I already have a tortured 'relationship' with Cooley, since that time in Austin when I drunkenly had him sign the back of some other band's poster so that I could send it to my metal band friends in Chilean Patagonia (see earlier posts).

Cooley hates me, but I have to speak up. Who the hell is going to break wind and tell him how to pronounce Ramon?

It ain't "Ray-moan", it's "Rah-moan".

Now, perhaps in the ancient 1990s one might have gotten away with Ray-moan as a Southernism or affectation, but I'm afraid we cain't do that no more. I just don't want to deliver the news.

I can see why cooley hates you. No offense.

Yamaha. It's called poetic license.

The clams in Philadelphia will kill you, all full of Delaware Bay petrochemical gunk and all that.

And god bless Vic Chesnutt and all that, but he ain't got a goddamn thing to do with this.

If you're from Texas you can sorta get around mispronouncing Spanish as long as you do it in the traditional way - people from there will know what I mean. Nueces. Manchaca. Etc.

But this doesn't apply to people from Alabama, and I'll fully and confess the truth here that my momma's father was a deacon in a Church of Christ not but an hour from Zip City, so don't go calling me snooty. [The truth.]

In all seriousness, I just think that it would help the reach of the message to get the name right.

perezoso wrote:The clams in Philadelphia will kill you, all full of Delaware Bay petrochemical gunk and all that.

.

Are you saying clams is full of engine cleaner?
Also I have problems pronouncing my favorite mexican dish, chile relleno (not the slice of bell pepper, the pablano)

Clams wrote:I can see why cooley hates you. No offense.

Agree with the earlier post. It's poetic license baby.

I once got compliments from the waiter for my pronunciation of Huevos Rancheros at a Diner somewhere downtown Manhattan.

I may need to to listen with a closer ear, but I think Cooley’s pronunciation of “Ramon” may evolve (or devolve, as the case may be) as the song progresses. The only time I hear the distinct “Ray—mon” is in the line “Ramon still ain’t dead enough,” but here think Cooley is trying to espouse the character of a bigot. I wonder if the “Alabama Spanish” pronunciation is purposeful???

I’ve had a little Spanish but not enough to make the call, but i do wonder if the pronunciation of the name changes when spoken by the narrator (Cooley himself) as opposed to one of the song’s characters.

I’m pretty sure Cooley would tell me I’m overthining this anyway, or is this a thesis in the making (cue Professor Simon from Secret to a Happy Ending)????

You’re not alone. Cooley hates me too. Refused to shake my hand at the Chicago shows this year. Snuck up on him behind the bus at one of the wheels of soul shows. He clearly didn’t like that. I asked for Loaded Gun in the Closet the next night. Was not played. I think I’m on good terms with Patterson, Jay, and EZB, though. Haven’t met Matt.

Clams wrote:I can see why cooley hates you. No offense.

This is some funny shit!!

Cooley gives zero fucks.

I urge anyone who wants to go argue with Cooley over this subject to do it. Make your case motherfuckers. Please just allow me to watch.

Tequila Cowboy wrote:I urge anyone who wants to go argue with Cooley over this subject to do it. Make your case motherfuckers. Please just allow me to watch.

Polite request: when doing so, please begin your statement with "excuse me, Michael?"

phungi wrote:

Tequila Cowboy wrote:I urge anyone who wants to go argue with Cooley over this subject to do it. Make your case motherfuckers. Please just allow me to watch.

Polite request: when doing so, please begin your statement with "excuse me, Michael?"

Even better, start with asking him if his name is pronounced Michael or Michelle.

Years ago I ran into Cooley at a Tampa show. I said "hey Mike" and he shook my hand.

Tequila Cowboy wrote:I urge anyone who wants to go argue with Cooley over this subject to do it. Make your case motherfuckers. Please just allow me to watch.

Put that fucker on PPV, I'd buy it!

always love to post this.

and a few more for good measure.

I suppose I can jump in here, and take the opportunity to tell one of my favorite DBT stories. First off, I am from Texas, and speak a bit of border Spanish. IMO, the proper pronunciation would be 'Rah-moan'. However, also IMO, if you write a song of the caliber of Ramon Casiano, you can pronounce it however the fuck you want to. So, Cooley's pronunciation is correct however you look at it.

Ok, the story:

October 2016 I went on a kayak fishing trip with a few buddies, one who brought along his cousin Casey who doesn't live too far away. I hadn't met Casey before the trip but got to know him on the 7 hour drive to the Devil's River. Most of you will recall that American Band had released the month prior, so for the drive I got a CD for both vehicles and jammed them in there and turned it up. Casey wasn't terribly familiar with the DBTs, but, he graciously put up with a number of consecutive plays of the album (as he was trapped in the truck with me). The album turned over again and Ramon Casiano cued up. I told him the brief story of Harlon Carter and the NRA, and Casey said. "Casiano" - you know that is my name right?

Huh?

Well, you wouldn't know from looking at him, but Casey is half hispanic. Casiano is a family name, and thus the shortened version in the States became 'Casey'. I thought it was a weird coincidence and pretty cool. A few minutes later Casey said, "Hey what was that guy's name in the song again?". I replied "Ramon Casiano". Then Casey said, "Ramon is my middle name."

No way. But, yep; he pulled out his drivers license and showed me. Casey's legal name was, in fact, Casiano Ramon.

