I've done to these young, naive individuals.
To look in their unspoiled faces and their curious bright eyes
I see hope and innocence in their eyes and it reminds me of a time long gone.
Stories of corruption, crime and killing, yes it's true
The stories I have to tell are about immoral deeds, unlawful activities, and murder.
Greed and fixed elections, guns and drugs and whores and booze
These stories will discuss greed and corruption, rigged voting, the use of drugs and prostitutes, and alcohol abuse.
It's been a while since I put on a suit of my own clothes
It's been some time since I dressed up and looked presentable.
And even longer since I cast my shadow on a church house door
It's been even longer still since I set foot in a church.
They say every sin is deadly but I believe they may be wrong
The belief that every sin is a death sentence may not be entirely accurate.
I'm guilty of all seven and I don't feel too bad at all
I've committed all seven of the deadly sins, but I don't feel guilty about it.
I used to have a wad of hundred dollar bills in the back pocket of my suit
I used to carry a lot of cash on me wherever I went.
I had a .45 underneath my coat and another one in my boot
I was always armed and dangerous, with guns hidden on my person.
I drove a big ole Cadillac, bought a new one anytime I pleased
I used to drive luxurious vehicles, upgrading often.
And I put more lawmen in the ground than Alabama put cottonseed
I killed more police officers than Alabama produced cotton.
I spent a few years on vacation, sanctioned by the state I mentioned
I was in prison for some time, sanctioned by the state.
But a man like me don't do no time too hard to come back from
Prison wasn't a difficult place to return from for someone like me.
The meanest of the mean, I see you lock away and toss the key
The individuals considered the meanest of the mean were locked up and forgotten.
But they're all just loud mouth punks to me, I've scraped meaner off my shoe
Those people were nothing to me, I've encountered and dealt with worse in my life.
Somewhere, I ain't saying, there's a hole that holds a judge
I won't say where, but there is a location where a judge is buried.
The last one that I dug myself
I was the one who buried the last judge I killed.
And I must admit I was sad to lay him in it, but I did the best I could
Despite feeling a sense of regret, I buried him as best I could.
Once his Honor grows a conscience, well folks, that there just ain't no good
If the judge somehow grew a conscience, it wouldn't make a difference at that point.
There's a pretty girl out there said "Daddy, you stay cool tonight
My daughter wants me to stay safe and not cause any trouble tonight.
All I need from you is to come home and be here by my side
All she wants is for me to come home and be with her.
Say what you gotta say to shut their Bibles and their mouths
She wants me to say what I need to say to keep people from judging me, criticizing me, or talking about me.
If they was to tie a noose, they'd have to lay their Bibles down"
Those who might judge me would have to compromise their faith to do so by executing me with a noose.
I ain't here to save no souls and even if I could
I'm not here to save anyone or convert them to my way of thinking.
I could never save enough to put back half the ones I took
Even if I wanted to, I could never bring back half the lives I've taken.
So if they rest in torment you can't say it's cause of me
If those I killed are in torment, it's not my fault.
They'd long been bought and paid for like that fool's in Tennessee
Those individuals were either paid off or they were foolish enough to get in my way.
Lyrics © WORDS & MUSIC A DIV OF BIG DEAL MUSIC LLC
Written by: JOHN MICHAEL COOLEY
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
mphillips52
this song proves mike cooley is one of the best song writers in the past 20 years.. this song gives me chills the way he tells the story and plays the guitar amazing song.
lucas peden
Fred been in the freezer- start looking for the weezer- talk to the Caesar and then keep off my f’n sweater
tim hanson
the best song writing in the business PERIOD ... a band that always stays true to its roots, and keeps integrity in its music .... refreshing ....
KholmXanatov
What a shame more people don't know about this great song.
Lior Rosenman
Love this song and the story, these guys are professions in the construction of interesting concepts
Jaden Lorentzen
Country like this is badass, never a bad song on their album. Good band.
Kermit Kuhn
The ghost of Sleepy Waters stirs in those lyrics. A good guy when those were rare amongst the power brokers of 1970's Atlanta. Thank you Sleepy, I will never forget what you did. Your life and story would make a damn good book, maybe I should write it.
Aalbert Tunderman
While doing research on the dixie-mob all afternoon I hit this song. It's the cream and strawberry on an already great cake of stories. The writer got perfectly into the mind of a sociopath -killer. Next to surf should be Bufford Stick I guess, having heard Boys From Alabama first. Thanks for posting this.
Drake Kam
this band changed my life
tg4589
I'm not much for country music, but I love these guys.