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.
Rebels
Drive-By Truckers Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I'm too drunk to follow
I know you won't feel this way
Tomorrow
A little rough around the edges
Inside's a little hollow
I feel so beat down
And so hard to swallow
[Chorus]
Hey, hey, hey
(Hey, hey, hey)
I was born a rebel
Down in Dixie
On a Sunday mornin'
With one foot in the ground
One foot on the pedal
I was born a rebel
You picked up in the mornin' and you
Paid off my ticket
You screamed in the car and
Left me out in the thicket
Oh I never would've dreamed
That her heart was so wicked
But I keep comin' back 'cause
It's so hard to kick it
[Chorus]
I was born a rebel
Even before my father's fathers
They called us all rebels
As they burned down our cornfields
And left our cities leveled
Well I still feel the eyes of them blue-bellied devils
While I'm walking around through the concrete and metal
[Chorus]
Hey, hey, hey
(Hey, hey, hey)
Hey, hey, hey
(Hey, hey, hey)
The opening lyrics of "Rebels" by Drive-By Truckers depicts a moment of desperation between two people, where one is too drunk to follow the other. The following line, "I know you won't feel this way tomorrow," suggests that the relationship between them is strained, and likely to end soon. The lyrics then go on to describe the singer as a little rough around the edges, and hollow on the inside, feeling beaten down and hard to swallow. The chorus of the song talks about how the singer was born a rebel, with one foot in the ground and one foot on the pedal, down in Dixie on a Sunday morning.
As the song moves forward, we find out that the singer was bailed out of jail by the person they were just talking to. The singer talks about how she left him out in the thicket and how he never would've dreamed that her heart was so wicked. However, despite this, the singer keeps coming back because it's so hard to kick the addiction to her. The final verse of the song takes a historic turn, talking about how the singer's family has been called rebels even before his fathers' fathers, and how the Union army burned down their cornfields and left their cities leveled. The song concludes with the singer still feeling the eyes of the blue-bellied devils on him while walking around the concrete and metal of the modern world.
Line by Line Meaning
Honey don't you walk out
Please don't leave me
I'm too drunk to follow
I'm in no condition to chase after you
I know you won't feel this way
I understand you don't want to stay with me
Tomorrow
A little rough around the edges
I may not be perfect
Inside's a little hollow
I feel empty inside
I feel so beat down
I feel worn out
And so hard to swallow
It's difficult for me to accept
Hey, hey, hey
(Hey, hey, hey)
I was born a rebel
My rebellious nature is innate
Down in Dixie
In the South of the United States
On a Sunday mornin'
On a Sunday morning
With one foot in the ground
Half-dead...
One foot on the pedal
...but still moving forward with determination
You picked up in the mornin' and you
You gave me a ride one morning and you
Paid off my ticket
Paid off my legal fees
You screamed in the car and
You were angry and shouting while in the car and
Left me out in the thicket
Abandoned me in the woods
Oh I never would've dreamed
I never expected
That her heart was so wicked
That she could be so cruel
But I keep comin' back 'cause
But I still return to her because
It's so hard to kick it
It's difficult for me to break the cycle with her
Hey, hey, hey
(Hey, hey, hey)
Even before my father's fathers
Generations before my ancestors
They called us all rebels
We were all seen as troublemakers
As they burned down our cornfields
As they destroyed our crops
And left our cities leveled
And left our cities in ruins
Well I still feel the eyes of them blue-bellied devils
I still feel the gaze of the Union soldiers who fought our ancestors during the Civil War
While I'm walking around through the concrete and metal
While I'm navigating my surroundings in the modern world
Hey, hey, hey
(Hey, hey, hey)
Lyrics © Warner/Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: TOM PETTY
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind