Louisiana Dispatch Archives
...Anticipation for Quentin Tarantino's The Hateful Eight...
...Anticipation for Quentin Tarantino's The Hateful Eight... I just re-watched Quentin Tarantino's Django Unchained. It's been three years since Tarantino released a movie. I needed a break from revising stories, and decided to delve into his last read more...
View the BBC's Southern Rock Documentary on Swampland
Swampland has added the BBC's new Southern Rock Documentary to it front page. Go here to view it - Swampland Front Page
Life Lessons in The Big Easy by Martha Gragido
There’s something maternal about a train. It carries you where you need to go and rocks you along, sheltering as new horizons flash past your window. Places you’ve never been. Places that have never known the press of your weight. (The bathrooms on the train read more...
Reflections, Progressions & Horizons
"Will all your money buy you forgiveness? Will it keep you from sickness? Will it keep you from cold? Will all your money Keep you from madness?
A Modern Legacy of America's Finest Archivists
A Modern Legacy of America's Finest Archivists A treasure trove of old, obscure American music exists out there. Bits and pieces of lost American culture preserved between the grooves waits for any listener's ear. This
Alabama's Own Wickedly Spicy Wickles Pickles---Made in Dadeville, AL
2011 was the year of Alabama music, and 2012 is the year of Alabama food. Several months ago I wrote about two phenomenal products unique to Alabama:
Rebecca Meredith, Author of The Last of the Pascagoula, Has Alabama Roots
I discovered Rebecca Woods Meredith when I received a copy of her spellbinding novel, The Last of the Pascagoula read more...
Alabama Born, Auburn Educated Octavia Spencer Wins Golden Globe
The 2011 fall issue of the Auburn University alumni magazine featured a stunning photo of Octavia Spencer on the cover, not as Minny, the feisty maid in Tate Taylor's movie of Kathryn Stockett's The Help, but as Octavia Spencer, celebrated actress and a possible
Ike Stubblefield in 2012: New Orleans This Week
Ike Stubblefield In 2012 Ike Stubblefield knows his way around a keyboard. He commands respect in the music business. Ike has played keyboards for The Four Tops, read more...
Upcoming Billy Bob Thornton Films: Baytown Disco & Jayne Mansfield's Car
Upcoming Billy Bob Thornton Films Billy Bob Thornton spent a few months in Atlanta, Cedartown, Rome and LaGrange, Georgia, last year filming Jayne read more...
Happy Holidays From Swampland 2011
Happy Holidays From Swampland "Never be impatient with the ones who love you, It might be yourself that you're hurting."
No Chicago Blues For Jerry Lee Lewis
No Chicago Blues For Jerry Lee Lewis On Saturday, Jerry Lee Lewis played his first show in Chicago since 1998. Dave Hoekstra wrote a nice review in the
New Orleans in Alabama: Brenda Marie Osbey--and Lagniappe--Poet Jane Hirshfield
This October I traveled to New Orleans to see my good friends David Lummis (author of
The Rolling Stones: Some Girls Live In Texas
Some Girls Live In Texas A never-before-seen Rolling Stones concert, filmed live in Ft. Worth, titled The Rolling Stones: Live In Texas, will be shown at this week's "Thinking Outside the Box Office" in New Orleans.
Meet New Orleans Author and Photographer: Kristin Fouquet
Reading the short stories of Kristin Fouquet, writer and photographer par excellence, is like eating bon bons. You just have to have one more. Fouquet writes with a photographer's eye for detail, seeing beneath read more...
This May Be My Last Time Singing: Raw African-American Gospel On 45RPM 1957-1982
This May Be My Last Time Singing Tompkins Square's latest release is an amazing 3-CD set titled This May Be My Last Time Singing: Raw African-American Gospel On 45RPM 1957-1982. Tompkins Square released this official statement regarding this rare read more...
An Interview From The Road: Grayson Capps Talks About A Love Song For Bobby Long
An Excerpt From Interview with Grayson Capps I just got off the phone with Alabama singer/songwriter/guitarist Grayson Capps. He was calling from the road. He's preparing read more...
Remake of Sam Peckinpah's Straw Dogs in Theaters September 16
Straw Dogs Out September 16 On September 16, the remake of Sam Peckinpah's savage film Straw Dogs hits theaters. Filmed in Bossier City, Louisiana, the 2011 Straw Dogs is read more...
The 2011 Ponderosa Stomp
The 2011 Ponderosa Stomp The Ninth Annual Ponderosa Stomp will take place on September 16-17 at the Howlin' Wolf in New Orleans. This New Orleans-based roots music festival read more...
"The Coffee Shop Chronicles" Featured in New Orleans Course at University of Montevallo
David Lummis' novel The Coffee read more...
Jamaican Blues & Southern Breezes: Blue Water, Black Soul & Rock N Roll
Jamaican Blues & Southern Breezes: Blue Water, Black Soul & Rock N Roll "I say when it drops, oh you gonna feel it Know that you were doing wrong. I say a pressure drop, oh pressure Oh yeah, pressure drop a drop read more...
Mississippi Bluesman T-Model Ford Playing New Orleans Tonight
T-Model Ford At One Eyed Jacks James Lewis Carter "T-Model" Ford performs at One Eyed Jacks tonight in New Orleans. His birth date is unknown, but it's read more...
Upcoming Interview: Preston Lauterbach's Chitlin' Circuit: And The Road To Rock 'N' Roll
The Chitlin' Circut: And The Road To Rock 'N' Roll Memphis writer Preston Lauterbach's first book--The Chitlin Circut: And The Road To Rock 'N' Roll--arrived in the mail on Monday. An upcoming interview with Lauterbach is on the way, but I wanted to write a quick read more...
Swampland's Daily Duo of Reviews For 7/25/11: Ronnie Milsap and Hope Waits
For Monday, we present two Southern artists whose travels around their native region helped to define their diverse and eclectic sensibilities. Ronnie Milsap went from the mountains of North Carolina to Nashville with stops at Atlanta and Memphis in between while Hope Waits read more...
Swampland's Daily Duo of Reviews For 7/22/11: Givers and Johnny Nicholas
For the end of the week, our daily duo bring artists from the neighboring states of Texas and Louisiana. Givers, a young Louisiana band, releases their debut In Light. Texas bluesman Johnny Nicholas provides us with Future Blues. Enjoy read more...
Lucinda Williams Talks Songwriting
LUCINDA WILLIAMS TALKS SONGWRITING Louisiana native Lucinda Williams is out on the road behind her latest album Blessed. She's in Canada for a few shows, and in this Edmonton Journal
Amy LaVere's Stranger Me Out July 19
Amy LaVere's Latest CD Out July 19 On July 19, Archer Records will release Amy LaVere's third studio album, Stranger Me. Stranger Me read more...
Swampland's Gospel, Funk & Soul Collection
Swampland's Gospel, Funk & Soul Collection It's arguable that one of America's finest contributions to history is music. Deep forms of music culminated from various influences that mold a specific style. In this dispatch, read more...
Girl Power: A Compilation of Swampland's Most Talented Female Artists
Swampland Salutes Southern Women: Volume 1 Today we'd like to salute all the great southern female artists we've covered here at Swampland. We've compiled a list of cornerstone interviews/articles/reviews pertaining to these talented read more...
Summer Merle Haggard Southern Tour Dates
Upcoming Merle Haggard 2011 Southern Tour Dates Country music legend Merle Haggard prepares for his upcoming summer tour. At 74, Haggard still records, tours and writes timeless music. His work casts a long and wide shadow on American music. Over the years, read more...
O Brother, Where Art Thou? Celebrates 10th Anniversary
O Brother, Where Art Thou? Celebrates 10th Anniversary GRAMMY® ALBUM OF THE YEAR FOR 2001 O Brother, Where Art Thou? CELEBRATES 10TH ANNIVERSARY WITH EXPANDED TWO-CD DELUXE EDITION NEW BONUS DISC INCLUDES read more...
Bob Dylan's Upcoming Southern Tour Dates
Dylan Adds Southern Tour Dates Yesterday three new southern dates were scheduled on the summer leg of Bob Dylan's 2011 tour. On July 24, Dylan will perform in New Braunfels, Texas. The Bard travels to New Orleans for a July 26 show, and then onto Memphis for read more...
Rejoice and Shout: The History of Gospel Music
Don McGlynn's Latest Documentary Rejoice and Shout Directed by Don McGlynn, Rejoice and Shout documents the 200-year history of gospel music in America. The two-hour film traces fusions of multiple musical styles such as plantation work songs, read more...
Olga's Whatever You Want featuring Cody Dickinson
Olga's Whatever You Want Out June 21, 2011 Singer/songwriter/guitarist Olga Wilhelmine Munding's latest album Whatever You Want will be released on June 21, 2011. Olga wrote Whatever You Want with
The Civil Wars Play Tornado Benefit at Historic Shoals Theatre in Florence, AL
Once again the marvelously magical duo, The Civil Wars (Joy Williams and John Paul White), took the stage in front of a sold-out house and a wildly enthusiastic audience. This time they were read more...
A Memorial Day Tribute: An Early Salute
A Salute To All The Veterans An early salute for the upcoming weekend... In honor of Memorial Day, and all the read more...
Meet Matthew Nolan, Poet and Resident of New Orleans
Matthew Nolan, who subtitles his books "A New Orleans Poet," is the author of two collections of poetry and prose: Crumpled Paper Dolls (2004) and Exhuming Juliet (2009). read more...
Never A Pal Like Mother
Happy Mother's Day 2011 Happy Mother's Day to Everyone! Since it's Mother's Day weekend, I thought I write a dispatch around the great Atlanta label
Happy Mother's Day (and new reviews on the way!)
Hi all, Just wanted to let everyone know to be on the lookout for some brand new reviews coming over the next week or so. Tab Benoit's Medicine, Whiskey Myers's Firewater, and Bobby Thompson's By The Hand are all in the queue. Each drips with its own brand of read more...
Upcoming Buddy Holly Tribute Album Features My Morning Jacket, Justin Townes Earl & The Black Keys
Buddy Holly Tribute Album Due Out June 28 On June 28 a Buddy Holly tribute album--Rave On--will be released. The 19 Holly songs on Rave On read more...
New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival Begins Friday
2011 New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival The 2011 New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival begins on April 29 and continues until May 8. A wide variety of music, food, parades, culture and crafts will be available to supporters.
CD Reviews of 2011 (So Far...)
CD Reviews of 2011 (So Far...) " I will see you on Good Friday..."
Film Reviews of the Past
Swampland Film Reviews of the Past Today's dispatch includes a list of various films reviewed on Swampland. This follows up recent lists of book and
Book Reviews of the Past
Book Reviews of the Past on Mystery and Manners Today I thought I'd include a list of a few books reviewed on Swampland from the past. Perhaps a title will ignite some inspiration for a reader to seek out a specific book or story. While a read more...
Isabel Wilkerson, Pulitizer Prize Winning Journalist, To Speak at University of North Alabama
Isabel Wilkerson, the first African-American woman to win a Pulitzer Prize in the history of journalism, will be speaking at the University of North Alabama (in Florence, Alabama) at 12:30 PM, Thursday, April 14. read more...
Friendship, Love & Betrayal in Modern Times
Friendship, Love & Betrayal In Modern Times “You got a lot of nerve to say you are my friend When I was down you just stood there grinning…”
Southern College Football – End of an Era
For generations around our Swampland Footprint, the play-by-play announcer of your favorite university was like a part of the family. Yes, there was a time before ESPN and billion-dollar network deals when not every game was on television. Classic voices like Tennessee’s John read more...
New Orleans Tennessee Williams Festival Begins March 23
New Orleans Tennessee Williams Festival “New Orleans is where Tom became ‘Tennessee’ and he considered our city his spiritual home”, said Paul J. Willis, executive director of the annual
Dr. John, Joe Tex, Tom Waits & Leon Russell 26th Annual Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Nominees
26th Annual Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Ceremony on March 14 On March 14, the 26th Annual Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Ceremony will take place at the Waldorf Astoria in New York. On March 20, the performance will be broadcast on television.
Widespread Panic, Jason Isbell & Lucinda Williams Set To Perform SXSW
Widespread Panic, Jason Isbell & Lucinda Williams Perform SXSW My friend Jim Flammia sent me a release yesterday regarding All Eyes Media artists performing at South By Southwest next week. Here is the release:
Shannon McNally Plays Chickie Wah Wah Tonight in New Orleans
Shannon McNally At Chickie Wah Wah Tonight Shannon McNally's latest CD, Western Ballad, hits the street on March 22. McNally and her band Hot Sauce will play
New Orleans Film Fans Anticipate Akira Kurosawa's Rashomon
New Orleans Film Fans Anticipate Akira Kurosawa’s Rashomon This weekend the New Orleans Film Society presents Japanese director Akira Kurosawa’s crime classic
Southern College Football – Can the Big 12 Survive?
The world of college athletics was almost turned upside down last summer when possible conference realignment(s) seemed to be rumored on a daily basis. Would the Big 12 still exist in 2011? Texas and Oklahoma to the Pac-10? Texas or Missouri to the Big Ten? Texas A&M to the SEC? read more...
Like Clockwork, SEC Tops Recruiting
There seems to be a rhythm to each winter over the last few years; an SEC team wins the BCS Championship in January and then the league cleans up in recruiting on the first Wednesday in February. Those two annual events are very intertwined, and we have written for years about how read more...
Arhoolie Records Celebrates 50 Years
Arhoolie Records Celebrates 50 Years Chris Strachwitz, 79, owns Arhoolie Records. The label, founded in 1960, has issued 400 albums, and more than 6500 songs of some of America’s most resonating roots music. Most read more...
Steve Earle Plans Album, Book & Tour
Busy 2011 For Steve Earle USA Today reported this afternoon that Steve Earle plans for a busy 2011. On April 26, read more...
Southern College Football – SEC Wins Again
LEAD STORY The numbers are staggering: five national titles in row, a 7-0 record in the 13 BCS Championship Games, and five different schools who have won a national crown during those 13 years.
20 Interviews From The Archive
20 Interviews From Swampland/Mystery and Manners Archive Amid other pressing projects, today I thought I’d construct a dispatch regarding 20 interviews from the Swampland/Mystery And Manners archive. Each artist read more...
