In this essay, we will first explore the notion of "subculture" and then consider how "rednecks" constitute a subculture largely neutralized by the dominant culture. From there, we will examine how the southern culture and music of the Redneck Underground subvert the dominant culture as is seen in the work of one band, the Drive-by Truckers.

Richard Hebdige's study of British punks, Subculture: The Making of Style, remains one of the primary treatments of subculture. For Hebdige, subcultures "represent a solution . . . to particular problems and contradictions," disrupting and violating the rules of hegemonized culture. As such, they become a source of anxiety (81). He writes: "[S]ubcultures express forbidden contents (consciousness of class, consciousness of difference) in forbidden forms (transgressions of . . . codes, law breaking, etc.). . . . [T]hey are often and significantly defined as unnatural'" (Hebdige 91-92).

When these ideological ruptures occur, the hegemony is driven to what Hebdige terms recuperation, a process through which "the fractured order is repaired and the subculture incorporated as a diverting spectacle within the dominant mythology . . ." (94). Recuperation generally takes two forms. The first is the commodity form, "the conversion of subcultural signs (dress, music, etc.) into mass-produced objects"; the second is the ideology form, or the "'labeling' and re-definition of deviant behaviour by dominant groups" (94).

Redneck subculture has evolved for almost two centuries, and defining the term "redneck" is an uneven business. First, it is important to distinguish the difference between "redneck" and "white trash." Annalee Newitz and Matt Wray explain, "White trash . . . refers to actually existing white people living in (often rural) poverty, while at the same time it designates a set of stereotypes and myths related to the social behaviours, intelligence, prejudices, and gender roles of poor whites. That is, white trash is an identity generated in the dialectic of base and superstructure" (7). Certainly rednecks share some of these traits, but there are important distinctions--perhaps most central, redneck is bound to geography in a way that white trash isn't, for rednecks are tied to the South. (However, this has shifted with the commodification of redneck iconography.)

Always a label of derision, the term "redneck," too, has clear alignment with questions of class given that early rednecks were field laborers whose class was inscribed on their bodies because of their sunburned, or "red," necks. The Oxford English Dictionary's primary definition is consistent with today's understanding of "redneck": "A member of the white rural labouring class of the southern States; one whose attitudes are considered characteristic of this class; freq., a reactionary. Originally, and still often, a derogatory, but now also used with more sympathy for the aspirations of the rural American."

Some of the most recognized markers of redneck "style" (to use Hebdige's term) are

• Trailer houses surrounded by junk, especially broken-down cars;
• Men who are sloppy and overweight from too much beer and greasy food;
• Women with big-hair, tight clothes, too much make-up, and too many children;
• Sexual (often incestuous), profane, and vulgar behavior
• Poverty and ignorance; and
• Racism.

Consider, for example, James Dickey's Deliverance, a primary source of contemporary redneck stereotypes. The locals are little more than dangerous savages, and these figures, as seen in popular culture, are always "other." Moreover, they obscure questions of class and economics that are at the heart of redneck subculture.

With this in mind, let us turn to the dominant culture's "recuperation" of rednecks.

First, the term has been rendered almost meaningless. For example, Jeff Foxworthy of You Might Be a Redneck If . . . fame defines a redneck as totally lacking in sophistication, with no regard to geography or income" (Hall). (In fact, Tom Anderson, executive producer of Foxworthy's short-lived tv show, observes "Redneck has become so generic. If you're a college kid drinking beer, suddenly you're a redneck. If you fish, you're a redneck--and there are a lot of doctors who fish" [qtd. in Hall]).

Second, "redneck" has been recuperated through commodification. Consider Nashville's commercially viable (and carefully groomed), self-proclaimed redneck David Lee Murphy. Murphy explains,

This has much the same effect as the antics of redneck comedians such as Jeff Foxworthy and Cledus T. Judd. Foxworthy, like Murphy, has a safe appearance and demeanor. Judd's look, outrageous, with his beer belly, tasteless clothes, and goofy antics, renders the redneck no more than a video buffoon as he lusts after Shania Twain or provides a visual component for Alan Jackson's cover of "Pop a Top."

The Redneck Underground music scene is not so safe, however.

