DavidEye said:

Not just on the show - I've heard him perform it elsewhere.

I think he is from Alabama,but someone needs to sit him down and explain to him exactly what the lyrics are about

I'm not remotely a Skynyrd fan, but I do think that some of y'all are miscontruing the lyrics. The "does your conscience bother you" line was, if I'm not mistaken, directed at Neil Young for pigeon-holing all southerners as being like the govenor. They were outspoken critics of him at the time. Just like me, being a Texan, will point out that I don't want to be associated with that dill-hole in the White House just because he's from the same state.

JediMaster said:

That's how I read it too, wish JediMaster.

Um, I'm not a skyner fanand I agree this song is way overplayed, but calling it racist is a WAY erroneous misinterpretation of its point. Neil Young wrote rockin the free world as an indictment of southern racism. Skynyrd were actually fans of neil young but were offended by this song and wrote it as an affirmation of southern pride. Their reference to george wallace is not a condoning of his policies, see the line "we all did what we could do" as in we all did what we could do to stop segregation but then look at all the corruption going on in the supposedly morally superior northeast of america e.g. watergate and then "does your conscience bother you" for perpetuating your own negative stereotypes. Btw, Muscle Shoals' Famewas a Soul Label/Studio that had an all-white studio band, but most (if not all) of its artists were black, which is mentioned to point out that there are plenty of people in the south who loved and promoted african-american music and culture. In fact Fame was where Aretha Franklin got her start if I'm not mistaken.

jacktheimprovident said:

I agree with everything you said, except it was "Southern Man" that they were replying to, not "Rocking In The Free World" (which didn't come out until the 90s, and was an indictment of the first President Bush and his policies).

RipHer2Shreds said:

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It is bigoted rhetoric. It is a response to Neil Young's "Southern Man."

PAPAROBBIE said:

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Co-Sign

like all things popular people take it and put their own spin on it.and if you ever hear the live version of "sweet home alabama", on "one more from the road" there's a part where ronnie van zant says "there's good people in alabama"...

laurarichardson said:

It IS a response to that song, but not one of bigotry. Its the band saying that "Southern Man" doesn't represent all southerners, because not all are racist assholes.

All this debate over a cheesy, annoying fucking song.

Personally I like the song. It's not even remotely racist. If people look close enough into everything one could find an excuse to claim racism when it simply doesn't exist. GET OVER IT!

DarlinLaurie said:

Spoken just like many cluless rednecks in the south....That "Get Over It" phrase says a whole lot...Maybe if your uncle was lynched (like mine) you'd have a difficult time "getting over it"...FUCK the song, the band, the confederate flag and that fucked up "get over it" attitude.

PAPAROBBIE said:

That's too bad about your uncle, but what are you going to do keep hating everyone and everything. Your hate keeps you down and unhappy. The only way to change things is to get over it, get over the hate and anger. Make things better for yourself. And I'm not from the south, not a redneck and certainly not clueless. It seems the only clueless individual is yourself!

PAPAROBBIE said:

Jesus dude, lighten up. For the last time, the song is NOT a racist song. Are you saying that southern people don't have a ride to be proud and have anthems? That they should all be ashamed of themselves because some of them happen to be racist? Plenty of northerners are racist too, you realize. You think for a minute that "the man" is a southerner? Hell no, he's a northeast plutocrat fat cat, washington insider asshole. Did all the muscle shoals stuff completely go in one ear and out the other? Why would a racist song sing about how much he loves the record label that launched Percy Sledge and Aretha Franklin? Why is the very mentioning of George Wallace automatically a promotion of what he did? Not all of us from the south and/or the west are rednecks you know

PAPAROBBIE said:

Why doesn't everyone just get over OJ, Jon Benet Ramsey, September 11, Michael Jackson, Louis Farrakhan, etc.?

Lynrd Skynrd could be racists, but the lyrics don't confirm that to me. The part about the governor is vague. But it is obviously a response to Neil Young's lumping of all "southern men" into one category.

I know too many people who are prejudiced against the south because of perceived prejudice. It's the last prejudice that's allowed in this society--"southerners are inbreds...southerners are racists...southerners are rednecks...southerners are stupid" so many of my so-called liberal friends allow this type of bigoted talk to come from their mouths.

Alabama needs to get rid of that flag, though.
[Edited 2/15/05 11:02am]

PAPAROBBIE said:

I got jumped by 4 African Americans when I was in high school so should I be hatin' all African Americans now? No. I got over it. There are bad people of all colors and you do need to 'GET OVER IT'.

And I know DarlinLaurie personally and she is far from a 'clueless redneck from the south'. That phrase of yours says alot. 'Check yourself before you wreck yourself'.

andyman91 said:

You're obviously not Muslim, female, gay, a woman, Black, or poor then.

way2funky said:

Please, please, please! This goes out to all my white-skinned brothers and sisters: You cannot compare infractions committed against your precious self by isolated people of color to the insidious evils of institutional racism. Stop it! You getting your ass kicked one time has nothing to do with living every minute, every day in a system that constantly tells you that you are worth less than others in countless ways.

Get over it, indeed. Get over to a library or something before you display your ignorance so flamboyantly.

Adisa said:

Thank you. Or fat, or Asian, or....

way2funky said:

Listen numbnuts....I didn't call her a clueless redneck from the south, I said the words were spoken LIKE one...Maybe those brothas should have kicked the Das EFX outta your corny ass.

This thread was respectful...for a while

PAPAROBBIE said:

I didn't like what way2funky said either (see my post above) but flaming like that is a sure way to get the thread locked.

Everybody CALLLLLMMM DOOOOOWN

First, Sweet Home Alabama is not a racist song

Second, not all southerners are racist rednecks

Third, Black people are not the only people who are victims of prejudice

Fourth, Muscle Shoals gave us some of the best soul music of all time

Fifth, Why can't we ALL JUST GET ALONG

FunkMistress said:

What was wrong with what I said? PAPAROBBIE mentioned he had trouble getting over it cause his uncle was lynched but all of a sudden I can't state something that happened to me? You are a couple of fucking hypocrites if you ask me.

way2funky said:

Read what I wrote. If you can explain what I said that's hypocritical, I might be interested.

jacktheimprovident said:

There someone goes with the universal statements...I never said ALL white southerners were racist...I was talking about the damn hicks known as Lynard Skynard & that damned song "Sweet Home Alabama"...That was the topic...People love to make excuses for crap like that...People romanticize a lot of shit because they're in some serious denial...

way2funky said:

BTW, nobody ickity-ickity asked you.

aight folks..this discussion has gone as far as it needs to...