Southern College Football – Bowl Season
LEAD STORY The BCS Championship Game is almost here, and the fans around our Swampland Footprint are very eager to see if Auburn can earn the SEC’s fifth straight national title. It’s quite the
Merry Christmas From Swampland
Merry Christmas From Swampland Ho, Ho, Ho…I’d like to wish everyone a Merry Christmas from Swampland. Thanks for all the support. A Happy New Year to you all! Don’t let the Devil get you down. I’ve included a couple of read more...
Southern College Football – Coaching Carousel
LEAD STORY With bowl season beginning and holidays upon us, the big news in our Footprint is the gigantic transformation of the coaching hierarchy in the state of Florida. Do you realize that one-season ‘veteran’ Jimbo Fisher of Florida State is now the dean of read more...
Southern College Football – Championship Week
LEAD STORY The amazing story of Auburn and Cam Newton will continue Saturday when they meet South Carolina in the SEC Championship Game.
Buffalo Radio Show Tonight: Doug Jones (Blind Willy), Rick Cash (Silver Travis), and Author A. Lawrence Haskins
Tonight at 7 pm/est, the Buffalo Radio Show welcomes A. Lawrence Haskins, a novelist whose book "The Whisper of Serpents" is an astounding crime drama. Lawrence is also the mastermind behind his own multi-media empire which includes online talk shows and much read more...
Southern College Football - Week 13 Themes
It’s rivalry week in our Swampland Footprint. Some teams are looking towards league titles (Auburn, Oklahoma/Oklahoma State, NC State, etc.) while some usual stalwarts are just trying to become bowl eligible (Texas, Georgia, Tennessee). The last weekend of the season is the read more...
GRITZ Compilation Volume 5 FREE Dowload Ready!
We are proud to present the new Gritz Stone Ground & Southern Compilation Volume Five. A FREE dowload for the readers of GRITZ! This time we have read more...
Southern College Football - Week 12 Themes
LEAD STORY It finally happened. For the first time since joining the SEC in 1992, the South Carolina Gamecocks will represent the East Division in read more...
Keith Richards Writes About Gram Parsons In Life
Keith Richards Writes About Gram Parsons in Life I’ve been reading Keith Richards’ new book, Life. I’ve already made some notes for the Swampland review, but today I reached page 247 where Keith writes about Gram Parsons. read more...
Southern College Football - Week 11 Themes
LEAD STORY The Cam Newton saga continues to be the story of the week in college football. It seems very likely that his father was involved in seeking money for his son’s commitment. Does read more...
GRITZ Salutes All Veterans Today, With Thanks
Saluting Our Veterans and My Dear Friends Frank and Nell Lutz
Today is Veterans Day--a day on which we pay tribute to all those who served this country in the armed services. Today is especially meaningful to me because it gives me an opportunity to honor two of my favorite World War II veterans: my long time friends and erstwhile neighbors read more...
Southern College Football - Week 10 Themes
LEAD STORY What an old-fashioned Southern soap opera we have on our hands. I’m sure by now you’ve read (or at least heard about) the ESPN story regarding the recruitment of Auburn read more...
Daniel Lanois’ Soulful Mining & Black Dub
Daniel Lanois’ Soulful Mining & Black Dub Daniel Lanois’ new band, Black Dub, augments jazz, reggae, blues and soul into one potent sound. read more...
Music Maker's 'Homebrew Hootenanny' (And A Lookback)
Music Maker’s Saturday Homebrew Hootenanny Music Maker Relief Foundation, a non-profit organization, dedicated to assisting neglected southern musicians with daily expenses, instrument acquisition, recording, and read more...
Southern College Football - Week 9 Themes
LEAD STORY So much of the national attention (ESPN) at this point in the college football season goes to just the handful of teams in the BCS chase. Auburn-- as well read more...
Dylan, Petty & Drive By Truckers Participate In ‘Back To Black Friday’
Dylan, Petty & Drive By Truckers Participate In ‘Back To Black Friday’ In support of independent record stores, November 26 stands as ‘Back To Black Friday’. Artists such as Bob Dylan, Tom Petty, The Drive By Truckers, Iron & Wine, U2, read more...
Southern College Football - Week 8 Themes
LEAD STORY It’s a huge weekend in the Big 12, with conference and national title implications. Top-ranked Oklahoma travels to undefeated Missouri, while read more...
Double Whammy: The Coffee Shop Chronicles of New Orleans and Books-A-Million
This week I am excited to provide the Swampland audience with a double whammy. My friend David Lummis' novel
Southern College Football - Week 7 Themes
LEAD STORY With South Carolina’s huge 35-21 victory over Alabama, the SEC’s current streak of four straight National Championships looks to be in read more...
The Moth In New Orleans: A More Perfect Union: Stories of Prejudice and Power
The Moth In New Orleans: A More Perfect Union: Stories of Prejudice and Power I now will be covering George Dawes Green’s indelible raconteurs club--The read more...
Nobel Peace Prize Campaign For Willie Nelson
Nobel Peace Prize Campaign for Willie Nelson A Nobel Peace Prize Campaign has been launched for Willie Nelson and his FARM AID efforts. For the last 25 years Nelson has assisted the American farmer through FARM AID as well as raised awareness of healthy foods.
Southern College Football - Week 6 Themes
LEAD STORY Florida State and Miami meet Saturday night in South Beach for their usual heated clash. This rivalry has lost a little luster read more...
It's Never Too Late To Read a Banned Book
I recommend that you start with The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn or perhaps All The King's Men, or even To Kill A Mockingbird which just celebrated its 50th anniversary this year. The great poet T.S. Eliot once said that his parents forbade him to read more...
Southern College Football - Week 5 Themes
LEAD STORY Alabama and Florida will meet in Tuscaloosa Saturday in a battle of the last two National Champions. It’s been over two years since the Gators lost a regular season SEC game (Ole Miss, September ’08), and it’s been read more...
President Obama Describes Meeting Bob Dylan
President Obama Describes Meeting Bob Dylan On September 17, 2010, President Obama conducted an interview with Jann Wenner for Rolling Stone magazine. It’s an extensive read more...
Southern College Football - Week 4 Themes
LEAD STORY Week 4 will be ‘Definition Saturday’ in our Swampland Footprint, especially in the SEC West. We should begin to see the true identity of many of our teams and what they have the potential to achieve in 2010.
Inside Alabama Politics: Fish Frys, Barbecues, and Chittlin' Suppers
According to my friend Dr. Susan Parker, Alabama politics is not just about politics; it is about food and lots of it. No political rally is complete without a read more...
Soulful Southern Brew: Atlanta's Red Brick Brewery
Soulful Southern Brew: Atlanta’s Red Brick Brewery Yesterday and today I spoke with Red Brick Brewery’s Regional Manager Chris Caban. Yesterday he was driving through Charleston, and today he was having lunch in Columbia, South Carolina. Red Brick distributes read more...
42 Years Later: Buffalo Springfield Reunites At Bridge School Benefit
Buffalo Springfield Reunites At Young’s Bridge School Benefit Buffalo Springfield will reunite for the first time in 42 years at
Bloodkin Opens First Shows of Widespread Panic's Fall Tour This Weekend
Bloodkin Kicks Off Panic Tour As fall descends, the interesting season of live shows begin…Bloodkin’s Daniel Hutchens,
Shannon McNally's Debut Swampland Article: Rock & Roll Mommy
Rock And Roll Mommy By Shannon McNally I am proud to present Shannon McNally's debut Swampland contribution Rock and Roll Mommy. Shannon reveals an interesting perspective as a mother read more...
2010 SEC Season Outlook
The nation’s toughest conference looks primed for another stellar season on the gridiron. Alabama and Florida, the last two National Champions, will aim for a third straight appearance in the SEC title game.
Hunter S. Thompson's Wife Keeps The Faith On Owl Farm Blog
The Fifth Anniversary of Hurricane Katrina Anita Thompson, the wife of late writer Hunter S. Thompson, still lives at their home--Owl Farm--in Woody Creek, Colorado. Anita keeps the spirit of her husband’s writing alive on her
New Orleans Rising: Pontchartrain Park Focus of CNN Documentary
Pontchartrain Park focus of CNN Documentary This evening a documentary on CNN—In America—focused on the efforts of New Orleans actor Wendell Pierce read more...
Hot Haitian Jazz and a Cool New Album by RIYEL (Watters, Atkins, and Abel)
Jazz trumpeter and Alabama native Ken Watters has joined with several of the country's top musicians to form an eclectic and exciting jazz group called
SEC Media Days Attract Huge Attention
The SEC tops the nation when it comes to college football so it should be no surprise that the "Media Days" in July draw so much interest. Media members from all over the country marvel at the three day spectacle that has gridiron fans counting the days until the season read more...
News Reels on Daniel Lanois, Neil Young & The Sad Passing of Nashville Legend Fred Carter Jr.
News Reels on Lanois, Young & the Death of Nashville Legend Fred Carter Jr. As reported earlier, recently producer Daniel Lanois suffered serious injuries from a motorcycle accident. Around the time of the accident Lanois was producing a new
SEC Continues Its Run of Excellence
The SEC ended another stellar year with another national championship. South Carolina won the school’s first ever national title when they swept UCLA at the College World read more...
Black Death in Louisiana and The Gulf
Hurricane Katrina was a natural disaster. This oil spill is a man made disaster. There’s a big difference. This whole issue has made me pig biting mad. As I watched the evening news last night I was appalled and sickened by the oil damage to the beautiful gulf coast. The read more...
Reading "The Coffee Shop Chronicles of New Orleans" by David Lummis
Perhaps because I was an English professor for most of my life, friends are always asking me what good book I have read recently. Well, I am happy to report that I have
Music For A Cause: Benefit Concerts from Nashville to Gulf Shores
One week after country music stars rallied to raise over $2 million for Nashville, TN, flood relief,Jimmy Buffet will give a benefit concert live from
Past Interviews & Upcoming Artists of Note
Greetings Folks, I hope all is well, and everyone enjoyed Father’s Day… Change is afoot, and we’ve got a lot on the horizon, but for the past week much of the work has gone on behind the scenes. On the immediate agenda, the work of
Alabama Bred Artist Paxton Creates Pelican Belt Buckle To Help Save Gulf Coast
My talented nephew, California artist and Elk River native Paxton (Mobley), has been creating fine art for over twenty years and has become a favorite with collectors. Recently, he began desiging original belt read more...
Conference Realignment: Gene Stallings Has A Texas-Sized SEC Vision For A&M
Consider us here at Swampland Sports a bit ahead of our time. In September of 2007, we published an article about realigning southern college conferences so that read more...
Tom Coerver Working On New Album in Louisiana
Baton Rouge, LA musician Tom Coerver has been at it for a long time, from his days with national recording act China read more...
Producer Daniel Lanois In Intensive Care
Daniel Lanois In Motorcycle Accident Producer Daniel Lanois seriously injured himself Saturday in a motorcycle accident. Lanois has been forced to cancel his Black Dub read more...
Tribute Concert To Benefit Historic New Orleans Collection
Harold Battiste Tribute Concert to Benefit Historic New Orleans Collection New Orleans musician Harold Battiste’s book, Unfinished Blues: Memories of a New read more...
New Orleans and Indianapolis Add Defensive Playmakers
Many teams in the NFL Draft feel compelled to fill an immediate need with their first selection, but some elite clubs are able to take the best player available and build quality depth for the future. Those picks do not always excite fans on draft day but tend to work out quite well read more...
Neil Young To Record with Daniel Lanois
Neil Young Chose Lanois For Next Album Neil Young recently selected Daniel Lanois to produce his next studio album. This should be an interesting collaboration since the two have never worked together. Lanois has produced records for Bob Dylan, Willie Nelson, Chris Whitley, read more...
NFL Draft Impressions: Rams Get Their Man; Jags Disappoint Their Fans
Did your team improve? Is your fan base excited about the direction of your squad? We will take an in-depth look at the NFL Draft over the next couple of weeks, but wanted to give our read more...
April is the Busiest Month: Alabama and New Orleans
Every week in April has been busy with a literary or cultural event in the state of Alabama including the Alabama Book Festival, an annual event in
Excursion to New Orleans
What an amazing adventure I have had in Louisiana this past week. I am starting a series on Swampland about my adventures in the Crescent City (see New Orleans
Celebrate Record Store Day 2010!
Record Store Day 2010 is read more...
Wanee Report: Day Two
Swampland Wanee Report: Day Two ...A Few Notes From The Swamp... Funkadelic closed the evening out last night. It's a musical read more...
Truth And Salvage's Upcoming CD Debut on The Black Crowes' Silver Arrow Records
Excerpt From Today’s Interview with Truth & Salvage’s Walker Young This afternoon I interviewed
New Orleans and the Tennessee Williams Literary Festival 2010
I don't get down to New Orleans nearly so often as I would like although it is a place close to my heart. New Orleans is one of my top three cities in America, along with
Jimmy Hall Added to GRITZFEST LIneup
We are happy to announce the addition of Jimmy Hall to the lineup for GRITZFEST II, to be held at Crossroads Music Hall in Huntsville, Alabama on Friday evening, February 26th beginning at 7:30 PM. The concert will benefit GRITZ Charities, with portions of proceeds going to read more...
The Black Dub of Daniel Lanois
Daniel Lanois' New Band Black Dub Daniel Lanois’ new band,
New Information on William Faulkner's Historical Sources Comes to LIght
According to an article in this week's New York Times (February 11, 2010), a Southern literature scholar from Emory read more...
New Orleans' Preservation Hall Benefit Album
Preservation Hall Benefit The Preservation Hall opened its doors in 1961. Located in The French Quarter—three blocks from the Mississippi read more...
GRITZ Presents All New Volume II Free Compilation Download
The second "Gritz Stone Ground & Southern" compilation is now available! The FREE album download features another
The Saints Go Marchin' In! What a Game!
Who dat? I nearly levitated from my sofa during the final minutes of the big game as the New Orleans Saints beat the Colts 31 - 17. Of course the real action came in the second half with the onside kick followed by Porter’s 74 yard interception run. All I can say is read more...
New Orleans Saints Win The Super Bowl
Saints Beat Colts 31-17 Congratulations to the New Orleans Saints for winning the Super Bowl tonight. They looked slow from the start, but they held read more...
Sunday Sounds: Super Bowl Sunday
Super Bowl Sunday A cool breeze swirls on the coast of South Georgia…birds chirping…wind chimes echo in the distance. It’s read more...
