Southern Rock Opera

It’s an interesting concept, but I just didn’t like the music

2.5 round down, not sure why the critics were all over this one, it feels super derivative of better bands that came before.

You know how some people can't get past an album being in a different language? I don't think I can get past the accents on this one. Even knowing the contents of the lyrics, southern rock just may not be for me.

Maybe I'll finish this one day and bump the rating but [shake shake] "Outlook Not so Good"

These guys are good. Their sound is good. But it’s such a standard “southern rock” sound, it’s hard to see much new in that sound or arrangement. And then there are the omnipresent references to Lynard Skynard, Ronnie van Zandt, 38 Special etc. There’s even an all-talk track, that provides a history lesson as an introduction to another track. This album made me think about “southern rock” and its connection to White Male grievance that dominates US society today. Southern Rock dwells in historical grievance and entitlement, whenever it’s not rationalizing and celebrating “boys will be boys” antics. It all seems pretty juvenile and tiresome. This album is at least politically progressive. Maybe that novelty is why it made the list? But it left me flat because it’s too obsessed with the past. I’ll give it a 2 — I didn’t need to hear this sound, again.

Good god double album of mid music is just torture

Meh

This album is a bit of a conundrum. It's absolutely southern rock, which makes sense with the name. But it more seems to both embrace deep south American culture while also offering critiques of some of its unsavory facets. Theoretically that makes for an intriguing album. To me, though, their effort was pretty disappointing. It comes off as a bit snobbish. Listening, it gave a vibe of "only I can say this because it's about my heritage which I deeply understand while you simply cannot". Or maybe like someone being overly defensive in a way that make it suspicious. The sheer length of the album solidified my stance on this, because why would you need to do it for 90+ minutes? I guess that makes sense for a rock "opera", if that's really what they consider it. To me, it felt more like a kind of inside joke that for some reason got turned into a double album even though they expected only a few people would get it. Each individual song was probably fine. If I heard them on their own, I think I'd appreciate them more than I did on this listen. I actually liked the music and guitars quite a bit. Listening to them all together was a slog, though. Jason Isbell wasn't in the band at the time of this record, but I feel similarly to it the way I do to his music. I can see there's talent and passion, it's just that what he does with it just really isn't that impressive. Same with Dave Grohl, which, fittingly, reminds me of a quip at him I once read saying that no one puts more effort and passion into making completely mediocre music. I had hoped to like this one due to the genre and knowing people who are big fans of the band. I guess I can't say this was bad, but I really didn't find it that good. The instrumentation was the best part for me, and the vocals had some good tone that fit the vibe well. Unfortunately none of those parts were really better than fine, plus the messaging fell flat. That's hard to overcome when the album is an hour and half long. If they'd condensed this by about half I think I could rate it higher. As it is, I can't give it anything better than a 2. Overall: 2/5

So, this was basically a double album trying to tell us that not all Southerners are bad, that Young and LS were actually friends, and Wallace was a bad governor. Not things I care for, and nothing that I had to have heard.

It’s just passable at 2 stars!

I know the name, but that is about it. Hmm, a lot of tags on this one. I have no relationship to Southern rock, and enduring a double album was tough. I couldn't buy into the concept, these songs are just so boring. 2 Heard before? No Owned: No: 21/1001, 21/86 (24%) Will I get? No

This feels like something they loved to make. I don't regret hearing it but I don't think this is mandatory by any stretch. More "you should hear about what my buddies band was able to pull off". It's like a rock dive bar band instead of a rock opera.

A somewhat interesting at times melding of rebel country, indie rock, Neil Young. Shout out Lynyrd Skynyrd and the name of a place in the south. If this is partially responsible for the current state of pop country, we'll that's unfortunate. 40 minutes could have rendered the same results.

Not so bad but 1h30 of southern rock is a lot to take in one sitting

This album is completely useless here.

1h30 of southern rock with nothing exceptional to be found is a wild choice for this challenge, and not in a good way. I will give it 2 stars because of the very few good tracks and because it wasn't aggressively bad, but I'm deeply insulted to have to listen to this in the 1001 challenge.

If you're from the South, I'm not going to assume you're racist. If you play Southern Rock, I'm not going to assume you're racist. If you spend 90 minutes trying to convince me that NOT ALL Southern people are racist, my eyebrow might become raised. That aside, the music isn't terrible and the singer kinda sounds like Mick Jagger.

This was a slog of a double album to get through. It just wasn't particularly exciting or attention grabbing. Musically it's fine. Just fine. I Don't love the vocalists. Their voices are harsh and accents on the annoying side. I absolutely don't care about the southern way of life and clichéd country-rock lyrics so most of the subject matter fell on my deaf ears. In spite of the pretty ok music, this album just did absolutely nothing for me. I almost quit at the start of the second disk. Almost. Shoutout to "Three Great Alabama Icons" for being one of the most annoying things I've listened to in a while. But props for the history lesson, I suppose. As a song, it's not one I want to listen to on a rock album, though. Standouts were "72 (This Highway's Mean)" - really liked the guitar on this - and "Cassie's Brother" The verdict: Southern Rock Opera is much too long without any real payoff. I dont think it's bad enough for 1 star, the guitar is quite redeemable, but it didn't really do anything for me to keep it at an average 3 rating, so 2 stars it is.

This album is the reason I hang my American flag upside-down. Free Bird? These guys must know who Lynyrd Skynyrd is. Oh, yep. They know. Oh, they definitely know. They make absolutely certain that we know they're fans. Sweet riff on Ronnie And Neil. It's a tried-and-true sound that works (obviously) despite being a little unimpressive for the 21st century. A better example of a great track is Dead Drunk And Naked. It's pretty strong: it does a lot with the few chords it uses, and the vibe is unabashedly positive. The vocal harmonising is good too. A fun track. Zip City is another standout, this time for its distinctive low drawl and warm guitar tone. Combined, this sounds like something right off the Stones' Sticky Fingers. And that's a (very) good thing. Women Without Whiskey is very strong too, mainly due to coming after a trio of very weak tracks. And it's exactly what the doctor ordered. Musically, pretty similar to Dead Drunk And Naked. Plastic Flowers On The Highway is even better (great interacting guitar tones) and rounds out the "key track trio". George Wallace being touted as one of the "three great Alabama icons" is pretty gross. The infamous pro-segregationist that stood firmly against the rights of non-white people for decades? The band kind of covers this in the lyrics, but doesn't justify his inclusion beyond "he makes it easier to do racism if you have a Southern accent". Coincidentally, the song itself a disaster (musically) for its entire seven-minute runtime. It's also around this point that you realise the band is only subtly condemning Southern racism and that most listeners will interpret the music on its face (i.e, pro-segregation). Darn. Note that the line "Now the Devil's got a Wallace sticker" doesn't work on racists who take pride in being bad people, which is surprisingly many of them. I have to steal another reviewer's writing here because it's so spot-on: "I don't dislike it at the normal 2 star level, but the problem is, if you're going to do 90 minutes, you at least have to have a few songs that GRAB you, which this doesn't have. It just goes on and on and on remaining passable but never great [apart from the keys tracks below]." 2/5 Key tracks: Dead Drunk And Naked, Zip City, Plastic Flowers On The Highway

I understand the huge concept and epic scope behind this, but the album is far too long. It really drags. I feel as though I'm being hit on the head over and over with the same message. That is to say, it is heavy-handed, and the constant cliched soapboxing makes me feel like I'm being lectured rather listening to a piece of art. I would contend that the best artists take big ideas and condense them into digestible packages or intimate portraits. It's not easy to be Neil Young. The underlying sound is okay-- the guitars sound dirty and massive, but it is just too similar song to song. I'm not a fan of the inflection of the singer. Sometimes it almost feels like parody, or like he's trying too hard. I couldn't get into it. It's kind of a one-trick pony extended an hour too long. I can see people enjoying this, but it didn't grip me, and I ended up skipping through a lot of the second half just hoping for something different.

