List of Holy Sites for a Trucker fan

[LagoonField]

I spoke with BeaverDam and mentioned while he was in Birmingham he should visit The Nick. So it made us think of what other sites would be the list of DBT Holy Sites. So here goes a few off the top of my head, (in no order) so please feel free to add (or direct us to a previous thread on the same topic....):

The 40 Watt Club
Lookout Mountain
The Nick
Muscle Shoals recording studio
The Salem Church of Christ
Wilson Dam
Church in Birmingham
Pulaski Tennessee
The Fillmore West
The Star Bar
Huntsville
The Grand Canyon

Note: some these may not still exist or only existed in the imaginations of Mike&Patterson (or Jason)

[bovine knievel]

Zip City
Monument Valley
Colbert Heights
Buttholeville (I think I've heard PHood declare an actual city)

[Bill in CT]

Ferguson's Cafe (now defunct)

[Rocky]

The Star Bar

http://www.pastemagazine.com/articles/2 ... bubba.html

[Iowan]

McGee Town Hill

[Smitty]

swamps outside of Mccomb, Mississippi.
Oak Level Methodist in Fruithurst, AL & White Plains First Baptist in White Plains, Al.

[Beaverdam]

I'm hoping to see The Nick in a few weeks; it sounded familiar and Lagoonfield reminded me The Nick is discussed in the "Secret" documentary. I've been to the North Alabama area several times. In order to break up the drive from VA to the Memphis area at Christmas my wife would usually let me deviate from the monotonous drive of I 40. It really wasn't too far off the most direct route, but we'd spend a night in Chatanooga (take the kids to the phenomenial aquarium there), then I'd drive Highway 72 for as long as I could. I've stopped at Fame (got to meet Jimmy Johnson) and been to the old studio as well. I've been to Zip City, but there ain't much there. My 3dd pic is one of my son by the Zip City Fire Department sign...and I'm playing air guitar. What a dork!!!!

[jr29]

It's not a "site" necessarily but I do believe one could literally race a train from Second Street to Avalon in Tuscumbia. You'd hit Avalon right down the street from Fame too.
If you go a little over an hour northwest of Tuscumbia the Buford Pusser home and Museum is in my hometown of Adamsville, Tennessee. The Pusser ambush site is in southern McNairy county near Michie, Tennessee.

[Rocky]

swamps outside of Mccomb, Mississippi.
Oak Level Methodist in Fruithurst, AL & White Plains First Baptist in White Plains, Al.

Hey Smitty. I get the first reference but what is the significance of the two churches?

[bovine knievel]

Goode's Field Road
Basement of Harold's Pawn Shop

[Smitty]

swamps outside of Mccomb, Mississippi.
Oak Level Methodist in Fruithurst, AL & White Plains First Baptist in White Plains, Al.

Hey Smitty. I get the first reference but what is the significance of the two churches?

They're the inspiration behind "Late for Church".

[dogstar]

Weston-under-lizard

[whatwouldcooleydo?]

at the risk of being "that guy": the Fillmore West has no DBT connection. It has been defunct July 4, 1971. The site is now (and has been for a good while) a Honda dealership at the corner of Market & Van Ness.

The venue where the band has delivered such righteous fury is called The Fillmore. It was originally the Fillmore Auditorium back in the 60s but it was eventually too small, resulting in Bill Graham moving shop to Market & Van Ness. The venue as we know and love it reopened in 1994. It had been used in late 80s but was damaged in the 1989 earthquake and sat inactive until 94

In the late 90s we were visiting SF for a show at the Fillmore (can't recall who it was). I had a Honda Accord, and driving down in the midst of a heinous winter rainstorm my wipers went out. Let me tell you, crossing the Richmond/San Rafael bridge in a torrential downpour with no wipers was the closest I have ever come to having a heart attack. Anyway, I have to go to the Honda dealership to see if they can replace the wiper motor (or whatever it was). Saw a bunch of vintage posters and was telling my wife about them when the manager asked if I knew a lot about the 60s SF music scene. When I said yes he said, "follow me." Long story short, he took us to a massive empty part of the building, up some steps, and into the Fillmore West! There it sits, completely empty and dusty and more than a little bit creepy. I was blown away to be inside there, to say the least. The coolest part was the stairwell where people waited in line to be let in. There was thousands of carvings in the wood and written graffiti. Two I will always remember: one was where Janis Joplin had signed the wall and the other was where someone had carved "the only dope you should shoot is Nixon!"

Seems a crime that the place hasn't been restored as a historic site. Even worse, there has been talk of the site being sold and someone will build some sort of highrise.

Fillmore West



Honda dealership

[dime in the gutter]

The venue as we know and love it reopened in 1994.

caught son volt and varnaline there in 96ish.

[whatwouldcooleydo?]

The venue as we know and love it reopened in 1994.

caught son volt and varnaline there in 96ish.

I saw that show as well July 25 & 26, 1997 (I only know the date because the poster is on our wall!)