SEC Continues to Rule the Recruiting World
National Signing Day has passed, and once again the teams of the SEC were dominant in the rankings. The conference that has won the last four National Championships (with three different schools) continually pulls in the top classes, and that's what it takes to compete in America's read more...
National Signing Day: Christmas Morning for Southern Football Fans
It’s finally here- a virtual holiday in our Swampland Footprint.
Book Reviews of the Past: Adventures in the Literary Realm
Mystery and Manners Book Reviews of the Past On this Tuesday evening, I thought I’d lash together a book review read more...
Buffalo's Top Ten List For The Week of January 29, 2010
Howdy guys. Well it's Friday and we are under a winter storm warning so I have assembled a playlist that i feel will warm up anyone's cold day. Check 'em out. 1. Lady
The Long Awaited Lance Ledbetter Interview
The Long-Awaited Lance Ledbetter Interview The story of Dust To Digital is a divine one. In the late 1990s, Lance Ledbetter set out to discover read more...
Michelle Obama To Host Civil Rights Music Night At The White House
First Lady To Host White House Music Series The First Lady will host The 2010 White House Music Series, which includes a
Favre Still Rules Though Saints March and Vikings Retreat
I would not want to be Brett Favre this morning---over forty, utterly frustrated, and physically and emotionally devastated. However, this Mississippi born grand old man of football is my hero, and he's not done read more...
Saints vs Colts Present a Dream SPF Super Bowl
Much more to come on this as the Super Bowl approaches, but yesterday's wins by Peyton Manning and the Colts and Drew Brees and the Saints presented our football-hungry region with the best reason yet to watch the Super Bowl.
Prelude To Interview with Dust To Digital's Lance Ledbetter
Prelude To Interview with Dust To Digital President Lance Ledbetter This evening I finished transcribing my interview with the President of read more...
Sunday Southern Rock Videos
Here are a few videos for your Sunday spotlighting some of the artists featured on our free Stone Ground & Southern Compilation. Check 'em out and if you haven't yet downloaded your free album,
Bobby Charles RIP
Bobby Charles Dead at 71 Louisiana songwriter Bobby Charles collapsed and
SEC Daily Fever: Georgia Still Searching for New Defensive Coordinator
Bud Foster, John Chavis, and Kirby Smart. That looks like a list of top defensive coordinators in our Swampland footprint, but it also the candidates who have turned down the chance to work for Mark Richt this offseason.
Download The New GRITZ Digital Compilation FREE
It's quite a special day in the Swampland. Today we begin our monthly series of digital music compilations. and every month we will be offering you the GRITZ reader a FREE download of new music from many of the artists you read about here in GRITZ. The first read more...
SEC Daily Fever: Bama Win Keeps SEC on Top
The SEC captured a fourth straight National Title Thursday night with Alabama’s 37-21 win over Texas in the BCS Championship Game.
SEC Daily Fever: Alabama Playing for National Title and Conference Pride
Alabama has played their way back to the national forefront over the last two years, and they will try to cap that run with a victory over Texas in tonight's BCS Championship Game. If the
SEC Daily Fever: Meyer Faces Tough Choices Between Florida and Family
Some important decisions are now at hand for Urban Meyer and the Florida athletic department. After the Gators destroyed an overmatched Cincinnati team (dealing with read more...
Looking Back at 2009
On the last day of 2009, I thought it only made sense to recount the ten most imortant events of the year from the GRITZ perspective. 1. The Allman Brothers Band read more...
SEC Daily Fever: Meyer Saga Leaves Doubt Around UF Program
What a roller coaster of a week it’s been for Florida Gator fans. The wishy-washy Urban Meyer drama has left a cloud of uncertainty over the program read more...
Merry Christmas
Mystery And Manners Christmas Dispatch Ho Ho Ho Folks, Merry Christmas! I'd like read more...
2009 Top 20 New Music Releases
Top 20 Mystery And Manners 2009 Music Releases I hate to split hairs, and even begin to rank music but read more...
SEC Daily Fever: Saban Not Worried about Facing Former Assistants in Title Game
The media has raised the question recently whether or not Texas assistants Will Muschamp and Major Applewhite, who served under Nick Saban at LSU and Alabama respectively, give the Longhorns any advantage with their familiarity of the Tide coach as they prepare for the BCS Title read more...
SEC Daily Fever: Gator Fans not feeling the Sugar Bowl after SEC Title Loss
It currently looks like Florida fans are not very fired up for the Sugar Bowl against Cincinnati. As we approach Christmas, the Gators are read more...
A Little Help From My Friends: A Big Thank You
I would like to say a public “thank you” to those who helped us out during the past few months. Some donated items for an auction to help with medical bills and equipment, while others made cash and in kind donations to help both GRITZ and the ol’ Buffalo himself. read more...
SEC Daily Fever: Brooks receives accolade for another solid season at Kentucky
The website collegefootballnews.com had a very interesting choice for their conference Coach of the Year- Rich Brooks of Kentucky.
SEC Daily Fever: Vols Sign Simms Youngest Son
Many teams in the conference added a junior college prospect or two yesterday, and one of the more interesting names to sign was quarterback Matt Simms at Tennessee. Besides the fact that he is the son of Phil Simms, this signing is interesting because his older brother (Chris read more...
SEC Daily Fever: Meyer's December Shows the Roller Coaster of Being an SEC Boss
From the outside looking in, things appear pretty sunny for Urban Meyer at the University of Florida. He is 56-10 in five seasons in Gainesville, has won two League and two National Titles, had an undefeated regular season this year, and has another Top 10 recruiting class on the read more...
SEC Daily Fever: Spurrier Extended at South Carolina
it may not seem like a big deal that South Carolina added an extra year to Steve Spurrier's contract this week, but it shows the USC administration is sticking with the program. After some late season fizzles the last few years, it would be easy to jump right back into the coaching read more...
Alabama Actress Kim Dickens in HBO Series "Treme"
Treme, a made for television series set the the historic area of
SEC Daily Fever: Ingram Wins Bama's First Heisman
There aren’t many “firsts” left with the University of Alabama’s football history, especially now that Mark Ingram became the Tide’s only Heisman Trophy read more...
The Best Releases of 2009
Well, it’s time once again to run down the GRITZ Best Albums of 2009. It wasn’t easy. There was a lot of good music this year, but we narrowed it down to our twenty best. Let us know what you think.
SEC Daily Fever: Kiffin denies any wrongdoing
In one year on the job at Tennessee, Lane Kiffin has become a lightning rod for the national and regional media. His brash attitude and recruiting prowess has rubbed some writers and some other coaches the wrong way.
The GRITZ Top Ten for Friday, December 11, 2009
1. “Monday Morning Meltdown” Gov’t Mule From their new (and red hot) release. Just one of Warren Haynes’ amazing new compositions. Got Mule? 2. “Tougher read more...
SEC Daily Fever: Alabama Proves That It Takes Money To Make Money
Last January, Swampland answered the national media criticism of escalating coach’s salaries by saying “SEC Coaching Dollars Make Sense”. read more...
SEC Daily Fever: Kiffin Must Replace Some Top Recruiters
A constant theme on Tribal Fever has been the importance of recruiting, and how all of the top teams in the conference recruit at the highest level.
SEC Daily Fever: All-League Squad Looks Like NFL Draft Primer
The SEC is considered the big dog conference in college football right now, especially with Alabama aiming to win the league’s fourth straight National Title. With
SEC Daily Fever: Alabama Domintates Florida in SEC Title Rematch
Alabama rode a physical offense and a swarming defense to the SEC crown as they defeated the defending league and national champion Florida Gators 32-13.
SEC Daily Fever: Championship Game Becomes the "Southern" Super Bowl
It’s finally here. #1 vs. #2. Florida vs. Alabama- 24 wins and no losses. Winner goes to the BCS Title Game, while the loser heads reluctantly to the Sugar Bowl.
SEC Daily Fever: Richt Fires Martinez, Other Defensive Assistants
About ten days ago, we wrote how Georgia fans wanted some changes in Mark Richt's staff after a frustrating season.
SEC Daily Fever: Florida Dealing with Distraction before Big Game
Florida was dealt a self-imposed blow this week in their quest to repeat as SEC and national Champions. All-American defensive end Carlos Dunlap
SEC Daily Fever: Could Florida and Alabama Play Twice?
It’s time to address the question on the minds of many college football fans- if Texas loses in the Big 12 Championship Game and the SEC Game is a close one, could we see a Florida-Alabama rematch in the BCS Title Game?
SEC Daily Fever: Thrilling Weekend Shows League's Strength
The SEC saved its best for the last week of regular season play. There were a number of exciting games where the conference showed its power and depth.
SEC Daily Fever: Bama Barely Escapes in Thrilling Iron Bowl
Much like Texas on Thursday night, Alabama got a scare from their in-state rival but also remained unbeaten with a 26-21 last-minute win.
The GRITZ Top Ten for Friday, November 27, 2009
Every Friday GRITZ brings you our “Top Ten,” a playlist of songs past and present that we have been listening too here in the office - songs you just can’t live without. Check ‘em out and please leave a comment. 1. Amos Moses
SEC Daily Fever: Georgia and Mark Richt Could be Staring at 6-6
Many around our Footprint (and the country) believe Les Miles is having the toughest week amongst SEC coaches, but you could argue that it's even worse for Georgia's Mark Richt right read more...
SEC Daily Fever: Wild Sequence Ends with LSU Gaffe, Ole Miss Win
The ending of the LSU-Ole Miss game had fans all over the country glued to their TVs, and scratching their heads as well. The Tigers missed both chances to tie the game on a two-point conversion with 1:17 left, but then recovered an onside kick to keep their hopes read more...
The GRITZ Top Ten for Friday, November 20, 2009
Every Friday GRITZ brings you our “Top Ten,” a playlist of songs past and present that you just can’t live without. Check ‘em out and please leave a comment. 1. “Ramblin”
SEC Daily Fever: Ole Miss Looks To Continue Late Season Surge Against LSU
The top two teams in the conference have been pretty clear for a while, and the rematch in Atlanta is already set for Florida and Alabama. But who's next? LSU has seeimngly been that third squad all year with their only two losses coming against the Gators and Tide. One team read more...
SEC Daily Fever: Chizik's First Year Shows Promise
Auburn suffered a tough loss to Georgia last weekend to fall to 7-4, but even the heavy crtics of Gene Chizik’s hiring would have to admit it's been a good first season. The Tigers will take this Sataurday off as they prepare for the Iron Bowl. And speaking of Alabama,
SEC Daily Fever: Florida's Defense Leading the Way in 2009
While Tim Tebow gets all of the national attention, SEC fans know why the Gators have maanaged to stay undefeated once again this year-- their stellar defense. The Florida read more...
SEC Daily Fever: Brooks Making History At Kentucky
With their win over Vanderbilt last Saturday, Kentucky became bowl eligible for the fourth straight season. The Wildcats went to three straight bowl games in the read more...
SEC Daily Fever: Ole Miss' McCluster Has Record Day Against Distracted Vols
Wonder if Ole Miss would increase the speed limit on campus from 18 (Archie Manning's retired number) to 22 after Saturday? #22 Dexter McCluster had a monster read more...
The GRITZ Top Ten for Friday, November 13, 2009
Every Friday GRITZ brings you our “Top Ten,” a playlist of songs past and present that you just can’t live without. Check ‘em out and please leave a comment. 1. Save The Planet Dixie Tabernacle From the
SEC Daily Fever: Kiffin Must Be Decisive In Dealing With Player Arrest Incident
For Tennessee coach Lane Kiffin, this week was supposed to be about continuing the Vols current momentum (on the field as well as recruiting) and winning the "Coach O" game in Oxford. Instead, he's dealing with his first 'crisis management' experience as three UT freshmen read more...
SEC Daily Fever: Georgia And Mark Richt Desperate For An Auburn Win
Georgia fans are feeling a little nervous these days. The Bulldogs have already been blown out by two rivals, Tennessee and Florida, and they will face two more in Auburn and Georgia Tech over the next three games.
SEC Daily Fever: Spurrier Says He's Staying At South Carolina For The Long Term
As South Carolina and head coach Steve Spurrier prepare to host #1 Florida on Saturday, this game is a reminder to Gamecock fans of what their coach built at his alma mater and what has not happened in Columbia.
SEC Daily Fever: Officiating Issues Creates Negative Vibes For Top League
It’s the story that won’t go away- another week, another game where bad officiating dominates the league conversation. The SEC read more...
SEC Daily Fever: Alabama Beats LSU, Wins West
Alabama won a physical 24-15 battle against LSU on Saturday, and they now have cemented the highly-anticipated SEC Championship Game rematch with Florida. The Tide read more...
Swampland Search Engine and Links
Dear Y'all, I have had many people asking me about our site search engine, and I want to assure you all that it is being worked on. We are aware of the issues with the searches and the bad links and our webmaster is working to resolve the issues as soon as possible. We are read more...
SEC Daily Fever: LSU-Alabama Is The National Game Of The Week
The eyes of the college football world will be on Tuscaloosa Saturday afternoon when #9 LSU meets #3 Alabama. This game has conference and national read more...
SEC Daily Fever: Meyer looks bad after Spikes debacle
Many fans around the league are asking the question this week: what kind of program is Urban Meyer running in Gainesville? While many have questioned Meyer’s recruiting read more...
Gritz Fan Page On Facebook to Offer Special Surprises
The Gritz Fan Page at Facebook is up and running. I hope you will all take the time to
SEC Daily Fever: Georgia's Richt looks to right ship in Athens
While much of the attention following the Florida-Georgia game has been on Brandon Spikes eye-gouging of Washaun Ealey, the reality for the Bulldogs is that they have the feel of a program that has slipped a notch from past seasons.
SEC Daily Fever: Seemingly Insufficient Punishment For Spikes Sparks Controversy
Is a half-game suspension at home against Vanderbilt really a punishment? That’s what many are wondering after Urban Meyer read more...
SEC Daily Fever: Freshmen SEC Coaches Seeing Success
One of the consistent themes in the conference this season has been the effect of the three new coaches. That continued on Saturday with Tennessee, Auburn, and Mississippi read more...
SEC Daily Fever: "Cocktail Party" Remains A Great Southern tradition
It's more than just a football game. Whether it's golf tournaments, concerts, or just a long weekend with friends, the Georgia-Florida game has become a can't miss event for both fan bases and for read more...