A few months later Cooley came for a few solo shows at the Cactus Cafe here in Austin. I bought a ticket for Casey and invited him to a show. At the end of the show Cooley was hanging around chatting and signing a few autographs. We waited for everything to clear out and I talked to Cooley for a little bit and eventually said, "Casey - show him your drivers license." Cooley kind of shifted and rolled his eyes in anticipation for whatever stupid fan shit he was about to be sucked into. He kind of gave a quick glance and said "Casiano..ha!", then he did a double take when he saw Ramon right behind it. We chatted for a lot longer and he told us a bit more about how he wrote the song. It was awesome. What are the odds??

^^^ Very fuckin' cool Pearl.

He’s cheating the meter of the song. He’s saying RAY-mon instead of Ruh-MOAN because it fits the rhythm of the song better. It’s inelegant but that’s what’s happening

Zip City wrote:He’s cheating the meter of the song. He’s saying RAY-mon instead of Ruh-MOAN because it fits the rhythm of the song better. It’s inelegant but that’s what’s happening

This has always been my interpretation as well.

pearlbeer wrote:I suppose I can jump in here, and take the opportunity to tell one of my favorite DBT stories. First off, I am from Texas, and speak a bit of boarder Spanish. IMO, the proper pronunciation would be 'Rah-moan'. However, also IMO, if you write a song of the caliber of Ramon Casiano, you can pronounce it however the fuck you want to. So, Cooley's pronunciation is correct however you look at it.

Ok, the story:

October 2016 I went on a kayak fishing trip with a few buddies, one who brought along his cousin Casey who doesn't live too far away. I hadn't met Casey before the trip but got to know him on the 7 hour drive to the Devil's River. Most of you will recall that American Band had released the month prior, so for the drive I got a CD for both vehicles and jammed them in there and turned it up. Casey wasn't terribly familiar with the DBTs, but, he graciously put up with a number of consecutive plays of the album (as he was trapped in the truck with me). The album turned over again and Ramon Casiano cued up. I told him the brief story of Harlon Carter and the NRA, and Casey said. "Casiano" - you know that is my name right?

Huh?

Well, you wouldn't know from looking at him, but Casey is half hispanic. Casiano is a family name, and thus the shortened version in the States became 'Casey'. I thought it was a weird coincidence and pretty cool. A few minutes later Casey said, "Hey what was that guy's name in the song again?". I replied "Ramon Casiano". Then Casey said, "Ramon is my middle name."

No way. But, yep; he pulled out is drivers license and showed me. Casey's legal name was, in fact, Casiano Ramon.

A few months later Cooley came for a few solo shows at the Cactus Cafe here in Austin. I bought a ticket for Casey and invited him to a show. At the end of the show Cooley was hanging around chatting and signing a few autographs. We waited for everything to clear out and I talked to Cooley for a little bit and eventually said, "Casey - show him your drivers license." Cooley kind of shifted and rolled his eyes in anticipation for whatever stupid fan shit he was about to be sucked into. He kind of gave a quick glance and said "Casiano..ha!", then he did a double take when he saw Ramon right behind it. We chatted for a lot longer and he told us a bit more about how he wrote the song. It was awesome. What are the odds??

Great story. Do you recall what Cooley said regarding how he wrote the song?

[quote="ledward2"}

Great story. Do you recall what Cooley said regarding how he wrote the song?[/quote]

Yeah, somewhat. I asked him where he learned about Harlon Carter and Ramon Casiano. He essentially said something like, "once you go down that rabbit hole...". Sounds like he was curious about the history of the NRA and kept reading until he got to the beginning. The song was born from there.

Actually, Ramon Casiano was a really obscure (and intentionally buried) story in 2016. It took me a little while to Google all the way to the beginning. And, like Cooley says...it all started and the border. And...that's still where it is today.

Wonder what Cooley will do with the recent Russian/NRA connections?

Mundane Mayhem wrote:

Zip City wrote:He’s cheating the meter of the song. He’s saying RAY-mon instead of Ruh-MOAN because it fits the rhythm of the song better. It’s inelegant but that’s what’s happening

This has always been my interpretation as well.

He could have achieved the same effect by trilling the "R". Just saying.

This thread is almost as much fun as the time Cooley got a haircut.

I don't care that much because I just don't and also because, Lord knows I butcher some words with my accent even though I know how they are supposed to be pronounced. But I admit to kind of cringing when I hear him pronounce it like "Raymond". And this is coming from a guy who pronounces this word; can't as "caint",opts for britches rather than pants, and turns the word dog too "dawg" among innumerable others.

phungi wrote:

Tequila Cowboy wrote:I urge anyone who wants to go argue with Cooley over this subject to do it. Make your case motherfuckers. Please just allow me to watch.

Polite request: when doing so, please begin your statement with "excuse me, Michael?"

This cracked me up.

Cooley is a cool guy in person, as long as, you know, you aren't a fucking lunatic.

We ran into him and Patterson getting coffee before a show in Madison a few years back. I wanted to leave them alone, but my buddy and his wife wanted pictures. They were more than glad, and asked if I wanted one too. I just said "naw, thanks for everything and kick some ass tonight". They both chuckled appreciatively, and then played a scorching show that included "Your Daddy Hates Me".

Wow, thanks guys. Honestly, I expected to log in here and find myself pummeled beyond recognition with fists and flaming arrows from all quarters.

He can pronounce it however the fuck he wants to as far as I'm concerned. Hell, I don't even complain about Patterson getting the words to People Who Died wrong.

perezoso wrote:Wow, thanks guys. Honestly, I expected to log in here and find myself pummeled beyond recognition with fists and flaming arrows from all quarters.

There’s still plenty of time for a good pummelin’