I get what they're doing here, with the whole Skynyrd concept. It does get kind of old by the end of the record with the repeated "Sweet Home Alabama" riff and musical theme, but I do get it. This isn't a terrible record and I'm glad I listened to it, so I guess including it on the 1001 albums you must hear before you die has been successful in that regard.

This wasn’t nearly as bad as I had expected and actually has some cool moments. “Three Great Alabama Icons” is worth hearing just for the history lesson and in general the record works well as a monument to the history of Southern Rock in all its variety. Unfortunately most of those varieties don’t really appeal to me much.

It had small moments but mostly forgettable. Way too long. Reminded me of The Refreshments at times, but without the charm of not taking themselves too seriously (this may be an insane opinion caused by being unfamiliar with the genre).

If you’re going to stretch things out to feature-length, you’d better have something sharp to hang on to. This doesn’t. Spins: 1 Playlist Additions: - Plastic Flowers On The Highway - Cassie's Brother

not for me...

Misliker det ikke, men litt usikker på hva jeg tenker om den egentlig. Noen kule riff her og der, men blir ikke helt fanget av historien. Så sterke lynyrd skynyrd referanser får meg litt til å tenke at jeg bare kunne gått rett til kilden og hørt på dem i stedet. Føles ut som et album man må høre mer enn en gang for å få skikkelig oversikt over. Foreløpig vanskelig å lande på 2 eller 3 stjerner for min del. Gir det en sterk 2er for nå

appreciated the TED talk, the music not so much

makes me want skynyrd, which i think is a bad thing? like listening to this makes me want to listen to something else? subject matter and lyrics are important.

Kicks here and there but too long to hold attention

Some cool riffs but about 45 minutes too long. 3.5/10

Was more interested in the concept as it started than I expected to be, but it fell flat fast. Not bad, just not 90 minutes worth.

I really didn’t connect with this album.

Bad. 2/5

Too long, same thing. One disk would have been enough.

A Trump rally doing cover songs of Queen?

Not completely terrible, just really boring

Dad rock in a year dad rock should no longer be created

Temu Lynyrd Skynyrd/Tom Petty

Pa onako, birtija bend, ok za u pozadini, ništa prezanimljivo. 2/5, 4/10

This is 90 mins of the same same same song over and over again and then Greenville to Baton Rouge which is sick sick sick.

the concept is interesting at some points, but by the time the album was over, i found the singers voice to be grating and the whole southern rock schtick to be tiresome 2.5

This band aspired to achieve boring mediocrity and they managed to succeed... on some of the songs. The rest weren't worth listening to. 1.5/5

I've always been frustrated with this image in my head of Drive-By Truckers being the kings of "alternative country" particularly among young men that I know, because to me all the songs I've heard of theirs sound like extremely standard Southern rock / country rock type music and I also simply resist the implication that "standard" country is country-pop. All that said, "Three Great Alabama Icons" gained them a few points in my book for being interesting, but I still don't like most of the lead singer's delivery and find a lot of the rest to be samey.

Nothing interesting

It sounds like a bunch of bros got together to make a bro band and perform in front of even more bros. Which is fine, just don't go in the studio and try to record it and then make me listen to it for an internet project.

This could have been a solid single album with those country-rock sounds and '70s nostalgia vibe. However, they stretched the duration of the record so much that it became a mediocre double album instead.

There’s no denying the ambition behind 𝘚𝘰𝘶𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘯 𝘙𝘰𝘤𝘬 𝘖𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘢 — a double album tackling Southern identity, Lynyrd Skynyrd mythology, and the contradictions of pride and history. The concept is fascinating, the message thoughtful, and the playing solid throughout. But despite the strong intentions, the album feels overlong and uneven. Too many songs blur together, and much of the storytelling relies on spoken exposition that drags the pace. At its best, it rocks with grit and perspective; too often, though, it loses steam. An admirable effort, but not one I’ll likely revisit. Great idea — just not gripping in execution.

The cover art and title were very promising, but the music was rather dull

Not my style of music but I could listen quite easily

**An ok album, many tracks sound the same

The back story is more interesting than the album itself.

Dull, dull, dull

на любителя. (американский говно-кантри-рок)

I have heard of this band but their work eludes me. They do have that Southern country rock sound and Southern Rock Opera was ok. For a double album it wasn't super long or unbearable. Not that great either through. Didn't intrigue me enough to look into any other works. Lead singer really needed to catch that Lynyrd Skynyrd show. Ask me if I'm a truck driver...1.7 stars

Southern rock. Toes the line between modern country and a skynyrd knock off.

Il y a une ligne fine entre l'ambition et la prétention, entre l'œuvre conceptuelle immersive et le pensum auto-référentiel. Avec son double album "Southern Rock Opera", le groupe Drive-By Truckers marche sur cette ligne avec l'assurance d'un funambule, mais finit par basculer du mauvais côté pour une grande partie du voyage. Annoncé comme une fresque monumentale sur "la dualité du Sud", l'écoute s'avère frustrante et inégale car elle demande une connaissance préalable si spécifiques qu'elle érige elle-même les murs de sa propre forteresse, laissant l'auditeur non initié à l'extérieur. "Southern Rock Opera" est un projet colossal de 20 titres qui raconte à la fois le passage à l'âge adulte dans l'Alabama des années 70 et, en parallèle, l'histoire du groupe Lynyrd Skynyrd, utilisé ici comme une métaphore du Sud moderne. Sur le papier, l'idée est brillante. Dans les faits, elle ne fonctionne qu'à moitié. Car si la première partie, "Act One: Betamax Guillotine", est de loin la plus réussie. On y trouve l'ADN de ce qui fait des Drive-By Truckers un bon groupe de rock avec un son puissant, gras et trois guitares qui crachent un feu nourri. Durant ce premier acte, le groupe est à son meilleur, livrant un rock sudiste intelligent, viscéral et honnête et on est emporté avec des titres comme "Let There Be Rock" un hymne fédérateur sur le pouvoir salvateur de la musique, "Days of Graduation" qui capture la mélancolie d'une jeunesse qui s'enfuit, ou des morceaux comme"Zip City" qui dépeignent avec une justesse crue la vie dans les petites villes oubliées. Si l'album s'était arrêté là, on aurait eu un disque excellent. Malheureusement, il y a un second acte. Et c'est là que le bât blesse, car celui-ci abandonne la chronique sociale universelle pour se transformer en une biographie musicale obsessionnelle de Lynyrd Skynyrd. Et c'est un problème majeur car pour apprécier cette seconde moitié, il ne suffit pas d'aimer le rock sudiste ; il faut être un fan inconditionnel de Skynyrd. Il faut connaître leur histoire, leurs membres, leurs roadies, leur mythologie. Sans cette connexion émotionnelle préexistante, une grande partie des chansons sonne comme des anecdotes de tournée racontées à une fête où l'on ne connaît personne. L'écoute devient laborieuse. La "dualité du Sud", concept si prometteur, se dissout dans un récit si particulier qu'il en devient excluant. On admire la recherche et le détail, mais on ne ressent rien. Ce qui était une force dans la première partie – la production brute, presque live – devient une faiblesse sur la durée. Un double album exige une production impeccable pour maintenir l'intérêt de l'auditeur. Ici, le son souvent brouillon et manquant de dynamique rend l'écoute des presque 90 minutes fatigante. On a l'impression tenace qu'un excellent album simple de 45 minutes se noie dans les ambitions démesurées d'un double album qui n'avait pas assez de matière universelle pour se justifier. Le groupe semble tellement amoureux de son concept qu'il a oublié de le rendre accessible. Des morceaux comme "Angels and Fuselage", qui dépeint le tragique crash d'avion, sont certes poignants dans leur intention, mais leur longueur et leur minimalisme exigent une patience et une empathie que l'album n'a pas réussi à construire chez l'auditeur lambda. Au lieu d'être le sommet émotionnel de l'œuvre, il apparaît comme une conclusion lente et pesante à une histoire à laquelle on n'a jamais vraiment réussi à prendre part. En conclusion, "Southern Rock Opera" est l'exemple parfait d'un album que l'on respecte plus qu'on ne l'aime. Il est impossible de nier l'intelligence de l'écriture, le courage de la démarche et le talent brut des musiciens. Les moments de grâce sont réels, mais ils sont concentrés sur la première moitié et sont finalement sabotés par une seconde partie trop spécifique, trop longue et trop dépendante d'un amour pour Lynyrd Skynyrd que tout le monde ne partage pas. Au final, ce sera un 2 sur 5 pour un album bancal et réservé en grande partie à un club de membres très select.

