Decoration Day – Drive By Truckers

I don’t think I could ever write any post that aptly does this song justice, as it is an absolute masterclass in storytelling by Jason Isbell. (If you’re not familiar, he got his start with one of my favorite bands ever, the Drive-By Truckers.) I firmly believe that Mr. Isbell will go down as one of the greatest songwriters in history, if he is not already considered to be.

First, some history. “Decoration Day” is actually the original term for what would become what we know and recognize as Memorial Day, with origins in the Southland but certainly not exclusive to. The first official “Decoration Day” was acknowledged at Arlington National Cemetery on May 30th, 1868. It would actually remain “Decoration Day” officially until the late 1960s. The origins of the name, from what I have come to understand, come from the tradition with southern roots of decorating graves of veterans with flowers. I say all of that just to establish the impact of Isbell’s first line in the song

“It’s Decoration Day
And I’ve a mind to roll a stone on his grave”.

Isbell is telling a story from the point of view of a son who is caught in a Hatfield’s and McCoy’s style blood feud that his father began, and due to his last name, he is forced to be an unwilling participant. I could go through and break down each verse and give my interpretation, but I think y’all are better off listening for yourself. I normally don’t like to suggest reading lyrics while you listen to a song, especially on the first listen, but it might be beneficial to follow the story.

So, here’s the coolest part about this song. Up until a few days ago, I thought this song was just a great murder ballad, like Colter Wall’s “Kate McCannon” (more on that one in the future) or even something Marty Robbins would’ve sung. But guess what? It’s a true story! And Hollan Hill is actually Jason’s great uncle. Wow. He’s telling the story from the perspective not of his blood relative, but a victim of his great uncle. I’ll link the article I found most of this info from here if you are interested in a lot more of the history behind the song.

Lastly, I don’t want it to be lost on anyone that this murder happened in 1982. According to Isbell himself, and anyone familiar with the “good old boy” system, “Well, he needed killin’” was still a viable defense at the time in small-town Alabama.

Also, I know this is a Drive-By Truckers song and I only mentioned them once. Don’t you worry, this post was somewhat of a prelude to a longer-form piece I’m thinking about writing heavily featuring the Truckers.

Newspaper articles about the killing – https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=DGEeAAAAIBAJ&sjid=mcgEAAAAIBAJ&pg=2812%2C5668515

https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=DmEeAAAAIBAJ&sjid=mcgEAAAAIBAJ&dq=lawson%20hill%20hollan&pg=2033%2C5947654

Link to Truckers original version – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7i0a7ogCQAQ

Link to live Isbell solo version – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=555piXfwAXA

Truckers semi-reunion acoustic version live (my favorite version) – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fx_2NX_bZhk&list=PLYuXpM184pSZcwsQlXHtzDaXcauWo5VQd&index=5