In the early 1990s, the "Redneck Underground" emerged in the Atlanta/Athens bar scenes. This network of bands and clubs has "no orthodoxy, other than a binding sense of Southern identity that embraces tradition with reverence and gooses it with tomfoolery" (Dollar). Cornerstones of the early Redneck Underground are Deacon Lunchbox, Slim Chance and the Convicts, and Greg Dean Smalley. The Redneck Underground is diverse, including bands such as the Blacktop Rockets, the Vidalias, the Diggers, Southern Culture on the Skids, Speedbillies, and the Drive-by Truckers. Says Slim Chance (also known as James Kelly who's currently finishing his doctoral dissertation in psychology), "The Redneck Underground is like the punk movement to us . . . . It's a subculture that's taking us in a different direction" (Dollar).

Musically, the Redneck Underground defies the smooth production and commercial appeal of Hot Country--like David Lee Murphy. It's even, to an extent, outside the world of alt.country, a genre that prides itself on defying Nashville. For example, No Depression consistently gives Underground bands short shrift.

Patterson Hood, lead singer of the Drive-by Truckers, explains, "I personally like the whole Redneck Underground thing. It's kinda funny. It's definitely the more belligerent of the alt.country scene. And I like belligerent" (O'Neill).

Such is the role of subculture.

In 1985, Patterson Hood, son of David Hood, a key session player in the original Muscle Shoals scene, met Mike Cooley at the University of North Alabama, and the two formed Adam's Housecat, a rootsy punk band that lasted until 1991.

In 1996, Hood got the idea for the Truckers, which ultimately were Hood (vocals, guitar), Mike Cooley (banjo, guitar), Adam Howell (bass), Matt Lane (drums), John Neff (pedal steel), and Barry Sell (mandolin). Hood does most of the writing and singing; his gravely voice is redneck through and through, and suffused with humor, hinting that the best way to handle the mess that is the world is to laugh about it, but never losing sight of the tragedy. In 1998, the Truckers released Gangstabilly with numbers like "Panties in Your Purse," "Demonic Possession," "18 Wheels of Love," and "The Living Bubba" (a tribute to Greg Dean Smalley). The unusual title gets to the very heart of the Truckers. As Hood explains, "You know gangsta rap? Well, we're sorta gangsta country" (Thompson). That is, the Truckers have taken another subculture, the very in-your-face gangsta rap and appropriated it to reflect their music, a point further reflected in the band's name. "Drive-by" is a term associated with rap music, a dangerous word; "truckers" gets back to the heart of country music and its tradition of rambling and truck driving. Moreover, it's an unconventional blending, for racism has long been a central element of the redneck stereotype.

While Gangstabilly met with generally positive reviews, its cover may have received even more attention. Jim Stacey's caricature highlights a number of redneck stereotypes: A lean younger man, complete with greasy hair, tattoos, cigarettes and beer, perches on the hood of his jalopy while groping the thigh of his redneck (well-fed) girlfriend with big hair, lots of make-up, and tight clothes. Hood observes, "[M]aybe because of the funny artwork, people respond to it and then in time see that there's something else there. If people miss some kind of profound message, that's fine. I'd rather just have fun with it" (Slatton).

Pizza Deliverance followed in 1999, adorned by songs like "Bulldozers and Dirt," "Too Much Sex, Too Little Jesus," "Zoloft," and "The President's Penis Is Missing"--and given the controversy of Stacey's first cover, the Truckers went with him again for their second disc. Here, however, the drawing is of an older working man, helping move the local Church of Christ to a new location. The visual juxtaposition is clear while the title makes fun of one of the most famous sources of redneck stereotypes, Dickey's Deliverance.

Currently, the Truckers are working on a full-length redneck rock opera, Betamax Guillitine, dealing with the mythology of the quintessential redneck band, Lynrd Skynrd.

As songs like "Bulldozers & Dirt" illustrate, the Truckers have a great sense of humor, but underneath it, they are dead serious when taking on the stereotype as well as the issues the stereotype too often makes light of. Perhaps Gregory Nicoll puts it best: "Hood sings about lowlifes and trailer trash not for cheap laughs, but for pathos and heartbreak." Their music is truly parodic.