SEC Daily Fever: Ole Miss Looks To Finish Strong
As Ole Miss prepares to travel to Auburn this Saturday, Houston Nutt's team will look to build the same second half of the season momentum that they did in 2008.
SEC Daily Fever: Tebow Shuns The Media
An interesting scenario happened after the Florida win at Mississippi State; Tim Tebow did not meet with the media.
SEC Daily Fever: Officials Under Heavy Scrutiny
Here we go again-another week, another rash of bad and missed calls that have SEC coaches angry. A week after Arkansas’ Bobby Petrino was reprimanded by the league office, two more read more...
SEC Daily Fever: Bama Hangs On Against Tennessee
We have used the term "survive and advance" several times during league play, and that's just what Alabama (barely) did with their 12-10 victory over read more...
SEC Daily Fever: LSU needs Auburn win to stay on league's top shelf
Most in the local and national media are already looking towards December for the highly- anticipated Florida-Alabama matchup in Atlanta, but one team who has the talent to throw a wrench in that scenario is LSU.
SEC Daily Fever: Nutt Back In Spotlight As Ole Miss Prepares For Arkansas
When the 2009 season kicked off, Ole Miss looked to be a contender in the West while the Arkansas was supposed to play the role of spoiler - but roles could be reveresed after this Saturday's game.
Halloween In New Orleans: Panic, Truckers & NO Musicians Clinic Conjure Good Mojo
A Season of the Witch in The Crescent City: Widespread Panic, Drive By Truckers & New Orleans Musicians Clinic Help At Halloween In this read more...
SEC Daily Fever: Kiffin And Saban Build Their Programs Using Past NFL Perspective
As Tennessee and Alabama prepare for their annual October clash, the Vols seem to be a couple of recruiting classes behind the Tide in building a roster to compete for a league title.
SPF Daily Rating: Team In Turmoil #1 - Washington Redskins
We knew it was going to be a tough year for several SPF teams. We are going to spend some time this week on a few individual teams to give a sense of their respective level of desperation. Our first team is the Washington Redskins. Their fall might be the read more...
SEC Daily Fever: League Refs Under Scrutiny After Missed Calls
It seems to happen every week- fans gripe about the refs. While part of that is just fans being fans, this season has seen an especially high number of questionable calls around the SEC.
SEC Daily Fever: Florida Squeaks By Arkansas, Drops to #2 in AP
We wrote on Friday that Florida could be in for a classic trap game against Arkansas, and that’s what it turned out to be.
SEC Daily Fever: Should Florida be on Upset Alert?
Is this the one? Even though the Florida Gators have won two of the last three National Titles, they lost a surprising game in the middle of both of those seasons. Urban read more...
SPF Daily Rating: Bengals Blackout?
The Bengals have had a dream season so far. They've beaten their arch rival (Steelers). They've beaten their in state rival. They are a last minute tipped pass away from being undefeated, but they are still at 4-1 and lead the AFC North.
SEC Daily Fever: Can LSU Still Challenge For the West Crown?
We wrote earlier this week that it’s beginning to look more and more like a Florida-Alabama rematch in the SEC Title Game.
SEC Daily Fever: Snead and Ole Miss Are Struggling
Along with Georgia, one of the most frustrated fan bases in the league at the halfway point has to be that of Ole Miss. Their record will not look that bad after read more...
SPF Daily Rating: Saints Fever Sweeping the Gulf Coast
As we predicted, it has been a pretty dire year for SPF teams. Even one of our playoff locks, the Tennessee Titans, is surprisingly winless and going nowhere fast. The best news amongst our SPF teams comes from the Saints who made an off season commitment to read more...
SEC Daily Fever: Georgia Coaching Staff Under Fire
There is some extra heat radiating from Athens these days, as Mark Richt tries to regroup his Bulldogs after being blown out by Tennessee. AJC columnist Mark Bradley called Georgia’s 45-19 loss in Knoxville “
SEC Daily Fever: Florida and Alabama On Path For Title Rematch
Tim Tebow did start and play against LSU Saturday night, but it was the Gator defense that dominated the game and propelled Florida to a 13-3 road victory in Death Valley.
SEC Daily Fever: Will LSU's Running Game Beat Florida?
Prime time national television audience, Baton Rouge, #1 vs. #4; this one should be fun. That’s the scenario as Florida travels to LSU amid questions read more...
SPF Daily Rating: Blank Talks About A New Stadium In Atlanta For Falcons
Amidst a serious economic downturn, Falcons owner Arthur Blank has again begun engaging in public discussion about a new stadium to replace the Georgia Dome. The fact read more...
SEC Daily Fever: Arkansas Has Much To Prove Against Auburn
Arkansas came into the season with the goal of at least being a factor in the SEC West, if not more. Already at 0-2 in league play, the Hogs begin a stretch this Saturday read more...
SPF Daily Rating: Del Rio Keeps Playing Silly Games #3
We guess Jack Del Rio's two game win streak has further emboldened him. After already playing silly media games with players on two different occasions (here and read more...
SEC Daily Fever: Saban and Nutt Share Mutual Admiration
While the Florida-LSU matchup is getting much of the conference attention this week, another key league game will take place when Ole Miss hosts Alabama. The read more...
SPF Daily Rating: Are the Cowboys and Texans Going In Opposite Directions?
As always, there is panic in Cowboy Nation. Panic like this always ensues when their beloved team isn't undefeated or at least in the top half read more...
SEC Daily Fever: Auburn Faces Offensive Shootout At Arkansas
While most of the attention in the league has gone to the three teams in the Top 4 of the polls, maybe the best story of the early season has been the resurgence of Auburn.
SPF Daily Rating: Saints Look Consistent, Perhaps Elite At 4-0
It's early, but the 2009 New Orleans Saints look like a very, very good team. No one has ever questioned this team's read more...
SEC Daily Fever: LSU's Tight Win Sets Up SEC Mega-Clash
It may not have been the most well played game, but what a finish we all got to see in Athens Saturday. LSU led Georgia 6-0 after three quarters, read more...
SEC Daily Fever: Georgia Looks To Define 2009 Season Against LSU
Saturday’s huge clash between Georgia and LSU will go a long way in defining the Bulldogs’ season. Mark Richt’s bunch is 3-1, a pretty solid record read more...
SPF Daily Rating: Del Rio Cancels Garrard's Radio Show
We hate piling on, but Jaguars coach Jack Del Rio has been asking for it. Just recently, we wrote about Del Rio's penchant for playing silly games - most read more...
SEC Daily Fever: LSU Can Prove Their Top 5 Ranking Between the Hedges
LSU will begin a brutal three-game stretch this Saturday that will test their lofty #4 national ranking.
SPF Daily Rating: Jaguars to Orlando?
Orlando Sentinel sports columnist, Mike Bianchi, made some big sports news today when he reported that the Jacksonville Jaguars might be looking to move
SEC Daily Fever: Auburn Faces Litmus Test in Tennessee
It has been quite the successful beginning at Auburn for new coach Gene Chizik. His Tigers have started 4-0 while putting up 45.3 points and 526 yards a game, read more...
SPF Daily Rating: Dolphins Trade for Thigpen
The Miami Dolphins wasted no time replacing injured QB Chad Pennington by trading for former Chiefs and Coastal Carolina QB Tyler Thigpen in the wake of Pennington's decision to have read more...
Buffalo's Top Ten List For The Week of September 29th, 2009
1. Kris Kristofferson Closer to the Bone (CD) I wear this one like a warm winter coat. To me, it is what music is all about - great songs, no frills, read more...
SEC Daily Fever: Hogs Desperate for Win in Big D vs Texas A&M
Can you have a must-win game at the beginning of October against a non-conference opponent? That’s the feeling around an Arkansas squad that sits at read more...
SPF Daily Rating: Chad Pennington to Miss Season
Although they don't want to officially announce it yet because of a possible misdiagnosis, the immediate signs are that Dolphins QB Chad Pennington will miss the 2009 season with a shoulder read more...
SEC Daily Fever: Is Bama the league's top dog?
Florida still has the #1 spot in the national polls, but many believe Alabama is staking a claim as the best team in the read more...
SPF Daily Rating: Texas Stadium RIP
Last night, the Irving (TX) City Council approved the funds to demolish Texas Stadium. Lost in all the hype of the new Cowboys Stadium, it's hard to believe that a place with so read more...
SEC Daily Fever: Gamecocks Embrace the Spotlight While the Rebels Wither
SEC Daily Fever is the top SEC story of the day. Disagree? Let us know. South Carolina played a physical game led by their relentless defense and took down #4 Ole Miss 16-10, Thursday night in Columbia in a classic SEC headknocker.
SPF Daily Rating: What if Redskins Lose To Lowly Lions? Bye, Bye Zorn
It's the unthinkable times two. The first unthinkable is that an NFL team can finish 0-16. That already happened with last year's Detroit Lions. Now that the Lions are 0-2 to start the 2009 season, the question starts - "who will they finally read more...
SEC Daily Fever: Rebels-Gamecocks Ready To Prove It in Primetime
It should be a great Thursday night national television matchup between Ole Miss and South Carolina, two teams that have a lot to prove.
SPF Daily Rating: Del Rio Playing Silly Games in Jacksonville
In what should be a small story, Jags coach Jack Del Rio has brought back WR Nate Hughes to the practice squad after cutting him on read more...
SEC Daily Fever: It's Offense vs Defense When Arkansas faces Alabama
SEC Daily Fever is the top SEC story of the day. Disagree? Let us know. One of the more interesting storylines this Saturday will be seeing
SPF Daily Rating: Lack of Playmakers Leave Florida Teams Winless
"I'm not interested in Pro Bowl players, I'm interested in world champions." "[I'm interested in 'non-talent issues' [namely] the hustle, the effort, the technique, the fundamentals, all of those things." The above quotes read more...
SEC Daily Fever: Verbal Jabs Between Meyer and Kiffin Escalate
SEC Daily Fever is the top SEC story of the day. Disagree? Let us know. New Tennessee coach Lane Kiffin may have gotten the first word in between him and Urban Meyer when he boldly (or stupidly depending on your point of view) announced read more...
SPF Daily Rating: The Saints Roll Again Behind Smart Decisions
The New Orleans Saints keep their high powered offense rolling once again as they went into Philadelphia and smoked the Eagles 48-22. What read more...
SEC Daily Fever: New Coaches Show Early Promise
SEC Daily Fever is the top SEC story of the day. Disagree? Let us know. The story of the early SEC season continues to be the impact of the new coaches. We already knew the strength of the top teams in the league (Florida, read more...
Buffalo's Top Ten List For The Week of September 19th, 2009
1. Swampdawamp Rock This Country (CD) The singer has one of the most unusual voices since Jim Dandy, and the band just plain rocks, read more...
SPF Daily Rating: Houston Texans Don't Like Being Called "Soft"
To say the Houston Texans have been disappointing since entering the NFL as a expansion team in 2002 would be an understatement. In a way, however, everything about the Texans seems understated, including their presence on the field according to those who have been calling read more...
SEC Daily Fever: Meyer Looks To Make Statement Against Kiffin
SEC Daily Fever is the top SEC story of the day. Disagree? Let us know. The national media has had this game circled since Lane Kiffin's hiring press conference earlier this year. Kiffin and Tennessee will travel to the Swamp this read more...
Daniel Lanois' Black Dub
Daniel Lanois’ Black Dub Famed Canadian-New Orleans producer/musician Daniel Lanois is working on a new album in read more...
SPF Daily Rating: Jacksonville Mayor Makes Personal Plea For Fans To Buy Jags Tix
The Jaguars lost an astonishing 17,000 season ticket holders between this season and last. Expectations are that most of their games will be blacked out locally. So who have the Jags turned to?
SEC Daily Fever: Hogs-Dawgs Could Be The SEC Game of The Weekend
SEC Daily Fever is the top SEC story of the day. Disagree? Let us know. One of the more interesting matchups of the weekend has to be Georgia traveling to Arkansas. (Give Mark Richt credit - his tough schedule has kept his team on read more...
SPF Daily Rating: Delhomme Under Fire In Carolina
Things are getting ugly in Charlotte and Carolina for Panthers QB Jake Delhomme. Delhomme is getting major flack from fans. read more...
SEC Daily Fever: Chizik Tries To "Manage" Auburn Fans' Expectations
SEC Daily Fever is the top SEC story of the day. Disagree? Let us know. Auburn fans have had more than a little frustration with their offense over the last few seasons.
SPF Daily Rating: The Falcons Display Winning Formula in Week One
The Atlanta Falcons have opened 2009 just like they did 2008 - by winning decisively. The main difference is that they beat the ultimately 0-16 read more...
SEC Daily Fever: Kiffin Continues Tennessee's Recruiting Gains
SEC Daily Fever is the top SEC story of the day. Disagree? Let us know. Saturday was a tough day for Lane Kiffin and the Vols.
SEC Daily Fever: UGA and South Carolina Deliver Early Season Drama
SEC Daily Fever is the top SEC story of the day. Disagree? Let us know. What a game between Georgia and South Carolina. With their recent history, we all expected a low scoring, defensive affair.
SEC Weekend Fever: Mullen vs. Chizik
SEC Weekend Fever Previews Top Stories for the Upcoming Weekend Auburn hosts Mississippi State in 2009's first meeting between SEC rookie coaches. Quite a lot has changed in a year for both squads.
SEC Daily Fever: Georgia & South Carolina Ready Defenses For A Tight Game
SEC Daily Fever is the top SEC story of the day. Disagree? Let us know. Mark Richt and Steve Spurrier are both offensive-minded coaches, but it looks like they have to rely on their defenses to win early in 2009.
SEC Daily Fever: Gut Check time for Georgia
SEC Daily Fever is the top SEC story of the day. Disagree? Let us know. After dropping the opener at Oklahoma State, it is a huge week for Georgia as they try to avoid an 0-2 start when they battle South Carolina Saturday.
SEC Daily Fever: Solid Debuts For New Coaches Makes Conference Even Deeper
SEC Daily Fever is the top SEC story of the day. Disagree? Let us know. With the exception of the Georgia loss, it was a pretty solid start for the SEC. The biggest story had to be the debut of the three new coaches.
SEC Daily Fever: Spurrier Lets Defense Rule Over Wolfpack
SEC Daily Fever is the top SEC story of the day. Disagree? Let us know. It wasn’t pretty, but South Carolina relied on their defense for a hard fought read more...
