Athens Dispatch Archives
...Anticipation for Quentin Tarantino's The Hateful Eight...
...Anticipation for Quentin Tarantino's The Hateful Eight... I just re-watched Quentin Tarantino's Django Unchained. It's been three years since Tarantino released a movie. I needed a break from revising stories, and decided to delve into his last read more...
Jimmy Herring & Warren Haynes Join Phil Lesh at Terrapin Crossroads
The Quintet Regroups In April Phil Lesh's band--The Quintet--will play together for the first time in over a decade on April 26-29 at Terrapin Crossroads.
2012 Hannah's Buddies Charity Ball
2012 Hannah's Buddies Charity Ball On March 30 and 31st, Widespread Panic's
Athens/Atlanta Band The District Attorneys Debut New Single "Confusion of Trust"
The kind folks at This Is American Music have allowed Swampland to debut the new single from The District Attorneys, a Georgia band with members in both Athens and Atlanta. The song "Confusion of read more...
Colonel Bruce Hampton on Widespread Panic: In The Beginning
Colonel Bruce Hampton on Widespread Panic: In The Beginning This week I interviewed Mr. Colonel Bruce Hampton. We discussed everything from his Atlanta roots, music, football, literature, read more...
Knock On Wood: Dave Schools On Widespread Panic's Upcoming Wood Tour (Rehearsals)
Dave Schools On Widespread Panic's Upcoming Wood Tour A few days ago, Dave Schools spoke to this writer about
Widespread Panic's Dave Schools Discusses Mickey Hart's Sounds of Space
Dave Schools Discusses Sounds of Space This evening I conducted an interview with Widespread Panic bassist
The 2012 Drive By Truckers Homecoming Shows
The 2012 Drive By Truckers Homecoming Shows On January 12, 13 and 14, the Drive By Truckers will perform homecoming shows at the 40 Watt Club in Athens, Georgia. read more...
Ike Stubblefield in 2012: New Orleans This Week
Ike Stubblefield In 2012 Ike Stubblefield knows his way around a keyboard. He commands respect in the music business. Ike has played keyboards for The Four Tops, read more...
Bloodkin's Exile On Lumpkin Street: Soul Survivors
Bloodkin's Exile On Lumpkin Street: Soul Survivors By James Calemine Bloodkin's Friday night show at the venerable
Shakin' in Alabama with the Alabama Shakes--Souful Music Near the Shoals
The small town of Athens, Alabama (not Athens, Georgia) has made national music news thanks to the hot new group Alabama Shakes. Three of the four band members hail from East Limestone High School in read more...
Widespread Panic's Upcoming Wood Tour
Widespread Panic's Wood Tour Last month Widespread Panic announced dates for early 2012. This official statement reveals the group's intention for next read more...
Lera Lynn Headlines Jacksonville's Natural Life Music Festival
Lera Lynn Headlines Natural Life Music Festival November 20 Athens, Georgia, musician Lera Lynn will headline the Natural Life Music Festival in Jacksonville, Florida, on November 20. The festival began as an event to support the Children's Home Society ten read more...
Athens Musicians R.E.M., Widespread Panic, Bloodkin & More Join Forces with Disabled Veterans
The Wounded Warriors Charity Compilation Athens musicians such as R.E.M., Widespread Panic,
The Nerve Balm of Athens, Georgia's Terrapin Brewery
Terrapin Brewery On The Rise The Athens, Georgia, brewery Terrapin Beer Company was founded in 2002. Owners Brian Buckowski and John Cochran decided to name read more...
Widespread Panic's John Bell Sings National Anthem Before Packers Vs. Vikings Game Today
John Bell Sings National Anthem Before Packers-Vikings Game Widespread Panic's
R.E.M. Calling It Quits
R.E.M. Breaks Up A quick news reel...Today the Athens, Georgia, band R.E.M. called it quits. Here's a report from The Washington Post:
Exile On Lumpkin Street: Bloodkin's Tribute To The Rolling Stones
Exile On Lumpkin Street On December 16, Bloodkin and various friends will perform the songs of
Drive By Truckers, Bob Dylan & Leon Russell Share A Stage Tonight
Dylan, The Truckers & Leon In Maryland Tonight Tonight in Columbia, Maryland, at The Merriweather Post Pavilion, The Drive By Truckers share a billing with read more...
Wes Freed's Artwork for Drive By Truckers Georgia Theatre Shows
Wes Freed's Drive By Truckers Artwork On August 12th and 13th, The Drive By Truckers will perform for the
The Georgia Theatre's Grand Opening Tonight
The Georgia Theatre Grand Opening Tonight The new Georgia Theatre officially opens tonight in Athens, Georgia. The historic theatre burned read more...
Swampland's Daily Duo of Reviews For 7/27/11: Dex Romweber Duo and Nathan Moore
For our midweek duo of reviews, we have Dex Romweber Duo's Is that You in the Blue? and Nathan Moore's Dear Puppeteer. These artists originate from North Carolina and Virginia, respectively, but both also have connections to key Swampland music towns - read more...
Widespread Panic Prepares for Japan's Fuji Rock Festival
John Bell Talks About Panic's First Trip To Japan On July 29 and 30, Widespread Panic will perform at the Fuji Rock Festival in Japan. A few weeks ago I asked read more...
Athens Photographer Jason Thrasher Discusses Filming The Drive By Truckers Go-Go Boots Episodes
Jason Thrasher Discusses Go-Go Boots Episodes Alabama native Jason Thrasher filmed episodes revolving around
Next Stop: Wes Freed & The Drive By Truckers
Next Stop: Wes Freed & The Drive By Truckers Here's a quick dispatch this morning in between projects...Later this afternoon I'll interview The Drive By read more...
AthFest Music Festival June 22-26
2011 AthFest This Weekend This weekend Athens, Georgia's, annual AthFest Music Festival will take place. AthFest is a non-profit organization dedicated to music and arts education headquartered in Athens. The read more...
Georgia Theatre Grand Opening Update
Athens Music Venue Rebuilt On August 1-14, 2011, the Athens, Georgia, music venue--The Georgia Theatre--will host a Grand Opening. The Theatre burned down two years ago. Here are the first scheduled shows at The Georgia Theatre. Stay tuned...
RIP Philip Walden Jr. (November 15, 1962--June 7, 2011)
Philip Walden JR. RIP "But I'm not gonna let 'em catch me, no
Widespread Panic's John Bell Looks Forward To Bonnaroo 2011
John Bell On Bonnaroo Ten Years Later The 2011 Bonnaroo Festival begins on June 9. The four-day, multi-stage camping festival held on a 700-acre farm in Manchester, Tennessee, celebrates its 10th year.
Bloodkin's First 7" Single & Tonight's 40 Watt Club Performance
Bloodkin's Mark Fidrych & Evel Knievel Tonight the Athens, Georgia, band Bloodkin's
Drive By Truckers Play Georgia Theatre Grand Opening August 12 & 13
Drive By Truckers Play Georgia Theatre Grand Opening The Drive By Truckers will play two shows for the Grand Opening of the venerable Athens, Georgia, venue--
A Memorial Day Tribute: An Early Salute
A Salute To All The Veterans An early salute for the upcoming weekend... In honor of Memorial Day, and all the read more...
Brute: Nine High a Pallet
Brute: Nine High a Pallet ...Today, a journey through smoke rings of the past... The band Brute consisted of Athens songwriter Vic Chesnutt recording his material with
Never A Pal Like Mother
Happy Mother's Day 2011 Happy Mother's Day to Everyone! Since it's Mother's Day weekend, I thought I write a dispatch around the great Atlanta label
Widespread Panic's Sunny Ortiz Calls On His Day Off
Widespread Panic Percussionist Calls From Home Today Widespread Panic's
Widespread Panic's Todd Nance From Asheville
Panic Drummer Reports From Asheville Yesterday I called Widespread Panic drummer
Wilmot Greene Interview: Update On Rebuilding The Georgia Theatre
Wilmot Greene Interview April 2011: Update On The Georgia Theatre Today I called our friend owner of the Georgia Theatre--Wilmot Greene--regarding the rebuilding of the venerable Athens, Georgia, music venue. Here’s the latest …
Widespread Panic Begins 25th Anniversary Tour Tonight in Louisville, Kentucky
Opening Night of Widespread Panic 25th Anniversary Tour: Louisville, KY Tonight Widespread Panic begin their 25th Anniversary tour in Louisville, Kentucky. In February Panic played in Athens and Atlanta, Georgia, to commemorate their first gig in read more...
MLB Opening Day 2011
MLB Opening Day 2011 “I was fairly typical of my generation of Southerners, I suppose. I got hooked on the game when I heard Mel Allen’s tense description of Enos (‘Country”) Slaughter of the Cardinals winning the ’46 read more...
Southern College Football – End of an Era
For generations around our Swampland Footprint, the play-by-play announcer of your favorite university was like a part of the family. Yes, there was a time before ESPN and billion-dollar network deals when not every game was on television. Classic voices like Tennessee’s John read more...
Widespread Panic, Jason Isbell & Lucinda Williams Set To Perform SXSW
Widespread Panic, Jason Isbell & Lucinda Williams Perform SXSW My friend Jim Flammia sent me a release yesterday regarding All Eyes Media artists performing at South By Southwest next week. Here is the release:
The New Kennesaw State University Music & Entertainment Business Program
Kennesaw State University Music & Entertainment Business Program Twenty miles north of Atlanta, the venerable Kennesaw State University now offers rare opportunities for students to earn first-hand experience in the read more...
The Sunday Sounds of Dust To Digital
The Sunday Sounds of Dust To Digital It’s been months since I’ve written a ‘Sunday Sounds’ dispatch. Today the temperature is predicted to hit 80 degrees. I may read more...
Avett Brothers Perform To Help Rebuild Georgia Theatre
The Avett Brothers Perform to Help Rebuild The Georgia Theatre In efforts to rebuild the venerable Georgia Theatre, the
Free Bonus Tracks with The Drive By Truckers’ Go-Go Boots To Support Indie Record Stores
Free Bonus Tracks with The Drive By Truckers’ Go-Go Boots To Support Indie Record Stores In light of the Drive By Truckers new release
Widespread Panic’s 25th Anniversary Athens Shows
Widespread Panic’s 25th Anniversary Athens Shows “Time machines, remembered scenes A wrangler rides through a passing stream…” “Space Wrangler”
...On the Eve of Widespread Panic's 25th Year Anniversary Shows in Athens, Georgia...
A Prelude To The Spectacle: In Athens, Georgia: Widespread Panic’s 25th Anniversary Shows "Every generation learns to dance, Across that floor they steal their moments..."
Like Clockwork, SEC Tops Recruiting
There seems to be a rhythm to each winter over the last few years; an SEC team wins the BCS Championship in January and then the league cleans up in recruiting on the first Wednesday in February. Those two annual events are very intertwined, and we have written for years about how read more...
Pre-Review First Listen: The Drive By Truckers' Go-Go Boots
Pre-Review First Listen: Drive By Truckers’ Go-Go Boots On February 15, the Drive By Truckers officially release their latest studio album,
Bloodkin's Colorado Acoustic Run & Post-Panic Electric Evening at the 40-Watt Club
Bloodkin’s Colorado Run & Post-Panic 40-Watt Show Widespread Panic kicks off their
Widespread Panic's Sunny Ortiz Discusses 25 Year Anniversary Tour
Widespread Panic’s Sunny Ortiz Discusses 25 Year Anniversary Tour Today I interviewed Widespread Panic percussionist Sunny Ortiz. Sunny called me from Panic’s Brown Cat offices located in the group’s hometown of Athens, Georgia. We discussed read more...
Southern College Football – SEC Wins Again
LEAD STORY The numbers are staggering: five national titles in row, a 7-0 record in the 13 BCS Championship Games, and five different schools who have won a national crown during those 13 years.
Drive By Truckers Shift Into Overdrive
The Drive By Truckers Shift Into Overdrive This Friday and Saturday the Drive By Truckers will play their annual benefit concert at Athens, Georgia’s, 40-Watt Club for
Widespread Panic’s John Bell’s Upcoming Charity ‘Classic & Concert’: Hannah’s Buddies
John Bell's Upcoming Hannah's Buddies 'Classic & Concert' Yesterday I conducted Part Two of my recent interview series with Widespread Panic’s read more...
