[catachresis]

Quote:

Originally Posted by priest /img/forum/go_quote.gif I considered them too, and decided against it, for probably the same reasons you did, but I think they're fair game. Still, for classic "Southern Rock" -- go Skynyrd! I wonder how many of the people voting for the Allmans have really listened to Pronounced, say? I'm not saying it's irrational to prefer the Allmans, I just think Skynryd is dismissed by alot of people who are basically only familiar with Free Bird, and maybe one or two of their other big hits, and therefore think they have nothing much else to offer but those radio-ready anthems. They suffer from the same problem that the Stones do, in that they are so aggressively proletariat, unpretentious and common in their appeal, and have written enough simple songs that are easily appreciable by everyone, that they come across as unsophisticated and somewhat shallow. Anything but.

I'm inclined to agree that Skynyrd is kinda monumental--essential now to the Southern musical canon like Stephen Foster. Certainly, I think you'll find that Skynyrd is the winner is the Southland by majority vote (and folks 'round here wouldn't have it any other way).

I would personally argue that the best that LS accomplished was a furrow well-turned by the time ZZ Top had done _Fandango_. But you gotta give it to LS that they took the Texas boogie and made it Dixie-fried. And "Sweet Home Alabama" and "Gimme Three Steps" have an immediately-recognizable, international cache that no other Southern band, with the exception of REM, has ever achieved. There's something utterly uncanny about being in a tiny pub in Yorkshire and hearing "The Ballad of Curtis Lowe." And of course, they say that Neil Young's always been a big fan. . . .

 

[DrBenway]

I've been really impressed with the variety of names people have come up with, some new to me (Bottle Rockets, have to check them out) and some (Black Oak Arkansas) I haven't thought of in...yikes, let's not get into that.

But unless I've missed something, no one has mentioned Wet Willy. I barely remember them. I have this mental image from an appearance they did on one of the late-night concert shows in the 70s. I remember a point in the song where the instruments dropped out, and they broke into unmistakeable Doo Wop harmony.

Anyone else remember them?

 

[grawk]

I think southern rock was a window in time. Anything current is going to be influenced by, but not part of, southern rock.

 

[Jubei]

Have to check these out as have never heard of them ... Bottle Rockets and Black Oak Arkansas ... are they on major or indie label and are they easy to find??

 

[DrBenway]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jubei /img/forum/go_quote.gif Have to check these out as have never heard of them ... Bottle Rockets and Black Oak Arkansas ... are they on major or indie label and are they easy to find??

Can't help you with Bottle Rockets as they are new to me, as well. Black Oak Arkansas were definitely a major-label act, and they sold quite a few records, probably most of them in the mid-to-late 70s. While they were a good band, they were, as I said in a previous post, a bit cartoonish. They definitely looked like they had stepped out of a Lil Abner Cartoon.

The lead singer called himself Jim Dandy, and strutted around the stage bare-chested, with his long hair flying. They had a very hot backup singer named Ruby Starr who wore incredibly short shorts and also hammed it up on stage. But the band could really play (and Ruby had a flame-thrower for a voice) and they generally seemed to be having a good time, as did the audience.

Their biggest single was called "Jim Dandy to the Rescue," which was a cover of a much older R&B tune, if I remember correctly. The title served as the refrain, and Ruby would answer with shouts of "Go Jim Dandy! Go Jim Dandy!" I do have the vinyl of High on the Hog, which has that single and I'm guessing was their biggest-selling record.

Not the deepest stuff ever recorded, but, as I said, it was lots of fun and it rocked. The exact opposite of furrowed-brow rockers who take themselves waaaaay too seriously.

 

[priest]

For all those asking about The Bottle Rockets, the album to get is called The Brooklyn Side and it's available on Amazon for $8 right now. Go for it.

 

[West726]

Quote:

Originally Posted by gnatback /img/forum/go_quote.gif i'd like to qualify my earlier statement by saying skynyrd and the allmans really threw it all away and SUCKED after awhile, as most of you will probably agree. greg allman became a cartooon, with the solo album with Cher ???? As far as more recent southern rockers i'll have to mention Jason & the Nashville Scorchers (later just jason & the scorchers). .

Yes. And if you want REALLY recent stuff in that vein, try Molding. But more succinctly, "yes."

 

[San7a]

Weedeater is the greatest southern rock band to ever exist:

They do an awesome cover of Lynyrd Skynyrd's "Gimme Back My Bullets"... Worth checking out if you're into that stuff.

 

[crazyjeeper]

Allman brothers, both new and old are the best in my opinion. I will never get tired of listening to my pristine copy of Eat a Peach.

 

[Bill Bartmann]

I'm so glad I found this site...Keep up the good work

 

[Hoagie]

Wet Willie is definitely one to consider. Not much air play at the time. Jimmy Hall is still recording only with a more bluesy bent. Worth checking out "Rendezous with the Blues."

 

[ronnielee54]

Quote:

Originally Posted by DrBenway /img/forum/go_quote.gif I've been really impressed with the variety of names people have come up with, some new to me (Bottle Rockets, have to check them out) and some (Black Oak Arkansas) I haven't thought of in...yikes, let's not get into that. But unless I've missed something, no one has mentioned Wet Willy. I barely remember them. I have this mental image from an appearance they did on one of the late-night concert shows in the 70s. I remember a point in the song where the instruments dropped out, and they broke into unmistakeable Doo Wop harmony. Anyone else remember them?

I was waiting for that one to pop up. I remember them. Showing my age here, but I think I had their first album on 8 track. Damn that was a long time ago. Also can't believe Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers or The Amazing Rythm Ace's has not been mentioned.

 

[grawk]

Tom Petty definitely isn't southern rock

 

[ronnielee54]

Quote:

Originally Posted by grawk /img/forum/go_quote.gif Tom Petty definitely isn't southern rock

I might be wrong, but did they not originate from Gainsville, Florida. That IS in the south I believe. Take it from this southern boy of 54 years. Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers is southern rock.

 

[grawk]

They have the southern part down just fine. It's the rock part they forgot to bring to the party. I like Tom Petty, but I'd never get the heartbreakers mixed up with Molly Hatchet or the Allmans.