Besides the fact that Wilson has once again turned out a country pride anthem in the vein of “Redneck Woman”, she name drops several legends of Southern Rock while appropriating their style for her own.
Gretchen, I’ll give you a pass on Hank Jr. and Charlie Daniels, even though you sang about both of them on your first hit. But come on, the Allman Brothers Band? ZZ Top? Are you kidding?
I’d say it’s like she’s not even trying anymore, but she probably is. It just turns out that she’s a one-dimensional character, and that character hasn’t been fresh or interesting since 2004.
I was listening to The Band’s album Music From Big Pink earlier this week, and something struck me about the song “The Weight.” Trust me, you know the song. It goes a little like this: “I pulled into Nazareth / Was feelin’ about half past dead / I just need some place / where I can lay my head.” Ring a bell yet? No? Try this:
In the song, The Band, originally consisting of Robbie Robertson, Richard Manuel, Garth Hudson, Rick Danko and Levon Helm, draws from a familiar cast of characters and American mythology to tell a universal story set in the town of Nazareth, PA. First released in 1968, “The Weight” only reached #63 on the U.S. charts, but has since achieved iconic status. It has become an American standard in a way few songs have accomplished. Indeed, Rolling Stone lists it as the 41st greatest song of all time.
Further cementing its iconic status, check out a very small sample of the artists – across genres, of all ages – who have covered the song:
Van Morrison
Bob Dylan
The Black Crowes
Little Feat
Grateful Dead
Travis
Old Crow Medicine Show
Gillian Welch
The Staple Singers
Joan Osborne
John Denver
Deana Carter
Weezer
Lee Ann Womack
Cross Canadian Ragweed
Diana Ross, the Temptations and the Supremes
The Allman Brothers Band
The Marshall Tucker Band
Panic at the Disco
Aaron Pritchett
Songs with enduring power like “The Weight” are few and far between, and seem to be even more so nowadays. So tonight’s discussion asks:
What songs of the past decade have enduring power? What songs will we be listening to and hear covers of in the next 50 years?
Where, exactly?
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