Southern College Football – Bowl Season
LEAD STORY The BCS Championship Game is almost here, and the fans around our Swampland Footprint are very eager to see if Auburn can earn the SEC’s fifth straight national title. It’s quite the
Widespread Panic Announces 25th Year Anniversary Tour Plans
Widespread Announces 25th Year Anniversary Plans This afternoon Widespread Panic announced plans for their 25th Anniversary tour. Here’s the official read more...
R.E.M. Release New Single "Oh My Heart" Today
R.E.M Releases New Single “Oh My Heart” Today In about two months R.E.M. will release their 15th studio album, Collapse Into Now. Today the group released a song from Collapse Into Now called “Oh My Heart”. R.E.M. dedicated the song read more...
The Rising Tide of Widespread Panic
The Rising Tide of Widespread Panic The rising tide of Widespread Panic rapidly approaches. The Athens, Georgia, band enjoyed a successful run behind the group's latest studio read more...
Merry Christmas From Swampland
Merry Christmas From Swampland Ho, Ho, Ho…I’d like to wish everyone a Merry Christmas from Swampland. Thanks for all the support. A Happy New Year to you all! Don’t let the Devil get you down. I’ve included a couple of read more...
Ten Thousand Points of Light: A Holiday Gift...
Dust-To-Digital's Latest Release Here's a stocking gift for the holiday season...This latest Dust-To-Digital release serves as the 20th Anniversary of George read more...
Southern College Football – Coaching Carousel
LEAD STORY With bowl season beginning and holidays upon us, the big news in our Footprint is the gigantic transformation of the coaching hierarchy in the state of Florida. Do you realize that one-season ‘veteran’ Jimbo Fisher of Florida State is now the dean of read more...
Members of Widespread Panic Perform This Weekend
Members of Widespread Panic Perform This Weekend This weekend members of Widespread Panic will play several gigs. On Thursday, Widespread Panic drummer Todd Nance will perform in Athens, Georgia, with his new band, The Romper Stompers. The band includes Nance,
Southern College Football – Championship Week
LEAD STORY The amazing story of Auburn and Cam Newton will continue Saturday when they meet South Carolina in the SEC Championship Game.
Widespread Panic’s Porch Songs Vol. 6 & Archive Series #5
Widespread Panic’s Porch Songs Vol. 6 & Archive Series #5 May 31, 1996, counted as Widespread Panic’s first headlining performance at Red Rocks Amphitheatre in Morrison, Colorado. Since then, Panic has sold out the majestic venue 35 consecutive times. read more...
Southern College Football - Week 13 Themes
It’s rivalry week in our Swampland Footprint. Some teams are looking towards league titles (Auburn, Oklahoma/Oklahoma State, NC State, etc.) while some usual stalwarts are just trying to become bowl eligible (Texas, Georgia, Tennessee). The last weekend of the season is the read more...
Cowboy Junkies Releasing Vic Chesnutt Tribute: Demons
Cowboy Junkies Releasing Vic Chesnutt Tribute: Demons The Cowboy Junkies will release a tribute to Vic Chesnutt—Demons—in February. On December 25, 2009, Chesnutt committed suicide. The Cowboy Junkies’ Michael Timmons recently spoke about read more...
Southern College Football - Week 12 Themes
LEAD STORY It finally happened. For the first time since joining the SEC in 1992, the South Carolina Gamecocks will represent the East Division in read more...
Southern College Football - Week 11 Themes
LEAD STORY The Cam Newton saga continues to be the story of the week in college football. It seems very likely that his father was involved in seeking money for his son’s commitment. Does read more...
Drive By Truckers’ Go-Go Boots Out Feb 15, 2011
Drive By Truckers’ Go-Go Boots Out Feb 15, 2011 The Drive By Truckers just arrived in London to prepare for a month long tour of Europe. They will be back in time for Warren Haynes’ Christmas Jam in December. The Truckers’ NYE show will feature horns, Kelly read more...
Southern College Football - Week 10 Themes
LEAD STORY What an old-fashioned Southern soap opera we have on our hands. I’m sure by now you’ve read (or at least heard about) the ESPN story regarding the recruitment of Auburn read more...
Southern College Football - Week 9 Themes
LEAD STORY So much of the national attention (ESPN) at this point in the college football season goes to just the handful of teams in the BCS chase. Auburn-- as well read more...
Georgia's Rock & Roll Halloween Weekend
Georgia’s Rock & Roll Halloween Weekend ...Written from the eye of the tempest near the Georgia-Florida line during Halloween weekend for the UGA versus UF football game... Folks are rushing around here with football, rock & roll and a read more...
Dylan, Petty & Drive By Truckers Participate In ‘Back To Black Friday’
Dylan, Petty & Drive By Truckers Participate In ‘Back To Black Friday’ In support of independent record stores, November 26 stands as ‘Back To Black Friday’. Artists such as Bob Dylan, Tom Petty, The Drive By Truckers, Iron & Wine, U2, read more...
Mark Kemp, Keith Richards, Bloodkin & The Fandango Brothers Last Night at Dog Ear Books
High Grade Fun: Mark Kemp, Keith Richards, Bloodkin & The Fandango Brothers At Dog Ear Books Last Night "Never got a flash out of cocktails When I got some flesh off the bone. Never got a lift out of lear jets
Southern College Football - Week 8 Themes
LEAD STORY It’s a huge weekend in the Big 12, with conference and national title implications. Top-ranked Oklahoma travels to undefeated Missouri, while read more...
Gone, But Not Forgotten: T. Lavitz
Gone, But Not Forgotten: T. Lavitz April 16, 1956-October 7, 2010 “Midnight on a carousel ride Reaching for the gold ring down inside Never could reach It just slips away but I try…” “Crazy read more...
Southern College Football - Week 7 Themes
LEAD STORY With South Carolina’s huge 35-21 victory over Alabama, the SEC’s current streak of four straight National Championships looks to be in read more...
Nuci's Space Night at Terrapin Brewery
Nuci’s Space Night at Terrapin Brewery On October 22, the University of Georgia Music Business Program presents Nuci’s Space Night at Terrapin Brewery in Athens, Georgia.
The Unchained Tour of Georgia Documentary
The Unchained Tour of Georgia Documentary On Monday, before the evening performance of The Unchained Tour of Georgia, I spoke with author
St. Simons Island: First Stop On The Unchained Tour of Georgia
The UnchainedTour: St. Simons Island I wanted to have the entire article written about last night’s first stop on The Unchained Tour, but there’s too much material. Right now, a brief dispatch will have to suffice. The Unchained Tour of Georgia, spearheaded by read more...
Southern College Football - Week 6 Themes
LEAD STORY Florida State and Miami meet Saturday night in South Beach for their usual heated clash. This rivalry has lost a little luster read more...
Patterson Hood's Benefit for U.S. Congress Candidate Russell Edwards
Patterson Hood’s Benefit For Russell Edwards Patterson Hood and
A Call From George Dawes Green: Prelude to the Unchained Tour
A Call From George Dawes Green The Unchained Georgia Tour: A Prelude To Opening Night This afternoon esteemed author and The Moth creator
Widespread Panic Rocks Saint Augustine
Widespread Panic Visits The First Coast My ears are still ringing… Widespread Panic delivered an energetic show last night at the beautiful Saint Augustine read more...
Southern College Football - Week 5 Themes
LEAD STORY Alabama and Florida will meet in Tuscaloosa Saturday in a battle of the last two National Champions. It’s been over two years since the Gators lost a regular season SEC game (Ole Miss, September ’08), and it’s been read more...
Sunday Sounds: Prayers & Light For Widespread Panic's Garrie Vereen
Prayers & Light For Widespread Panic’s Stage Captain Garrie Vereen “Like a wheel to the river A mother's moon and sun Dreams against the wind Oh, and lifetimes undone Over and over And over again I was made read more...
Southern College Football - Week 4 Themes
LEAD STORY Week 4 will be ‘Definition Saturday’ in our Swampland Footprint, especially in the SEC West. We should begin to see the true identity of many of our teams and what they have the potential to achieve in 2010.
Neil Young's Southern Shows & Le Noise...Bob Dylan Southern Tour Dates Released...Island Notes
Neil Young in Clearwater Florida Tonight Before the release of his new record Le Noise on September 28, Neil Young will play a string of southern shows beginning tonight in Clearwater, Florida. On the full moon tomorrow Neil plays Hollywood, Florida, and then read more...
Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers MOJO Tour: The Last Five Days
The Last Few Shows of Mojo Tour Last night Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers played in Raliegh, North Carolina. Only five shows remain on the MOJO tour. For these last shows, ZZ Top serves as the opening band.
Southern College Football - Week 3 Themes
LEAD STORY After last season, we wrote how the ACC would look for improvement in 2010. Last year’s campaign was summed as read more...
Bloodkin Opens First Shows of Widespread Panic's Fall Tour This Weekend
Bloodkin Kicks Off Panic Tour As fall descends, the interesting season of live shows begin…Bloodkin’s Daniel Hutchens,
This Weekend In Georgia: Drivin N Cryin's Equipment Stolen & The Black Crowes Inducted Into GMHOF
Drivin N Cryin Ripped Off & Black Crowes Rock & Roll Induction After a Friday night gig in Macon, Georgia, Drivin N Cryin’s gear trailer was stolen. The band stayed at a hotel and went out for something to eat after the show, and when they returned their read more...
Southern College Football - Week 2 Themes
2010 SEC Season Outlook
The nation’s toughest conference looks primed for another stellar season on the gridiron. Alabama and Florida, the last two National Champions, will aim for a third straight appearance in the SEC title game.
CNN Spotlights The Georgia Theatre
CNN Spotlights The Georgia Theatre Today CNN ran a story regarding The Georgia Theatre. Our friend Wilmot Greene talked about the fire last June that burned down his venerable music hall. Wilmot told me a couple of weeks ago they hope to open the Theatre doors by April read more...
The Squidbillies' Georgia Connection
Wicked Laughs On The Squidbillies Squidbillies is an animated television series on Cartoon Network. It’s about The Cuylers--a family of squids living a quiet little north Georgia town. This counts as the fifth season of Squidbillies. Born in read more...
The Illustrations of Georgia Artist Jack Davis
The Illustrations of Georgia Artist Jack Davis Born in Atlanta, Georgia, in 1924, Jack Davis stands as one of America’s finest illustrators. Inducted into the Comic Book Hall of Fame in 2003, The National Cartoonist Society, The Society of Illustrators and The read more...
An Athens Afternoon: Adventures In the Past & Present (Notes On Bloodkin, Panic, & The Georgia Theatre)
Adventures In the Past & Present: A Report From Athens, Georgia I drove from Atlanta to Athens yesterday. It’s a drive I’ve made hundreds of times over the years, but the strange shaped clouds indicated somehow times have changed. This trip is purely read more...
New Orleans Rising: Pontchartrain Park Focus of CNN Documentary
Pontchartrain Park focus of CNN Documentary This evening a documentary on CNN—In America—focused on the efforts of New Orleans actor Wendell Pierce read more...
Ray McKinnon: From The Drive By Truckers To Hal Holbrook To Hank Williams
Ray McKinnon Stars in a Film About The Last Days of Hank Williams Adel, Georgia, born Ray McKinnon now ranks as a formidable actor, director, producer and writer in the industry. McKinnon’s most recent appearance is in the Drive By Truckers' video
Bloodkin & Five-Eight Play Benefit Show For Nuci's Space
Bloodkin & Five-Eight Play Benefit Show For Nuci’s Space This Friday—August 20—Bloodkin and Five-Eight will play a benefit show for Athens, Georgia’s Nuci’s Space. For the last eight read more...
Stockholm Syndrome Performs To Assist Georgia Theatre
Stockholm Syndrome Performs To Assist Georgia Theatre Widespread Panic’s Dave Schools’ band Stockholm Syndrome will play the 40 Watt Club in Athens, Georgia, on September 1, 2010. All proceeds earned from this show will go to re-building the venerable Georgia read more...