[Clams]

The venue as we know and love it reopened in 1994.

caught son volt and varnaline there in 96ish.

I saw that show as well July 25 & 26, 1997 (I only know the date because the poster is on our wall!)

Never try to slip one past WWCD

[whatwouldcooleydo?]

Never try to slip one past WWCD

as the late, great Rufus R. "Freighttrain" Jones once said: "I came to stay, baby, I did not come to play"

[Rocky]

WWCD thanks for clearing things up about The Fillmore. It's more than a little confusing.

I can not believe that it is still there, untouched and dusty, from back in the day. Mind blown.

[Tequila Cowboy]

In the late 90s we were visiting SF for a show at the Fillmore (can't recall who it was). I had a Honda Accord, and driving down in the midst of a heinous winter rainstorm my wipers went out. Let me tell you, crossing the Richmond/San Rafael bridge in a torrential downpour with no wipers was the closest I have ever come to having a heart attack. Anyway, I have to go to the Honda dealership to see if they can replace the wiper motor (or whatever it was). Saw a bunch of vintage posters and was telling my wife about them when the manager asked if I knew a lot about the 60s SF music scene. When I said yes he said, "follow me." Long story short, he took us to a massive empty part of the building, up some steps, and into the Fillmore West! There it sits, completely empty and dusty and more than a little bit creepy. I was blown away to be inside there, to say the least. The coolest part was the stairwell where people waited in line to be let in. There was thousands of carvings in the wood and written graffiti. Two I will always remember: one was where Janis Joplin had signed the wall and the other was where someone had carved "the only dope you should shoot is Nixon!"

Seems a crime that the place hasn't been restored as a historic site. Even worse, there has been talk of the site being sold and someone will build some sort of highrise.

Fillmore West



Honda dealership

That's an awesome story WWCD. It would be cool if some intrepid photographer convinced the Honda folks to let them go in an take some pictures. I'd love to see them.

[whatwouldcooleydo?]

In the late 90s we were visiting SF for a show at the Fillmore (can't recall who it was). I had a Honda Accord, and driving down in the midst of a heinous winter rainstorm my wipers went out. Let me tell you, crossing the Richmond/San Rafael bridge in a torrential downpour with no wipers was the closest I have ever come to having a heart attack. Anyway, I have to go to the Honda dealership to see if they can replace the wiper motor (or whatever it was). Saw a bunch of vintage posters and was telling my wife about them when the manager asked if I knew a lot about the 60s SF music scene. When I said yes he said, "follow me." Long story short, he took us to a massive empty part of the building, up some steps, and into the Fillmore West! There it sits, completely empty and dusty and more than a little bit creepy. I was blown away to be inside there, to say the least. The coolest part was the stairwell where people waited in line to be let in. There was thousands of carvings in the wood and written graffiti. Two I will always remember: one was where Janis Joplin had signed the wall and the other was where someone had carved "the only dope you should shoot is Nixon!"

Seems a crime that the place hasn't been restored as a historic site. Even worse, there has been talk of the site being sold and someone will build some sort of highrise.

Fillmore West



Honda dealership

That's an awesome story WWCD. It would be cool if some intrepid photographer convinced the Honda folks to let them go in an take some pictures. I'd love to see them.

Indeed, I can't recall if I didn't have a phone with a camera or didn't even have a phone at the time, otherwise I would have snapped hundreds of shots. Keep in mind that it was the late 90s when I was there. For all I know the Honda people could be using the space now. But I would rather think of the place the way I saw it over it being used for storage or repairs or whatever a Honda dealership might do

[LagoonField]

I will be looking forward to pictures of Beaver Dam checking out The Nick. Here is the website with directions and what shows are playing:

http://www.thenickrocks.com/

Hope everyone has a great time for the 3 night run.....

[zoid]

Goode's Field Road
Basement of Harold's Pawn Shop

Here's Goode('s Field) Road. The field to the south of this was know as Goode's field. It's where we had keg parties in High School.

https://www.google.com/maps/@34.8733732 ... 284,17.42z

[Smitty]

Goode's Field Road
Basement of Harold's Pawn Shop

Here's Goode('s Field) Road. The field to the south of this was know as Goode's field. It's where we had keg parties in High School.

https://www.google.com/maps/@34.8733732 ... 284,17.42z

Thanks, zoid! I've always wanted to know that.

[bovine knievel]

^^^^
Hell ya! Thanks, zoid. Being a map geek, you're speaking my language.

[Kudzu Guillotine]

I miss parties held out in the middle of corn fields, tobacco fields, etc. so I enjoy knowing that bit of history about Goode's field.