SEC Daily Fever: Tide Duo cleared to play in Opener
SEC Daily Fever is the top SEC story of the day. Disagree? Let us know. Although the NCAA did find a violation in the Alabama case involving receiver Julio Jones and running back Mark Ingram,
SEC Daily Fever: Auburn Opener Provides Dilemma for Vince Dooley
SEC Daily Fever is the top SEC story of the day. Disagree? Let us know. An interesting scenario presents itself for SEC legend Vince Dooley in the Auburn-Louisiana Tech opener.
SEC Daily Fever: Embattled Dawgs D Gets Opening Challenge
SEC Daily Fever is the top SEC story of the day. Disagree? Let us know. While much of the talk in Athens has been about replacing Matt Stafford and Knowshon Moreno, the key to the 2009 Georgia season may lie in the improvement of the read more...
SEC Daily Fever: Bama Locks Up Saban For Another 3 Years
SEC Daily Fever is the top SEC story of the day. Disagree? Let us know. A contract extension for Nick Saban, whose megadeal already runs through 2014?
SEC Daily Fever: Ole Miss Fans Hoping For a Monumental Season
SEC Daily Fever is the top SEC story of the day. Disagree? Let us know. Coming off a Cotton Bowl win and with quarterback Jevan Snead returning, the expectations at Ole Miss are as high as ever. The fan base has responded by
SEC Daily Fever: Vols' Brown cleared by the NCAA
$(document).ready(function() { $('p > a[href*=swampland]').after(''); $('p > read more...
SEC Daily Fever: Latest On Julio Jones and Alabama
SEC Daily Fever is the top SEC story of the day. Disagree? Let us know. It's the story that just won't go away in Alabama.
No Holds Barred: Blackjack Mulligan
Of all the wrestlers I have seen step into the squared circle, none was more exciting than the “man in black,” the Texas giant known as Blackjack Mulligan.
SEC Daily Fever: How will Kiffin's offense fare in Year 1?
SEC Daily Fever is the top SEC story of the day. Disagree? Let us know. As expected, Tennessee has named senior quarterback Jonathan Crompton the read more...
Art Scene in Athens, Alabama: Local Southern Authors Rule
The literary scene is booming in the small town of Athens, Alabama. In the past year at least four authors have published their work.
SEC Daily Fever: The Gamecock Spotlight Shines on Garcia in South Carolina
SEC Daily Fever is the top SEC story of the day. Disagree? Let us know It’s nothing new for Steve Spurrier to seem upset with the play of his quarterbacks.
Possums Tales and Other Southern Fare
I was inspired to write about possums when I first saw this sign in front of Hickory Barn read more...
SEC Daily Fever: SEC Media Policy Upsets the Press
SEC Daily Fever is the top SEC story of the day. Disagree? Let us know A huge debate is about to happen regarding the direction of the league’s media coverage.
SEC Daily Fever: Eligibility of Prized Vol Recruit Under NCAA Scrutiny
SEC Daily Fever is the top SEC story of the day. Disagree? Let us know The highly-publicized recruitment of Tennessee’s Bryce Brown has taken an interesting turn a few weeks before the top running back is set to make read more...
SEC Daily Fever: Tough Break for Improving Vandy
SEC Daily Fever is the top SEC story of the day. Disagree? Let us know Vanderbilt’s defense suffered a major blow with
SEC Daily Fever: Tough Injury for the Razorbacks
SEC Daily Fever is the top SEC story of the day. Disagree? Let us know. The Arkansas defense has suffered a major loss with the news that
SEC Daily Fever: Auburn Names QB Starter
SEC Daily Fever is the top SEC story of the day. Disagree? Let us know. Chris Todd was recently named the starting quarterback at Auburn, and he
Trailblazing Playwright Judi Ann Mason Dies at 54
Judi Ann Mason, who died of a ruptured abdominal aorta Wednesday July 8, 2009, was widely known in the film and television industry. Born in 1955 in
Toby Keith's Controversial New Video, See It Here
Toby Keith has never been one to hold back on his feelings. Now he has a new song and video that are already stirring up controversy. Imagine that. I'll leave the commenting up to you, our readers. Let us know what you think! Meanwhile... Keep it Real. Keep it read more...
James Burton Travels To Memphis For Elvis Week
Elvis Guitarist Travels To Memphis It’s Death Week in Memphis. Elvis Presley’s guitarist,
Brooks & Dunn Going Out On Top
All good things, they say, must eventually come to an end, even if it’s a mega-star country music act like Brooks & Dunn. Louisiana man Kix Brooks and Texan Ronnie Dunn have announced that they are parting ways as a duo following a farewell read more...
Art from Alabama to New Orleans and Along the Trail of Tears
This week's feature is about Going Green in New Orleans--how one city is turning trash into treasures. As we become more and more environmentally read more...
More Legends Added to Photo Scrapbook
Howdy y'all. I hope everyone is having a great weekend. It's time once again to add another page to our ongoing Legends of Southern Rock Photo Scrapbook. No theme this time, read more...
In Defense of Steve Spurrier: How The Ole Ball Coach's Honest Humility Might Help Carolina
Is the SEC seeing a new side of Steve Spurrier in the wake of what seemed to be an uncharacteristic performance at this year's SEC Media Days? His current situation hinges around a piece Swampland Sports wrote last February
Levon Helm's Electric Dirt Remains True To American Musical Soil
Levon Helm's Electric Dirt You can't say enough about
Summer Tour Notes Volume 5: Music Maker Relief Foundation
Mystery And Manners' Summer Tour Notes Number 5: Music Maker My friend
Can the Big 12 or the ACC catch the SEC?
With every football season, the conversation around the nation leads to the inevitable question- who is the best conference? Many fans answer the same every year (their favorite) while others look a little more objectively. I found it interesting a couple of weeks ago when separate read more...
Orrin Hatch's Folly: Senator, College Football Is About Conferences, Not Teams
After concluding Senate hearings about the BCS, Senator Orrin Hatch wrote an op-ed piece that appeared on ESPN.com. Here's a selection of that article: During the June 7 read more...
Doctor from Alabama Obama's Choice for Surgeon General
Once again Alabama has made the national news. For the last two weeks the web has been buzzing about a speech that financial guru and CEO of Retirement Systems of read more...
New CD Reviews include Ronnie's Daughter Tammy Van Zant
Be sure to check the GRITZ CD reviews page for a couple of new postings. We have a review of the newly remastered classic Creendence Clearwater Revivial album The Concert as well as a review of read more...
The Shocking Loss of Steve McNair
So there I was in Nashville- relaxing by the water with friends on the 4th of July like most of us like to do. Then I heard something that made the festive holiday mood fade quickly; “Steve McNair had been shot”. Could this really be, or maybe it was just bad read more...
NBA Draft: Swampland's Pro Hoops Teams
Pro sports has a problem in the Swampland Footprint. Considered the top level of competition and interest throughout the rest of the country, the pro game doesn't resonate with read more...
The Truth & Salvage Company
Truth & Salvage On The Rise The Truth & Salvage Company were recently read more...
Southern Baseball Leads the Way Again
On the eve of the College World Series and Major League Draft, we thought we should take a look at some of the top baseball prospects in our Swampland read more...
Allman Brothers, Bonnie Bramlett and More Posted On New Legends Scrapbook Page
Hey gang! More new Southern Rock photos have been posted in the Legends Scrapbook. Allmans, Tucker, Bonnie Bramlett and much more. Check it out here! Keep read more...
Alabama Poet Jeanie Thompson to Read from New Collection in NYC
Alabama author Jeanie Thompson will be reading from her most recent collection of poetry The Seasons Bear Us on read more...
Win a Dean Guitar Signed by Legends of Southern Rock
Hi Guys. It's time for the much talked about, long awaited Legends of Southern Rock Contest, brought to you by Swampland and the Facebook Groups
The Saints And New Orleans Find Re-Birth After Katrina
The 2009 season will be huge for the Saints both on and off the field. While record-setting Drew Brees tries to get the team back to the Playoffs, the bigger story may lie within the city as
Random Notes, Hoopee Jam, Boxmasters and Such
Greetings, Sports Fans. I was hoping to have our new Boxmasters interview ready for you today, but it turned out to be quite an opus. Still transcribing. But man oh man, is it a good one. I had the opportunity read more...
Parcells Formula Works Again in Miami
Retirement and South Florida mix very well for many of us, but not for Bill Parcells. He left the comforts of retired life to return to football and resuscitate the fading Dolphins, who had been such a successful franchise for many years. Coming off a 1-15 debacle in 2007, the read more...
Texans Need to Break Through the Wall of Mediocrity
The pressure will be coming from the top for the Houston Texans to have their first winning season and first postseason appearance in their eighth year in the NFL. Dom Capers, who read more...
2009 Season Represents a Change in Philosophy for the Cowboys
We must start out by saying that our thoughts and prayers here at Swampland are with the Dallas Cowboys family after the horrific collapse of their read more...
Bengals Have Glimpse of Hope with Stellar Draft
Marvin Lewis is entering his seventh season as the Bengals head coach, and 2009 could very well be his make-or-break season to get the culture of losing changed in Cincinnati.
Panthers Making Every Effort to Win Now
It all seemed to be falling into place for John Fox’s club last season. Coming off a losing 2007 campaign where Jake Delhomme only played three games, Carolina rediscovered their physical running game identity in 2008 and won the NFC South. At 12-4 and the #2 seed in the NFC, read more...
The GRITZ Mail Bag: May 1, 2009
KUDOS FROM LOUISIANA I'd like to thank you for doing this. I just got the new newsletter and I wanted to tell you how much I enjoyed it. It was great to hear that so many of these guys are still around. Would love to see a few of these guys come here read more...
Falcons Future Looks Bright with Dimitroff in Charge
To borrow a line from Robert Randolph, the Atlanta Falcons are now a team that is definitely “going in the right direction". Just two years ago, this organization was in turmoil. Their franchise quarterback, Michael Vick, was arrested on federal charges and consequently read more...
Swampland's NFL Draft Impressions
How did your team do? That’s the question that NFL fans are trying to answer following this weekend’s annual NFL Draft. We will take an in-depth look at each team in our read more...
National Poetry Month and Kentuckian Wendell Berry
April is National Poetry Month, and I have been musing over one of my favorite poems that I keep posted on the door of my refrigerator. It is "The Peace of Wild Things" read more...
NFL Teams Draft Their Identity This Weekend
Well it's finally here-Xmas in April for football fans. The ultimate convergence of pro and college football happens today with the annual NFL Draft. This is a day of hope for every fan base, and it's also the day(s) that NFL executives decide on the identity of their respective read more...
Should NFL Teams Lean Towards Drafting Local College Favorites?
A theme that seems to arise every season in our Swampland footprint is the choice of NFL teams to draft a local college favorite. Most professional organizations will deny that this decision ever enters their thinking, and that they always select the next best player on their Draft read more...
Back To Where it All Began: The Southern Rock Era
I have pretty much decided that the whole "Southern Rock" thing began in 1969. Sure, there were many rock and rollers and rockabillys that lead up to this new genre at the time. Not to mention all the country, blues and gospel players that served as influences on read more...
A New (Media) Day Dawning for the SEC
We ran across this video recently, and we thought we'd put it up for everyone to view. It ran at the end of Raycom Sports final SEC game during this past SEC basketball tournament in Tampa. We all know about the SEC's new ESPN deal
In Defense of Jay Cutler: Why Most SPF Teams Still Don't Get It
I wish it hadn't come to this [trading Cutler]. I'm disappointed. . . . It's a sad day for one of the elite franchises in football and all the Broncos fans, and I'm sad - John Elway The saga of Jay Cutler has mesmerized the NFL landscape just like Brett Favre did read more...
Songs & Stories: An Allstar Memphis Benefit Show
Memphis Heavies Perform Benefit On Sunday April 19, 2009, an allstar benefit show will take place at Minglewood Hall in Memphis. This show is not read more...
Big Medicine Come Soon
"Beyond the horizon, in the Springtime or Fall Love waits forever for one and for all." --Bob Dylan Greetings read more...
Join Our Southern Rock Group On Facebook
I am very happy to announce our new "Legends of Southern Rock" group on Facebook. If you are a Facebook member, just follow the Legends link above and join us. We have one discussion already read more...
Mickey Rourke and The Nature Boy: Pro Wrestling and The Oscars
I am more excited than usual about this year’s Oscars, for several reasons, but the primary reason is the one movie that just blew me out of the water lately. That movie was
SEC vs ACC: Clemson and South Carolina Try to Make the Palmetto State Relevant
In continuing our look at the states with both ACC and SEC teams, we move to the Palmetto State, where a ton of changes occurred in the offseason.
SEC vs ACC: Georgia and Georgia Tech Battle for Peach State Supremacy
With recruiting classes signed and spring practices approaching, it’s a good time to look at states in the Swampland Footprint that share SEC and ACC teams. We’re going to start in the Peach State, where a long time
The Clock is Ticking for Spurrier at South Carolina
As we continue to take a post-Signing Day look at the coaches and programs in our Swampland Footprint, it’s an interesting time to examine the state of the South Carolina program under Steve Spurrier. An SEC legend as a player and coach at Florida, Spurrier has not yet read more...
For Ole Miss and Arkansas (and Nutt and Petrino), It Looks Like a Win/Win
We've all witnessed the media firestorm surrounding Auburn and Tennessee's respective head coaching hires of Gene Chizik and Lane Kiffin. Like they tend to do, the media took some minor fires of controversy and poured gasoline on them, leaving any remnants of logic and reason read more...
In Defense of Lane Kiffin: The SEC "Family Feud" with Urban Meyer
There is no other conference more proud of itself than the SEC. SEC fans from rival teams hate each other with a passion bordering on the pathological, but when success arrives, it is embraced not just for the winning team but for the conference at large.
SEC Dominance - From the Field to Recruiting (And It Isn't Stopping Soon)
The reaction to Signing Day is always interesting as every coach in America is thrilled with their class while fans have mixed reactions to their school’s ranking and new players. Everyone that followed Wednesday's coverage saw plenty of ESPN's favorite big-market teams read more...
Xmas in February for Southern College Football Fans (SEC, Big 12, ACC, Big East)
It’s finally here! National Signing Day is upon us, and this is the time where quality programs establish themselves for the upcoming years. The welcoming of a new recruiting class energizes fans and provides coaches with the opportunity to show that their school will be-or read more...