My initial gut when doing a little reading before was that this was going to be a 1/5 just garbage glazing of Skynyrd and revisionist glamorization of the South. Then I hit play... familiar sounds but with something to say in the lyrics. It kept going and I started to buy into the concept and appreciate the candidness of their influence. At one point I really enjoyed it and was ready to give this a 3 but acknowledge there weren't many things to revisit outside of a top to bottom play. It was then that I realized I still had another 30 minutes and accepted defeat. This needed sever edits and condensing of ideas if its going to be this on the nose with its sounds.

Did not need to be an hour and a half, especially when 40% was dedicated to George Wallace and Lost Cause glazing.

Let There Be Rock // Plastic Flowers On The Highway //

все мимо

I don’t know if it’s because I’m a carpet-bagging Yankee (and proud of it), but I’ve never liked southern rock. Besides the first Skynyrd album and a smarter of CCR hits, the sub-genre has never been my cup of tea. What we have here is a generic southern-fried rock sound, devoid of its own character and relying too much on nostalgia for Neil Young and Skynyrd. The instrumentals aren’t anything to write home about, and the vocals and lyrics are kinda just par for the course. The whole album just kind of happens, and I forgot it the second I stopped listening; which is a new experience for me with a double album. Even Trout Mask Replica was notable for being so… Trout Mask Replica, but this just has nothing. It’s not incompetent, just boring.

As soon as I thought… this sounds inbred they started talking about lynyrd skynyrd

There's only so much I can listen to a band tell me they've listened to Lynrd Skynrd or Tom Petty before I call it quits. We get it. That said, the songs aren't bad, and worked fine as background music while I worked. 2/5

Store brand Lynard Skynard

Does a 90 minute, 2LP, southern rock concept album about Lynryd Skynyrd appeal to you? Then this is the album for you! It doesn’t really appeal to me. I’d probably rate this higher if it wasn’t a double album, but I got pretty tired listening to this by the end.

Got bored to be honest, not really my thing.

2 stars These guys like Lynyrd Skynyrd. Over long and not interesting enough for the length. But not terrible. Just a slog. But it kept my attention when I listened. I had to split it up. I don’t think I’d return to it.

The more I listened to this, the less I liked it, but the more I appreciated it. Individually, each song is forgettable but as a package it forms a picture of southern life and rock and roll. Like a required reading.

Don't really care for it

Nothing wrong with it per se, just utterly boring.

I am, generally, the target audience for long rock concept albums. I am not sure that I am the target audience for this. The vocals are produced kind of strangely. They’re a little too quiet and fighting for space between the multiple guitars. I can hear effort towards gutsy, earthy performances, but they come off as strained and a bit hokey. The Skynyrd worship doesn’t work for me because it keeps reminding me how much more compelling a Skynyrd album would be. The songs are usually fine, occasionally almost good, never great. Damning for an album this long. Turned into background music, which in turn irritated me because this thing seems to want to make some sort of statement about the career arc of Skynyrd and the Alabama mythos in general.

Me aburrí mucho. Suena viejo para su época, y no le encontré nada original. Encima de todo, una hora y media! Por que? Nota: 2.3

Alright music stretched incredibly thin. Love Three Great Alabama Icons, though it's less a song than a narrative.

The album art here looks like the kind of stuff Napoleon Dynamite would draw in class if he grew up in West Texas instead of Idaho. Very much a kitchen sink concept of 'the south'. Fortunately I'm not American, and I imagine that I am unable to interface with this album in the intended way as a result. Therefore, I can only make an assessment of the musicality here. It is a rock album, that's for sure. Three Great Alabama Icons makes me think maybe the content of this album would have been better delivered in the medium of a coffee table book or an artsy doco. But it's an album, so here we are for an hour and a half. Frankly, I enjoyed this song a lot more than other stuff on here as it was an interesting story. This was mostly forgettable, maybe I would be kinder if I gave it more relistens but frankly a lot of this was competently-performed noise. A few standout tracks from a lot of white noise coupled with a long runtime does not make for a particularly enjoyable listen. Highlights: Dead, Drunk and Naked, Three Great Alabama Icons, Angels And Fuselage

wow ok

Jævleg langt

Like a lynard skynard tribute band playing lynard skynard rejected songs badly

Eugh. This isn’t good. It’s admirable, in a way, I think I like a lot of the ideas just not the execution. Hoo boy the execution. It really sounds like an amalgamation of every southern rock group without any of the edges. It’s also 90 fucking minutes long.

2000. Pretty interesting to listen to a Country Opera type album. Definitely had a lot to say about the story of Lynard Skynyrd.

Wanted to like it because of the idea behind it and the fact that I like Southern rock, but this is over 90 minutes of music which sounds almost exactly the same and there's a lack of energy and groove there as well, loses points for being too long would have been a 3 if it was a single album

Pretty good Southern rock, if you like that kind of thing.

Czemu ta płyta jest taka długa? I czemu jest na tej liście? Przecież ten zespół śpiewa w kółko o zespołach dużo lepszych od siebie. To jest jakaś słaba kopia prawdziwych, starych rockowych bandów. Wymęczyła mnie niemozebnie. 4/10 i nie pozdrawiam.

Not good

didn't feel like a rock opera. It was too long. Not sure I liked it that much, but it was not horrible either.

"Cause He knows that blood red carpet at the Salem Church of Christ / Ain't gonna ever see no wedding between me and you." ("Zip City") The most interesting parts of this album were the Dale Gribble soundalike's spoken word tracks, but there are only 2 of those in the overlong 90-minute runtime. The music is alright at times but never great, and the length is definitely unjustified. I think the fact that this is from 2001 is a knock against its inclusion - it doesn't feel really noteworthy, influential, or representative for 2001. I think I'd be more forgiving/understanding if it was from 10+ years earlier.

Not sure what to expect. I put this on my queue on Spotify and it was quite a jump from One Direction to... this. It's good until theres any lyrics. And it's far far far too long. Okay as it goes on I'm hating it less but the first song I didn't like at all. I don't want to finish it as I'm short on time and want to listen to music I like since I gave this a good shot. From what I've heard, I think it's a 2.5. Since I can't give half, I'm going to round down to 2/5 overall

I tried to like this and enjoy the story. the narrative click much for me and the instrumentation faded into the background

It's not as bad as I feared but the voice is a huge no-no.

Thought i was going to absolutely hate this, turns out it wasn’t so bad! Some okay songs - nice tones. Sounds like a band that would play a Nashville bar - accomplished Southern Rock musicians that you can zone in and out on whilst you eat wings and drink beer and watch sports highlights on mute on the screens. Bit of mix of slow/fast but all very similar sounding tbh - not sure a track in particular stands out really. 2.5 stars rounded down to 2 due to its length. Had to break it into two over the day and skip some tracks just to reach the end. Not ruling out revisiting this one though.