It looks like venues are considered among the holy sites so I'd like to add:

Humble Pie (Raleigh)
Lakeside Lounge [now Slim's] (Raleigh)
The Brewery (Raleigh)
Sadlack's Heroes (Raleigh)
Boo's Hideaway (Raleigh)
The Lincoln Theatre (Raleigh)
The Cave (Chapel Hill)
Local 506 (Chapel Hill)
Cat's Cradle (Carrboro)
Pine Hill Farm (Durham)
Firebelly Lounge [formerly Cowboy's] (Wilmington, NC)

Several of these places (like the Brewery and Sadlack's Heroes) no longer exist but they're among the first places the Truckers performed in the Triangle region of North Carolina. Patty Hurst Shifter formed just so they could bring the Truckers up here as an opening act when Chris Smith worked at Humble Pie (read more on this here). A friend of mine that knows his Truckers history well says that "The Avon Lady" was performed for the first time at Humble Pie in Raleigh. In fact, to hear him tell it, Patterson made it up on the spot which isn't at all a stretch as it's certainly an improv piece. Pine Hill Farm was the site of two acoustic shows in 2001 and 2002, respectively, that later served as the inspiration for The Dirt Underneath tours. The back cover of the original version of Alabama Ass Whuppin' was photographed at the Carolina Brewery adjacent to the Local 506 in Chapel Hill during an annual alt.country fest called Honkytonkarama that also included Drunk Stuntmen, Truckedelic, the Backsliders and many others.
Circa Decoration Day when the Truckers graduated to larger venues, places like Cat's Cradle and the Lincoln Theatre were the first places of that size they played in this area. My first Truckers shows were at some of the smaller venues like the 506, Firebelly Lounge and Pine Hill Farm (which was someone's home) in the early 00's but those were few and far between. As Southern Rock Opera soared in popularity (especially after the re-release on New West) they outgrew those places. My first time seeing them in a large venue was Cat's Cradle during the tour for Decoration Day. The cover of this issue of No Depression was shot there as well as most of the photos in the article itself.

Thanks for the trip back down memory lane. It's hard to believe that 16 years have passed since my first DBT's show.

[LagoonField]

I'm glad that I started this little thread to take some folks down memory lane. I saw my first show in 2006 and only get to on average two or three shows per year, so folks on this board know a whole lot more about the Truckers than I do. But, each time I get a "dose" (my most recent for two nights at the Cat's Cradle), I feel more energized and can't wait for the next dose (maybe at the expense of my long term health).

But, from reading this thread I thought what a cool book this would make (would of course be tied to "The Secret to a Happy Ending" in some way and extend the history to present day....).

Maybe divided into early Truckers (pre-history), mid-Truckers (Isbell, Neff, Shonna years....), chapter on Craig and The 40 Watt, present Truckers (Fillmore shows, political statements.. Patterson's essay in the New York Times.......).

Chapter on classic venues (listed above), visits to "historic" sights, some first hand stories from the hard core fan base reporting from the rail.

Illustrated by Wes Freed of course, crowd source pictures from the archives of the people on 3DD, archives of set list of past shows for hard core fans like us.

Introduction by some great rock icon.... oral history from Patterson, Mike, EZ B, Jason.......

Oversized coffee book style that would be in the Rock History section of Powell's Books in Portland.

I think the story of the Truckers (tied to the history of the South and the Faulknerian aspect of it all, mentioned in ...The Secret to a Happy Ending), our present struggles with race relations in this country, the intriguing visuals of Wes Freed's work, and the characters which have drifted in and out of this story would be intriguing to alot of people (not just the hard core fans on this board).....

As has been said so well.... "Good ideas Always Start with a Full Glass..." Tim

[LagoonField]

A similar idea for a book with Wes Freed's posters has been floating around on the Trucker facebook group.....

And to put the Cart Way in Front of This Little Pony....I envision the book tour of some the great old independent book stores around the country in support of the publication of this history......maybe starting with Powell's in Portland, The Strand in NYC, City Lights in San Fran.....featuring an in-store acoustic performance by Patterson and/or Mike and/or full band.

That would be a kick....great old book stores and the Truckers live. Two of my favorite things.

[Kudzu Guillotine]

I think we'd all love to see some sort of book on DBT's but what a massive undertaking it would be (same for Wes' poster art). If memory serves, Smitty and Jimmy Jack were going to do a book on the songs of the Truckers but I'm not sure what became of that or if it's a work in progress. Wonderful ideas all around.

[Smitty]

I think we'd all love to see some sort of book on DBT's but what a massive undertaking it would be (same for Wes' poster art). If memory serves, Smitty and Jimmy Jack were going to do a book on the songs of the Truckers but I'm not sure what became of that or if it's a work in progress. Wonderful ideas all around.

I can't speak for jimmyjack, but in my case it was put on the back burner indefinitely; between kids & work (and unanticipated politics that come along with such an endeavor), I really underestimated the time that was needed to tackle it. It deserves a lot more focus than I could grant it at the time. I do hope to get back to it when the time is right.

[Smitty]

As a writing exercise, I used to take songs and "novelize" (or actually short-storyize, I guess). I always thought it'd be cool for someone to take DBT songs and do that or even make them into a graphic novel, maybe connecting the characters in a big DBT universe. It'd be cool to see the protagonist of PPOTM maybe selling drugs for Harold (of Harold's pawn shop fame) or making deliveries to the stepdad in "Bulldozers and Dirt".