Merlefest

A big part of the South is it's music. It is very distinct and is full of emotion. We see in Bastard Out of Carolina that it also arouses our emotions. I love music and more specifically Southern music. 95% of my iTunes library is Southern music. So one type of Southern event that I love is the music festivals and jams. It just so happens that I will be going to one of the biggest Southern music festivals, Merlefest. For those who don't, Merlefest was started by Doc Watson (an amazing guitarist) in memory of his sone Merle Watson who died in a farming accident. It is held in Wilkesboro, NC and raises funds for the local college. There are going to be quite a few big name musicians there including Zac Brown Band, Dierks Bentley, The Avett Brothers, and Steve Martin.

Many times at music festivals there is great Southern food and at Southern cookouts usually there are a couple of people jamming. This is because the two things that Southerners in general enjoy the most are their food and their music. There are so many small bluegrass jams and cookouts in the Southern country with amazing music. I have included a clip of a great band, Trent Wagler & the Steel Wheels, at the Oak Grove Folk Music Festival in Virginia.

Georgia on my mind

When I think about the song of the South, I can only think about 'Georgia on my mind' by Ray Charles. I was in choir when I was in high school and we sang this song. I really loved the rhythm and the lyrics. Who would have known that I would come to Georgia, the place where it seems like peaceful yet graceful, according to the lyrics.

The lyrics represent the South through depicting Georgia's beauty. First of all, the song contains one of the southern states, Georgia. Georgia is a state that has a important history and was really involved in the Civil War. The song's lyrics mentions the finding of no peace, because Georgia has gone through so many wars that keeps Georgia on Ray's mind. The lyrics also mentions the love for Georgia, "Other arms reach out to me Other eyes smile tenderly."

Moreover, Ray Charles is a blind African-American man. Although he may be blind, he still views the south in the same perspective as other people. The song was recorded around the Civil Rights Movement, but the fact that it gained so much recognition in Georgia state illustrates that the song was important and somehow relevant to the state of Georgia. Furthermore, Charles essentially brought another genre of music: soul music, into the R&B world of the South.

-Hye Jin Ahn-

"Chicken Fried"

Since my project group focuses on the topic of Southern music, I have already talked to you about this song, "Chicken Fried", and how it identifies the South. This song, by the Zac Brown Band, has a very interesting background. Before writing the lyrics to this song, Zac Brown wanted to make a music video that shows that the Southern lifestyle can be celebrated. In order to do that, he wanted to make an image of the South that would help the viewers of the video be able to visualize what the South truly is. Brown made this image by making a list of things that are southern or characterize the South, mostly consisting of the basic stereotypes that most of the world looks at the South as.

In the music video, there are many stereotypical details of the South that are related to the Old South, such as the food, music, and clothing themes. However, there is one interesting theme that you wouldn't expect to be a characteristic of the South. Zac Brown included many patriotic images and lyrics to show that the South was patriotic and not the Confederacy supporter that one would stereotype. Basically, a couple months after Brown began writing the song, the 9/11 attacks occurred. In order to show that the South in fact supported America, Brown added an entire third verse dedicated to those who died for our country.

When you watch the video, be sure to notice the details in the music, the images, and the lyrics that provide a mostly stereotypical identity of the South.

Chicken Fried @ Yahoo! Video

Southern Music

Music is not only a source of entertainment that people have enjoyed for thousands of years, but it is also a way to show our identity and part of culture. Southern culture is rich with many different types of music: blues, bluegrass, country, rap, and more. The topic for this week is to pick either a genre of music or a specific song and talk about it and how it is part of Southern culture or depicts Southern identity.

I will talk about shape note singing (also known as sacred harp singing because the book they sing from is titled The Sacred Harp). It is called shape note singing because the music is written using 4 different shapes to depict different notes making it easier to read. Everyone sits in a square facing inward to the singing leader. People keep time with their arm as can be seen in the videos. Shape note singing was sung both in the northeast and the South in the first half of the 19th century but it fizzled out in the north and flourished in the South. It was sung in many churches, and with how religious the South is, it makes sense it became more popular in the South. Shape note singing is not a refined music, the singing is rough and unique. In recent years shape note singing has gained popularity and there are singings that occur quite often. The singings nowadays are not a church service but the lyrics of the songs they sing are religious. The singings have a very hospitable and homely feel to them. Everyone is welcome to join in the singing and get up and lead a song (the singing leader changes with every song). The singings usually are an all day event where they sing for several hours and then break for food and then sing some more. There is a singing at St. Paul's Presbyterian Church that meets on the 1st, 3rd, and 5th Wed. of every month. It is marked on the Y'all Come Back Now map. The first video is a trailer for a movie about shape note singing and it talks a little bit about the music and history and the second video is from the movie Cold Mountain in which shape note singing appears and is heard a couple of times.