Did You Hear the One about the Drive-By Truckers?

This blog isn’t about gun control; it’s about censorship—something that should make us all shudder. If you’re not familiar with Shoalanda’s personal stance on gun laws, we’re a moderate. That means both the right and the left hate us. The right will quickly call us a blankety blank liberal, while the left will call us a redneck hooligan. We also know that at least two who blog here regularly stand much more firmly to the right on gun control issues, and we’re always happy to give them or anyone else a stage from which to present their ideas.

This past year, our local newspaper (known as the TotallyDecatur) was presented with a new editor. He’s made some changes, both for the better and the worse as we see it. Perhaps what we’re considering censorship is nothing more than another direction the TD is taking in regards to local icons.

For those not of a musical bent, the Drive-By Truckers (DBT for short) is a band with local roots that moved to the Athens, Georgia, area several years ago. Lead singer Patterson Hood is the son of David Hood; the elder Hood is sometimes known as a Swamper and the frequent subject of Robert Palmer articles in the TD. In brief, like Ron Burgundy, the DBT is something of a big deal around here.

They were certainly a big deal last Tuesday when the band opened for Keisha at a benefit just blocks away from where the Democratic convention was being held. The recipient of the benefit? Americans for Responsible Solutions.

If you’ve never heard of this group, we doubt that you’re alone. Also appearing at the benefit were Gabby Giffords and her ex-astronaut husband Mark Kelly. Perhaps now you’re getting the drift of what this organization is all about. Yes, gentle readers, the ARS seeks to curb gun sales in the U.S.

Whether you or I or anyone else agrees with this mission, those who do have a Constitutional right to lobby as they see fit. Both the DBT and Kesha have a right to support the organization in its mission.

The DBT performed for over an hour at the ARS benefit and debuted a large chunk of material from their new album. In short, the appearance made national news…just not here in the Shoals.

Was there a reason for this oversight? Comments always welcome.

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Want to purchase An American Band, the DBT's latest album to be released in September? Here you go:

An American Band

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Drive-By Truckers in Huntsville Tomorrow Night

For all you DBT fans out there, the band will perform in Huntsville tomorrow night. For details, you can visit Crossroads Cafe.

Since most of us engage in that bourgeois institution of work, that necessary evil may prevent many from being present tomorrow night. For those who fall into that category, we offer you an excellent video by Florence's Matt Osborne. Visit our link to Osborne Ink or view his insightful works at The Huffington Post. (The Three Great Alabama Icons is also the title of one of the late Byron Wilkes' most famous works, pictured at right.)





Shoalanda

Byron Wilkes, Alien Autist, Has Passed Away

Byron Wilkes, a Florence-based artist and poet, has passed away. Sometimes known professionally as Alien Autist, Wilkes is responsible for much of the artwork adorning the music of the Fiddle Worms and Drive-By Truckers.

Some months before we began this blog, we discovered Wilkes' painting Hot-Rod Politique on an eBay auction. After debuting our effort in Blogger, we knew we wanted to use this wonderful work of satire in our theme, but had no idea who had created this iconoclastic masterpiece. After some months, a reader filled us in on Byron, and we became an avid fan, featuring him in our May 9, 2009, column. We understand that Byron was especially pleased that we chose his artwork to epitomize the Shoals area.

Byron was known to feature pyramids prominently in his work. Pictured is perhaps his second best-known work, The Three Great Alabama Icons. You can see more of Byron's art at his MySpace page.

We're sure that many of our readers will want to memorialize Byron in some manner. We will publish any information concerning arrangements as they become available, as well as any information on purchasing his artwork. All our sympathies to his family and friends.


Shoalanda

Byron Wilkes - Artist & Poet

Some weeks ago we asked readers to help us in finding the artist responsible for our "Shoals" artwork, an incredible melange of iconic state and local figures mixed with humor. Two readers responded that the brilliant mind behind the image belongs to Bryon Wilkes.

Wilkes lives in Florence and is noted for not only his artwork, but also his poetry. Besides Drive-By Truckers, Wilkes has done album covers for Sleepy Hollow and Patterson Hood.

Byron has a store on e-Bay that I insist everyone check out. Aptly called Make Room for dA dA, it's sure to have that certain something you've been searching for. Don't forget to tell him Shoalanda sent you.

http://stores.shop.ebay.com/Make-Room-For-dAdA__W0QQ_armrsZ1


Note: Today's Morris Lentz Day in Rogersville has been postponed due to inclement weather. We'll post the new date as soon as it's scheduled.

Notes, Quotes, & Questions

Notes:

* Jack's Hamburgers has moved the opening of their new Florence Boulevard store to May 20th. Management wants to inform the public that the side entrance on Glendale Avenue is now closed and lighting in the parking lot has been temporarily disconnected. They regret any inconvenience.

* Rick's Barbecue and Country Store at Elgin Crossroads is now open. Management invites everyone to visit their first Alabama Country Store location.

* Tammy McGuire has contacted us concerning our article on Keith McGuire. Mrs. McGuire is a native of Waynesboro, Tennessee, and not Greenhill as we stated. The McGuire rape trial will be held July 20th.

Quotes:

* Winston County political humorist and pundit King A. Cockfight on Roger Bedford - Roger is a white candidate, and that doesn’t scare people as much.

* Possible gubernatorial candidate Chief Justice Sue Bell Cobb on what made her consider the race - “things that make Roger Bedford, for God’s sake, think he has a chance to win.”

Questions:

* "Who is the artist that did the Shoals artwork?"
We ourselves would love to know the answer to that in order to give him or her proper credit. We downloaded the work from an eBay auction site that described the piece only as album art for the Drive-By Truckers. If anyone does know the name of the artist, please contact us.

* "Why are some links direct and some copy & paste?"
We originally used Internet Explorer as our browser of choice; IE creates direct or clickable links. Later we changed to Firefox which creates copy & paste links. We are sorry for any inconvenience.


What's up with this: If you aren't familiar with the King Cockfight blog, you've been missing a great deal of regional humor. Here's a link to the blog, but please be advised it carries an "R" rating. http://kingcockfight.wordpress.com/

Zip City: Tourist Attraction

For those who complain that city fathers wish to turn Florence into a retirement community, you may now rejoice that the under thirty crowd has a new tourist mecca in Lauderdale County--Zip City. Yes, you read that correctly; the small unincorporated community just north of Florence has become a tourist destination in its own right.

Zip City, located at the intersection of Lauderdale 8 and Alabama 17, earned its name in the 1920s during the era of the noble experiment. A national ban on alcohol apparently meant less to our neighbors in Tennessee than it did to us more sedate Alabamians, but for those who did imbibe, a quick trip to the state-line bootlegger via what was then known as Chisholm Highway was in order.

According to Florence historian Bill McDonald, Alonzo Parker owned Parker's General Store during this era and became disgusted by the speeding traffic regularly passing his store. He began calling the community Zip City, and the moniker stuck.

For years Zip City was known for its western wear store, weekly antique auctions, and small out-of-the-way airport. Then in 2001, longtime resident Mike Cooley wrote the song "Zip City," and the Drive-By Truckers recorded it in 2002 for their Southern Rock Opera. The following lyrics have become something of a mantra for the group's many fans:

Zip City, it's a good thing that they built a wall around you.
Zip up to Tennessee, then back down to Alabama.

In a town that doesn't even boast a golf course, what more could you ask for?


For those who have asked, yes, our "Shoals" artwork is from a Drive-By Truckers' album.