Lynyrd Skynyrd = good George Wallace = bad

Mieleen tulee sellainen southern American aksentilla laulava Motörhead. Ihan kivaahan tämä, elämänkerronnallista kamaa

I didn't hate it, but it's not my kinda thing, mostly

A passionate love letter to a genre of music I cannot stand.

I started with low expectations and was rewarded with a mediocre attempt at southern rock. It has no right being 90mins

They are probably good at what they do, but southern rock is not my thing, so I didn’t enjoy much of this album. Guitar Man Upstairs and Shut Up and Get on The Plane, the two more boogie-ish tracks, are décent and prevent the lowest score

Not a fan.

there is far better southern rock your should listen to over this album

I'm finally free!!!!!! Stop doing double albums, everybody. I mean it.

Vocals not a vibe

Kitschigen Rock? Nix verpasst.

I admire the ambition and the sound is pretty good, but the lyrics just miss the mark, staying in the cliche but not doing much with it. I kept thinking of Jerry Jeff Walker's "Up Against the Wall" and how much better that is.... but, naturally, we're not getting him on this project.

Like the most boring music ever performed by a cover band. And it goes for hours. Good musos but bland songs.

Sort of undecided about this album. It sounds like something I’d like, a bit of Lynyrd Skynyrd, a bit of Tom Petty, but there’s something about it that doesn’t quite convince me. It’s just a bit lackluster, if I’m being honest. I did vibe with it to an extent and I don’t think it’s a bad album, but just for my personal preference I have to rate it lower.

I usually listen while working so I'm not paying full attention but after the 17th reference to Lynyrd Skynyrd I'm like WTF is this? So I hit that Wikipedia button and ok it makes sense. I read a little more about the band and I get it, I appreciate it. Still maybe more interesting to read about than actually listen to.

уважаю за омажи и размышления, но сама такое слушать не готова

hmh nyt tulloo paljon meediumi mid albumeja. voisi olla vähemmän sitä rokkia tässä ja enemmän oopperaa heh.. tarvitsee jonkinlaista nostalgista paikallista tuntemusta todelliseen nauttimiseen, näin tyhjiössä ei paljoa saa irti mitään syvämielistä tunnevirtausta.. eli lyhyesti sanottuna, long story short: geneeristä paskaa heh.. kiinnostavaa lyriikkaa osittain. rekkaukot.. menkää suihkuun vaan rekkapoitsut saa ilmatteex käyttää suihkua meikälläisen kodissa mutta yksi sääntö: kikkelit heiluu sitten ihan olohuoneessa myös.. no clothes allowed for truck boys.. kiliheilunta (PAKOLLINEN!!!) three great alabama icons

Mediocre southern rock. Fun though.

Mediocre at best

This was hyped to me as comparable to Lynyrd Skynyrd and other great Southern Rock bands. It definitely did not meet that expectation.

I’m going to click the button. I have doubts I’ll make it through this album. Song 1: Hold on, this is pretty good! Not anything like what I thought it was going to b… The rest of the songs: yeah…no. This is a weird album. It’s not country, but the lead singer has a VERY pronounced southern accent, and it’s hard for me to get around that. It’s also too goddamned long. There are a couple really interesting songs but overall, I don’t like it at all.

This almost had me, but i ended up hating it. I do not like rock opera and this was overblown in the extreme. My interest was piqued by the spoken word stuff about wallace. But it sounded like Mouserat without the fun or the irony.

Ah. That was...not my thing.

That's two alternative country albums in a row now. This is very much an ode to the Southern United States (notably the state of Alabama) if that wasn't already obvious by the album title. Whether you asked for it or not, get ready for a history lesson on southern US culture. Primarily centered around Lynrd Skynrd too, because why not? Probably longer than it needed to be, but who am I to talk as someone who's lived in the northern US all of their life? The band's perspective on certain Alabamian figures and events was sort of interesting at least. More interesting than the album itself is probably the fact it was primarily crowd-funded prior to being distributed. Not really something that occurred too often in this business back then

I feel a little bad going with 2 stars here because it’s not really unpleasant and is trying to do some interesting things; I also don’t want to have a knee-jerk negative reaction to the southern US theme or style, which itself wasn’t awful. That said, paraphrasing another reviewer: if you’re going to have an album this long, there should be at least a few standout tracks, and I didn’t find that to be the case here. (Weirdly, the one I probably found most interesting wasn’t even really a song at all - the spoken word “Three Great Alabama Icons” at least caught my attention.)

Didn't love it.

Meh. Way too long. I remember these folks being around 20 or so years ago, and they seemed to be popular with some critics, but it didn’t catch on with me for whatever reason. Skynyrd-lite? Black Crowes sans hooks? A British person’s idea of what the American south is like?

Really not sure what they were going for here. Yes, the south has a complicated and unfortunate history, but like Skynyrd? I don’t know. DBT can play, I bet they sound great live, but I don’t think I need to hear anymore.

If you listed all 600 albums we had left and ask me to rank by my excitement to listen to them, this probably would’ve been in the bottom 50. Listening to all 90 minutes of this was a big ask. Usually these huge albums take me all morning to listen to, but an unrelated change in the household morning routine allowed me to get half of it listened to before I got to work. I am not sure what to make of some of the messages in this. Genuinely. Musically, it was pretty good overall. A 2 feels like a safe rating. I liked it, I thought it was really long. I don’t think shortening it would’ve given it a higher rating. Also, Lynyrd Skynrd might be one of my least favorite bands? And they didn’t change my mind.

#515. Viewed as satire, this comes off a bit amusing, but unfortunately I don't think that was the point. It'd just truly mediocre music coupled with middle school poetry competion quality lyrics and Lynyrd Skynyrd references. 2/5: bad

I had high hopes for this, but it turned out really dull. I didn't get it at all.

Definitely something. They went for it for sure. It exists.

not terrible, but guitar sounds is a little grating 2/5

Not for me

I really do not like this and find some of the southern lyrics to be crude and stupid. But I do find it interesting that this album was financed by fans using promissory notes.

It’s not horrible. But I’m exhausted two songs in. I get where this is going, but I don’t want to go any further.

5 tracks in, nothing has stuck, nothing was bad. 10 tracks in, nothing has stuck, nothing was bad. The stuff about George Wallace was interesting however. 15 tracks in, nothing has stuck, nothing was bad. 20 tracks in, nothing has stuck, nothing was bad.

I’m not listening to 94 mins of that

Too long. The instrumentation is fine; not great. I'm not a fan of the spoken word and the singer isn't very engaging in general.

bruh this is so long and boring

3/10 - Boring southern rock. He shouted out lynyrd skynyrd way too much

About an hour longer than it needed to be

Southern Rock Opera feels like a love letter to Southern rock culture, wrapped in heavy critique. It starts intriguingly, with thoughtful commentary on identity and racism, but quickly loses its spark. The concept is compelling, yet the 90-minute runtime turns into a test of patience as the songs blend together, leaving little that truly stands out. Musically, it’s polished but lacks grit. Tracks like The Southern Thing and Angels and Fuselage offer glimpses of brilliance, but much of it feels like a parody—campy vocals and overdone tropes that wear thin. A standout moment for me was when a female voice took over briefly, elevating the energy and coolness of the album, but it was fleeting. I wanted to connect with this, but it felt more like an academic project than a visceral experience. For all its ambition, it left me checked out, longing for something deeper and less self-aware. Highlights: Birmingham, Angels and Fuselage.

One and a half hour of just solid southern rock. Not a single remarkable track or piece except the bad vocals. Positive: it don´t sucks! But so dull that I don´t even want to rate it down just because of it´s lenght. 1,5

The title "Southern Rock Opera" is like nightmare fuel for me. Add in "Truckers" and "1.5hr runtime" and I've really formed some rock-bottom expectations. And those expectations... were met. The subject matter is respectable; the lyrics are engaging, but I just can't handle the presentation. They did a good job with the Lynyrd Skynyrding, but Lynyrd Skynyrding is like my anti-pizza (even when it's good, it's bad).

