Southern Rock is a mixture of country, blues, rock, and even bluegrass and jazz. The music carries the sound of the South.....often serious, telling stories of past and present hardhips, and often funny, or even soothing. The music expresses the Southerner's views of the world, and summarizes the way we feel about things going on in the world. Although it can be traced back to bluegrass and Dixieland roots, Southern Rock really first started showing itself with the emergence of Elivs Pressley, and it became mature with the emergence of the Allman Brothers in the late '60s. In the early '70s, Lynyrd Skynyrd was planting its roots in the annals of Rock. This band, which many consider the greatest Southern Rock band of all time, was respected by people all over the country, but, of course, it took a Southerner to truly understand all of the messages and feelings conveyed in their music. Around the time of Skynyrd's emergence, and a little after, numerous other (but not necessarily lesser) Southern Rock bands began emerging. These bands, which included the Marshall Tucker Band, the Outlaws, and Molly Hatchett, carried on not only a Southern nationalistic sound, but also showed pride in the ways of the rambling man, and in the ways of the cowboys and settlers of the middle-late 1800s. On October 21, 1977, perhaps the most tragic event in Southern Rock history took place: A place carrying Lynyrd Skynyrd from Greenville, SC, to Mississippi, crashed in a Mississippi swamp, and lead singer Ronnie VanZant, guitarist Steve Gaines, and backup singer Cassie Gaines were killed. This tragic event took place only three days after the release of their most successful album, Street Survivors. Ironically, this album stressed the fact that the band had survived through almost everything.
In 1979, Southern Rock/Country singer Charlie Daniels created the first Volunteer Jam, in Tennessee. This band brought togethor almost all of the Southern rockers, and Lynyrd Skynyrd's survivors performed a tribute version of "Free Bird," in which there was no vocals. The Volunteer Jam continues on today as the biggest Southern Rock concert of all time. Southern Rock continued into the early '80s, with such bands as .38 Special, the Outlaws, ZZ Top (they are Southern, especially in their early albums), and the Rossington Collins Band (created from members of Skynyrd). Although not quite as popular as it once was, and losing its original sound, the bands continued cranking out songs, and Southern Rock remained strong right up to the mid-'80s. Southern rock had all but lost its old sound, and it seemed that the end was near, when, in 1986, a new band, The Georgia Satellites, cranked out what many consider to be one of the greatest, most Southern sounding songs of all time: " Keep Your Hands to Your Self." This song, and its video, seemed to perfectly capture the Southern sound, and although it doesn't seem like the most pleasant topic, one can't deny that it is a typical part of Southern life, and nothing to be ashamed of, in all honesty. Today, Southern rock is still alive, and any rock and roll fan, young or old, can tell you how great it is. Skynyrd continues cranking out new songs, and the old bands are still touring. Hopefully, Southern Rock will be a permanant memento of a great group of people. |
