The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down
Solomon Burke Lyrics


Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴  Line by Line Meaning ↴

Virgil Caine is the name, and I served on the Danville train
'Til Stoneman's cavalry came and it tore up the tracks again
In the winter of '65, we were hungry, just barely alive
By May tenth, Richmond had fell, it's a time I remember, oh so well

The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down, and all the bells were ringing
The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down, and all the people were singin'
They went

Back with my wife in Tennessee, when one day she called to me
"Say Virgil, quick, come see, there goes Robert E. Lee!"
Now I don't mind choppin' wood, and I don't care if my money's no good
Ya take what ya need and ya leave the rest
But they should never have taken the very best

The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down, and all the bells were ringing
The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down, and all the people were singin'
They went

Like my father before me, I will work the land
And like my brother up above me, who took a rebel stand
He was just eighteen, proud and brave, but a Yankee laid him in his grave
I swear by the mud below my feet, you can't raise a Caine back up when he's in defeat

The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down, when all the bells were ringing




The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down, and you could hear 'm all singin'
They went

Overall Meaning

The song, "The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down" by Solomon Burke, is about the experience of a man from the South named Virgil Caine during the American Civil War. He was a conductor on the Danville train, until General Stoneman's cavalry came and destroyed the tracks. The song describes how Confederate soldiers were starving and barely alive during the winter of 1865. After months of battling, the capital of the Confederacy, Richmond, ultimately fell on the 10th of May, which was a time that Virgil Caine would remember acutely.


The chorus of the song, "The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down," talks about the fall of Richmond, and how the bells were ringing and people were singing in celebration of the Union victory. Virgil Caine is then seen returning home to Tennessee, where he hears news that Robert E. Lee, the commanding general of the Confederate Army, is on the move. He reflects on the fact that he doesn't mind working hard or that his money isn't valuable anymore - but the Yankees should never have taken away the very best from his beloved South.


Finally, the song states that Virgil Caine will work the land like his father before him and remembers his brother who died fighting for the South. He swears that once Dixie has fallen, it cannot be raised again, and the music emphasizes the emotion of the song.


Overall, the song conveys the loss and heartbreak felt by people in the South when the Confederacy fell, and the struggles they faced afterward.


Line by Line Meaning

Virgil Caine is the name, and I served on the Danville train
I'm Virgil Caine and I used to work on the Danville train


'Til Stoneman's cavalry came and it tore up the tracks again
Unfortunately, Stoneman's cavalry ripped up the tracks we worked so hard on


In the winter of '65, we were hungry, just barely alive
During the winter of 1865, we were quite hungry and struggling to survive


By May tenth, Richmond had fell, it's a time I remember, oh so well
On May 10th, Richmond finally fell, a memory that's very vivid in my mind


The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down, and all the bells were ringing
The night they took down the Confederacy, you could hear the bells ringing


The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down, and all the people were singin'
On that same night, the people were singing with joy


Back with my wife in Tennessee, when one day she called to me
I was back in Tennessee with my wife when she called out to me one day


"Say Virgil, quick, come see, there goes Robert E. Lee!"
My wife pointed out Robert E. Lee, urging me to come see


Now I don't mind choppin' wood, and I don't care if my money's no good
I don't mind doing the simple work like chopping wood and money means nothing to me


Ya take what ya need and ya leave the rest
Taking only what you need and leaving the rest behind is the way to go


But they should never have taken the very best
However, they should not have taken the most valuable things from us


The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down, and all the bells were ringing
Again, the night the Confederacy was defeated, the bells were ringing out loud


The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down, and all the people were singin'
And once more, the people were singing


Like my father before me, I will work the land
Following in my father's footsteps, I will farm the land


And like my brother up above me, who took a rebel stand
And like my brother, who fought for the Confederacy and passed away


He was just eighteen, proud and brave, but a Yankee laid him in his grave
He was just 18, full of pride and bravery, but sadly lost his life at the hands of a Union soldier


I swear by the mud below my feet, you can't raise a Caine back up when he's in defeat
I firmly believe that once a Caine is defeated, there's no bringing them back to their former glory


The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down, when all the bells were ringing
Yes, it was that night they took down the Confederacy, with the bells ringing once again


The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down, and you could hear 'm all singin'
And once more, you could hear everyone singing in celebration




Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Robbie Robertson

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
To comment on or correct specific content, highlight it

Genre not found
Artist not found
Album not found
Song not found