Mack Brown and the Longhorns Must Judiciously Draw Talent from their Texas Base
Water is wet, the sky is blue, and the University of Texas is working on another top-notch recruiting class. The Longhorns Mine Their State's Natural Talent Base Most BCS schools try to comb their region (if not the read more...
SB Sunday Reflections on the SPF Season: Teams Fell Short; Dungy & Gruden Gone
As the Footprint wakes to a Sunday featuring the 43rd Super Bowl hosted by one of our great Swampland cities, it gives us a chance to reflect on the past SPF season. Although five of our 13 SPF teams made the playoffs, none made any noise since they all were "one and read more...
To Stewart Mandel, We Say, "SEC Coaching Dollars Make Sense"
Chalk SI.com's Stewart Mandel as the latest member of the national media that just doesn’t understand the culture of the SEC football landscape. Mandel's latest involves
Lane Kiffin is Already Making an Impact on the SEC (and Paul Finebaum)
A few weeks ago, I wrote how I thought Tennessee and Lane Kiffin were going to be a great fit for each other. There was quite a bit of criticism for a major power in the SEC choosing a read more...
In Defense of Bob Stoops, the BCS (again), and the Big 12 (and a Look at the 2009 Season)
Proof, in college football, always comes over at least a two year period. This means that Heisman winners and BCS Championship opponents almost always have to have a strong previous season leading into their big year.
Ole Miss and LSU Cruise; Alabama and South Carolina Snooze
Overall it’s been a pretty good bowl season for the SEC, going 5-2 with Florida left to play in the National Title Game. The highlights include Mississippi and Houston Nutt getting a
Taking a Lesson from The Fat Man for 2009: Fats Domino and the Courage to Go On
Sunday night I watched the public television premiere of the documentary Fats Domino— Wallkin' Back to New Orleans. I found in that film a message of hope and inspiration for all of us for the coming read more...
Lane Kiffin fits the Vols and the SEC
Tribal Fever did a great job of presenting the challenge that is coaching in the 21st century SEC. I wanted to focus on the Tennessee job where Phil read more...
Swampland's Legends of Southern Rock
Hey gang, check out our Swampland Legends of Southern Rock Series. We are always adding new bands and updating the existing pages, which chronicle the histories of these awesome bands and link to various articles and interviews within GRITZ. Phone the neighbors, wake the read more...
The Best Releases of 2008
We are happy to present what we feel are the very best album releases of the past year. Please let us know what you think. Buffalo
SEC and Big 12 Championship Game Reax
The college football regular season ended by giving us the matchup that made the most sense--the SEC Champion vs. the Big 12 Champion. The BCS title game should be a high-scoring, exciting affair and one that all of the fans in our Swampland footprint will appreciate. Florida will read more...
The Sunday Slate (Week Fourteen): NFC South Showdowns!
We had to take a couple of weeks off due to technical issues with the site. Check out our Faulkner-inspired T.I. Poll to see how the teams rank. On to this week's read more...
Saturday's Slate: Conference Championships
Here we are, after a week off due to technical difficulties, to find ourselves on the verge of crowning some conference champions and setting up the BCS Title teams. It has been a long and exciting year. Luckily for us, today's games have the potential to live up to the read more...
Mystery And Manners' Top 25 Releases of 2008
Mystery And Manners’ Top 25 2008 Releases 12/5/08 Here’s a list (in no specific rank or order) of Mystery And Manners’ top 25 releases of 2008. The category includes new releases, DVDs, books, re-issues and relevant CDs that read more...
Swampland Footprint National Title: Big 12 vs. SEC
So it’s Oklahoma that gets the chance to represent the Big 12 South in Kansas City, and they will probably get a shot at the National title with a victory. Of read more...
Snowman's Six-Pack of Reax from Saturday
1. It has finally happened. For the first time since 1982, the Vanderbilt Commodores will be eligible to go to a bowl. Vandy rode D.J. Moore read more...
Time to Cowboy Up
Yeeee hah! Legacy Recordings celebrates the 50th anniversary of the National Finals Rodeo with an absolutely killer boxed set of cowboy songs, old and new. This one really brought back memories of my old Roy Rogers guitar, playing in the back yard with my little black read more...
The Sunday Slate (Week Eleven): Key Swampland Showdowns in Jax, DC, and Indy!
After four SPF teams have byes last week (Dallas, Washington, Tampa Bay, and Cincinnati), we are heading into the home stretch. Intra-division matchups will determine playoffs berths. This week our two SPF NFC East teams and the entire AFC South face off. As read more...
Saturday's Slate: SEC vs. Big 12 South Looking Good!
After a season of many a wild ride, a little clarity emerged from last week's games. The SEC has their championship game set. The Big 12 is now down to three (maybe four) potential BCS participants. The rest of our TF conferences have a ways to go, but none of read more...
Snowman's Six-Pack of Reax from Saturday
1. After all of the Nick Saban drama last week in Baton Rouge, we finally got a close game from a SEC marquee matchup. Alabama and LSU staged a very hard-fought battle, but as we’ve written about so much this season in the SEC, the quarterback play was the difference. Alabama read more...
The Sunday Slate (Week Ten): Byes Galore
Four SPF teams have byes this week (Dallas, Washington, Tampa Bay, and Cincinnati). There are only a few good-looking games on the schedule. The rest, outside of a select few, look like virtual byes - either be easy wins or sad losses. As Always, SPF teams in read more...
Saturday's Slate: The November Home Stretch Begins!
College football remains the Footprint's most compelling and spectacular sport. The 2008 season has delivered us yet again a roller coaster ride of sporting goodness. The stakes have been high all season. So far, at least two key programs (Tennessee and read more...
End of an Era in Knoxville and the SEC
The Dean of SEC football coaches, Phillip Fulmer, announced on Monday that he would agree with the University of Tennessee’s decision for him no to return for the 2009 season. It was one of the
Snowman's Six-Pack of Reax from Saturday
1. Wow – what an instant classic in the Lonestar State. Texas Tech pulled off an amazing upset of #1 Texas with one second to go and sent their raucous fans read more...
The Sunday Slate (Week Nine): SPF Inter-league Barometer Time
Carolina and New Orleans have bye weeks. There's one Swampland Showdown. The rest of today's Slate features matchups between SPF teams and the rest of the NFL. There is a chance that SPF teams can go undefeated this week sending a huge message to the rest of the read more...
Saturday's Slate: Top Games in Each Conference Will Decide Champions
Georgia and Florida in Jacksonville The World’s Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party has more at stake than ever – read more...
Tuesday Tastings (Week 8): Midway Point
Thanks to Patrick "Snowman" Snow's item early Monday morning, he helped us cover a lot of ground for our tastings. Without any further waiting... FINGER-LICKIN' read more...
Snowman's Six-Pack of Reax from Sunday
1) The Titans and Colts will go at it on Monday Night Football in the Music City. Tennessee comes into the game undefeated and looks to deliver the ultimate knockout blow to the usual AFC South Champ. The
Buffalo's Soap Box: The Economy, The Election and Stealing Music
I'm stepping back up onto my reinforced industrial strength Soap Box. You have been warned. Something has to be done. No matter who becomes the president in a few days, there is a huge task ahead. The economy has never been so bad, at least in my life time. It seems read more...
Snowman's Six-Pack of Reax from Saturday
1) The biggest difference between teams in the SEC this season is simply quarterback play. Alabama, Georgia, and Florida came into the season with experienced/quality signal callers, and they have been the class of the league. Lack of experience or just poor play at quarterback has read more...
The Sunday Slate (Week Eight): Big Games in Big D, Music City
Finally, we have a few big games to savor. As Always, SPF teams in CAPS with (Week 7's T.I. Poll Ranking) TAMPA BAY (4) @ DALLAS (1) - This pivotal Swampland read more...
Saturday's Slate: A Bit of Relative Calm Before the Storm
Although you can't take a week off in college football, this week seems like a palate cleanser before some of the biggest homestretch games are played. November will feature great game after great game and next week's
A Nice Weekend of Hate in the SEC
One of the most hate-filled rivalries in college football will see another chapter written on Saturday when the #2 Alabama Crimson Tide invade Knoxville to take on the Volunteers. The “Third read more...
Tuesday Tastings (Week 7): Rams Recognized, while Dallas Declines
It was a tough week of football in SPF land. Two of our teams were off (Jacksonville and Atlanta) and several others played like they were taking the week off. FINGER LICKIN' GOOD St. Louis Rams - It is time to read more...
The Sunday Slate (Week Seven): Find Some Magic
With only four games worthy of interest and two teams off (Atlanta and Jacksonville), we are looking for a little magic in our Sunday Slate. The NFL usually provides a few unexpected surprises. Maybe this is that week. It certainly won't be hard with entertaiment read more...
Saturday's Slate: BCS Busters vs. Disciplined Talent
Last week was a lesson in symmetry. Many teams met on the field that looked like mirror images. Something had to give, and it did. 3 of the top 5 teams lost giving the nation a new number one, Texas, who beat Oklahoma in what was probably a top 10 of all time Red read more...
Tuesday Tastings (Week 6): Burt Reynolds Loves The Falcons!
It was a very weird week in SPF land. Many teams lost games they weren't expected to lose. A few others had surprising wins. (The Titans were off so they don't get included this week.) FINGER LICKIN' read more...
Pro Wrestling in The Seventies: Ox Baker
I am really excited about our brand new, ongoing series No Holds Barred. The series will look at the stars and memories of the hey day of pro wrestling in the south, especially here in the Mid Atlantic area. I will be profiling many of the stars of the sport during the read more...
The Sunday Slate (Week Six): The "Must Wins" Begin
The NFL is a game of inches. Each week matters. The stories of each of our SPF teams are told as the season unfolds. There have been enough games to know that this week has more than a few teams in desperation mode. Simply put, more than a few of our teams read more...
Saturday's Slate: Symmetry Saturday
We've already been treated to upsets throughout the Tribal Fever landscape, but let's not forget that upsets require a precondition of disparity between teams, etiher real or imagined. This Saturday's games are of a different sort. It seems across the board that all read more...
Tuesday Tastings (Week 5): Nothing Is Easy
St Louis was off last week, so we are spared another missive on how terrible they are. The good news is that their temporary absence sways our SPF teams well into the positive over all. The best of our teams are living by a simple rule - nothing comes easy in SPF read more...
The Sunday Slate (Week Five): Separation Sunday
This week doesn't have the same drama as a Cowboys/Redskins weekend, but SPF teams pushing towards the playoffs, a solid 8 of 15, can further prove their mettle this week by taking care of business. As Always, SPF teams in CAPS with (Week 4's
Pro Wrestling in the South Back in the Day
I was on the phone with a friend last week, just catching up on this and that, when my buddy posed a question. “Did you ever get into pro rasslin’?” Now, for the record, I spell it
Saturday's Slate: Picking Up The Pieces
Last week had USC losing on Thursday which appeared to set up big things for Georgia and Florida. Then, both stumbled last week, but both have a chance to redeem their season. This shapes up to be another great season filled with surprises as another team with destiny read more...
Tuesday Tastings (Week 4): Hail To the Redskins!
Since Miami and Indy had byes this past week, we're leaving them off our weekly Tastings dispatch. That still leaves us with 11 samplings of varied quality. Let's start off with the best of the bunch... FINGER LICKIN' read more...
The Sunday Slate (Week Four): Cowboys vs Indians, er Redskins
Week Four features the only classic pro football rivalry in the Footprint. That's reason enough to tune in. Two of our teams have byes (Indy and Miami) and several others have critical games. We will quickly break it down for you. As Always, SPF read more...
Saturday's Slate: Ding Dong, The Witch Is Dead!
Of course, this means that the two perennial pretenders that stand in our way, Ohio State and USC, have both lost and neither appear to have the right kinds of games left to springboard back into the national title hunt. That should mean that the national championship game read more...
Auburn Rules!
If not on the gridiron, at least in the classroom. According to an article in the New York Times (September 21 ) entitled The read more...
Special Edition of Magazine Features Great Southern Rock Articles
Heads up, Southern Rock fans. There’s a magazine out on the stands right now that you are going to want. It’s called Guitar Legends, and the issue is called “The Complete History
Tuesday Tastings (Week 3): We're Dolphin-safe now, but the Goat, er Ram, is Smoked
After getting a full-sized Sunday helping of SPF games, some things have improved while others took a turn for the worse. "Finger Lickin' Good" Yum, yum. These teams served it up on Sunday leaving their fans hungry read more...
Earl Palmer 1924-2008
Legendary Drummer Passes Away 9/23/08 Legendary New Orleans drummer Earl Palmer died yesterday at 83. Palmer played drums on sessions for Fats read more...
The Sunday Slate (Week Three): The NFC South Goes North While the AFC South Faces Off
Week 3 doesn't feature as many interesting games as last week, but the AFC South faces off and the NFC South heads up north. As Always, SPF teams in CAPS with (Week 2's T.I. Poll Ranking) Here's a read more...
Saturday's Slate: Barometer Games (Intra- and Inter-Conference)
This weekend marks the beginning of some classic early season rivalry games inside the SEC. TF has a rundown of all the key games. BEST INTRA-CONFERENCE GAMES
Our Week Two SPF Tastings: Give Us Some Panther, but Steer Clear of Ram and Bengal
After getting a full-sized Sunday helping of SPF games, not everything we sampled was up to par. Let's do a quick break down in hopes that maybe some of the team cooks can get their wares "Finger Lickin' Good" Although read more...
The SPF Week 2 Slate: Pretender/Contender Separation Begins
It's only Week 2, but many of today's games determine how seasons will unfold for our SPF teams. One game may mean nothing, but two games often represents a trend. Let's start with our inter-SPF matchups. SPF teams in CAPS with (
Ike's Dire Warning
Hurricane Ike Aims For Texas and Louisiana 9/12/08 The good folks of Texas and Louisiana are under a severe Hurricane threat. Hurricane Ike is read more...
The SEC Upgrades To College Football 2.0
The nation at large now sees what the Footprint has long known - SEC Football is dominant and truly in its own league. Despite the hue and cry against it, the BCS has allowed sports fans to see top teams, by and large, go against each other on the field. Since read more...
