Same old place, same old city
What can I do? I'm falling in love
I'm just an old hound dog
Roaming around, door to door
I've got all this and heaven above
Oh, Atlanta, I hear you callin'
I'm coming back to you one fine day
No need to worry
There ain't no hurry
I'm on my way back to Georgia
I'm on my way back to Georgia
I got a feeling in me
When I remember all those crazy days and crazier nights
Can't you hear the music playing?
You must have heard them saying
"We're gonna rip 'em up and light up the night"
Oh, Atlanta . . .
~ Mick Ralphs
You learn something new every day. This version of "Oh, Atlanta" (not to be confused with the Little Feat song of the same name) is a cover of a Bad Company song! I did not know that! The one linked above is from 1995's Now That I've Found You: A Collection, and also appears on 2002's Live by Alison Krauss and Union Station, a group that has been together . . . well, forever. I am fortunate to have seen them a couple of times. I always say that if angels had voices, they would sound like Alison Krauss. (And Aaron Neville, too.)
That's Jerry Douglas on dobro. Hands down, he is the best dobro player in the world. He's played on and off with Alison for many years.
By the time this is posted, I will be in the air, headed for Atlanta. Unless I get denied boarding, a strong possibility since I purchased United's new "Basic Economy," which is a cheaper, more restrictive version of Steerage. No carry-on, no assigned seat (and you know what that means). With any luck at all, I will be wedged in between two very large people in a middle seat with a tiny overnight bag crammed under the seat in front of me. But not to worry! There will still be a tiny bag of "Savory Snacks" for me to enjoy. "Savory" makes everything seem better.
I remember all those crazy days and crazier nights. Although I've puzzled my way through the Atlanta Airport several times and driven through Georgia on my way north or south more than a few times, there was one visit to Atlanta that I do remember. It was back in my Deadhead Daze. I was a passenger in a van full of music lovers headed to see The Grateful Dead at the Omni Theatre. I think it was 1974. Of course, as memory is prone to trick us, maybe it was The Who that I saw at the Omni, and maybe it was 1976. Either way, what I remember clearly is camping at Stone Mountain. Have you ever been there? Carved into the granite mountain are the likenesses of three Confederate figures: Jefferson Davis, Robert E. Lee, and Stonewall Jackson. Absent today's controversy, the carvings were impressive, but now I see that there is some buzz about removing them. Hmmmm . . . not as easy as removing a statue in a park! These guys are carved into the granite! My research also revealed that Stone Mountain was the site of the revival of the KKK in 2015. Yikes!
Well, there is no Stone Mountain planned for this visit. Just good company, my guy, and a solar eclipse that should blow our minds. All this and heaven above.
Oh, Atlanta!
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