Eh.... I did kinda like a couple songs on here, but certainly not enough to justify the runtime on this album. Also, pretty sure if you made this into a drinking game where you took a shot every time Skynyrd was mentioned you'd be black out drunk by the end of "Let There Be Rock". I would be anyway. I haven't had any Skynyrd yet, and don't know anything beyond "Sweet Home Alabama" (off the top of my head), but I can't help but suspect the Drive-By Truckers didn't add anything new or interesting to the conversation that Skynyrd didn't already. Not fully sure why this album is on here over some others I can think of but maybe I'm missing something. Not a 1 star since I at least liked some of the songs/vibe, but definitely don't find it to be essential listening.

Njaa.. nothing special really

It's okay. Wouldn't seek it out to listen again. Not a fan of southern rock country

do i fucking look like i have time to listen to an hour and a half long album on christmas eve ;-;

2.5

I admire the scope of this record. Unfortunately I got overexcited accidentally listening to The Dirty South first which has Danko/Manuel on and is absolutely gorgeous. I first came across this band because of the really great album Decoration Day. Both of those LPs I really love. I couldn't muster the same feelings for this double LP. Like I said, great scope but rock and opera are two words that when placed together scare me

Decent is all I can say good artist average album

Yeeeeeeee hawt damn I didn't want to finish this

It could be good, but I was tired of the voice and the style on the second song and they gave me another hour of it.

Honestly, I didn't hate this and it had its moments. The second side of disc 1 is especially good. It's just too long... too fucking long.

Just don't like this kind of music. I grew up in Alabama so want to like this one but its a pretty good representation of the music I was surrounded in and do not like. If I did like this kind of thing, I think they would be one of my favorites. Cool cover art and deeper lyrics than their contemporaries at least. This just kinda makes me embarrassed to be from Alabama. A double album of bland southern dad rock. Good Old Boys remains my favorite Southern album by a pretty far margin Rating: 2.0

People are really hating it! well, its not good but it has its moments. as many albums on the list, it could benefit from being half an hour shorter but truth is, I didn't hate it

Meh. A couple good songs but not my thing.

Intolerably long and boring, featuring one guy that can't sing, and another that's even worse. Droning on about the South, Skynyrd, and George Wallace is not even remotely interesting to to anyone that doesn't make being Southern the cornerstone of their self identity and major personality trait. It's bland, it's derivative, and all things considered I'd much rather be listening to Skynyrd.

It's not objectively bad but it's a) way too long b) of no clear significance justifying its presence in this list. If you want to listen to this kind of southern rock, you're probably way better with good old stuff from the seventies.

This is quite the ambitious project and they nailed the sound they were going for. It just dragged on a little too long for me. I was pretty bored and over it by track 8 and admittedly just kind of skipped through the rest of the album so I could move on to some better music to get me through election day.

oh give me a break already

Look, I like southern rock as much as the next person, but NINETY-FOUR MINUTES?!?!?! Whyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy, and why would the creators of this list do this to us?

If lyrics are more important than music to your appreciation for recordings, you might love the Drive By Truckers. When I want to celebrate poetry, or essays, I read books. When I listen to recordings, I want to be moved by music. There are moments of interesting southern rock here; but next to these guys' idols it's always a little pale, a little quaint. And the vocals - like Neil Young who they seem to adore - are just painful. I've wanted to like them for decades. But I just don't.

Some interesting lyrics, but country rock.

OK, this is far too long, a pastiche of a terrible genre, simultaneously weird and boring and generally unlovable. And yet, I finished Three Great Men and immediately played it again, because the story telling (of a song that's basically spoken word) is absolutely extraordinary. They should just have released that and ditched all the other nonsense.

Trip and a half.

someone needs to sit Dimery down and explain that a double album isn't inherently essential.

There has to be a better way to tell a story than a Rock Opera. has some interesting sound here and there but the storytelling nature and 2 frickin discs makes for a sour experience. How do you make southern rock so boring?

Huh? Why in the hell is this album on here? It’s boring, poorly recorded and way way way too long. It IS a good example of a rock opera though. In that it does tell a story but none of the songs are good. But there sure are a lot of them!

Sometimes interesting

Sounds like Lynyrd Skynyrd, clearly designed to do so, with fake-out introductions to some of the songs. Extremely self-indulgent / uncompromising, at more than 90 minutes these guys clearly had something to say and didn't care much if anyone wanted to listen. Aside from the length, it was unobjectionable but there is no way I am listening to any of this ever again.

I don’t get Lynyrd Skynyrd. I don’t get this. There were glimmers of something occasionally but then it would descend back in to samey stuff. And so long. I don’t care about the story. I did go and read up about George Wallace though. What a piece of work he was

Did not finish.

Lucky for them, I've been on a bit of an alt-country bend recently, so this came at the right time. Unlucky for them, I've been on a bit of an alt-country bend recently, and heard much better. Listen to Sixteen Horsepower if you want that good shit.

I'm not familiar with Drive-By Truckers' music, and I don't think I've ever heard of this album. What really strikes me as odd is that I don't think I've ever heard any of my friends ever mention being fans of DBT. Living in Texas my whole life, and going to college in a small town in-state, I've known plenty of country music fans, but I really don't think I've ever heard anyone talk about these guys before. I'm really picky about my country music, and with a run-time of 90 minutes, I'm not so sure about this album, but I'm willing to give it a shot. Well, this album certainly wasn't to my liking, and the fact that it ate up an hour and a half of my day certainly didn't help. I guess I'll start with the things that I thought this album did well. I appreciate the vision behind this project, even though on paper, it's not really my kind of jam. It's a hell of an interesting concept, and it's even more interesting when you consider that this album was released in late September of 2001. I assume that current events may have played a part in this album's inability to find a wider audience. Still, even in the ten years leading up to 9/11, I can't think of any other country albums that were doing something similar to this. There are some pretty bold criticisms about the history and culture of the south on this album, and just as many questions about how to reconcile with something that's permeated your own personal past. The second half of the album is a lot more fun, especially musically, with some catchy songs like "Life In The Factory," "Shut Up And Get On The Plane," and "Greenville To Baton Rouge." Thematically, the second half of the album was much better than the first, as the band looks towards their present and future, and how their past plays a role. When it comes to the things that I didn't like about this album... well, there are many. Musically, it's pretty boring. I typically don't think of country music as being particularly great musically, but for something a little bit more country-rock, I'd expect something a little bit more unique. The guitar playing is competent, and even though there's plenty of it to go around, the riffs aren't memorable, and they're not doing anything new or profound. For an album that leans towards country music, I'd expect much better vocals than what was on this album. This album really lacks anything noteworthy when it comes to its sound, and that's a bummer, because the band clearly has some talent. The songwriting is fine, but first half of the album feels like someone took a Lynyrd Skynyrd biography, a term paper for AP American History, and a road trip memoir, and stapled some pages from each one together, in an attempt to create a single work. The multiple tones of each of those elements just didn't land with me. I think this album would have been much better if some of the fat could have been trimmed off, and if it wasn't trying to pull the listener in so many directions at once. I just couldn't get into this album, and it's definitely not something I'd return to.

Southern Rock by the B team

No idea what was going on here

Do you think they’re fans of Lynrd Skynrd? I actually really like the commentary on the culture of the south and heavy criticism on racism, definitely wasn’t expecting that. Not usually a fan of songs like it but Three Great Alabama Icons is a good example of that commentary Otherwise I feel a bit checked out and idk what’s happening in the story lol Interesting how the second a woman starts singing (Cassie’s Brother) the entire vibe becomes 10x cooler. Hmm🤔

I think the actual concept of the album is really good, I haven't seen anything like it before, with that being said however, if you take away the concept part, you're left with far too much plain blueish music. There's definitely some highlights, but not near enough to justify it's length.