A Place To Come To
In a recent article in the Wall Street Journal entitled “The End of Placeness,” columnist
Friends Flee Gustav
Here on Elk River we are opening our homes and hearts to friends who are fleeing the fury of Hurricane Gustav. My neighbor and former read more...
Gamecocks Destruction of Wolfpack Serves Notice to Clemson and the ACC
Last night was the glorious kick off to the 2008 college football season. Teams from almost every conference had games allowing us some very early previews of what might be coming in the weeks ahead. Everyone now knows about the
A Humorous Comparison of College Football Between the South and the North
As our beloved college football season nears, we at Tribal Fever thought everyone should read this comparison between college football in the South versus our Northern counterparts. (This has been making the rounds via email so many of you might have already seen it - read more...
Barbeque is Not a Verb: A Musical Tribute To Southern BBQ
There's nothing us Southerners like more than barbeque. Football comes close, as does Southern Rock, NASCAR, professional wrestling and cold beer, but when all is said and done, the pork will always rise to the top. Well, some guys from read more...
Ten More Defining Moments in Southern Rock History
Did any of you see Gregg Allman in the movie Rush? He played a drug dealing king pin, and a pretty spooky character. That movie disturbed me more that ten Stephen King flicks, because it was so real. That's why Gregg's role in the movie made our list of
Friends of New Orleans Performances
Friends of New Orleans Presents Tipitina’s Foundation Five Year Anniversary 7/29/08 An All-Star lineup will perform two read more...
Southern Musicians Under California Skies
Southern Musicians Under Southern Skies and Other News 7/26/08 News about
Still More of The Defining Moments in Southern Rock History
Hi guys. My apologies for the two days of down time. We experienced a problem with our DSL internet service that virtually crippled the GRITZ offices for almost two days. We are happy to come back kicking with the
An Ongoing Journey To the Heart of Southern Culture
A Sunday Service On Southern Culture 7/20/08 “The artist penetrates the concrete world in order to find at read more...
Is 8 Wins The SEC's New Over/Under For Coaching Success?
An interesting debate was sparked last week when the University of Tennessee announced it had extended Coach Phillip Fulmer’s contract: What is an read more...
Southern Rock's Most Defining Moments
You've all heard of "going the extra mile" for your art, right? Well, fellow babies, The Buffalo has been doing that for a few days now, assembling a list of The 100 Defining Moments in Southern read more...
GRITZ Radio Hour Premieres Online
Hey guys. As an experiment of sorts, we are presenting a pilot episode of The GRITZ Radio Hour, a two hour program of music hosted by yours truly, and airing over the Mighty Field of Vision internet radio station, now read more...
NBA Draft Post-Mortem
It was an interesting NBA Draft night with Miami and Memphis from our region making big headlines. Before I take a look at some of the specifics, the question has to be asked: Does the NBA have to make the Draft so complicated for the fans? It’s amazing how many picks are made read more...
Tom Coerver CD Release Saturday in Baton Rouge
Tom Coerver and Goin’ South will have a CD release party for their new CD From The Mud… To The Sky at
Sonny Landreth Smokes the Strings On New Album
Sonny Landreth is a simply amazing guitarist. I have had the good fortune of seeing him perform both at The Handlebar here in Greenville, SC, and at The Americana Music Conference in Nashville, and read more...
New Documentary Project Will Present the Definitive History of Country Music
I just got the word that Shout! Factory Records and the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum are planning to produce a multi-part original series of specials on the history of country music for television and DVD. The partners will seek worldwide broadcast read more...
Win The New Tom Coerver CD from GRITZ
Louisiana guitar slinger Tom Coerver has a new one out, and it rocks. Don't believe me? Listen to it for yourself. How, you ask? Well, we just happen to have ten copies to give away. read more...
Watch and Listen: Ten Great DVD's for Southern Rockers
Man oh man do I love movies. I guess movies are my second favorite entertainment besides music. Well, truth be told, books rank right up at the top of that list as well. But when you combine music and movies, look out, you have my attention. For my new list, I wanted to read more...
FONO Announces the Capitol Hill Bayou Bash!
This Tuesday, June 17, anyone in or near the DC area should come out to the American Legion as Friends of New Orleans (FONO) continues its efforts of bringing New Orleans and Louisiana culture around our read more...
Friends of New Orleans and Swampland.com Join Together!
Swampland.com is proud to announce that we have joined Friends of New Orleans (FONO) as an official cultural partner for this worthy charity. Here is the mission statement of FONO direct from the official read more...
It's All About The Song: The Greatest Songwriters of The Southern Rock Era
I am probably going to get some other opinions on this one. We're happy to present our list of The Ten Best Songwriters of The Southern Rock Era. Check out the list and let us know what you read more...
With Leadership In Flux, the BCS Proves Its Worth to the Big East
Tribal Fever will never stop its defense of the greatest sport in our Footprint - college football. How a sport that has record ratings and revenue would ever be under scrutiny is beyond us, but we believe the heart of that line of criticism lies in its "limited" read more...
Wash Boards and Chicken Coups: The Ten Best Instrumentalists of Southern Rock
Let me begin by wishing everybody a GREAT weekend. Only one week until the big annual Winters Brothers Band Summer Jam. See you there! Our latest Top Ten list runs down the
Duke Over Notre Dame: College Sports Are Still The King Down South
Since the SEC just wrapped up its meetings down in Destin, Tribal Fever thought it would be a good time to check in. College sports are the glory of The Footprint, and the rest of the nation is taking notice. The significance of yesterday's news that Notre Dame's AD read more...
Amy LaVere & The North Mississippi All-Stars Storm Atlanta
Amy LaVere & The North Mississippi All-Stars Storm Atlanta: Notes From A Soundcheck 5/31/08
A Trip to The Keys: Southern Rock's Greatest Keyboard Players
And the lists just keep on coming... This time we run down the Greatest Keyboard Players of the Southern Rock Era. They're all here, the Hammond B-3, the piano - from Chuck Leavell to Taz read more...
Four Strings and An Attitude: Southern Rock's Best Bass Players
How about another Southern Rock List? This time we run down the Ten Greatest Bass Guitar Players of The Southern Rock read more...
The Amazing Amy LaVere
The Amazing Amy LaVere & Topanga Days 5/22/08 This evening I conducted an interview with the beautiful and talented Amy LaVere. Amy read more...
The Top 25 Songs of The Southern Rock Era
And the lists just keep on a comin.' Our latest addition to our Southern Rock Lists is our accounting of the 25 Greatest read more...
South Dominates College Baseball
by Patrick Snow There is one more week of college baseball before the conference tournaments, and the teams in our Swampland footprint are looking very strong. I had the pleasure this past weekend to attend a great 3-game series between Vanderbilt and Georgia. The Bulldogs read more...
New GRITZ List: Top Vocalists of the Southern Rock Era
"Way down in Alabama/Shoutin' Bamalama..." What a rocking song. What a great singer. I never get tired of listening to Jimmy Hall. Never. Which is why he landed in the top spot in our list of
New Features, Capricorn Records, Southern Rock Lists
We are happy to add a couple of new ongoing features here at GRITZ. The first is our Tribute to Capricorn Records Page, which features links to all of the articles and interviews related to the Southern read more...
SEC Football Update, Memphis Style!
Ron Higgins was on fire over the weekend. He's one of the best writers about SEC football newspaper writers outside of Tony Barnhart. (For those of you just finding out about Ron, please
The Legends of Southern Rock, a Guide
Greetings from Carolina. We are happy to present our new index page for our Legends of Southern Rock series. From here, you can always surf over to your favorite Southern Rock band's Swampland read more...
Why Swampland Sports Loves the BCS
Despite winning back to back national titles in football, the SEC susre seems to hate the BCS. Lately, this hatred has been reaching a new level. It all started when University of Georgia President Michael F. Adams announced a proposal for
Post - NFL Draft Newspaper Wrap Up
We found this article from a week or so back that is about NFL Network being the tail the wags the dog for that league. Swampland Sports has long written now about the ways read more...
New Orleans Jazzfest: In Wake Of The Flood
Randy Newman’s “Louisiana 1927” Becomes Un-official Anthem For New Orleans Jazzfest 4/27/08 In the wake of Katrina, many read more...
SPF's NFL Draft First Round Log (Live All Day!!)
read more...
Vintage GRITZ Articles Unearthed; Hatchet, Skynyrd, Tucker, Ricky Skaggs and More
It's time once again to add a few more Vintage Gritz articles to the archives, and I hope you'll check 'em out for a "blast from the past." Added today is one of our first interviews from 1999 with
Snowflakes: What Are SEC Football Critics Going To Do Now?
With spring football in full gear, it’s never too early to look ahead to the upcoming season. We at Swampland have focused many times on the ongoing theme of the SEC “arms race” in America’s toughest conference schedule to navigate. With Florida and LSU read more...
A Shot of the Blues
A Daily Dose of Authenticity...Keith Richards...James Burton...MLK...Widespread Panic...The Black Crowes...Jim Dickinson... 4/4/08 As Spring read more...
Season Summary: New Orleans Saints
Quick Summary: The Saints bombed out after their near-Super Bowl run in 2007. People can point to injuries, but SPF warned before the season started about the Saints and the team's read more...
Snowflakes: Why SEC Hoops is No Longer Just Kentucky
With Mississippi and Florida both dropping first round games in the conference tournament, the SEC contingent for the Big Dance seems to be set at five (TN, UK, VU, Ark., MSU). While there’s an outside chance the Rebels could get an at-large berth, the rest of the weekend will read more...
Snowflakes: Small Conference Hoops Does the Footprint Proud
It’s the most exciting time of the year for many of the smaller schools around our region. Their conferences tournaments have become an extension of the NCAA Tourney as winning the automatic bid fulfills their dream of having a shot at the big boys. Many pundits feel it would read more...
Snowflakes: SEC Hoops
* After attending the Vanderbilt-Kentucky game Tuesday night in Nashville, all I can say is ‘Wow’. The Commodores are always tough at home (15-0 this season), and they handed the Wildcats the worst loss in their SEC history, 93-52. Vandy scorched the nets at over 55% for read more...
Preservation Hall's John Brunious Dead at 67
Trumpeter John Brunious, the Preservation Hall Jazz Band's leader and senior member, died Tuesday, February 12, 2008 in Orlando, Fla., after suffering an apparent heart attack. He was 67.
Ryan Bingham Gets Help From Ford
Marc Ford & Son Join Texas Songwriter Ryan Bingham In the South 2/9/08
Snowflakes: SEC Hoops
* The Kentucky Wildcats finally look to be playing the kind of winning ball that Big Blue fans expect. It took a while to adjust to new coach Billy Gillispie (and his gameday practices), but now the ‘Cats are sitting only one game behind SEC East leader Tennessee. In a recent read more...
Snowflakes: Smaller Conference Hoops
One mid-major club that higher seeded teams will not want to see in the Big Dance is Davidson from the Southern Conference. The Wildcats are perfect 13-0 in league play
Petty & Eli: Underdogs Triumphant!
I sat back Sunday ready to enjoy a Super Bowl without a "horse in the race," so to speak. All of our SPF teams had been summarily dismissed in what was a down year for the Footprint on a pro football level. My thoughts were only on watching the Super Bowl as a read more...
Snowflakes: SEC Hoops
by Patrick Snow * Someone forgot to tell 2-time National Champion Florida that they were supposed to struggle this season. After winning their second NCAA title in a row, the Gators lost the top six players off their depth chart and lost their coach for a day or two. read more...
Snowflakes: C-USA/Big East Hoops
by Patrick Snow * Could this week finally bring the contest where #1 Memphis actually loses a conference game? The last time that happened was at UAB on March 2nd, 2006. On Wednesday night, the undefeated Tigers travel to Houston to battle the 15-3 Cougars. After read more...
My Favorite Southern Rock Song?
I was talking to one of my pals down Florida way the other day when the conversation shifted to great Southern Rock songs.We started reliving the first time we heard this song or that song, and how much particular songs meant to us.
SPF T.I. Poll (Week 19, Part 4): Down By The River
12. Cincinnati Bengals and 13. St. Louis Rams - Our final Poll spots are held by two teams that have a connection via the river culture from which they arose. Like railroad tracks in towns across the south, rivers often appear to be a cultural divide, but they read more...
SPF T.I. Poll (Week 19, Part 3): Teams at the Crossroads (aka the NFC South)
We've now gone through the first 7 teams in the T.I. Poll. So far, the entire AFC South has been covered as well as the traditional big market teams in Dallas, DC, and Miami. This leaves us with a group that the NFL has neatly placed in a division they call the NFC read more...
SPF T.I. Poll (Week 19, Part 2): Teams "On the Verge"
This is SPF's group of teams that are "On The Verge" of reaching elite status. They all have challenges, but they are clearly heading in the right direction. 4. Washington Redskins - A lot can happen in a week. The Redskins' read more...
SPF's Divisional Playoffs Pre-Pregame Show (or T.I. Poll Week 19)
There are three SPF teams left in the Super Bowl hunt, but the news doesn't stop with them. Of the 4 current coaching vacancies, SPF has three of them (Miami, Atlanta, and Washington). Signs point to a year of great transition. The SPF footprint has some of the read more...
SPF T.I. Poll (Wild Card Weekend Edition)
We're mixing it up again going into the playoffs. In an up and down year, six of the 13 SPF teams made the playoffs. Two, Washington and Tennessee, made it in the final weekend. SPF is rooting for an all-Footprint Super Bowl, and this isn't out of the realm of read more...
Dr. John Voices Frustration At Friday New Orleans Show
Dr. John Expresses Frustration With Katrina Fallout 12/29/07 Dr. John informed the audience--at his first of two shows in his hometown last read more...
SPF's Week Seventeen Pre-Pregame Show
Playoffs and draft slots. It's all on the line in a strange season-ending weekend in the Footprint. EARLY GAMES Jacksonville (11-4, 5-2 away) Houston (7-8, 5-2 home)
SPF T.I. Poll (Week Seventeen)
It's the last week of the NFL season. There isn't much left to be decided. Two SPF teams (Washington and Tennessee) can get in the postseason fun if they win. We expect them to do so if only because they are playing two other SPF teams (Dallas and Indy) who are read more...
GRITZ Best Albums of The Year
Lots of great music rocked my world in 2007. Here are my choices for the 15 best of the best. Feel free to log on and comment. Let me know if you agree or disagree. read more...
