01	Let There Be Rock						04:19
	02	Road Cases						02:43
	03	Women Without Whiskey						04:20
	04	Plastic Flowers On The Highway						05:05
	05	Cassie's Brother						04:58
	06	Life In The Factory						05:29
	07	Shut Up And Get On The Plane						03:39
	08	Greenville To Baton Rouge						04:12
	09	Angels And Fuselage						08:00

Date of US Release October 2001

Don't be deterred by the rather misleading title. Not a rock opera in the sense of Tommy or Jesus Christ Superstar, this sprawling double disc is more akin to a song cycle about Southern rock, in particular Lynyrd Skynyrd. Almost six years in the making, the Drive-By Truckers have created a startlingly intelligent work that proudly stands with the best music of their obvious inspiration. Largely written and conceived by lead trucker Patterson Hood (son of famed Muscle Shoals bassist David Hood), who sings the majority of the songs in a torn, ragged but emotionally charged twangy voice somewhere between Tom Petty and Rod Stewart, these 20 literate tracks encapsulate a remarkably objective look at what Hood calls ""the duality of the South."" Rocking with a lean hardness, the story unfolds over 90 minutes, but the savvy lyrical observations never overburden the songs' clenched grip. While bands like the similarly styled Bottlerockets have worked this territory before, never has a group created an opus that's thematically tied to this genre while objectively exploring its conceptual limitations. The two discs are divided into Acts 1 and 2; the first sets the stage by exploring aspects of an unnamed Southern teen's background growing up as a music fan in an environment where sports stars, not rock stars, were idolized. The second follows him as he joins his Skynyrd-styled dream band, tours the world, and eventually crashes to his death in the same sort of airplane accident that claimed his heroes. The Drive-By Truckers proudly charge through these songs with their three guitars, grinding and soloing with a swampy intensity recalling a grittier, less commercially viable early version of Skynyrd. A potentially dodgy concept that's redeemed by magnificent songwriting, passionate singing, and ruggedly confident but far from over-the-top playing, Southern Rock Opera should be required listening not only for fans of the genre, but anyone interested in the history of '70s rock, or even the history of the South in that decade. More the story of Hood than Skynyrd, this is thought-provoking music that also slashes, burns, and kicks out the jams. Its narrative comes to life through these songs of alienation, excess, and, ultimately, salvation, as seen through the eyes of someone who lived and understands it better than most.

Rereleased in 2002 by Lost Highway Records.

This is the one that put us on the map for most folks. A look at modern-day southern mythology, the rise and fall of Arena Rock, growing up in the seventies, and the ""duality of the Southern Thing"". Much of the album deals with the folk-lore surrounding the band Lynyrd Skynyrd and a man coming to terms with his own legacy. This was one of the most written about independent releases of the last decade (4 Stars from Rolling Stone and about 50 year-end Top Ten lists worldwide.), later picked up and rereleased by the fine folks at Lost Highway Records.

Drive-By Trucke