2.4/5 listened 2x. long album and a few good tracks, but not interested to come back to it.

This was ok. I started playing bass guitar in bands when I was about 13 or 14 years old. Playing many shows in the south, I remember playing alongside bands that sounded like these guys. To me it's music without much complication or technicality. I've never played music after drinking alcohol because I was always too scared to make mistakes because of being buzzed. I felt like I always tried to challenge myself to make things interesting and just do the type of bass playing that could sit in the background. This music though sounds like it could be played after drinking moderate amounts of whiskey. Again, nothing too demanding. Southern rock is not really my thing, although I do have a lot of respect for the Allman Brothers, I can take the genre in small doses. This project is kind of highlighting to me certain types of music that don't really pull me in.

can only describe this as johnny depp music pluspunkt für antirassismus?

Headache-Stuff

Skynyrd meets Vutthole Surfers (with a little Black Crowes). I should like it, but I don't.

Listenable throughout with lots of fun references to Southern culture, but nothing stands out musically in 90+ minutes. Mediocre southern rock.

Got about halfway through. Couldn’t vibe

A bit of a slog to say the least, and really not even very operatic.

It sounds like it wants to be grungy southern rock, but it is too produced and musically and lyrically banal to be exceptional in either of those genres.

Canciones favoritas: -Guitar Man Upstairs -Birmingham -The Southern Thing -Moved (es distinta al resto, me gusta el efecto de la guitarra, tranqui) -Greenville to Baton Rouge -Angels And Fuselage (por fin una armónica aaaaaaaaa) La primera canción (Days of graduation) me dio meras vibras de Fire Coming out of the Monkeys Head. Siento que con la segunda canción ya escuché todo el álbum :/ (espero que no sea así) pura música de camionero gringo (LA ULTIMA CANCION SE LLAMA ANGELES Y FUSELAJE O SEA...) 🫠🤢. No creo que lo vaya a escuchar completo, (no soy xenofobica pero) aparte 4 de los 5 miembros son de alabama jajajsjsjjs, definitivamente no lo voy a escuchar completo xd y apaaarte está re largo wtf... A ver, voy en la mitad y ya estoy saltando las canciones porque todas suenan igual (papaparara papaparara me aburriiiii), la guitarra está bacanita. No pude escucharlo completo de verdad, no es para nada mi género. Chau

This was kinda cool actually lol. I liked the music and the sound of the production but the vocals were too much for me honestly. Obviously campy on purpose but sometimes it was a lil beyond the pale for me

Not for me

Reminds me of the time a skinhead walked into my shop - full gear, bovver boots and bomber jacket, and I thought uh-oh, then I saw a badge at his lapel saying, skinheads against racism. That made me relax, but imagine picking a look that needed a disclaimer. It's like a southern rock parody of System of a Down. Rock for a bit, then read out screeds of political history. The South will rise again! But, but, not in a racist way, you understand. Anyway, this next song is about a racist politician - which we're against, by the way, just to be clear. Yeehaw. In conclusion, Skynyrd, Alabama, and Skynyrd again. Thanks for coming to our TED talk y'all

bless their hearts

They made a long album and they can play, but I'm not at all feeling it.

Sloppy rock

First song has all the southern rock tropes, all of them. Second, same. Third, same. I'm not going to give this 90 minutes of my day. Gawd, takes me back to the days of my cover band in the 80s. We'd be playing Dire Straits or Doobie Brothers or something 70 ish and about the 3rd set some damn drunk in the back would start calling for Sweet Home Alabama. Yea, we could play it but it was kinda the Freebird for drunk men who liked to fight. Then there were the drunk women who would scream "WHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO" at the top of their lungs about the same time. And I could barely breathe for all the smoking. Memories I had forgotten. The band was so much fun. This stuff, not so much. Such boring stuff is made for endless cases of cheap beer. 2 stars.

Rock clássico que desenvolve bem até acabar o primeiro disco.

Kind of a budget rate Allman Brothers, Lynyrd Skynryd mash up. Definitely emulating the southern rock style, but trying to be more modern/contemporary. It was ok, not really my thing. I'd rather listen to actual Allman Brothers

Helppoa rockia. Levynä olisi merkittävästi parempi jos karsisi 50% biiseistä pois joutavana täytteenä. Nyt jäi kolmas tähti saamatta.

Never heard of the band before today. I miss yesterday

The title says it all. And it’s not a good thing. 2 stars

Never heard of this combo but as ever willing to give it a listen. Haven’t listened much to US southern rock and bits I have heard not really my scene. As always gave it a listen and in fairness the album started well and pricked my interest. However as I got deeper into the album it all became a bit the same with the music and vocals beginning to grind. Reminded me a lot of Neil Young and Tom Petty but not has talented. References to Lynard Skynyrd meant nothing to me. Nothing here to see. 2/5 30/4/24

The biggest sin this album commits it's overstating it's welcome. I really think that if they had trimmed at least 1/3 of it, it would be a much tighter and quality album. The songwriting is compelling for the most parts with some interesting ones such as the opening track, zip city and three Alabama icons among others. Unfortunately most of the album is just forgettable tho I will admit this is not rrally my thing, I can see how someone who appreciates southern rock, culture and this type of storytelling will definitely enjoy this more. Deserves to be in this list nonetheless.

Ziemlich langweilige Songs mit ziemlich abgedroschenen Soli. Nix besonderes.

Terrible voice. Idc about Alabama.

Idc

Jeez an hour and a half though?

Not for me. Too long with a couple OK songs mixed in.

There's some fun southern rock here but it wears out its welcome rather quickly - one disc would have been enough.

meh

We get it. You like Lynyrd Skynyrd and Alabama. Geaux Tigers.

Southern Rock Opera. Un poco rollo.

way too long. Had some alright songs but mostly same-y garbage. Favorite Track - Days of Graduation

Not very exciting

Women w/o whiskey is okay.

An ambitious project, having a rock opera all about living in the south, especially for an at the time very small band (they had to get fans and friends to help pay for its completion). There are some great songs here with great lyrics, Three Great Alabama Icons being a cool history lesson, but this album has a fatal flaw that completely ruins the entire thing for me. It. Is. Too. Fucking. Long. It's so long, that i tuned out a LOT of the songs because I felt it should have just ended at the end of disc 1. Sorry Drive-By Truckers, great effort, with some great songs, but the album is too fucking bloated and desperately needed some trimming, like 45 minutes of it

Gotta give em points for the attempt at a souther rock concept double album, but it comes up short. It's more like a long winded collection of bits that are Gaffa taped together to try and make cohesive whole, but for me there's not enough variation in sonic textures to keep me interested, got about 3/4 through it before I tapped out.

90s and early 2000s southern rock to the hilt. Birmingham was just “Last Dance with Mary Jane” by Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers without the charm. I respect the carrying on of the tradition. The lyricist is a southern rock historian. Ultimately, the sounds and the grooves all melt together for me. None of the songs hold any special place for me, but they do make me want to listen to Skynyrd and Tom Petty.

It's just some southern US and A mild rocking. I get that they sing about important stuff in a pretty intersting way, still not a big fan.

Fuck this shit entirely. Imagine the worst guys you know suddenly decide to act like storytellers like they’re Bob Dylan only they were football players and only drink light beer. Pass!

Only listened to disc 1

Fairly uneventful. Country music masquerading as rock.

of course everything is phony, but some things are too phony music: hated. (⌐■_■)

On the whole, I like this band. This one is just too narrow as a concept. Only so many times I need to hear a guy sing the words “Lynyrd Skynyrd” before I say “Ok, ok.”

Nothing special here.

Could not care less about the concept and story behind this record, but I am a fan of the southern rock riffs.

Ok but not for me

Meh. I couldn't pay attention.

