The 11 Best Songs By The Drive-By Truckers

 

 The Drive By Truckers might be one of the hardest working, underrated bands spewing out music today.  This band is so prolific, I could have done a top 111 list and all the songs that were left over would still be world's better than anything One Direction has ever done.  Yeah, I went there.  The Truckers may owe their fastidious nature to the ever-rotating list of singers that have graced the microphone.  Not since Fleetwood Mac has a band been so open to sharing lead vocals with such a cross-section of talent.  So far, there have been 5 lead vocalists on DBT tracks, including Mike Cooley, Patterson Hood, Rob Malone, Jason Isbell, and Shonna Tucker.  With that much creative juices flowing, it's no wonder they produced the rich quality of material they have...and then some.

Currently the Truckers are back down to their core duo leads of Cooley and Patterson for the new album, but if history repeats, we're sure to see (hear) the Truckers continue to evolve adding new voices to the spotlight...and maybe some old ones. 

Here are the 11 Best Songs By The Drive-By Truckers:

1. Used To Be A Cop (Go-Go Boots)
2. My Sweet Annette (Decoration Day)
3. Boys From Alabama (The Dirty South)
4. The Day John Henry Died (The Dirty South)
5. The Fourth Night Of My Drinking (The Big To Do)
6. Two Daughters and A Beautiful Wife (Brighter Than Creation's Dark)
7. Ronnie And Neil (Southern Rock Opera)
8. Birthday Boy (The Big To Do)
9. The Sands of Iwo Jima (The Dirty South)
10. Easy On Yourself (A Blessing And A Curse)
11. Sink Hole (Decoration Day)

Buy The Drive By Truckers new album, English Oceans...now!

Don't forget to check out our blog's awesome new book The 111 Best Lists of the 2000s.  Available now! (featuring The Drive-By Truckers)

The 11 Most Anticipated Albums of Winter 2014

 

 Tonight, Florida State beat Auburn in the last BS (I mean BCS...actually, I really do mean bullshit) NCAA football championship game.  In 2014, we get the first ever college football playoff.  It's only 4 teams...but it's a start.  But college football isn't the only thing we have to look forward to.  Here's a look at the best new releases of the next three months.

The 11 Most Anticipated Albums of Winter 2014:

1. Broken Bells - After The Disco (Feb 4)
2. Beck - Morning Phase (Feb 25)
3. Against Me! - Transgender Dysphoria Blues (Jan 21)
4. Young the Giant - Mind Over Matter (Jan 21)
5. Drive-By Truckers - English Oceans (Mar 4)
6. The Crystal Method - The Crystal Method (Jan 14)
7. Cibo Matto - Hotel Valentine (Feb 11)
8. Stephen Malkmus and the Jicks - Wig Out at Jagbags (Jan 7)
9. Warpaint - Warpaint (Jan 21)
10. Bruce Springsteen - High Hopes (Jan 14)
11. Johnny Cash - Out Among The Stars (Mar 25)

The 11 Best Songs By Jason Isbell

Today I made my yearly pilgrimage to the kinetic annual event known as E3.  Every video game that is coming out next year...and then some...is on display for people to play and experience months before the general public.  It's a peep show for the video game community.  The PS4, Xbox One, WiiU, and Steven Spielberg were all on display.  It's a theme park for people with ADD designed by people with ADHD.   It's Vegas on stimulants. There's so much happening all at the same time...it's hard to absorb anything at all.  All the new games are so creative and original, it's hard to get a grasp on them.  I found myself playing games I already knew because they felt comfortable.  Diablo, Lego Marvel, Mario...were the games that I enjoyed the most.  I played a bunch of new games...but honestly, I couldn't remember a single one to save my life.  That said, I can't wait to go back next year.