Patterson Hood has said, "There's a lot of dark stuff in the world, but the best defense to live through it is honestly but with a sense of humor" (Thompson), a point seen in the dry humor pervading most of the Truckers' songs. The rocking "Nine Bullets" tells of a broken-hearted man determined to use the 9 bullets in his roommate's gun to solve his problems by shooting a slew of folks: his ex, his family, himself, and his roommate--it is his gun, after all. With "Too Much Sex (Too Little Jesus)," Hood assumes the voice of a radio evangelist, a raucous mandolin and upright bass bringing the fire and brimstone to his words. The preacher preys on insecure teens, telling them to "stop that dope smoking, stop that fornication / Take the Lord into your heart, and stop that masturbation." Instead, he says they need to send him money-a point he makes before a commercial break and promise of more drama from "another troubled teen." And a Hood-on-helium vocal brings home the point in the manic "Zoloft": The whole family-even the pit bull-is taking the anti-depressant, and now everyone's problems are miraculously gone. As the singer sums it up, "I'm so damned happy."

Some of Pizza Deliverance is more overtly political, calling attention to the reality of lower-class powerlessness. Cooley's angry "One of These Days" are the words of a son who finds himself caught in the same cycle that trapped his father: "Dropped out of school when he was just sixteen / Fell right into the tire plant, / Building the very thing that makes the asphalt sing / And put Alabama far behind you." Neither can escape. Similarly, in "Uncle Frank," Cooley personifies the displacement of a culture as he describes one man affected by the TVA's damming of the Tennessee River. Frank cannot find a place in this promised Eden; instead, he hangs himself, unable even to leave a note because of illiteracy.

And there is the Southern Gothic throughout. In the dark "Box of Spiders," Hood describes "Gran Gran," a death-obsessed woman who scared her grandson with tales of a box of spiders. But perhaps more unsettling is "Margo and Harold," the tale of a couple with deviant sexual and substance proclivities. The song is the monologue of a speaker explaining to his lover how terrified he is of the couple. However, that he's given in before is revealed as he confesses, "That night with Margo was a long time ago," thus calling into question whether the speaker fears Harold and Margo or himself. The slow, ominous bassline accompanied by a wicked mandolin, is almost hypnotizing, echoing the singer's conflicting fear and fascination.

Be warned: The Truckers like their whiskey straight. Songs like "The Company I Keep," "The President's Penis is Missing," and "The Night G.G. Allin Came to Town" take on a side of life that may make some listeners uncomfortable. Perhaps that's the point: We should be uncomfortable because the issues the Truckers call attention to, underneath the redneck trappings that some may find funny or offensive, are important but too often ignored--and the music is never less than first-rate.

In the end, the Truckers and the Redneck Underground represent a subculture that defies recuperation, one that threatens the dominant culture with, if not a monster truck, certainly a bulldozer and a guitar.

Works Cited

Dollar, Steve. "Redneck Underground: Real-life Country Spoken Here." Atlanta Journal and Constitution 11 Feb. 1994.

Drive-by Truckers. Gangstabilly. Ghostmeat Records.

---. Pizza Deliverance. Ghostmeat Records. SDR-003/GM-27.

Goad, Jim. The Redneck Manifesto.

Goodman, David. Modern Twang: An Alternative Country Music Guide and Directory. Nashville: Deacon, 1999.

Hall, C. Ray. "The Wholeredneck Thing." Courier-Journal 2 Oct. 1999.

Hartigan, John, Jr. "Unpopular Culture: The Case of 'White Trash'." Cultural Studies 11 (1997): 316-43.

Hebdige, Richard. Subculture: The Meaning of Style. New York: Methuen, 1979.

Himes, Geoffrey. "David Lee Murphy: Genuine Redneck Stuff." Country Music Jan./Feb. 1997: 44.

Hutcheon, Linda. A Poetics of Postmodernism.

Newitz, Annalee, and Matt Wray.

Nicoll, Gregory. "Steve McQueen for a Day: Down the Road with the Drive-by Truckers." Creative Loafing 13 May 1999.

O'Neill, John. Worcester Phoenix 12-19 Mar. 1999.

"Redneck." The Oxford English Dictionary.

Slatton, Jason. "Unchecked Redneck." Flagpole 20 May 1998.

Thompson, Matt. "Return from the American Ass-Whoopin'." Flagpole 24 Nov. 1999.

Drive-by Trucker Sites

The Official Drive-by Truckers Website

All DBTs graphics were taken from the DBTs Website.

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