Widespread Panic & The Black Crowes Contribute Songs On Jerry Jams For Rex
Widespread Panic & The Black Crowes Contribute On Jerry Jams for Rex Widespread Panic and The Black Crowes contributed live performances of Jerry Garcia songs for the project release Jerry Jams for Rex. August 9 marked the 15-year anniversary of Jerry read more...
David Barbe Named New Director of UGAs Music Business Program
David Barbe Interim UGA Music Business Program Director Congratulations to David Barbe. Athens, Georgia, producer Barbe now serves as the ‘Interim Music read more...
Widespread Panic's Michael Houser: Eight Years Gone
Michael Houser: The Quiet Genius: Eight Years Gone By James Calemine Eight years ago Widespread Panic’s founding guitarist died of pancreatic cancer at the age of 40. It doesn’t seem like eight years since he’s been gone…
The Dog Days Descend
Dog Day Afternoon In the Peach State A quick note as the Dog Days descend here in Georgia…I briefly visited Stanley Booth and Diann Blakely today to talk shop, so to speak. Look read more...
SEC Media Days Attract Huge Attention
The SEC tops the nation when it comes to college football so it should be no surprise that the "Media Days" in July draw so much interest. Media members from all over the country marvel at the three day spectacle that has gridiron fans counting the days until the season read more...
The Black Crowes' Croweology Set For Release On August 3
Black Crowes Double Live CD Croweology Out Aug 3 The Black Crowes will release Croweology on August 3. Croweology represents all acoustic versions of songs culled from their last 20 years. Earlier this year, The Crowes entered into Los Angeles' Sunset read more...
SEC Continues Its Run of Excellence
The SEC ended another stellar year with another national championship. South Carolina won the school’s first ever national title when they swept UCLA at the College World read more...
The Drive By Truckers Hit the Road Next Week with Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers
Fourth of July Dispatch Happy Independence Day to all your great Americans…Next week The Drive By Truckers and Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers hit the road for most of the month. Now, that’s a ticket worth buying.
Rebuilding Plan For Georgia Theatre Approved
Georgia Theatre Rebuilding Plan Approved A state agency has approved to rebuild the venerable Georgia Theatre in Athens, Georgia. On June 19, 2009, the music venue burned down. Work to rebuild the 121-year-old building has already begun.
Past Interviews & Upcoming Artists of Note
Greetings Folks, I hope all is well, and everyone enjoyed Father’s Day… Change is afoot, and we’ve got a lot on the horizon, but for the past week much of the work has gone on behind the scenes. On the immediate agenda, the work of
New Zac Brown Band Live CD is a Winner
Ladies and gentlemen, we have our "winner of the week," the new double-live album from The Zac Brown Band & Friends called Pass the Jar. The event, read more...
Bonnaroo 2010
2010 Bonnaroo This Weekend This weekend--June 10-13--the Bonnaroo music festival will take place in the hills of Tennessee. This is Bonnaroo's 9th year. In that time it's become a formidable annual music festival.
I Ain't In It For My Health: A Film About Levon Helm
I Ain’t In It For My Health A review of I Ain’t In It For My read more...
The Rolling Stones' Exile, Panic's Dirty Side Down & Tom Waits Interviews Himself
Exile On Main Street & Panic's Dirty Side Down Tomorrow The Rolling Stones' classic album Exile On Main Street will be released. In read more...
Basically Frightened: The Musical Madness of Colonel Bruce Hampton
Basically Frightened The long-awaited documentary about Colonel Bruce Hampton—Basically Frightened: The Musical Madness of Col. Bruce Hampton—is now in the editing phase. This project proves to be a definitive film on one of the South’s most read more...
CNN to Feature Widespread Panic Tuesday May 11th
Widespread Panic First CNN House Band On May 11, 2010, CNN will feature Widespread Panic as their first house band. In celebration of their new studio in Atlanta, Georgia, CNN will broadcast Panic from 9AM-12 AM tomorrow.
Widespread Panic on Season Premiere of Squidbillies & Daniel Hutchens on Widespread Panic
Widespread Panic on Season Premiere of Squidbillies On May 16, for the season premiere, Widespread Panic makes an appearance on the TV show Squidbillies. The show began in 2006, and the season ends with a special 30-minute all star musical featuring The Drive by Truckers, read more...
Terrapin Beer Raises Money for Georgia Theatre
“Terrapin’s Georgia Theatre Sessions” The Athens, Georgia-based brewery—Terrapin Beer Company—is releasing a new series of brew that will only be available in Georgia. Funds generated from “Terrapin’s Georgia Theatre Sessions” read more...
Atlanta Film Festival Screens Drive By Truckers' The Secret To A Happy Ending April 23
The Secret To A Happy Ending Screening Filmmaker Barr Weissman's documentary on Athens, Georgia's, Drive By Truckers--
Widespread Panic's Sunday White House Visit
Widespread Panic’s Sunday White House Visit Yesterday while sitting in the Wanee leisure compound with Widespread Panic’s drummer Todd Nance, he relayed some interesting news. For instance, on Sunday the band will get a tour of the White House’s West read more...
Celebrate Record Store Day 2010!
Record Store Day 2010 is read more...
Wanee Report: Day Two
Swampland Wanee Report: Day Two ...A Few Notes From The Swamp... Funkadelic closed the evening out last night. It's a musical read more...
Widespread Panic's Sunny Ortiz Anticipates Wanee Festival
Two Panic Shows At Wanee Festival This Weekend Today I interviewed
Widespread Panic's Dirty Side Down Arrives...
Notes On The First Listen of Widespread Panic’s Dirty Side Down “Keep your sunny side up And your dirty side read more...
A Drive By Truckers Secret Weapon: The Jenn Bryant Interview
The Jenn Bryant Interview by James Calemine Behind every successful band or artist there are at least several individuals behind the scenes who read more...
The Robert Osborne Film Festival Begins Today In Athens
The Robert Osborne Film Festival Begins March 25 Several weeks ago, I attended
The Wes Freed Interview
March 2010 Interview with Artist Wes Freed I'd like to personally thank Wes Freed for his contributions and read more...
Widespread Panic Releases Dirty Side Down May 25, 2010
Widespread Panic Releases 11th Studio Album On May 25, 2010,
How Duane Allman and Sam The Sham Gave Clapton His "Key To The Highway"
Athens, GA attorney John Lyndon, brother of the late ABB road manager Twiggs Lyndon, passed on a remembrance right before the Allmans started their run of NYC shows last night. He was generous enough to allow us to share it with everyone: I saw Eric read more...
The Drive By Truckers' The Big To-Do Out Tuesday March 16
The Big To-Do Out March 16 (ATO Records) The
Wes Freed Talks About Artwork For New Drive By Truckers Album The Big To-Do
Wes Freed Talks About Artwork for The Drive By Truckers’ The Big To-Do Last week I interviewed Virginia artist
Artist Wes Freed Friday
Prelude to Friday Interview with Artist Wes Freed
David Barbe & The Quick Hooks: Love It, Don't Choke It to Death
David Barbe & The Quick Hooks New CD Out Tuesday In Athens, Georgia, on last Wednesday—at
A Note On Patterson Hood's Guitar Pull
A Note On Patterson Hood’s Guitar Pull I’d like to say Patterson Hood’s Guitar Pull at The Fabulous 40-Watt in Athens, read more...
Today's Interview with Patterson Hood
Today's Interview with Patterson Hood On the eve of his annual Guitar Pull, I called Patterson Hood. Best known as the leader of the Drive By read more...
Randall Bramblett Releases a Different Kind of Album
Many apologies for the lack of posts this past week. As many of you know I had some laser eye surgery last Monday, and am just now beginning to see again, slowly but surely. For the Tuesday CD spotlight, I am happy to feature a review of a beautiful new album read more...
Sunday Sounds: Interviews, Songwriters, A Film Festival & The Drive By Truckers
Sunday Sounds: Interviews, Songwriters and The Drive By Truckers It’s been a busy week for interviews. Wednesday I interviewed
SEC Continues to Rule the Recruiting World
National Signing Day has passed, and once again the teams of the SEC were dominant in the rankings. The conference that has won the last four National Championships (with three different schools) continually pulls in the top classes, and that's what it takes to compete in America's read more...
Athens, Georgia's Celebration of Vic Chesnutt's Life and Music
A Celebration of Vic Chesnutt’s Life and Music On February 19 and 20, at Athens, Georgia’s 40-Watt Club, a read more...
National Signing Day: Christmas Morning for Southern Football Fans
It’s finally here- a virtual holiday in our Swampland Footprint.
The Drive By Truckers' Secret To A Happy Ending
The Impending Onslaught of The Drive By Truckers Congratulations to
Daniel Hutchens' Run To Mexico
Daniel Hutchens Runs Wild In Mexico Last night Daniel Hutchens sent me his “Bloodkin Sails with Lynyrd Skynyrd" article. This mighty read more...
The Long Awaited Lance Ledbetter Interview
The Long-Awaited Lance Ledbetter Interview The story of Dust To Digital is a divine one. In the late 1990s, Lance Ledbetter set out to discover read more...
Patterson Hood Scores Soundtrack for That Evening Sun
That Evening Sun Features Patterson Hood Soundtrack
Prelude To Interview with Dust To Digital's Lance Ledbetter
Prelude To Interview with Dust To Digital President Lance Ledbetter This evening I finished transcribing my interview with the President of read more...
Getting Defensive in the Peach State
Georgia’s biggest win last season came against Georgia Tech when the Bulldogs rushed for 339 yards on their way to a 30-24 victory. In 2008 the Yellow Jackets top performance took place in Sanford Stadium, as their running attack gained 409 yards on the ground to propel Tech read more...
SEC Daily Fever: Georgia Still Searching for New Defensive Coordinator
Bud Foster, John Chavis, and Kirby Smart. That looks like a list of top defensive coordinators in our Swampland footprint, but it also the candidates who have turned down the chance to work for Mark Richt this offseason.
SEC Daily Fever: Bama Win Keeps SEC on Top
The SEC captured a fourth straight National Title Thursday night with Alabama’s 37-21 win over Texas in the BCS Championship Game.
Volume 2 of Interview Series with Widespread Panic's Todd Nance
Volume Two of Interview Series with Widespread Panic's Todd Nance So, I'd like to direct everyone's attention to my interview I read more...
SEC Daily Fever: Alabama Playing for National Title and Conference Pride
Alabama has played their way back to the national forefront over the last two years, and they will try to cap that run with a victory over Texas in tonight's BCS Championship Game. If the
Dead Confederate EP Assists The Georgia Theatre
Athens Band Offers Free Download To Help Georgia Theatre The Athens, Georgia, band Dead Confederate are offering a free download of their read more...
SEC Daily Fever: Meyer Faces Tough Choices Between Florida and Family
Some important decisions are now at hand for Urban Meyer and the Florida athletic department. After the Gators destroyed an overmatched Cincinnati team (dealing with read more...
Widespread Panic Brings In 2010 At Atlanta's Phillips Arena
Widespread Panic Brings In 2010 At Atlanta’s Phillips Arena A few brief notes on January 1 from the Highland Inn in Atlanta read more...
Todd Nance Talk & Vic Chesnutt on Widespread Panic
Todd Nance Talk & Vic Chesnutt on Widespread Panic So, last night I interviewed
SEC Daily Fever: Meyer Saga Leaves Doubt Around UF Program
What a roller coaster of a week it’s been for Florida Gator fans. The wishy-washy Urban Meyer drama has left a cloud of uncertainty over the program read more...
Tonight's Interview with Widespread Panic's Todd Nance
Upcoming Volume Two of Ongoing Todd Nance Interview Series Tonight I’m set to read more...
R.E.M.'s Michael Stipe Talks About The Late Vic Chesnutt
R.E.M.’s Michael Stipe Talk About Vic Chesnutt In the sad wake of Vic read more...
Vic Chesnutt RIP
Vic Chesnutt Dies On Christmas Day Athens, Georgia, singer/songwriter
SEC Daily Fever: Saban Not Worried about Facing Former Assistants in Title Game
The media has raised the question recently whether or not Texas assistants Will Muschamp and Major Applewhite, who served under Nick Saban at LSU and Alabama respectively, give the Longhorns any advantage with their familiarity of the Tide coach as they prepare for the BCS Title read more...
Widespread Panic Redux
Six Degrees of Widespread Panic Revisited The mighty Widespread Panic wave is about to roll in again...I'd like to direct everyone's read more...
