Sweet Home Alabama

Being that I live in the South, I have heard Lynard Skynard's "Sweet Home Alabama" a lot. It would be trite to say I've heard it at least a million times, it would also be accurate. Then it hit me today with my car stereo blasting out a wicked duel guitar assault - I don't know what the heck Ronnie is singing. I know the words, but what do they mean? So after a little half-hearted research, I give you my commentary on a truly great Classic Rock standard.Big wheels keep on turning, carry me home to see my kin singing songs about the southland.I miss ole bamy once again and I think it's a sin. Yes.Well, I heard Mister Young sing about her.Well, I heard ole Neil put her down.Well, I hope Neil Young will remembera southern man don't need him around anyhow.Now this is just an old school smackdown response. I never liked Neil Young because of this verse (as if his whiney voice wasn't reason enough). Apparently Young has two songs, "Southern Man" ("Southern change gonna come at last Now your crosses are burning fast Southern Man...") and "Alabama" ("Oh Alabama The devil fools with the best laid plan...") that don't flatter Southern men or Alabama very much. So Ronnie is just telling him to shut up and go back to Winnipeg and play his harmonica. Sweet home Alabamawhere the skies are so blue.Sweet home Alabama,Lord, I'm coming home to you. In Birmingham they love the Gov'nor.Boo hoo hoo.Now we all did what we could do.Presumably the Governor in reference was George Wallace, who in 1963 tried to stop segregation of the Alabama schools and slow the process of Civil Rights in general. Because he gave the state such a black eye in the national media and was at the time a racist idiot, he gets a Boo hoo hoo. Besides the Boo hoo, I'm not sure what else Skynard did about the situation, or what they could have done, Ronnie was just 15 at the time.Now Watergate does not bother me.Does your conscience bother you, tell the truth.Forgive my lack of clarity on what Watergate was really all about. When I was in 10th grade I found out with a stroke of good luck that my History teacher was a Price Is Right junkie. Most weekdays at 10am the TV was rolled out and History waited on Bob Barker. Of course, I made sure that I had her class the following two years - at 10am. When Mrs. Anderson did teach she was fiery and impassioned. I remember well her lessons on WWII and the Cuban Missile Crisis, but I'm afraid that when it was time to learn about Watergate, I was watching beautiful models display Plinko.What I did know about Watergate is the quote "I am not a crook", Nixon resigned, and someone involved was called Deep Throat. In a nutshell, five Nixon cronies tried to wiretap the Democrats in hope of getting some dirt on them so that Nixon could get reelected. Nixon was reelected but the aftermath of his conspiracies and attempts to cover them up lead to his resignation. He was a crook. W. Mark Felt was Deep Throat.I think Ronnie is just trying to say that politicians are wicked and it's a good thing that Alabama is so far away from the insanity of Washington. And no, my conscience doesn't bother me either, but corruption at the highest levels of government does make me feel a little bit uneasy.Sweet home Alabama where the skies are so blue.Sweet home Alabama, Lord, I'm coming home to you.Now Muscle Shoals has got the Swampersand they ve been known to pick a song or two.Lord, they get me off so much,they pick me up when I'm feeling blue,now how about you.Muscle Shoals is a town in Alabama famous for the many songs recorded there (It's also the birthplace of Helen Keller). The Swampers, nicknamed by Mick Jagger, were a group of highly regarded studio musicians that can be heard on many hits including "Respect" by Aretha Franklin and Bob Seger's "Old Time Rock'n Roll".Sweet home Alabama where the skies are so blue.Sweet home Alabama,Lord, I'm coming home to you.Sweet home Alabama where the skies are so blue.Sweet home Alabama,Lord, I'm coming home to you.

- Uncle Mitch