Here are the 11 Best Songs By Jason Isbell:

1. Go It Alone (Here We Rest)
2. Stopping By (Here We Rest)
3. Good (Jason Isbell & The 400 Unit)
4. However Long (Jason Isbell & The 400 Unit)
5. Shotgun Wedding (Sirens of the Ditch)
6. Alabama Pines (Here We Rest)
7. The Magician (Sirens of the Ditch)
8. Chicago Promenade (Sirens of the Ditch)
9. Seven Mile Island (Jason Isbell & The 400 Unit)
10. Hurricanes and Hand Grenades (Sirens of the Ditch) 
11. Daisy Mae (Here We Rest)

Buy Jason Isbell's new album, Southeastern, now!!!

The 11 Best Songs By The Drive-By Truckers

Let’s get one thing straight, country music today is not country music.  It’s pop music.  Just because you wear a cowboy hat and sing with a twang in your voice does not mean your music is country.  Carrie Underwood has more in common with Norah Jones than she does Patsy Cline.  Kenny Chesney has more in common with John Mayer than he does Hank Williams.  Country music is about the down-trodden.  About the working man.  About trying to pay your bills and failing.  About losing everything and never getting it back.  It’s about never trusting the government, even if they’re Republicans from Texas.  Country music was created at a time when citizens felt like America had turned their back on them.  Today, modern country preaches the glory of America even though times are at their worst.  At least one band hasn’t forgotten.

Drive By Truckers are one of the last remaining bands that embody the spirit of classic country.  Their songs are overflowing with broken characters ripe of desolation.  Of criminals forced down the wrong path.  Of good intentions spoiled by fatal flaws.  As dark and disturbing as their songs are, they’re stories are real.  There are pieces of ourselves in these songs.  We relate to the character’s weaknesses and their choices.  We relate to their challenges and their short-comings.  The Drive By Truckers remind all of us that even in our darkest times, we’re not alone.


Here are the 11 Best Songs By The Drive-By Truckers:

1. My Sweet Annette (Decoration Day)
2. The Day John Henry Died (The Dirty South)
3. The Sands of Iwo Jima (The Dirty South)
4. Sounds Better In The Song (Decoration Day)
5. The Righteous Path (Brighter Than Creation's Dark)
6. Carl Perkins Cadalliac (The Dirty South)
7. The Boys From Alabama (The Dirty South)
8. Ronnie And Neil (Southern Rock Opera)
9. Two Daughters and A Beautiful Wife (Brighter Than Creation's Dark)
10. Puttin' People on the Moon (The Dirty South)
11. The Fourth Night Of My Drinking (The Big To Do)

Buy the Drive-By Truckers new album, Go-Go Boots now!

The 11 Best Songs By The Drive-By Truckers

I spent the week in Vegas for March Madness. When I went in college, I was always blown away by the might and awe of Vegas. Anything was possible in Vegas. They built a mini-New York in Vegas...with a freaking roller coaster. But now that I'm older and more skeptical, Vegas has lost a lot of its polish. It seems that Vegas is frequented by one of three types of people: college students, seniors, and white trash. I'm not in college, I'm not old enough for social security, and I don't live in a trailer park. What happened to all the glamour and the glitz in Vegas? Where did all the beautiful people go? And it's not just the tourists...it's the dealers. I remember dealers used to be young, hip people...kids taking a year off school. Or really hot girls. Now...most of the dealers are pudgy old men, with thinning hair, missing a percentage of teeth, covered in tattoos...and more than likely a registered sex offender. And you can't find a table for less than $25. I don't mind betting $25 per hand...but when I'm more afraid of the dealer than losing, then something needs to change. But maybe Vegas was always like this. Maybe I'm just older and wiser. I still lost $200...so maybe I'm not that much wiser.

Here are the 11 Best Songs By The Drive-By Truckers:

1. My Sweet Annette (Decoration Day)

2. The Day John Henry Died (The Dirty South)

3. The Sands of Iwo Jima (The Dirty South)

4. Sounds Better In The Song (Decoration Day)

5. The Righteous Path (Brighter Than Creation's Dark)

6. Margo and Harold (Pizza Deliverance)

7. The Boys From Alabama (The Dirty South)

8. The Buford Stick (The Dirty South)

9. Ronnie And Neil (Southern Rock Opera)

10. Puttin' People on the Moon (The Dirty South)

11. Where The Devil Don't Stay (The Dirty South)

Buy The Drive-By Truckers, The Big to Do, now!