SEC Daily Fever: Gator Fans not feeling the Sugar Bowl after SEC Title Loss
It currently looks like Florida fans are not very fired up for the Sugar Bowl against Cincinnati. As we approach Christmas, the Gators are read more...
Sunday Sounds: The Week of Christmas
Sunday Sounds: The Week of Christmas Sunday Sounds counts as a soulful glance on days at read more...
Daniel Hutchens' Long Hustle
Daniel Hutchens' Debut Swampland Feature After a long wait, I can now publish Daniel Hutchens' debut read more...
SEC Daily Fever: Brooks receives accolade for another solid season at Kentucky
The website collegefootballnews.com had a very interesting choice for their conference Coach of the Year- Rich Brooks of Kentucky.
SEC Daily Fever: Vols Sign Simms Youngest Son
Many teams in the conference added a junior college prospect or two yesterday, and one of the more interesting names to sign was quarterback Matt Simms at Tennessee. Besides the fact that he is the son of Phil Simms, this signing is interesting because his older brother (Chris read more...
SEC Daily Fever: Meyer's December Shows the Roller Coaster of Being an SEC Boss
From the outside looking in, things appear pretty sunny for Urban Meyer at the University of Florida. He is 56-10 in five seasons in Gainesville, has won two League and two National Titles, had an undefeated regular season this year, and has another Top 10 recruiting class on the read more...
SEC Daily Fever: Spurrier Extended at South Carolina
it may not seem like a big deal that South Carolina added an extra year to Steve Spurrier's contract this week, but it shows the USC administration is sticking with the program. After some late season fizzles the last few years, it would be easy to jump right back into the coaching read more...
ACC Daily Fever: Foster a Fixture at Virginia Tech
It has become an annual December news item at Virginia Tech—other top programs are interested in defensive coordinator Bud Foster. With him on Frank Beamer's staff since 1987 and the coordinator since 1995, most Hokies fans probably were not too worried about losing the read more...
SEC Daily Fever: Ingram Wins Bama's First Heisman
There aren’t many “firsts” left with the University of Alabama’s football history, especially now that Mark Ingram became the Tide’s only Heisman Trophy read more...
Mystery And Manners Interview with Athens, Georgia, Producer-Writer John Keane
Swampland/Mystery And Manners John Keane Interview John Keane stands as a pillar in the read more...
SEC Daily Fever: Kiffin denies any wrongdoing
In one year on the job at Tennessee, Lane Kiffin has become a lightning rod for the national and regional media. His brash attitude and recruiting prowess has rubbed some writers and some other coaches the wrong way.
A Big To-Do About The Drive By Truckers
Drive By Truckers Upcoming New Disc The Big To-Do Athens, Georgia’s own,
SEC Daily Fever: Alabama Proves That It Takes Money To Make Money
Last January, Swampland answered the national media criticism of escalating coach’s salaries by saying “SEC Coaching Dollars Make Sense”. read more...
SEC Daily Fever: Kiffin Must Replace Some Top Recruiters
A constant theme on Tribal Fever has been the importance of recruiting, and how all of the top teams in the conference recruit at the highest level.
SEC Daily Fever: All-League Squad Looks Like NFL Draft Primer
The SEC is considered the big dog conference in college football right now, especially with Alabama aiming to win the league’s fourth straight National Title. With
SEC Daily Fever: Alabama Domintates Florida in SEC Title Rematch
Alabama rode a physical offense and a swarming defense to the SEC crown as they defeated the defending league and national champion Florida Gators 32-13.
SEC Daily Fever: Championship Game Becomes the "Southern" Super Bowl
It’s finally here. #1 vs. #2. Florida vs. Alabama- 24 wins and no losses. Winner goes to the BCS Title Game, while the loser heads reluctantly to the Sugar Bowl.
Potato Hole Nominated For 2 Grammys & 2010 Drive By Truckers Tour Dates
Potato Hole Nominated For 2 Grammys & 2010 Trucker Tour Dates Booker T. Jones’ latest album,
SEC Daily Fever: Richt Fires Martinez, Other Defensive Assistants
About ten days ago, we wrote how Georgia fans wanted some changes in Mark Richt's staff after a frustrating season.
Widespread Panic's New Porch Songs
Panic's New Porch Song Series Greetings Folks, Today
SEC Daily Fever: Florida Dealing with Distraction before Big Game
Florida was dealt a self-imposed blow this week in their quest to repeat as SEC and national Champions. All-American defensive end Carlos Dunlap
A Glance Back on Widespread Panic (with Musical Guest Marc Ford)
Widespread Panic & Marc Ford at The Orpheum in L.A. Last Month With several
SEC Daily Fever: Could Florida and Alabama Play Twice?
It’s time to address the question on the minds of many college football fans- if Texas loses in the Big 12 Championship Game and the SEC Game is a close one, could we see a Florida-Alabama rematch in the BCS Title Game?
SEC Daily Fever: Thrilling Weekend Shows League's Strength
The SEC saved its best for the last week of regular season play. There were a number of exciting games where the conference showed its power and depth.
SEC Daily Fever: Bama Barely Escapes in Thrilling Iron Bowl
Much like Texas on Thursday night, Alabama got a scare from their in-state rival but also remained unbeaten with a 26-21 last-minute win.
Dust To Digital's Holiday Spirit & Soul
Dust To Digital’s Holiday Soul & Spirit “Two white horses side by side Oh, me an my Lord gon’ take a read more...
SEC Daily Fever: Georgia and Mark Richt Could be Staring at 6-6
Many around our Footprint (and the country) believe Les Miles is having the toughest week amongst SEC coaches, but you could argue that it's even worse for Georgia's Mark Richt right read more...
A Conversation with The Georgia Music Hall of Fame's Director Lisa Love
The Latest From The Georgia Music Hall of Fame's Director My latest conversation with The Georgia Music Hall of Fame's Director, Lisa Love, read more...
SEC Daily Fever: Wild Sequence Ends with LSU Gaffe, Ole Miss Win
The ending of the LSU-Ole Miss game had fans all over the country glued to their TVs, and scratching their heads as well. The Tigers missed both chances to tie the game on a two-point conversion with 1:17 left, but then recovered an onside kick to keep their hopes read more...
The Drive By Truckers Contribute To Eddie Hinton Tribute
Very Extremely Dangerous Singles Shake It Records has released a series of limited-edition 45-rpm vinyl singles, and
SEC Daily Fever: Ole Miss Looks To Continue Late Season Surge Against LSU
The top two teams in the conference have been pretty clear for a while, and the rematch in Atlanta is already set for Florida and Alabama. But who's next? LSU has seeimngly been that third squad all year with their only two losses coming against the Gators and Tide. One team read more...
SEC Daily Fever: Chizik's First Year Shows Promise
Auburn suffered a tough loss to Georgia last weekend to fall to 7-4, but even the heavy crtics of Gene Chizik’s hiring would have to admit it's been a good first season. The Tigers will take this Sataurday off as they prepare for the Iron Bowl. And speaking of Alabama,
SEC Daily Fever: Florida's Defense Leading the Way in 2009
While Tim Tebow gets all of the national attention, SEC fans know why the Gators have maanaged to stay undefeated once again this year-- their stellar defense. The Florida read more...
Mystery and Manners Announces Guest Writer Bloodkin's Daniel Hutchens
Swampland's Upcoming Guest Writer Daniel Hutchens Greetings folks, I'm proud to announce my old friend and Bloodkin's read more...
SEC Daily Fever: Brooks Making History At Kentucky
With their win over Vanderbilt last Saturday, Kentucky became bowl eligible for the fourth straight season. The Wildcats went to three straight bowl games in the read more...
SEC Daily Fever: Ole Miss' McCluster Has Record Day Against Distracted Vols
Wonder if Ole Miss would increase the speed limit on campus from 18 (Archie Manning's retired number) to 22 after Saturday? #22 Dexter McCluster had a monster read more...
SEC Daily Fever: Kiffin Must Be Decisive In Dealing With Player Arrest Incident
For Tennessee coach Lane Kiffin, this week was supposed to be about continuing the Vols current momentum (on the field as well as recruiting) and winning the "Coach O" game in Oxford. Instead, he's dealing with his first 'crisis management' experience as three UT freshmen read more...
Yesterday's Conversation with Widespread Panic's Todd Nance & Bloodkin's Daniel Hutchens
Ain't Life Grand When I called Widespread read more...
SEC Daily Fever: Georgia And Mark Richt Desperate For An Auburn Win
Georgia fans are feeling a little nervous these days. The Bulldogs have already been blown out by two rivals, Tennessee and Florida, and they will face two more in Auburn and Georgia Tech over the next three games.
SEC Daily Fever: Spurrier Says He's Staying At South Carolina For The Long Term
As South Carolina and head coach Steve Spurrier prepare to host #1 Florida on Saturday, this game is a reminder to Gamecock fans of what their coach built at his alma mater and what has not happened in Columbia.
SEC Daily Fever: Officiating Issues Creates Negative Vibes For Top League
It’s the story that won’t go away- another week, another game where bad officiating dominates the league conversation. The SEC read more...
November 9, 2009 Interview with Chuck Leavell
2009 Interview with Rolling Stones Keyboardist Chuck Leavell Greetings folks, I'm pleased to present today's interview with The Rolling read more...
SEC Daily Fever: Alabama Beats LSU, Wins West
Alabama won a physical 24-15 battle against LSU on Saturday, and they now have cemented the highly-anticipated SEC Championship Game rematch with Florida. The Tide read more...
The Return of John Keane's Strawberry Flats
Return of John Keane’s Strawberry Flats On St. Simons Island, Georgia, at Gnat’s Landing, last night an old killer Athens, read more...
Excerpt Two From Fall 08 Chuck Leavell Interview: The Rolling Stones
Fall 08 Interview with Chuck Leavell Excerpt Two In Part Two from my Fall 08 Interview with
SEC Daily Fever: LSU-Alabama Is The National Game Of The Week
The eyes of the college football world will be on Tuscaloosa Saturday afternoon when #9 LSU meets #3 Alabama. This game has conference and national read more...
Dust To Digital's Fertile Athens and Atlanta Roots
Dust to Digital's Deep Georgia Roots One of my favorite organizations—hands down—stands as Lance Ledbetter’s read more...
Georgia On Our Mind
Georgia On Our Mind In this upcoming week, Swampland/Mystery And Manners will cover various topics relating to Athens, read more...
SEC Daily Fever: Meyer looks bad after Spikes debacle
Many fans around the league are asking the question this week: what kind of program is Urban Meyer running in Gainesville? While many have questioned Meyer’s recruiting read more...
A Message From Patterson Hood
Latest notes from Patterson Hood on what’s going on in Drive-By Truckers’ world.... Y'ALL: Decompressing from our late October read more...
SEC Daily Fever: Georgia's Richt looks to right ship in Athens
While much of the attention following the Florida-Georgia game has been on Brandon Spikes eye-gouging of Washaun Ealey, the reality for the Bulldogs is that they have the feel of a program that has slipped a notch from past seasons.
Patterson Hood Solo Gigs This November In Georgia
Drive By Truckers Front Man Books Solo Shows Close To Home
SEC Daily Fever: Seemingly Insufficient Punishment For Spikes Sparks Controversy
Is a half-game suspension at home against Vanderbilt really a punishment? That’s what many are wondering after Urban Meyer read more...
SEC Daily Fever: Freshmen SEC Coaches Seeing Success
One of the consistent themes in the conference this season has been the effect of the three new coaches. That continued on Saturday with Tennessee, Auburn, and Mississippi read more...
SEC Daily Fever: "Cocktail Party" Remains A Great Southern tradition
It's more than just a football game. Whether it's golf tournaments, concerts, or just a long weekend with friends, the Georgia-Florida game has become a can't miss event for both fan bases and for read more...
Announcing Our New Athens, Georgia Pages - on Swampland and on Facebook
Join Swampland Facebook Pages Hillsides of kudzu lead you into the town of Athens, Georgia. Athens, located on the Oconee River, serves as the home to The University of Georgia, read more...
SEC Daily Fever: Ole Miss Looks To Finish Strong
As Ole Miss prepares to travel to Auburn this Saturday, Houston Nutt's team will look to build the same second half of the season momentum that they did in 2008.
