The Night they Drove Ol Dixie Down


Posted On: Saturday - August 19th 2017 10:02PM MST
In Topics: 
  Music  History

The Band was the name of this band, simple enough, I guess, and this should be an addition to the genre of history-music, attributed by Peak Stupidity to pretty much just Al Stewart until now - see "Roads to Moscow", "Nostradamus", and "On the Border" (Not The Eagle's "On the Border", a thoroughly rockin' song from the album of that name.)

As posted just previously, it wasn't that long ago that the War of Northern Aggression, though causes and blame could be argued, was a major part of the heritage of America for everyone. Going back to "The Night they Drove Old Dixie Down" here brings back a time when singing about the tragedy would not get your IP number blocked, your website DOS-attacked, your Paypal account removed, and your OKCupid love-links returned as "null-pross"*.



Live, with the drummer as vocalist! (Like Don Henley and Phil Collins - how in hell do you do that!?)

Now, a left-wing crazy named Joan Baez sung a cover of this song back then too. Well, in the present era she'd pass as a right-wing crazy, come to think of it. She had a smoother voice, but the lyrics sounded kinda weird a with woman singing. The main thing is that nobody had any problem with her song, and she wasn't booted out of the coterie of crazy lefties of the 1960's.

"Virgil Caine is the name
And I served on the Danville train
'Till Stoneman's cavalry came
And tore up the tracks again

In the winter of '65
We were hungry, just barely alive
By May the 10th, Richmond had fell
It's a time I remember, oh so well

The night they drove old Dixie down
And the bells were ringing
The night they drove old Dixie down
And the people were singing
They went, "Na, na, la, na, na, na"

Back with my wife in Tennessee
When one day she called to me
Said "Virgil, quick, come see,
There goes the Robert E. Lee!"

Now, I don't mind chopping wood
And I don't care if the money's no good
You take what you need
And you leave the rest
But they should never
Have taken the very best

The night they drove old Dixie down
And the bells were ringing
The night they drove old Dixie down
And all the people were singing
They went, "Na, na, la, na, na, na"

Like my father before me
I will work the land
And like my brother above me
Who took a rebel stand

He was just 18, proud and brave
But a Yankee laid him in his grave
I swear by the blood below my feet
You can't raise a Caine back up
When he's in defeat

The night they drove old Dixie down
And the bells were ringing
The night they drove old Dixie down
And all the people were singing
They went, "Na, na, la, na, na, na"

The night they drove old Dixie down
And all the bells were ringing
The night they drove old Dixie down,
and the people were singing,
they went, "Na, na, la, na, na, na."



**********************************************
*Per tweet by some asshole "We were alerted that white supremacist Chris Cantwell was on OkCupid. Within 10 minutes we banned him for life.", Peak Stupidity replies, via open letter here (yeah, that'll do it!):

OK, that’s it! I’m figuratively burning my electronic membership card!

I never really wanted to get hooked up with an ole Okie gal anyway. That white lightning they drink is too weak for me, apparently they still respect the college deans (WTF!!?) and I am sick to death of pitchin’ woo. All my Cupid ex-es live in Texas, and that’s why I hang my virtual hat in Tennessee.

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