The 11 Best Songs By The Drive-By Truckers

With Labor Day upon us, it's time to spotlight one of the hardest working bands in the music industry. The Drive By Truckers. Through line-up changes and toying with major label stardom, the band has remained true to the gritty, man of the south sound they burst on the scene shouting. This past week saw DBT release a collection of B-Side and unreleased Tracks called, A Fine Print. Where most bands b-sides are collection of nice tries and near misses...A Fine Print stands sturdy and as complete as anything the band has ever done.

Here are the 11 Best Drive-By Truckers songs:

1. My Sweet Annette(Decoration Day)
2. The Day John Henry Died(The Dirty South)
3. The Sands of Iwo Jima (The Dirty South)
4. Margo and Harold (Pizza Deliverance)
5. The Righteous Path (Brighter than Creation's Dark)
6. Ronnie and Neil (Southern Rock Opera)
7. Puttin' People on the Moon(The Dirty South)
8. Sink Hole (Decoration Day)
9. Boys From Alabama (The Dirty South)
10. Where The Devil Don't Stay (The Dirty South)
11. Two Daughters and a Beautiful Wife (Brighter Than Creation's Dark)

Buy The Drive By Truckers new album of rare tracks, A Fine Print.

The 11 Best Albums of 2008 (Part 3)

Maybe I'll just make this a trend...every day I'll screw up my list a little bit further adding another new entry to the list. Today finds Peasant (#24) slipping in after downloading the album off Emusic last night. Check out their session on Daytrotter...his bare bones style is quite mesmerizing.

The 11 Best Albums of 2008 (Part 3):

23. Kings of Leon - Only By the Night (Use Somebody - SNL)
24. Bloc Party - Intimacy

24. Peasant - On The Ground
25. Ezra Furman & The Harpoons - Inside The Human Body
26. Cold War Kids - Loyalty To Loyalty

27. Jenny Lewis - Acid Tongue
28. The Killers - Day & Age
29. Tapes N Tapes - Walk It Off (Hang Them All - Daytrotter)
30. Ryan Adams and the Cardinals - Cardinology
31. Hot Chip - Made in the Dark
32. Travis - Ode To J. Smith
33. Drive-By Truckers - Brighter Than Creation's Dark

Another reminder to visit my Amazon Store...I get a percentage...a very small one. but if I can make enough off it...I'll invest in a better archiving site than savefile...so we all benefit.

The 11 Best Albums of 2008 (Part 2)

Yes, I know there are two number 36s. Why are there two number 36s? Because I made my list of the 55 best albums of 2008...then I went out and started listening to other albums from 2008 that I hadn't heard yet. Brilliant move, right? So, after really digging the Sleepercar album (Jim Ward from Sparta's new band), I felt compelled to include it. But since I had already posted the bottom of the list, I couldn't squeeze in anything new without screwing up the numbering system. Then I realized...I run the site and make my own rules. So I can do whatever I want.

Don't forget to send me your top 20 albums of 2008 and I'll compile a master list of the 111 best albums of the year!

The 11 Best Albums of 2008 (Part 2):

34. Gnarls Barkley - The Odd Couple
35. We Are Scientists - Brain Trust Majesty
36. Vampire Weekend - Vampire Weekend
36. Sleepercar - West Texas
37. Fleet Foxes - Fleet Foxes (White Winter Hymnal - Daytrotter)
38. Dead Confederates - Wrecking Ball
39. The Faint - Fasciination
40. Okkervil River - The Stand Ins
41. Nine Inch Nails - The Slip
42. Cat Power - Jukebox
43. Cut Copy - In Ghost Colours
44. The Dirtbombs - We Have You Surrounded

Be sure to visit my Amazon Store to buy any of these great albums.