SEC Daily Fever: Tebow Shuns The Media
An interesting scenario happened after the Florida win at Mississippi State; Tim Tebow did not meet with the media.
SEC Daily Fever: Officials Under Heavy Scrutiny
Here we go again-another week, another rash of bad and missed calls that have SEC coaches angry. A week after Arkansas’ Bobby Petrino was reprimanded by the league office, two more read more...
Spotlight On The Classic City: Athens, Georgia
Spotlight On The Classic City: Athens, Georgia This week I’d like to shine a spotlight on Athens, Georgia. Like many, I graduated from The read more...
SEC Daily Fever: Bama Hangs On Against Tennessee
We have used the term "survive and advance" several times during league play, and that's just what Alabama (barely) did with their 12-10 victory over read more...
R.E.M. "Live at the Olympia"---Hear Prior to Release
According to NPR, Live at the Olympia is not a live collection of
William Tonks On The Radio
Turn William Tonks On The Radio In Athens, Georgia, if you need a dobro or guitar player for a session, chances are
SEC Daily Fever: LSU needs Auburn win to stay on league's top shelf
Most in the local and national media are already looking towards December for the highly- anticipated Florida-Alabama matchup in Atlanta, but one team who has the talent to throw a wrench in that scenario is LSU.
SEC Daily Fever: Nutt Back In Spotlight As Ole Miss Prepares For Arkansas
When the 2009 season kicked off, Ole Miss looked to be a contender in the West while the Arkansas was supposed to play the role of spoiler - but roles could be reveresed after this Saturday's game.
Halloween In New Orleans: Panic, Truckers & NO Musicians Clinic Conjure Good Mojo
A Season of the Witch in The Crescent City: Widespread Panic, Drive By Truckers & New Orleans Musicians Clinic Help At Halloween In this read more...
SEC Daily Fever: Kiffin And Saban Build Their Programs Using Past NFL Perspective
As Tennessee and Alabama prepare for their annual October clash, the Vols seem to be a couple of recruiting classes behind the Tide in building a roster to compete for a league title.
Chuck Leavell Fall 08 Interview (Part One) Dispatch
A Note of Introduction This lost interview with Rolling Stones keyboardist Chuck Leavell was conducted last fall. That week Chuck would read more...
SEC Daily Fever: League Refs Under Scrutiny After Missed Calls
It seems to happen every week- fans gripe about the refs. While part of that is just fans being fans, this season has seen an especially high number of questionable calls around the SEC.
SEC Daily Fever: Florida Squeaks By Arkansas, Drops to #2 in AP
We wrote on Friday that Florida could be in for a classic trap game against Arkansas, and that’s what it turned out to be.
SEC Daily Fever: Should Florida be on Upset Alert?
Is this the one? Even though the Florida Gators have won two of the last three National Titles, they lost a surprising game in the middle of both of those seasons. Urban read more...
SEC Daily Fever: Can LSU Still Challenge For the West Crown?
We wrote earlier this week that it’s beginning to look more and more like a Florida-Alabama rematch in the SEC Title Game.
SEC Daily Fever: Snead and Ole Miss Are Struggling
Along with Georgia, one of the most frustrated fan bases in the league at the halfway point has to be that of Ole Miss. Their record will not look that bad after read more...
Chuck Leavell on Mother Nature Network (Part One)
Chuck Leavell Talks About Mother Nature Network (Part One) Last fall when I wrote
SEC Daily Fever: Georgia Coaching Staff Under Fire
There is some extra heat radiating from Athens these days, as Mark Richt tries to regroup his Bulldogs after being blown out by Tennessee. AJC columnist Mark Bradley called Georgia’s 45-19 loss in Knoxville “
SEC Daily Fever: Florida and Alabama On Path For Title Rematch
Tim Tebow did start and play against LSU Saturday night, but it was the Gator defense that dominated the game and propelled Florida to a 13-3 road victory in Death Valley.
SEC Daily Fever: Will LSU's Running Game Beat Florida?
Prime time national television audience, Baton Rouge, #1 vs. #4; this one should be fun. That’s the scenario as Florida travels to LSU amid questions read more...
SEC Daily Fever: Arkansas Has Much To Prove Against Auburn
Arkansas came into the season with the goal of at least being a factor in the SEC West, if not more. Already at 0-2 in league play, the Hogs begin a stretch this Saturday read more...
SEC Daily Fever: Saban and Nutt Share Mutual Admiration
While the Florida-LSU matchup is getting much of the conference attention this week, another key league game will take place when Ole Miss hosts Alabama. The read more...
Widespread Panic Archivist Horace Moore Begins To Document Panic-Allman Brothers Tour
Panic Archivist Documents Widespread Panic-Allmans Current Tour On Saturday and Sunday, The Allman Brothers and
SEC Daily Fever: Auburn Faces Offensive Shootout At Arkansas
While most of the attention in the league has gone to the three teams in the Top 4 of the polls, maybe the best story of the early season has been the resurgence of Auburn.
SEC Daily Fever: LSU's Tight Win Sets Up SEC Mega-Clash
It may not have been the most well played game, but what a finish we all got to see in Athens Saturday. LSU led Georgia 6-0 after three quarters, read more...
SEC Daily Fever: Georgia Looks To Define 2009 Season Against LSU
Saturday’s huge clash between Georgia and LSU will go a long way in defining the Bulldogs’ season. Mark Richt’s bunch is 3-1, a pretty solid record read more...
Daniel Hutchens & Widespread Panic Recent Songwriting Session
Widespread Panic & Daniel Hutchens Recent Songwriting Sessions I just got off the phone with my old friend
SEC Daily Fever: LSU Can Prove Their Top 5 Ranking Between the Hedges
LSU will begin a brutal three-game stretch this Saturday that will test their lofty #4 national ranking.
SEC Daily Fever: Auburn Faces Litmus Test in Tennessee
It has been quite the successful beginning at Auburn for new coach Gene Chizik. His Tigers have started 4-0 while putting up 45.3 points and 526 yards a game, read more...
Wayne Sawyer 1968-2009
Wayne Sawyer 1968-2009 I got word today that an old friend Wayne Sawyer passed away last night in his sleep. Wayne worked for
SEC Daily Fever: Hogs Desperate for Win in Big D vs Texas A&M
Can you have a must-win game at the beginning of October against a non-conference opponent? That’s the feeling around an Arkansas squad that sits at read more...
The Black Crowes, Widespread Panic and Bloodkin Week on Mystery and Manners
Mystery And Manners Highlights Three Rock and Roll Forces This week on Mystery And Manners read more...
SEC Daily Fever: Is Bama the league's top dog?
Florida still has the #1 spot in the national polls, but many believe Alabama is staking a claim as the best team in the read more...
SEC Daily Fever: Gamecocks Embrace the Spotlight While the Rebels Wither
SEC Daily Fever is the top SEC story of the day. Disagree? Let us know. South Carolina played a physical game led by their relentless defense and took down #4 Ole Miss 16-10, Thursday night in Columbia in a classic SEC headknocker.
SEC Daily Fever: Rebels-Gamecocks Ready To Prove It in Primetime
It should be a great Thursday night national television matchup between Ole Miss and South Carolina, two teams that have a lot to prove.
SEC Daily Fever: It's Offense vs Defense When Arkansas faces Alabama
SEC Daily Fever is the top SEC story of the day. Disagree? Let us know. One of the more interesting storylines this Saturday will be seeing
SEC Daily Fever: Verbal Jabs Between Meyer and Kiffin Escalate
SEC Daily Fever is the top SEC story of the day. Disagree? Let us know. New Tennessee coach Lane Kiffin may have gotten the first word in between him and Urban Meyer when he boldly (or stupidly depending on your point of view) announced read more...
SEC Daily Fever: New Coaches Show Early Promise
SEC Daily Fever is the top SEC story of the day. Disagree? Let us know. The story of the early SEC season continues to be the impact of the new coaches. We already knew the strength of the top teams in the league (Florida, read more...
SEC Daily Fever: Meyer Looks To Make Statement Against Kiffin
SEC Daily Fever is the top SEC story of the day. Disagree? Let us know. The national media has had this game circled since Lane Kiffin's hiring press conference earlier this year. Kiffin and Tennessee will travel to the Swamp this read more...
SEC Daily Fever: Hogs-Dawgs Could Be The SEC Game of The Weekend
SEC Daily Fever is the top SEC story of the day. Disagree? Let us know. One of the more interesting matchups of the weekend has to be Georgia traveling to Arkansas. (Give Mark Richt credit - his tough schedule has kept his team on read more...
SEC Daily Fever: Chizik Tries To "Manage" Auburn Fans' Expectations
SEC Daily Fever is the top SEC story of the day. Disagree? Let us know. Auburn fans have had more than a little frustration with their offense over the last few seasons.
The Timeless Artwork of Wes Freed
Tribute To A Virginia Artist Born in 1964, Virginia artist Wes Freed is best known for his artwork gracing the cover of
Everyday Companion's Ted Rockwell: Widespread Panic's Cosmic Statistician
Ted Rockwell’s Everyday Companion & Cosmic Statistician Last night I spoke for a few minutes with Ted Rockwell. Ted compiled
SEC Daily Fever: Kiffin Continues Tennessee's Recruiting Gains
SEC Daily Fever is the top SEC story of the day. Disagree? Let us know. Saturday was a tough day for Lane Kiffin and the Vols.
SEC Daily Fever: UGA and South Carolina Deliver Early Season Drama
SEC Daily Fever is the top SEC story of the day. Disagree? Let us know. What a game between Georgia and South Carolina. With their recent history, we all expected a low scoring, defensive affair.
A New Blind Willie McTell Book
Hand Me My Travelin' Shoes: In Search of Blind Willie McTell I came across this interesting blog regarding a read more...
SEC Weekend Fever: Mullen vs. Chizik
SEC Weekend Fever Previews Top Stories for the Upcoming Weekend Auburn hosts Mississippi State in 2009's first meeting between SEC rookie coaches. Quite a lot has changed in a year for both squads.
SEC Daily Fever: Georgia & South Carolina Ready Defenses For A Tight Game
SEC Daily Fever is the top SEC story of the day. Disagree? Let us know. Mark Richt and Steve Spurrier are both offensive-minded coaches, but it looks like they have to rely on their defenses to win early in 2009.
SEC Daily Fever: Gut Check time for Georgia
SEC Daily Fever is the top SEC story of the day. Disagree? Let us know. After dropping the opener at Oklahoma State, it is a huge week for Georgia as they try to avoid an 0-2 start when they battle South Carolina Saturday.
SEC Daily Fever: Solid Debuts For New Coaches Makes Conference Even Deeper
SEC Daily Fever is the top SEC story of the day. Disagree? Let us know. With the exception of the Georgia loss, it was a pretty solid start for the SEC. The biggest story had to be the debut of the three new coaches.
SEC Daily Fever: Spurrier Lets Defense Rule Over Wolfpack
SEC Daily Fever is the top SEC story of the day. Disagree? Let us know. It wasn’t pretty, but South Carolina relied on their defense for a hard fought read more...
SEC Daily Fever: Tide Duo cleared to play in Opener
SEC Daily Fever is the top SEC story of the day. Disagree? Let us know. Although the NCAA did find a violation in the Alabama case involving receiver Julio Jones and running back Mark Ingram,
Widespread Panic's Todd Nance Calls From Chicago
Widespread Panic’s Todd Nance Courtesy Call With all the current and upcoming excitement regarding this
Today's Conversation with Widespread Panic Bassist Dave Schools Regarding Current Tour with The Allman Brothers Band
Widespread Panic Bassist Discusses Tour with Allman Brothers Band An hour or so ago I just got off the phone with
SEC Daily Fever: Auburn Opener Provides Dilemma for Vince Dooley
SEC Daily Fever is the top SEC story of the day. Disagree? Let us know. An interesting scenario presents itself for SEC legend Vince Dooley in the Auburn-Louisiana Tech opener.
SEC Daily Fever: Embattled Dawgs D Gets Opening Challenge
SEC Daily Fever is the top SEC story of the day. Disagree? Let us know. While much of the talk in Athens has been about replacing Matt Stafford and Knowshon Moreno, the key to the 2009 Georgia season may lie in the improvement of the read more...
