20th Anniversary of Decoration Day

[Clams]

Saw this on reddit of all places...

With the 20th anniversary of the release and tour of the Decoration Day album, we wanted to post a few songs we shot from the 2003 tour. Decoration Day was released on June 17, 2003 on New West Records.
Recorded by David Barbe at Chase Park Transduction Studios in Athens, Ga., seven of the songs were first takes with about five being second takes.

This first post is footage of the 13th track, the Patterson Hood penned tune, “Do it Yourself.”

Drive-By Truckers - Do It Yourself - 9-27-03 - Atlanta, GA (Decoration Day Tour)
https://youtu.be/mVzJXm_78Mc

Camera Operators
Alison Ayotte
Jason Hibberd
Steve Bransford
John Scarborough

Editor
Jason Hibberd

2-Track Audience Recording
Sloan Simpson

[Clams]

Here's two more

[WarHenRecords]

Wouldn't be mad at a big reissue like they made for Dirty South, though I don't know what, if any, extras would be included.
20 years good lord.

[Clams]

Wouldn't be mad at a big reissue like they made for Dirty South, though I don't know what, if any, extras would be included.
20 years good lord.

I know from a very reliable source that they were at least considering a reissue with a Decoration Day-era live show. I guess they opted not to do it.

[Zip Up to Michigan]

Why Henry Drinks has been posted on the same page.

This is outstanding footage. Thankful for what's been released so far but it would be awesome to get the whole show.

By no means to take a swipe at the current lineup but to anyone who thinks they're playing "better than ever" right now or anytime in the recent past, watch these videos and try saying that again. What a special few years it was for them (and us) musically speaking during this era.

[beantownbubba]

Does Patterson dedicate "18 Wheels of Love" to Smitty at the end of the song?

[Clams]

Does Patterson dedicate "18 Wheels of Love" to Smitty at the end of the song?

Hmmmm could be

[Beaverdam]

I just got a little happy and a little sad all at the same time!

[beantownbubba]

By no means to take a swipe at the current lineup but to anyone who thinks they're playing "better than ever" right now or anytime in the recent past, watch these videos and try saying that again. What a special few years it was for them (and us) musically speaking during this era.

OK, I'll take a stab at it.

If you're talking about the energy, excitement, passion, newness/freshness, watching in real time as the band discovers that "hey, we're actually really good at this" and/or "hey, this might really work for us" and plain old joy (which is partly the sum of the other considerations), that will never be matched again. And if you [generic you] want to say, "well, that's rock n roll, full stop, end of discussion," I won't disagree with you. Those were special days, the last part of which I was privileged to experience.

But I will make a couple of observations: By definition what is new can't stay new forever. And no band can keep up that level of intensity across decades (except for the occasional special night of which DBT has more than most). So the DBT rock show experience is different now and that can't be helped. But specifically as to "they're playing better than ever," and stepping into territory where I don't belong and can't really articulate what I hear, I do think the band's musicianship is far better now than ever before. The band is more flexible and can do more things, they sing far better, they're more in sync with each other and they simply play their instruments better, individually and collectively. Does that make for a better performance/experience than "the glory days?" On most nights, no. But it has its own considerable pleasures that, combined with the level of energy, passion, etc that the band has managed to maintain over the many years, keeps me coming back.

[Mundane Mayhem]

I never got to see them during that era, unfortunately, but have listened to enough live recordings to have a quasi-informed opinion on the matter.

I think what it basically comes down to is that no one in the modern-day Drive-By Truckers is as technically proficient on the guitar as Jason Isbell is. That's not really a knock on Cooley, Patterson, or Jay; very few guitarists working in this idiom can stand toe-to-toe with Jason.

As much as I'm sure I'd love to hear "Decoration Day" or "Goddamn Lonely Love" in a DBT set, I think the bigger "loss" is what Jason could do on "Carl Perkins' Cadillac" or "Where The Devil Don't Stay" (etc. etc.).

On the other hand, Matt is an incredible bassist and Jay adds much-needed texture to a lot of songs. Imagining "Ramon Casiano" without Jay Gonzalez is very hard to do given how much his keys add to that song at an elemental level. I also think Patterson and Cooley are both almost inarguably better singers now than they were during the Decoration Day era.

Of course, we haven't even touched on the fabled Neff/pedal steel discourse.

In terms of which version of the band I'd prefer to hear play a balls-out rocker, I'm probably going with DD-era for purposes of guitar pyrotechnics. The current band has a much defter touch on slower and swampier stuff. All versions of the band scratch an itch in my brain that no one else has really figured out how to touch.

[Clams]

All versions of the band scratch an itch in my brain that no one else has really figured out how to touch.

Bingo!

[beantownbubba]

All versions of the band scratch an itch in my brain that no one else has really figured out how to touch.

Bingo!

x2