Meh

I got pretty tired of this sound by the end. I feel like these guys were a little too inspired by Lynyrd Skynyrd

An album that is heavily inspired by Lynyrd Skynyrd, as they mention the band at least 50 times throughout the thing. Not bad, but I'd honestly just listen to Lynyrd Skynyrd at that point.

Truly awful, personalityless, garbage

interesting not my cuppa

Ganske kjipt

It's southern rock for 90 minutes. Nothing special in the music. Nothing special in the vocals. Sometimes lyrics that go beyond muh Alabama and skynyrd

Would've been a 3 if it wasn't a double album---was fun for a while but becomes tiresome and samey.

Nimensä mukainen. Vallan kiinnostavia tarinoita, tai no kertojan elämä nyt oli aika tavallista selkeesti. Ihan päteviä rock-kappaleita, sedille kivoja. Viihdyttää muttei juuri innosta. Miksi on ollut tarpeen antaa aivan näin paljon mittaa albumille?

eh, not my style

mehhh.....Uncle Tupelo is way better....

This was really bad but I definitely liked it less listening to it on an airplane. 3/10

Ganske kjipt

Not for me. Two stars only because of the song about perceptions about southerners being driven by George Wallace.

It's alright, not really my style

Didn't get it. Not Southern enough

01) Days of Graduation - 6,5 02) Ronnie and Neil - 6,5 03) 72 (This Highway's Mean) - 6,5 04) Dead, Drunk, and Naked - 6,0 05) Guitar Man Upstairs - 5,5 06) Birmingham - 6,0 07) The Southern Thing - 5,0 08) The Three Great Alabama Icons - 6,0 09) Wallace - 5,0 10) Zip City - 5,0 11) Moved - 4,5 12) Let There Be Rock - 4,5 13) Road Cases - 5,5 14) Women Without Whiskey - 4,5 15) Plastic Flowers on the Highway - 4,5 16) Cassie's Brother - 4,5 17) Life in the Factory - 4,5 18) Shut Up and Get on the Plane - 4,5 19) Greenville to Baton Rouge - 4,5 20) Angels and Fuselage - 5,0 TOTAL: 5,22 (52/100) Oh God! Another one I have to listen on You Tube :rolleyes When you think you're finally done, there's a second part, because why not. Well, at least I had enough time to learn something about George Wallace, Lynyrd Skynyrd and the city of Birmingham, Alabama... Wikipedia is my friend. I started to lose patience half way through the second part. God, this is sooo booooriiiiing!

Not sure how I really feel about this one, interesting history lesson in parts, some nice tunes but not sure it will stick with me long term….

1,5 h? Even as a curiosity, it's a waste of time to listen to this album.

This was a tough listen. Some melodies and jams but the writing lacks depth, so much so that it makes a lot of it boring and unlistenable.

Every song sounds the same and the album is so long that I just lost interest halfway through and skipped to the most popular songs to see if they stuck out. They didn't.

So this is definitely not my favorite thing, but it did grow on a me a little bit over the course of the album. I think the biggest issue here is that I'm clearly just not the target audience. The overarching theme is about growing up in the South and the experiences and misconceptions that come with that (fed though a Lynyrd Skynyrd lens). I found it at times to be an interesting perspective, but not one that I could relate with very well. I also just don't think I love the singer's voice (it's a bit raspy) and I found the non-lyric part of most of the songs to be a bit generic twangy rock. It's certainly ambitious though, and I appreciate the storytelling throughout. I found the back-to-back tracks "Three Great Alabama Icons" and "Wallace" pretty interesting. The former is barely a song, and more like a documentary overview of George Wallace, Bear Bryant, and Ronnie Van Zant and their impact on Alabama. Then it leads into the latter, which is about Wallace and how he's in hell (but a fairly nuanced perspective on him). Then the second half mirrors the plane crash that killed a lot of the Lynyrd Skynyrd band members. The closing song "Angels And Fuselage" is particularly striking and has a much more somber tone than what led up to it. There's definitely a lot going on here, it's ambitious. It's long (93 minutes), and long concept albums (which this definitely is) can be a bit hit or miss. This one isn't really for me, but I get why it makes the list and am glad I listened. Two interesting side notes about this album. First is that Jason Isbell was not involved in the production of this album, but he joined the band for the live touring and then was part of the band for their next few albums before launching his solo career. The other one is that this was set to be released on 9/11/01, but ended up getting pushed back a day after the attacks. Favorite song: Zip City Other: Dead Drunk And Naked, Wallace, Angels And Fuselage 11/14/23

1. Days of grad - 1 2. Ronnie and neil - 2 3. 72 - 2 4. Dead drunk and naked - 2 5. Guitar man upstairs- 2 6. Birmingham- 2 7. The southern thing- 3 8. Three great Alabama icons - 5 9. Wallace - 3 10. Zip city - 3 11. Moved - 1 12. Let there be rock - 3 13. Road cases - 3 14. Women without whiskey - 2 15. Plastic flowers - 3 16. Cassie bro - 2 17. Life in the factory - 2 18. Shut up and get on the plane - 2 19. Greenville to baton Rouge - 2 20. Angels and fuselage - 4 2.45

Happy when it was over

Don't like country

Robert a décidé de nous compliquer la vie avec cet interminable album de castor-rock uniquement disponible sur Youtube. Fais très attention Robert...

Decent Lynyrd Skynyrd knock-off but no way it needs to be almost two hours long.

Not really my thing and felt like way too long of an album. The spoken word stuff felt like it was trying too hard. Maybe two songs out of the whole album I would choose to listen to again.

This band reminds me of the southern rock version of Titus Andronicus. It’s just messy and an information over poetry approach to art…. And where is the piano…. It’s like a pretzel without salt. I love Skynyrd and while informative this feels overly played in its desire to convey southerness rather than letting it naturally flow out of the art they are making. I think you can be southern, artistic, critical and poetic… like Skynyrd…

Thought the music was interesting. Could definitely hear both rock and southern style tones throughout each song. Not my style though

Still haven't been able to listen fully after a 2 months....not a fan. All sounds samey with no riffs or lyrics that really draw me in

Of its place.

country, not in my wheel house

They best keep moving on.

Meandering, occasionally engaging but disjointed concert album.

Did not care for it. Did not listen. 5/10

hootin, tootin AND hollerin calm vibes and nice guitar, but maybe not the biggest fan? 2*

i didnt like this, too slow

Off key

The union won

This might be the most confusing album on this whole list. It's not terrible I guess but there is nothing good about it either. If your friend told you he made this album you'd be pretty impressed but it really is nothing special compared to actual musicians. There is no historical significance to this album that I can see either so what the fuck.

Ok

Too long

The guitar playing absolutely carries this band. Song structure sucks, vocalist(s?) suck. Most of the songs sound exactly the same. Didn’t finish it ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ 2/5

This album is what I imagine the people I went to middle school with listen to when they’re shotgunning beers on their daddy’s boats on the lake. The *idea* behind this album is interesting but good golly Miss Molly if you want me to listen to the lyrics you have to make it sound at least a little bit good.

I'll start by saying that this album, musically, is not very good, and at over an hour-and-a-half long, that is not a good thing. Sometimes you'll get a guitar lick or a hook that is pleasing to the ears, but otherwise you're either getting stereotypical country rock, or Lemmy doing stereotypical country rock. It gets old fast, and whenever the lyrics are just like "I got drunk to Lynyrd Skynyrd hyuck-hyuck" the worst of the album shows. I understand that it may be relatable to some guy in Alabama who grew up in the 70s and 80s, but for most of the world, it verges on parody. However, I must admit, despite not wanting to, that I don't hate this album. Especially not enough for a one star. There are lyrical nuisances here that show more deptch and humanizing of the American South than their "culture" has ever shown, and the looking inside the album tries to display at times is endearing at worst, but genuinely interesting at times. Not every song does this, mind you, but after years of Alabama being the butt of every joke you've ever heard, to see someone actually from the state talk about their thoughts and opinions on various topics can be genuinely thought provoking, and they can definitely tell jokes that are more clever than just "Alabama lol". Needing all twenty fingers and toes to "hold the closet door closed" is one that is especially clever as a comment of the stereotypes of the state. Most of this is not good, and I'd rather not hear this again, but I have to give credit somewhere. This is too long, though, were half of these songs necessary? Still, expected worse. Looking into this album a bit more, I'd say just listen to disc one, as disc two is the part of the storyline where the fictional band of the story "Let there be rock" and while most of the decent parts musically come from this section, nothing on this back half will stick with me.