SEC Daily Fever: Bama Locks Up Saban For Another 3 Years
SEC Daily Fever is the top SEC story of the day. Disagree? Let us know. A contract extension for Nick Saban, whose megadeal already runs through 2014?
Part 4 of Meandering Thoughts from Widespread Panic Archivist Horace Moore
Panic Archivist Horace Moore Digs Through The Relics
SEC Daily Fever: Ole Miss Fans Hoping For a Monumental Season
SEC Daily Fever is the top SEC story of the day. Disagree? Let us know. Coming off a Cotton Bowl win and with quarterback Jevan Snead returning, the expectations at Ole Miss are as high as ever. The fan base has responded by
SEC Daily Fever: Vols' Brown cleared by the NCAA
$(document).ready(function() { $('p > a[href*=swampland]').after(''); $('p > read more...
SEC Daily Fever: Latest On Julio Jones and Alabama
SEC Daily Fever is the top SEC story of the day. Disagree? Let us know. It's the story that just won't go away in Alabama.
SEC Daily Fever: How will Kiffin's offense fare in Year 1?
SEC Daily Fever is the top SEC story of the day. Disagree? Let us know. As expected, Tennessee has named senior quarterback Jonathan Crompton the read more...
SEC Daily Fever: The Gamecock Spotlight Shines on Garcia in South Carolina
SEC Daily Fever is the top SEC story of the day. Disagree? Let us know It’s nothing new for Steve Spurrier to seem upset with the play of his quarterbacks.
Widespread Panic-Allman Brothers Tour: Double Dose of Potent Music
Brothers Panic On The Road If the first two nights of the run is any indication, it looks like the
SEC Daily Fever: SEC Media Policy Upsets the Press
SEC Daily Fever is the top SEC story of the day. Disagree? Let us know A huge debate is about to happen regarding the direction of the league’s media coverage.
SEC Daily Fever: Eligibility of Prized Vol Recruit Under NCAA Scrutiny
SEC Daily Fever is the top SEC story of the day. Disagree? Let us know The highly-publicized recruitment of Tennessee’s Bryce Brown has taken an interesting turn a few weeks before the top running back is set to make read more...
Bloodkin's Daniel Hutchens Writes About Jim Dickinson
Daniel Hutchens' Fond Memory of Jim Dickinson I've been reaching out to many friends and musicians to speak about or write about
SEC Daily Fever: Tough Break for Improving Vandy
SEC Daily Fever is the top SEC story of the day. Disagree? Let us know Vanderbilt’s defense suffered a major blow with
SEC Daily Fever: Tough Injury for the Razorbacks
SEC Daily Fever is the top SEC story of the day. Disagree? Let us know. The Arkansas defense has suffered a major loss with the news that
Widespread Panic & The Allman Brothers Prepare For Historic Tour
Widespread Panic & Allmans Embark On Historic Tour This Weekend This weekend the
SEC Daily Fever: Auburn Names QB Starter
SEC Daily Fever is the top SEC story of the day. Disagree? Let us know. Chris Todd was recently named the starting quarterback at Auburn, and he
The 8th Annual John Jarrard Concert
All-Star Line-up For 8th Annual John Jarrard Concert Greetings folks...today I got an announcement from my friend The University of Georgia's read more...
Bloodkin Performing Gram Parsons Guitar Pull In Waycross
Athens Rockers Pay Homage To Gram Parsons Along with a plethora of other dates, the mighty
Black Crowes Move Up Release Date of Before The Frost...Until The Freeze
Before The Frost...Until The Freeze Due Out August 31 The read more...
GRITZ Loses Another Dear Friend: Barry Trotter Has Lost His Battle With Cancer
I just received word from Tommy Talton that our mutual friend Barry Trotter lost his hard fought battle with cancer this morning (Aug 10, 2009). Barry was the husband of Terry Reeves of Music Matters Entertainment who books Talton's band, Jimmy Hall, Tommy Crain & The read more...
Honorary Southern Artist: Jerry Garcia Aug. 1, 1942- Aug. 9, 1995
Honorary Southerner Jerry Garcia: 14 Years Ago Today Truly an honorary southerner…
Summer Tour Notes Volume 6: Drive By Truckers Righteous Path Tour
Tour Kicks Off In Nashville August 6 "Ain't bitching bout the things That aren't in my grasp Just trying to hold steady
News From Athens, Georgia
Music, Food And Film in The Classic City Upcoming news out of Athens, Georgia…on August 18,
Widespread Panic's Official 2008 Induction Into Georgia Music Hall of Fame
Official 2008 Induction of Widespread Panic Into Georgia Music Hall of Fame Last summer
Automatic Y'all: Weaver D's Guide To The Soul
Weaver D’s Guide To The Soul "I'm going to be 'Automatic for the People." -Vice read more...
Orrin Hatch's Folly: Senator, College Football Is About Conferences, Not Teams
After concluding Senate hearings about the BCS, Senator Orrin Hatch wrote an op-ed piece that appeared on ESPN.com. Here's a selection of that article: During the June 7 read more...
Widespread Panic & Drive By Truckers Raffle
Rock N Raffle Benefiting Nuçi’s Space Greetings Folks, this just came straight from Widespread Panic's office... (Athens, Ga.) A new Web read more...
Summer Tour Notes Volume 3: Panic, Crowes, Dylan
Summer Tour Notes Volume 3 Tonight The Black Crowes and
Q & A with Don Chambers (On The Way To Macon)
An Interview with Athens Musician Don Chambers I just got off the phone with Athens musician Don Chambers. Don is driving to Macon this afternoon read more...
Time Flies Like An Arrow
“Time read more...
Georgia Theatre Ashes To Ashes
Morning Fire Destroys Georgia Theatre The Latest From Athens-Banner Herald:
Athens' Georgia Theatre Burns Down
Athens, Georgia's Venerable Georgia Theatre Burns Down Bad news today out of Athens. The venerable
The Long Awaited Dave Schools Interview
Interview with Widespread Panic's Thunderous Bassist Tonight I just completed my recent Q & A with Dave Schools a couple of read more...
Dave Schools Talks About Success & Side Projects
Dave Schools Talks About Success & Side Projects In my long and extensive interview with
The Drive By Truckers' Fine Print
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Drive-By Truckers Polish Up Unreleased Songs For New Album The Fine Print (A read more...
A Talk with Patterson Hood about Murdering Oscar
The Drive-By Truckers' Frontman Discusses New Solo CD Yesterday I conducted an interview with
Final Excerpt From Dave Schools Interview
Last Dispatch On Dave Schools Interview On
Early Grooves with Dave Schools
Early Grooves with Dave Schools
Opening Lines of Interview with Widespread Panic's Dave Schools
Onset of Interview with Panic's Bassist A couple of weeks ago, I interviewed
Patterson Hood's Murdering Oscar (and other love songs)
Patterson Hood’s Murdering Oscar (and other love songs) On The Way
This Evening's Interview with Dave Schools
This Evening’s Interview with Dave Schools I just got off the phone with
A Glimpse Into Widespread Panic's Archive
Greetings, I'd like to point out Mystery And Manners' guide to Widespread Panic's new
Athens Benefit Concert for True Love Canine Rescue
Greetings On the first day of May. I thought I'd circulate some Athens, Georgia, music news. As well as
A Few Notes on Widespread Panic Night Two in Orange Beach
Notes On Widespread Panic Show In Orange Beach I just returned from the Gulf Coast where I saw
Matthew Stafford: #1 Pick or Bust? SEC Fans Have Doubts
Few players have a cloud of doubt on them as thick as Matthew Stafford's. Where did these clouds come from? Some have chalked it up to the standard over-analysis during the overly long NFL Draft period that lasts from the end of the college football season to the third read more...
A New (Media) Day Dawning for the SEC
We ran across this video recently, and we thought we'd put it up for everyone to view. It ran at the end of Raycom Sports final SEC game during this past SEC basketball tournament in Tampa. We all know about the SEC's new ESPN deal
Talks With Widespread Panic Archivist & Dust To Digital's Lance Ledbetter
Plans to Interview WSP Archivist & Dust To Digital's Lance Ledbetter Greetings Folks, I hope everyone enjoyed the Easter holiday. read more...
Buffalo Roaming: Down to Athens for the Tommy Talton CD Release Party
We had been looking forward to this little road trip for quite some time. Tommy Talton and his band were having a CD release party at The Melting Point in Athens, Georgia, and it was sure to read more...
Atlanta's Dust To Digital Celebrates Grammy & New Box Set Last Night
Dust to Digital’s Atlanta Grammy Celebration & Release Party A few short notes as a prelude to an upcoming larger read more...
A Call From Bruce Burch
A Call From The University of Georgia's Bruce Burch My amigo
Bloodkin's Daniel Hutchens Writes A Note On Swampland
Daniel Hutchens Pens Ode To Swampland There's too many articles, interviews, reviews I'm working on to mention them all now in a list. However, I did put up read more...
Daniel Hutchens' New Athens Sideband
Daniel Hutchens’ New Athens Sideband On Tuesday I spoke with my old friend
Billy Gillispie's Fate Could Send Big Ripples Throughout the SEC and the Footprint
Mark Wiedmer at the Chattanooga Time Free Press has it right. If Billy Gillispie gets fired, it will create a coaching shakeup around the Swampland read more...
Patterson Hood Shows Announced & Other Athens Music News
Patterson Hood Prepares for a Solo Venture This Summer The Drive read more...
Chuck Leavell Interviews Widespread Panic's John Bell
A Stone Interviews John Bell The great
Part Four of Interview with Bloodkin's Eric Carter
Eric Carter Interview Part Four Here’s the long-awaited Part Four of my interview with Bloodkin’s
Quarter Notes: Derek Trucks welcomes Bobby Whitlock; Brothers of The Southland Arrive; Tommy Talton Band Rocks
The Derek Trucks Band welcomed a very special read more...
Big Medicine Come Soon
"Beyond the horizon, in the Springtime or Fall Love waits forever for one and for all." --Bob Dylan Greetings read more...
Bloodkin's Eric Carter Interview Part Three
Eric Carter Interview Part Three In Part Three read more...
Bloodkin's Eric Carter Interview Part Two
Eric Carter Interview Part Two In Part One with read more...
Interview with Bloodkin's Eric Carter: Part One
Eric Carter Interview Part One On the heels of the release of their new CD--
Special Guest William Tonks
Today the venerable William Tonks makes a guest appearance on Mystery And Manners. Even among guitar players,
SEC vs ACC: Clemson and South Carolina Try to Make the Palmetto State Relevant
In continuing our look at the states with both ACC and SEC teams, we move to the Palmetto State, where a ton of changes occurred in the offseason.
SEC vs ACC: Georgia and Georgia Tech Battle for Peach State Supremacy
With recruiting classes signed and spring practices approaching, it’s a good time to look at states in the Swampland Footprint that share SEC and ACC teams. We’re going to start in the Peach State, where a long time
The Clock is Ticking for Spurrier at South Carolina
As we continue to take a post-Signing Day look at the coaches and programs in our Swampland Footprint, it’s an interesting time to examine the state of the South Carolina program under Steve Spurrier. An SEC legend as a player and coach at Florida, Spurrier has not yet read more...
Bloodkin's Daniel Hutchens Talks Songwriting
Daniel Hutchens Discusses Songwriting In this interview excerpt with
In Defense of Lane Kiffin: The SEC "Family Feud" with Urban Meyer
There is no other conference more proud of itself than the SEC. SEC fans from rival teams hate each other with a passion bordering on the pathological, but when success arrives, it is embraced not just for the winning team but for the conference at large.
Patterson Hood Performs at 5th Annual Robert Osborne Classic Film Festival
Athens Musicians Perform at Robert Osborne Classic Film Festival Tonight Patterson read more...
SEC Dominance - From the Field to Recruiting (And It Isn't Stopping Soon)
The reaction to Signing Day is always interesting as every coach in America is thrilled with their class while fans have mixed reactions to their school’s ranking and new players. Everyone that followed Wednesday's coverage saw plenty of ESPN's favorite big-market teams read more...
