He don’t give a damn
Brother Billy has both guns drawn
He ain’t been right since Vietnam“Sweet Home Alabama”
Turn those speakers up full blast
Play it all night longYes, it’s crude and this is just the start but the words fit together really well. You then get a reference to the ill-fated southern rock band Lynyrd Skynryd.Plus…good luck finding another song with a reference to brucellosis in it! Not that you asked but here is the definition.Brucellosis – Brucellosis is an infectious disease caused by bacteria. People can get the disease when they are in contact with infected animals or animal products contaminated with the bacteria. Animals that are most commonly infected include sheep, cattle, goats, pigs, and dogs, among others.
Warren Zevon explained that the song was written “really fast” while on marijuana on the synthesizer ostinato. The song is also considered a satire/homage to the dead band’s song (Lynyrd Skynyrd’s “Sweet Home Alabama”). Warren had read a novel around the time the song was written by Newton Thornburg titled Black Angus and got the idea for the line “the cattle all have brucellosis” from it. The song was a common live favorite of Warren’s and made it many setlists subsequent to its release. It is probably the only popular song ever written which contains a reference to brucellosis.
I’ve always liked it because it’s on the strange side and one that only Zevon could have written. The song was on the album Bad Luck Streak in Dancing School. The album peaked at #20 in the Billboard Album Chart in 1980.
Play It All Night Long
Grandpa pissed his pants again
He don’t give a damn
Brother Billy has both guns drawn
He ain’t been right since Vietnam
“Sweet home Alabama”
Play that dead band’s song
Turn those speakers up full blast
Play it all night long
Daddy’s doing Sister Sally
Grandma’s dying of cancer now
The cattle all have brucellosis
We’ll get through somehow
“Sweet Home Alabama”
Play that dead band’s song
Turn those speakers up full blast
Play it all night long
I’m going down to the Dew Drop Inn
See if I can drink enough
There ain’t much to country living
Sweat, piss, jizz and blood
“Sweet Home Alabama”
Play that dead band’s song
Turn those speakers up full blast
Play it all night long
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Definitely on the strange side, but I like it also.
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Political march if there ever was one. The off-kilter music is perfect for the lyrics.
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Gotta love Zevon. He knew how to write about dark situations with tongue in cheek. I’ve never heard this before but, it’s classic Warren.
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I really love those lyrics.
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You know I’ve tried a few times to listen to this guy. But nothing I’ve heard has ever connected. Some good lyrics but the music and singing (especially) leave me cold. Maybe it’s just me…
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He is an acquired taste…very dark lyric wise.
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Yes, unless you never acquire it lol. Don’t think I could ever invest the time. The things that connect me to music are all missing unfortunately
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Were wolves of London?
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https://powerpop.blog/2018/10/16/warren-zevon-werewolves-of-london/
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The irony is that Kid Rock took a Zevon song (“Werewolves of London”) and did an unholy mashup with “Sweet Home Alabama” for his godawful song “All Summer Long.”
The fact that Zevon wrote an entire song making fun of people who crank the speakers up full blast for “Sweet Home Alabama” was apparently lost on him.
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