Gäsp!!!

# 64 : Good musically and the concept behind the album was great but the singer wasn’t my favourite. I was bored while listening. if you're going to do 90 minutes, you at least have to have a few songs that GRAB you, which this doesn't have. It just goes on and on and on remaining passable but never great. Guitar Man Upstairs

I've heard of this band before, but had never listened. Not surprisingly, they sound exactly like a band called "Drive-By Truckers" should sound. Not a big fan, but also didn't hate it.

Too. Long. It's like they did a lot of cocaine one night and said what if we took the song length of Freebird and correlated it to an album? It didn't work for me.

First of all, I couldnt finish this. I was hopeful that something would click or it would get better but it just wasnt happening. It sounded like Kid Rock, The Presidents of the United States and Florida Man had a baby. And their baby was this album.

Sounds the same

Southern Rock Opera. Un poco rollo

Nou, je kan zeggen wat je wilt, maar ik ga flink mn muzikale comfortzone uit met deze albums zeg. Southern Rock opera, nou was de laatste Rock opera(Meat loafs Bat out of hell) fantastisch dus er zijn verwachtingen aanwezig! It's southern rock, thats it. Thats the review. Niet een heel opvallend album, vind er niet heel veel aan eerlijk gezegd. De andere reviews noemen Lynyrd Skynyrd veel, maar ik heb hun eigenlijk nooit echt geluisterd De tering wat is dit album laaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaang Laatste nummer: Angels and Fuselage vind ik misschien het prettigste. Wat meer country, bijna bluesy voel ik deze eigenlijk wel. Dit bewijst weer dat ik er geen verstand van heb omdat de meeste reviews de 2e helft zwaar afkraken. Favo: The Southern Thing, shut up and get on the plane, Angels and Fuselage

Jeetje houdt de Rock dan nooit op? Een heftig epos over het zuiden van Amerika. Ik denk dat mijn relatief beperkte aandacht en gebrek aan kennis over Alabama niet helpen. Verder is het wederom scheurende gitaren, fijn. Oh ja, en anderhalf uur vind ik toch wel pittig lang voor een album, al snap ik in dit geval waarom men het nodig vond Favorieten: Zip City, Cassie's Brother

Actually a few good songs but nothing that caught my attention. Was a really long album, could have done without the full 1hr 33min. Got bored towards the end and just became background music in the end.

Not really my type of music, this kind of country is a little boring for me

Beer boy bar band boogie. It's OK, but there is no nuance or melody

90 minutes?!?!? There is absolutely no justification for the length of this album and really needs to go with the less is more approach. Generic country rock in so many songs, drowning out the decent ones 3/10

This was a SLOG. Disc 2 seemed a little better at least, but man.

Ja wat moet je hier van denken. "Dead, drunk and naked" is een lekker nummer. De zanger klinkt als een redneck pannenkoek maar dat is denk ik een beetje de grap. Op sommige nummers wordt een lekker potje gitaar gespeeld. Anderhalf uur is wel echt te lang. Na een nummer of 5 a 6 had ik het eigenlijk al wel gezien en dan blijft het zich maar als een hagedis zonder achterpoten over de stoffige grond voortslepen. In het begin kijk je er gefascineerd naar, maar na een tijdje wordt het wat sneu.

Cool lecture. Tried reading the lyrics, but still found them hard to follow, because I can't English

This was an Interesting and ambitious concept overall for an album. I can’t say that it met it’s mark in the end. I was not a fan.

Buckle up: this is a long one... And I already saw this had universal approbation among the group, so I'm excited. Opens on a slog with Days Of Graduation -- ominous bass with a weirdly condensed spoken word deluge. Reminds me of something, but I can't place it. Honestly I'm into it so far. Complete change of pace following the opening into much more traditional southern rock sounds. 72 (This Highway's Mean) is a pretty solid jam. Not gonna lie, while this is fine, it really doesn't sound that far from something that you could find in just about any country dive bar on a weekend. Sure, the production is cleaner and there are some better than average guitar licks, but there isn't a ton so far to separate it. Three Great Alabama Icons brings back the spoken word thing... I don't know if it intends to be funny, but it is in the delivery. I do appreciate the history lesson on Alabama leadership and the race issue as perceived from someone who grew up there. Alright the whole second side did just about nothing for me. Fine enough in the background, but this album is way longer than it has any right to be. And the final song docks a full point from my score for being both terrible and way too fucking long. So with that, I don't think this is a complete steaming pile of dog-shit, but I still don't want it on my shoe. 2 / 5.

I did not care for this. Not a fan of Southern rock. I especially did not care for that one throaty guy's voice. The one song about George Wallace was interesting.

Nah, I just got bored.

I wish the album was more accurate to its title...I was expecting grandiose hillbilly theatrics

This album made me want to crack a cold one and mow my lawn or wrench on my truck. good ol souther rock. favorite song dead drunk and naked least fav song three great alabama icons

Awfully boring rock. I don't know, I just can't stand this album

I wasn't a big fan of this cowboy rock style in the first place, but by the time "Moved" came up, I really wanted to turn it off. And that was only halfway. None of it is objectively bad, but there's too much of it. Favorite song: dead drunk and naked

Way too long, couldn't get over the young vs vanzandt shit, mediocre songwriting. Terrible introduction to this band (and Jason Isbell) for the Salt Disciples.

Meh, rock? I guess some of them. To me this is country with a bit of pep and a few less dogs dying. Hard to concentrate on the entire thing.

No me disgusto, solo un poco difícil entender las letras en ese acento, y demasiado largo para mí gusto, pero para ser country no esta mal

Little to like

Countryrock, sydstatsting, for langt

Diggaan näist välitarinoista, mut ei tää nyt oikee potki. Jos tää olis stoner -bändi joka tän tekis niin tää varmaan olis erimainio 2/5

Vähän turhan pitkä ja muutenkin vähän ihmeellinen Lynyrd Skynyrd-tribuutti. Jotkin biisit sai suupieleen puolihymyn mut taitaapi kakkoseen jäädä.

Maybe if they mentioned Skynyrd another couple hundred more times. Sounded like a crap country band that tried a rock album and failed miserably. Plus 90 minutes of this? No thank you

This band is regarded quite highly among alt-country circles, which this being the first of their golden era. However, there's not much country going on in this record, focusing on a greater southern rock sound trying hard to sound like Lynard Skynard and Tom Petty (and they don't try to hide this). It's decent, but pretty forgettable and inconsistent with the rotating songwriters and vocalists, with almost none of the tracks standing out. Favorites: Dead Drunk & Naked, The Southern Thing, Zip City

3.1 - I appreciate the honest ambition to give voice to a Southern POV that’s too often/readily dismissed because of a segregationist past. But the songcraft is mostly uninteresting besides a few tracks in the middle: “Three Icons…”, “Wallace”, “Zip City.” Also, at 75 minutes it’s just too damn long.

Spooky music

This style has been done before in better ways, which leaves little reason to listen to this one. And then its also waaaaaayyyyy to long. I feel like theres still something here, and who knows, maybe I decide to return to it someday and will love it, but for now, I really dont care about this one.