Xmas in February for Southern College Football Fans (SEC, Big 12, ACC, Big East)
It’s finally here! National Signing Day is upon us, and this is the time where quality programs establish themselves for the upcoming years. The welcoming of a new recruiting class energizes fans and provides coaches with the opportunity to show that their school will be-or read more...
Daniel Hutchens Reports On Bloodkin-Drive By Truckers Shows Last Weekend
Bloodkin's Daniel Hutchens Talks About Shows with The Truckers Last night I spoke with my old friend
Mack Brown and the Longhorns Must Judiciously Draw Talent from their Texas Base
Water is wet, the sky is blue, and the University of Texas is working on another top-notch recruiting class. The Longhorns Mine Their State's Natural Talent Base Most BCS schools try to comb their region (if not the read more...
UNC's Butch Davis Challenges the ACC to Rival the SEC
With the rapid approach of National Signing Day, we’ve focused recently on the critical lifeblood known as recruiting. One of the new players that has emerged in read more...
To Stewart Mandel, We Say, "SEC Coaching Dollars Make Sense"
Chalk SI.com's Stewart Mandel as the latest member of the national media that just doesn’t understand the culture of the SEC football landscape. Mandel's latest involves
Chris Robinson-The Jackdaw of Perception: From The Black Crowes to California Folk
Chris Robinson-The Jackdaw of Perception: From The Black Crowes To California Folk "Windswept stars blink and smile Another read more...
Lane Kiffin is Already Making an Impact on the SEC (and Paul Finebaum)
A few weeks ago, I wrote how I thought Tennessee and Lane Kiffin were going to be a great fit for each other. There was quite a bit of criticism for a major power in the SEC choosing a read more...
My Longstanding Love Affair with Guitar Magazines
Guest Appearance By William Tonks Today the venerable William Tonks makes a guest appearance on Mystery And Manners. Even among guitar players, William Tonks is called a "guitar read more...
A Conversation with The Drive By Truckers' Patterson Hood
A Call To Patterson Hood "I don't know God but I fear his wrath I'm trying to keep focused on the righteous path."
Booker T. Jones & The Drive By Truckers
Booker T & The Truckers Along with Neil Young & Bloodkin
R.E.M., Molly Hatchet, Atlanta, Athens and Buffalo: Eighties Memories
Someone mentioned R.E.M. during a conversation with me the other day, and it got my ol’ mind to reeling again. See, I am a die hard Southern Rocker, but I love many other types of music as well. R.E.M. is certainly not a Southern Rock band, yet they are totally
Tenth Annual Hannah's Buddies Charity Classic
Hanna's Buddies News The Tenth Annual Charity Classic Golf Event and silent auction called
Flannery O'Connor's Divine Grace
Flannery O’Connor’s Divine Grace “Necessity is the mother of several other things besides invention.”
The Drive By Truckers In The Studio
Drive By Truckers Enter Athens Studio 1/8/09 On Monday The
Ole Miss and LSU Cruise; Alabama and South Carolina Snooze
Overall it’s been a pretty good bowl season for the SEC, going 5-2 with Florida left to play in the National Title Game. The highlights include Mississippi and Houston Nutt getting a
Bloodkin: Working Class Heroes
Bloodkin: Working Class Heroes 1/3/09 …
Night Before The Bloodkin Show with Daniel Hutchens
Night Before The Bloodkin Show with Daniel Hutchens 1/2/09 Tomorrow night
Atlanta's Dust To Digital Earns Two Grammy Nominations
Dust To Digital Up For Two Grammy Awards 12/30/08 February’s Annual Grammy Nominations finds Lance Ledbetter’s
Lane Kiffin fits the Vols and the SEC
Tribal Fever did a great job of presenting the challenge that is coaching in the 21st century SEC. I wanted to focus on the Tennessee job where Phil read more...
A Stroke of the Brush: The Paintings of Shannon Runquist
The Paintings of Shannon Runquist 12/28/08 Born in Savannah, Georgia, during 1970,
The Drive By Truckers Prep For A Busy 2009
The Drive By Truckers Plan For A Busy 2009 12/27/08 Athens, Georgia’s own
Widespread Panic's New Year's Eve Bash
Georgia Homeboys Bring 2009 Into Denver 12/26/08 Unlike previous years where they play New Year's Eve shows in Atlanta, this read more...
On The Killing Floor With Bloodkin
On The Killing Floor With Bloodkin 12/22/08 "I stole the kisses When the bride was young With a razor blade
A Glimpse Into Mystery & Manners' Chuck Leavell Interview
Leavell Reveals New Website & Christmas Plans 12/10/08 Recently I interviewed Georgia tree farmer and Rolling Stones keyboardist
SEC and Big 12 Championship Game Reax
The college football regular season ended by giving us the matchup that made the most sense--the SEC Champion vs. the Big 12 Champion. The BCS title game should be a high-scoring, exciting affair and one that all of the fans in our Swampland footprint will appreciate. Florida will read more...
Saturday's Slate: Conference Championships
Here we are, after a week off due to technical difficulties, to find ourselves on the verge of crowning some conference champions and setting up the BCS Title teams. It has been a long and exciting year. Luckily for us, today's games have the potential to live up to the read more...
Swampland Footprint National Title: Big 12 vs. SEC
So it’s Oklahoma that gets the chance to represent the Big 12 South in Kansas City, and they will probably get a shot at the National title with a victory. Of read more...
December's Children
Mystery And Manners Dispatch: Notes on News, December’s Children and Into 2009 11/30/08 I hope everyone enjoyed read more...
Saturday's Slate: SEC vs. Big 12 South Looking Good!
After a season of many a wild ride, a little clarity emerged from last week's games. The SEC has their championship game set. The Big 12 is now down to three (maybe four) potential BCS participants. The rest of our TF conferences have a ways to go, but none of read more...
Snowman's Six-Pack of Reax from Saturday
1. After all of the Nick Saban drama last week in Baton Rouge, we finally got a close game from a SEC marquee matchup. Alabama and LSU staged a very hard-fought battle, but as we’ve written about so much this season in the SEC, the quarterback play was the difference. Alabama read more...
Saturday's Slate: The November Home Stretch Begins!
College football remains the Footprint's most compelling and spectacular sport. The 2008 season has delivered us yet again a roller coaster ride of sporting goodness. The stakes have been high all season. So far, at least two key programs (Tennessee and read more...
Falcons Do Not Need Hall's Drama
I found a headline in the AJC that absolutely astounded me in the wake of ex-Falcon DeAngelo Hall being released from the Raiders; “Should the read more...
End of an Era in Knoxville and the SEC
The Dean of SEC football coaches, Phillip Fulmer, announced on Monday that he would agree with the University of Tennessee’s decision for him no to return for the 2009 season. It was one of the
Snowman's Six-Pack of Reax from Saturday
1. Wow – what an instant classic in the Lonestar State. Texas Tech pulled off an amazing upset of #1 Texas with one second to go and sent their raucous fans read more...
Saturday's Slate: Top Games in Each Conference Will Decide Champions
Georgia and Florida in Jacksonville The World’s Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party has more at stake than ever – read more...
Snowman's Six-Pack of Reax from Saturday
1) The biggest difference between teams in the SEC this season is simply quarterback play. Alabama, Georgia, and Florida came into the season with experienced/quality signal callers, and they have been the class of the league. Lack of experience or just poor play at quarterback has read more...
Saturday's Slate: A Bit of Relative Calm Before the Storm
Although you can't take a week off in college football, this week seems like a palate cleanser before some of the biggest homestretch games are played. November will feature great game after great game and next week's
A Nice Weekend of Hate in the SEC
One of the most hate-filled rivalries in college football will see another chapter written on Saturday when the #2 Alabama Crimson Tide invade Knoxville to take on the Volunteers. The “Third read more...
Saturday's Slate: BCS Busters vs. Disciplined Talent
Last week was a lesson in symmetry. Many teams met on the field that looked like mirror images. Something had to give, and it did. 3 of the top 5 teams lost giving the nation a new number one, Texas, who beat Oklahoma in what was probably a top 10 of all time Red read more...
Widespread Panic News
Athens, Georgia Heroes Continue To Amaze 10/15/08 Yesterday I interviewed
Saturday's Slate: Symmetry Saturday
We've already been treated to upsets throughout the Tribal Fever landscape, but let's not forget that upsets require a precondition of disparity between teams, etiher real or imagined. This Saturday's games are of a different sort. It seems across the board that all read more...
Saturday's Slate: Picking Up The Pieces
Last week had USC losing on Thursday which appeared to set up big things for Georgia and Florida. Then, both stumbled last week, but both have a chance to redeem their season. This shapes up to be another great season filled with surprises as another team with destiny read more...
Saturday's Slate: Ding Dong, The Witch Is Dead!
Of course, this means that the two perennial pretenders that stand in our way, Ohio State and USC, have both lost and neither appear to have the right kinds of games left to springboard back into the national title hunt. That should mean that the national championship game read more...
Randall Bramblett Performs Before Georgia vs. Alabama Football Game
Randall Bramblett performs Before UGA vs. UA Football Clash 9/23/08 Bruce read more...
2008 Georgia Music Hall of Fame Evening
All-Star Cast Shines at Georgia Music Hall of Fame Ceremony 9/21/08 What an evening...
Saturday's Slate: Barometer Games (Intra- and Inter-Conference)
This weekend marks the beginning of some classic early season rivalry games inside the SEC. TF has a rundown of all the key games. BEST INTRA-CONFERENCE GAMES
Chuck Leavell Praises Widespread Panic
Chuck Leavell Praises Widespread Panic 9/14/08 In my interview with the great
The SEC Upgrades To College Football 2.0
The nation at large now sees what the Footprint has long known - SEC Football is dominant and truly in its own league. Despite the hue and cry against it, the BCS has allowed sports fans to see top teams, by and large, go against each other on the field. Since read more...
Marc Ford and the Neptune Blues Club
Another Transmission From The Great Marc Ford 9/3/08 We've missed each other's messages for the past couple of days, but I finally spoke with read more...
Gamecocks Destruction of Wolfpack Serves Notice to Clemson and the ACC
Last night was the glorious kick off to the 2008 college football season. Teams from almost every conference had games allowing us some very early previews of what might be coming in the weeks ahead. Everyone now knows about the
Randall Bramblett Week Continues: The GRITZ Interview
It is a special day here at Swampland.com. I finally got the Randall Bramblett interview I have wanted to get for several years now, and just in time to promote his excellent new read more...
Randall Bramblett Week Kicks Off at Swampland.com
Hi guys. I hope you will check out my review of the new CD from Randall Bramblett, Now It's Time. It is a cooker. Randall recently had a big
From Athens, Georgia To Jerry Wexler
From Athens, Georgia To Jerry Wexler: A Feast of Friends… 8/16/08 There’s not much time to write this read more...
Fun Music Videos: Winters Brothers, Danny Joe Brown, Charlie Daniels Band and Drive By Truckers with Kelly Hogan
Just for fun, I thought I'd post some very cool YouTube videos. I hope y'all dig 'em. Keep it Real. Keep it Southern. Buffalo
A Humorous Comparison of College Football Between the South and the North
As our beloved college football season nears, we at Tribal Fever thought everyone should read this comparison between college football in the South versus our Northern counterparts. (This has been making the rounds via email so many of you might have already seen it - read more...
The 80 Miles Between Athens & Atlanta
Mystery And Manners Highlights Athens and Atlanta, Georgia 8/9/08 Once again, I’d like to shine a read more...
Widespread Congratulations To Our Own James Calemine
I'd like to personally congratulate my friend and fellow Swampland writer James Calemine. Widespread Panic read more...
Widespread Induction & Where The Buffalo Roam
Mystery And Manners’ Newsworthy Stories of The Day 8/6/08 …Widespread Induction & Where The Buffalo Roam…
Widespread Panic Set For Induction To Georgia Music Hall of Fame
Widespread Panic Will Be Inducted To Georgia Music Hall of Fame In September 7/13/08 The Athens, Georgia, band
Is 8 Wins The SEC's New Over/Under For Coaching Success?
An interesting debate was sparked last week when the University of Tennessee announced it had extended Coach Phillip Fulmer’s contract: What is an read more...
Midnight Shakedown
Midnight Shakedown: Renaldo & Clara, Marc Ford & Widespread Panic...And Beyond 6/28/08 "Odds and Ends Odds and read more...
