Talk:Sweet Home Alabama

message: In Agreement with the posts above
   
First of all a listener would need to read and listen to 
the lyrics of the songs.  Much like a poem it would be
a wise measure to digest the directions one could interpret
Sweet Home Alabama before posting something publicly. 
Whomever wrote the interpretation on Wikipedia could be
entirely incorrect?  How would you feel as a Southerner
reading Neil Young's lyrics in a time of turmoil (Vietnam, 
Nixon) and following civil rights movement?
If you study the economy and industrialization of 
Birmingham (steel, manufacturing) a small Pittsburgh, PA 
in some ways, Neil Young's comments seem too generalized.
Write a song about Eugene Bull Connor and his police force, 
or Wallace himself.  Read parts of Young's songs below.  
It's good to think about and healthy to discuss our 
history and culture in our songs.  There are some other
powerful songs on civil rights type themes:  Dylan James Meredith,
Emmet Till, Birmingham Bombing (Joan Baez, beautiful song)...
Here are some lyric samples.  WIKIPEDIA, get some help!
Chorus to Neil Young's Southern Man
Southern man
better keep your head
Don't forget
what your good book said
Southern change
gonna come at last
Now your crosses
are burning fast
Southern man
I heard screamin'
and bullwhips cracking
How long? How long?
Lyric Samples from Neil Young Alabama
Alabama, you got
the weight on your shoulders
That's breaking your back.
Your Cadillac
has got a wheel in the ditch
And a wheel on the track
Oh Alabama.
Can I see you
and shake your hand.
Make friends down in Alabama.
I'm from a new land
I come to you
and see all this ruin
What are you doing Alabama?
You got the rest of the union
to help you along
What's going wrong?
Strange fact: "George Wallace was the governor of Alabama when this was released. He loved this, especially the line, "In Birmingham they love the governor." He made the band honorary Lieutenant Colonels in the state militia."
There is some lively discussion at this website:
http://www.songfacts.com/detail.lasso?id=1702
And, "Born in the USA" was used by the Reagan campaign in 1984, even though the lyrics were clearly critical of American society....  —Preceding unsigned comment added by 207.69.139.141 (talk) 19:15, 16 August 2008 (UTC)
replies: text: If the song clearly disapproved of Wallace, why leave it in the backing vocals?  The fact is the two definitive statements about him are: (1)"In Birmingham they love the governor", and (2) "and the governor's true". I think that's pretty positive.--Jack Upland (talk) 08:40, 17 May 2012 (UTC)

text: So the song's message is this: Alabama is a great place, but it's got plenty of racists, and we disapprove of that, and we love those black musicians, but how dare Neil Young criticise it, and by the way what was wrong with the Watergate burglary.--Jack Upland (talk) 10:28, 16 January 2013 (UTC)
replies: text:  No, the song's message is this: Alabama is more diverse than the very vocal racist segment would lead you to believe. Please don't generalize us for the actions and thoughts of some ugly people. Yes Birmingham loves the racist, horrible governor. We don't judge all northerners because of Watergate, please don't lump our band/all Alabamans with Birmingham. Jaweldon (talk) 05:20, 28 July 2014 (UTC)
replies: text: OK, you basically made that up. No one has ever said that white people are ugly. Look at Kim Kardashian or Nicole Richie. No one has said the Birmingham is the only place that voted for Wallace. No one has said Nixon was a Northerner: he was from California. Gordon Liddy was from Pluto. No one has blamed Northerners for Watergate. No one has said the band was from Alabama. That's like saying a Nazi song is pro-Jewish because Jews invented music. No, it's not... because it makes even less sense.--Jack Upland (talk) 10:27, 1 February 2018 (UTC)
thread_title: Off topic chat

message: I have listened to the Howlin Wolf album 'Message to the Young' which appeared in 1971 and the song 'If I were a bird' sounded like Sweet Home Alabama from Lynyrd Skynyrd. Since it was recorded three years earlier I wonder if it was not 'stolen' from Howlin Wolf.  —Preceding unsigned comment added by 195.169.203.36 (talk) 22:13, 16 June 2010 (UTC)
replies: text: So Howlin Wolf attacked Neil Young first?--Jack Upland (talk) 11:24, 15 September 2015 (UTC)
thread_title:  Is this song based on a Howlin Wolf Track? 

message: I'm from the south.  The word "swamper" is used in the oil field to refer to a crew member who is there for general labor, a helper.  The article says they were called "swamper" due to their "swampy" sound.  I doubt that is what was actually meant.  — Preceding unsigned comment added by Jcacy00 (talk • contribs) 13:31, 15 August 2014 (UTC)
thread_title:  Swamper 

message: The comment at the very end of the "Controversy" section of this segment concerning this should be removed. As a professional musician of 40+ years, I hear no distinct correlation between the two songs. The lines "You're Lookin' Fine" and "Sweet Home Alabama" don't even have the same syllabic rhythm. The words "note for note" would imply that the melody was stolen from this song, as "notes" are what constitute the structure of a melody, and not even the cascade of the verse lines are the same. This comment should be deemed bogus and removed.  — Preceding unsigned comment added by 66.210.102.194 (talk) 17:48, 3 November 2015 (UTC)
replies: text: .  It should not be added unless it is accompanied by a reliable source.  GoingBatty (talk) 05:01, 4 November 2015 (UTC)
thread_title:  The Similarity Between "Sweet Home Alabama" and "You're Lookin' Fine" by the Kinks