...A Dog Day Afternoon...
Georgia Falls In College World Series...Random Notes... 6/25/08 The Fresno State Bulldogs beat The Georgia Bulldogs tonight 6-1 in the read more...
The Cities That Gave Us Southern Rock
I find it interesting just how many of our greatest Southern Rockers come from the same cities. Especially our number one city for Southern Rock, Jacksonville, Florida. Check out our list of the Top Ten read more...
With Leadership In Flux, the BCS Proves Its Worth to the Big East
Tribal Fever will never stop its defense of the greatest sport in our Footprint - college football. How a sport that has record ratings and revenue would ever be under scrutiny is beyond us, but we believe the heart of that line of criticism lies in its "limited" read more...
Duke Over Notre Dame: College Sports Are Still The King Down South
Since the SEC just wrapped up its meetings down in Destin, Tribal Fever thought it would be a good time to check in. College sports are the glory of The Footprint, and the rest of the nation is taking notice. The significance of yesterday's news that Notre Dame's AD read more...
South Dominates College Baseball
by Patrick Snow There is one more week of college baseball before the conference tournaments, and the teams in our Swampland footprint are looking very strong. I had the pleasure this past weekend to attend a great 3-game series between Vanderbilt and Georgia. The Bulldogs read more...
SEC Football Update, Memphis Style!
Ron Higgins was on fire over the weekend. He's one of the best writers about SEC football newspaper writers outside of Tony Barnhart. (For those of you just finding out about Ron, please
...The Kentucky Derby In Athens, Georgia...
Athens, Georgia…May 3, 2008…The Kentucky Derby… “When you’re sitting back In your rose pink read more...
Music Maker Relief Foundation & Dust-To-Digital
Music Maker Relief Foundation & Dust-To-Digital Preserve The Oldest Traditions 5/2/08 The North Carolina-based
Why Swampland Sports Loves the BCS
Despite winning back to back national titles in football, the SEC susre seems to hate the BCS. Lately, this hatred has been reaching a new level. It all started when University of Georgia President Michael F. Adams announced a proposal for
Widespread Panic In Orange Beach, Alabama
Widespread Panic On The Beach 4/19/08 Morning Folks, Last night proved a fine night. The weather here in Orange Beach, Alabama, is read more...
...Night Before Widespread Panic On The Beach...
A Prelude To The Spectacle 4/17/08 Before I take off for the three
Snowflakes: What Are SEC Football Critics Going To Do Now?
With spring football in full gear, it’s never too early to look ahead to the upcoming season. We at Swampland have focused many times on the ongoing theme of the SEC “arms race” in America’s toughest conference schedule to navigate. With Florida and LSU read more...
Outward Bound
“The eye and mind would be functioning as a camera. The writing would be selective and necessarily interpretive—but once the image was written the words would be final.” --Hunter read more...
A Shot of the Blues
A Daily Dose of Authenticity...Keith Richards...James Burton...MLK...Widespread Panic...The Black Crowes...Jim Dickinson... 4/4/08 As Spring read more...
Time To Panic
A Journey To The Classic City For A Meeting With Seasoned Professionals 3/29/08
Bound For Glory
“I was thirteen when I went to live with a family of thirteen people in a two-room house. I was going on fifteen when I got me a job shining shoes, read more...
Snowflakes: Why SEC Hoops is No Longer Just Kentucky
With Mississippi and Florida both dropping first round games in the conference tournament, the SEC contingent for the Big Dance seems to be set at five (TN, UK, VU, Ark., MSU). While there’s an outside chance the Rebels could get an at-large berth, the rest of the weekend will read more...
Midnight in the Garden of Good Southern Rock: Late Night Tea & TV
I love it when things like this happen. I was sitting up late tonight writing, as I often do. Beside me a nice hot cup of ralaxation tea that tasted as good as it smelled. My wife had brewed it up for me before she headed off to bed. She's good that way. What would I do read more...
Down In the Groove with Widespread Panic's Todd Nance (PART TWO)
Down In The Groove with Widespread Panic's Todd Nance (Part Two) 2/26/08 I'd like to announce the second part of Mystery And Manners' read more...
Down In The Groove with Widespread Panic's Todd Nance (Part One)
Mystery & Manners Interview with Widespread Panic's Todd Nance (Part One) 2/25/08 I'd like to mention Mystery And read more...
Obama, Spooner and a Drive By Southern Rock and Roller
Back in 1991 I was Executive Editor and co-founder of an alternative press entertainment publication called EDGE in Greenville, SC. We had a lot of good times during those years, interviewing national and local music heroes and writing reviews and editorial read more...
Another Call To Harry Crews & Beyond
...An Ongoing Pursuit & Recording of the Mystery And Manners Saga...Widespread Panic...Jim Dickinson...Harry Crews and beyond... 2/19/08 “In the time I was with read more...
Widespread Soul
“When after all, it was read more...
Snowflakes: SEC Hoops
* The Kentucky Wildcats finally look to be playing the kind of winning ball that Big Blue fans expect. It took a while to adjust to new coach Billy Gillispie (and his gameday practices), but now the ‘Cats are sitting only one game behind SEC East leader Tennessee. In a recent read more...
Adventures In The (Pig) Skin Trade On Super Bowl Sunday
Roving Notes On Super Bowl Sunday 2/3/08 "There is some kind of back-door connection in my head between Super Bowls and The Allman read more...
Snowflakes: SEC Hoops
by Patrick Snow * Someone forgot to tell 2-time National Champion Florida that they were supposed to struggle this season. After winning their second NCAA title in a row, the Gators lost the top six players off their depth chart and lost their coach for a day or two. read more...
...A Rising Tide of Georgia Rock And Roll...
A Rising Tide of Georgia Rock And Roll: David Barbe, The Drive By Truckers, Bloodkin & The Black Crowes 1/10/08 "Every read more...
...Into The Deep...
Mystery & Manners Dispatch 12/05/07 Today marks the birthday of southern writer
TF Rivalry Week Preview
Rivalry games define college football. More than bowl games or even conference championships, a win against your rival means bragging rights for a year. That is why this weekend's game can often be the hardest to call. A team with a losing record can suddenly make read more...
TF Saturday Preview: The Year of Transition Nears An End
The wild year continues. In many ways this was just a sign of the transition college football around the Footprint has experienced. In some ways, it shouldn't be as surprising as it has been. Nick Saban's arrival lit a fire under everyone. The ante was read more...
TF Saturday Preview: Everything's Still To Be Decided
Patrick Snow has it right. This year's season of college football has shown that it is one of the most compelling sports to follow as a fan, especially in the Footprint.
Mystery & Manners Dispatch From San Francisco
Dispatch From San Francisco 11/3/07 Notes written on a back porch facing Mt. Tamalpais, known to locals as "Mt. Tam". I arrived read more...
Tommy Talton Band Takes it to the Melting Point
Both The New York Times and Rolling Stone Magazine recently named Athens, Georgia as the number one music scene in read more...
TF Saturday Preview: Pole, er.. Bowl Position
If you aren't a Florida or Georgia fan, this weekend might be a good one to spend with the kids. This is a pretty thin weekend for good games in the Footprint. That's why Athlon's college football preview spends most of its time previewing games outside our read more...
Athens Rocks Tonight (Georgia, Not Greece)
Well, here I am back in Athens, Georgia at The Foundry Inn and Spa, a really cool and historical hotel that also features one of the nicest listening rooms I have seen lately, The Melting Point. Jill and I made the trip down from Greenville his morning under sunny skies, all read more...
TF's Saturday Preview: Act Like You've Been There Before!
It's the old saying when a player celebrates a little too much - act like you've been there before. This rules seems to also hold true to some of our Footprint's winning neophytes. When programs are new to winning, they don't know how to handle themselves. That's read more...
Ryan Bingham And The Drive By Truckers Hit the Road
Ryan Bingham and The Drive By Truckers Hit The Road 10/17/07 Ryan Bingham and the
A Day In The Life of A Great American Guitarist (Marc Ford) PART TWO
A Day In the Life of A Great American Guitarist Part Two 10/15/07
TF's Saturday Preview: The History Behind SEC Dominance
Tribal Fever would like to start this weekend's festivities by directing everyone to a fantastic series on ESPN.com about the SEC. Which leads us to this week's focus - the historical read more...
James Calemine Hangs Out with Marc Ford
I'd like to take a minute to make sure that all "friends of GRITZ" drop by all of the other sections of SWAMPLAND for some very cool reading. Case in point, brother James Calemine, a long time writer for GRITZ as well read more...
Tribal Fever's Weekend Slate (10/6/2007)
Let's start with this week's College Football Preview from Athlon. Swampland's own Patrick Snow hosts each week. (Read Patrick's new column on the state of baseball in read more...
Widespread Panic Fall Tour Underway with New Member Jimmy Herring
Jimmy Herring may be the king of all "hired guns" in Southern rock. He jumped in and filled the Dickey Betts vacancy in
Upset Saturday, or not?
Patrick Snow mentioned in his last column that he was looking ahead to next week's games. Based on yesterday's game result, so were too many top 25 teams in the Footprint. TF Upsets read more...
Swampland welcomes Tribal Fever!
It was only a matter of time before Swampland Sports starting covering the colleges in earnest. Today marks the start of Tribal Fever, Swampland.com's dispatch dedicated to college sports in the South. We have new features up including Patrick Snow's latest read more...
Autumnal Traditions and Emotional Rescue in Tuscaloosa
Autumnal Traditions and Emotional Rescue in Tuscaloosa 9/23/07 As Georgia's kicker lined up to miss the kick, sending the Georgia-Alabama game read more...
Stuart Collins, Road Manager for Randall Bramblett Dies
Athens - We are sad to announce the death of Jeffrey Stuart Collins, 46, who died on September 15, 2007 from an apparent heart attack. Stuart was the road manager of the Randall Bramblett Band of Athens. Survivors in addition to his mother include his read more...
Swampland Sports Thursday Links
Just a few quick hits here on Thursday.... Snowman's Latest Column Patrick Snow's new column is up. As a Vol himself, it pains him that he's calling out Phil Fulmer read more...
Patterson Hood Song In New Ray McKinnon Film
Patterson Hood Song In New Ray McKinnon Film 9/12/07 Patterson Hood read more...
Swampland Sports Six-Pack for the week ending 9/2/07
Your weekly filter for the top sports stories around the South 1. Our biggest story of the week was the biggest in the nation as the whole country has now learned about read more...
Breakfast With Paul, Drinks With Dan
8/19/07 Yesterday proved noteworthy. I met up with southern writer Paul Hemphill at
The Black Crowes Complete New Studio Album
Atlanta’s own, The Black Crowes will begin mixing their new album in September for a Spring 2008 release. The Crowes recently recorded 16 new songs at
...A Call To Harry Crews...
7/27/07 One of my heroes remains the Georgia writer Harry Crews. Some of Crews' books such as Feast of Snakes, Florida read more...
CD and DVD releases for week of July 3, 2007
Reissues Asleep At The Wheel Western Standard Time/Big Wheel (Evangeline) Buddy read more...
Hotlanta Under Red Skies & Electric Blue
5/28/07 ...No rain in sight here in Hotlanta...the smoke from the wild fires in South Georgia creeped up this way last week...lingering like some biblical haze in the southern read more...
On The Road in Athens for Marshall Tucker at Georgia Theatre
The last time I was at The Georgia Theatre in Athens, Georgia was several years ago. We had made the hour and a half trek from Greenville to see a show by Gov’t Mule with special guest John Scofield and opener Chris read more...
See R.E.M. Inducted Into Hall Of Fame, Live On VH1 Classic
For the first time ever, VH1 Classic will air the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony LIVE on Monday, March 12 at 8:30 PM/ET. Music fans will get to see and hear Van Halen, R.E.M., Patti Smith, The Ronettes, and Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five read more...
Rich Robinson, Luther Dickinson, and Patti Smith
1/21/07 On Friday, January 19, Circle Sound performed at the Bowery Ballroom in New York City. Circle Sound comprises Rich Robinson (Black Crowes), Luther Dickinson (North Mississippi All Stars), Sven Pippien (Black Crowes), Bill Dobrow (Hookah Brown), and Rob Clores (Black read more...