Full Moon Fever With Stanley Booth
Full Moon Fever With Stanley Booth 12/24/07 Full moon on the Little Satilla River...I return to my homesoil for the holidays, and it ain't the read more...
SPF's Week Sixteen Pre-Pregame Show
SATURDAY NIGHT Dallas (12-2, 6-0 away) Carolina (6-8, 2-5 home) NFL Films Video Preview This is a much better read more...
George Porter Celebrates 60th Birthday
New Orleans Musician Celebrates 60th Birthday 12/21/07 The great George Porter Jr. will celebrate his 60th birthday next week at The read more...
SPF T.I. Poll (Week Sixteen)
SPF laid down the gauntlet before last weekend's games. Many teams answered the bell. With two games left in the regular season, teams out of the playoff picture may have as much to play for as those that are in. Don't sleep SPF fans, there is still much to be read more...
SPF's Week Fifteen Pre-Pregame Show
It has been a largely disappointing season for SPF, but these final weeks can redeem or further decimate a team's momentum for 2008. There are three shoe-in playoff teams in the Footprint - Dallas, Indy, and Tampa. Two others (Jacksonville and Tennessee) have to keep read more...
SPF T.I. Poll (Week Fifteen)
SPF will say it - this has been a very tough year for pro football in the Swampland Footprint. Of our 13 teams, more than half of them have been in serious disarray. At best only 5 or 6 teams will have a clear direction heading into 2008. Most will be going back to read more...
SPF's Week Fourteen Pre-Pregame Show
SPF has been beating a few drums this year, but one is about letting players play. Coaches coach systems. GMs find players to fit into these systems (or in the case of special players, systems are designed for their talents). Except for read more...
John Sayles Interview
Mystery & Manners John Sayles Interview 12/8/07 On Thursday I interviewed John Sayles. Sayles' new movie Honeydripper was filmed in Alabama. Honeydripper read more...
SPF T.I. Poll (Week Fourteen)
SPF has looked at the coach/QB relationship. Now, it's time to look at the owner/coach relationship. When this relationship is good, everything clicks for the fans. The fans want to see the coach as an extension of the owner, an extension that helps build a bridge read more...
...Into The Deep...
Mystery & Manners Dispatch 12/05/07 Today marks the birthday of southern writer
SPF's Week Thirteen Pre-Pregame Show
While Tribal Fever nation witnessed their conference championships this weekend, SPF has found a few of their own. There are four key head to head matchups in the SPF footprint this week - two of which will probably decide the winner of the AFC and NFC South. Our other read more...
TF Conference Championship Preview
Today is the day we find out whether it will be an all-Swampland matchup in the BCS Championship Game. If all goes according to plan it should be Missouri vs. West Virginia. Still, there are a few other game worth watching. It has been a great year for college read more...
SPF T.I. Poll (Week Thirteen)
Coaching changes. They happen every year even though it seems as though jobs are more than safe. Changes are usually made because the coach no longer has the confidence of the fans. Once that occurs, the owner is left with little choice. As long term, one read more...
SPF's Week Twelve Pre-Pregame Show
Leadership. Is it there? The leader(s) of each SPF team define that team to their fans. Already, Thanksgiving solidified a sense of leadership between coach and QB with both the Colts and their Manning/Dungy duo and the Cowboys with their Wade/Romo combination read more...
TF Rivalry Week Preview
Rivalry games define college football. More than bowl games or even conference championships, a win against your rival means bragging rights for a year. That is why this weekend's game can often be the hardest to call. A team with a losing record can suddenly make read more...
SPF's Week Eleven Pre-Pregame Show
This week, more than any other this NFL season, the fan will find out who their teams are. Are teams going to the playoffs? Will they be Super Bowl contenders? Are they on the rise even if playoffs aren't likely? We shall see.
TF Saturday Preview: The Year of Transition Nears An End
The wild year continues. In many ways this was just a sign of the transition college football around the Footprint has experienced. In some ways, it shouldn't be as surprising as it has been. Nick Saban's arrival lit a fire under everyone. The ante was read more...
SPF T.I. Poll (Week Eleven)
Week Ten was a very weird football weekend. Many of the SPF teams lost games. Few had important wins. It just seems like this was a week to stumble. Desperation might be the biggest factor in any NFL game. The teams that are desperate have an edge read more...
SPF's Week Ten Pre-Pregame Show
SPF will stick by this point - no team set the NFL back more than the Super Bowl champion Baltimore Ravens. This "champion" brought the worst part of hip-hop's "thug" culture to NFL through the real life violence of Ray Lewis, whose murder acquittal and read more...
TF Saturday Preview: Everything's Still To Be Decided
Patrick Snow has it right. This year's season of college football has shown that it is one of the most compelling sports to follow as a fan, especially in the Footprint.
SPF T.I. Poll (Week Ten)
Everyone knows that football is the dominant sport in the Footprint, but it has always been college dominating the pro variety. The goal of SPF's "Team Identity Poll" is to gauge the connection of each team to their fans. This week, two different studies were read more...
Tribal Fever's Weekend Observations
1. That enormous exhale coming from the Oxford, Mississippi area would be the sigh of relief of Ole Miss Coach Ed Orgeron. His Rebels had to hold on for dear life to beat Northwestern State 38-31 on Saturday. The non-Division 1 Demons went into the game with a 2-3 record in the read more...
SPF's Week Nine Pre-Pregame Show
It's it the "Clash of the Titans!" The Colts-Pats game deserves the hype that it is getting. Both teams have built long term consistently excellent football teams in the "salary cap era " - something that is supposedly impossible. This read more...
Tiger Rag
In the spring a young man’s fancy may turn to baseball, but in the fall in the South everyone’s fancy turns to football, and in Alabama there is only Auburn and
SPF T.I. Poll (Week Eight)
Things continue to settle out in the SPF Footprint. This week's big question is whether the South's best is the NFL's best. The Colts were just that last season, but their old New England nemesis seems to have stolen their thunder again. Here's last week's read more...
October 27 & 28 Bridge School Benefit
21st Bridge School Benefit Hosts Various Musicians 10/27/07 In light of a
SPF's Week Eight Pre-Pregame Show
Much like yesterday's college slate, this week's SPF schedule features teams looking towards the season's end and where they want to be at that point. Teams know that the season is half over at this point and they need to be making their final pushes. The best teams read more...
TF Saturday Preview: Pole, er.. Bowl Position
If you aren't a Florida or Georgia fan, this weekend might be a good one to spend with the kids. This is a pretty thin weekend for good games in the Footprint. That's why Athlon's college football preview spends most of its time previewing games outside our read more...
SPF T.I. Poll (Week Seven)
SPF's season previews are looking pretty good so far. The teams we singled out like the Jags, the Texans, and the Dolphins have shown themselves to be in hot water with their fan base. The Jags and the Texans suffered "must win" losses that neither could read more...
SPF's Week Seven Pre-Pregame Show
Getting on the same page. Coaches and players that have the same sense of urgency signify teams that are winning. The NFL is a business, and like all business deals - interests must align. This is the reason that ownership, the front office, and the coaching read more...
TF's Saturday Preview: Act Like You've Been There Before!
It's the old saying when a player celebrates a little too much - act like you've been there before. This rules seems to also hold true to some of our Footprint's winning neophytes. When programs are new to winning, they don't know how to handle themselves. That's read more...
It Was 30 Years Ago Today: Last Flight of The Free Bird
I only saw Lynyrd Skynyrd, the original Lynyrd Skynyrd, in concert one time. It was October 19, 1977, and sadly, it was to be the very last concert for Ronnie Van Zant. I was backstage the read more...
SPF T.I. Poll (Week Six)
Here we are again for SPF's weekly Team Identity Poll. Things have shaken up a bit. We are much closer to how we saw things at the beginning of the season. Let's start with a look at last week's Poll: 1. Dallas Cowboys 2. Indianapolis read more...
SPF's Week Six Pre-Pregame Show
It's week 6 for the SPF teams. Four teams are basically done, but the rest have critical games that will go a long way to determining how the rest of the season will play out for them. Here's this week's slate (video links courtesy of read more...
TF's Saturday Preview: The History Behind SEC Dominance
Tribal Fever would like to start this weekend's festivities by directing everyone to a fantastic series on ESPN.com about the SEC. Which leads us to this week's focus - the historical read more...
SPF T.I. Poll (Week Five)
The rich seem to be getting richer (and the poor, poorer) in the SPF Footprint. There is happiness at the top, confusion in the middle, and desperation at the bottom. Let's start with last week's T.I. Poll 1. Dallas Cowboys 2. Indianapolis read more...
SPF's Week Five Pre-Pregame Show
It's week five in the NFL season. Overall, the SPF Footprint is shaping up to be a year of the haves and have-nots. The Footprint contains two of the NFL's winless teams (Dolphins and Rams) and several other struggling squads. However, we also have two of the best read more...
Tribal Fever's Weekend Slate (10/6/2007)
Let's start with this week's College Football Preview from Athlon. Swampland's own Patrick Snow hosts each week. (Read Patrick's new column on the state of baseball in read more...
SPF T.I. Poll (Week Four)
Just like in the college ranks, it was a bit of a crazy week in the SPF Footprint. Right now, there are more bad teams than good, but the good teams are pretty darn good so we guess that evens things out a little. Here's last week's "Team Identity" read more...
Otis Redding Film Premier October 8
Dreams To Remember Premier October 8 10/1/07 The new Otis Redding documentary, Dreams To Remember: The Legacy of Otis read more...
Upset Saturday, or not?
Patrick Snow mentioned in his last column that he was looking ahead to next week's games. Based on yesterday's game result, so were too many top 25 teams in the Footprint. TF Upsets read more...
People Take Warning! Murder Ballads & Disaster Songs 1913-1938
Tompkins Square Releases Murder Ballads & Disaster Songs This Week 9/29/07 This week Tompkins Square released this
Blues Great Memphis Minnie Honored
Blues Great Memphis Minnie Honored 9/28/07 In Walls, Mississippi, the female guitarist and songwriter Memphis Minnie was honored with a read more...
Swampland welcomes Tribal Fever!
It was only a matter of time before Swampland Sports starting covering the colleges in earnest. Today marks the start of Tribal Fever, Swampland.com's dispatch dedicated to college sports in the South. We have new features up including Patrick Snow's latest read more...
Goin' Home: A Tribute To Fats Domino
GOIN' HOME: A TRIBUTE TO FATS DOMINO 9/26/07 Yesterday Vanguard released
SPF T. I. Poll (Week Three)
Back to our weekly gauge of how each SPF team is resonating with its fans. First, let's take a look back at last week's Team Identity Poll: 1. Dallas Cowboys 2. Washington Redskins 3. Indianapolis Colts 4. Tampa Bay Bucs
SPF 's Week Three Pre-Pregame Show
Here we are again. Let Week Three begin! SPF Teams in BOLD Early Games Indianapolis Colts @ Houston Texans (
SPF Friday Fishwrap-up: the Cowboy/Redskin paradigm
We've just posted a new analysis of the Wayne issue in Florida, Weaver in Jacksonville and Huizenga in Miami. Team Identity is our focus as always. That's why we start our Friday dispatch with read more...
CD and DVD releases for week of September 18, 2007
New Releases Doyle Bramhall Is It News (Yep Roc) Jim Dickinson
The Shadow And the Truth
9/19/07 ...THE SHADOW AND THE TRUTH... It's important to realize how blurred the fine line between reality and illusion co-exist. At read more...
SPF's Week Two Monday: Playmakers making plays
THE "BEATING THE DEAD HORSE" THEME Our theme for this week is similar to last week's - the importance of playmakers. In the Footprint, we all love great coaches. We all love great schemes. However, it usually comes read more...
SPF 's Week Two Pre-Pregame Show
Each week, it will be SPF's pleasure to bring you the best pregame show on the Net. We provide our audience with clips from NFL.COM mixed in with our commentary and insight. Let's run down today's slate of games: Early games (SPF Teams in read more...
Tom Coerver Has Been There, Done That, Got The Hatchet T-Shirt
Louisiana's Tom Coerver has been in our corner since the beginning of GRITZ. A great musician and a staunch supporter, he is also a good friend. For the life of me, I can't even begin to think why it has taken me until now to interview him. But hey, it's all about timing, read more...
SPF Friday Fishwrap-up: LeBatard vs. Galloway
Another great southern tradition is writing. We have a whole section called Discourse that is dedicated to this pursuit. Newpapers (aka fishwraps) around the Footprint have great sportswriters that deserve to be read, and sometimes needled.
SPF's T. I. Poll (Week One)
Team Identity. This is our constant gauge for the success or failure of NFL teams in the South. College football reigns because people see themselves as part of the team. In the Swampland footprint, allegiances don't change at the college level. Coaches read more...
Welcome Back!
Greetings to all you football fans around the Swampland footprint! Southern Pro Football is back to cover another NFL season. Patrick Snow and I will be making sure that SPF covers the NFL from a Southern perspective. For all of you that didn't tune into
Swampland Sports Six-Pack for the week ending 8/12/07
Your weekly filter for the top sports stories around the South 1. Well the inevitable happened last week when Barry Bonds finally hit Home Run 756. It turns out the Orlando Sentinel’s Mike Bianchi, just like Hank Aaron and many others in our region,
CD and DVD releases for week of July 17, 2007
New Releases Raul Malo After Hours (New Door) Wille Mack
CD and DVD releases for week of July 10, 2007
New Releases Chris & Rich Robinson Brothers Of A Feather [Live] (Eagle)
Swampland Sports Six-Pack for the week ending 7/8/07
1. Ed Hinton nails it again. His piece on the fans of racing and their connection with “real race drivers” speaks to a growing concern we have read more...
CD and DVD releases for week of June 26, 2007
CDs New Releases Charlie Daniels Live From Iraq (Koch) James Burton read more...
Fire On The Mountain
6/25/07 read more...
The True Adventures of Stanley Booth
6/10/07 THE TRUE ADVENTURES OF STANLEY BOOTH As I wrote in the intro to my Charlie Louvin
May Induction Into Blues Hall of Fame for Dr. John
4/7/07 Malcolm John "Mac" Rabennack--Dr. John--the Crescent City Night Tripper will be inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame on May 9, 2007.
Keith Richards Donates To James Burton's Foundation
4/4/07 Keith Richards donated $20,000 to James Burton's Festival this weekend. Check out the Swampland interview with James Burton read more...
The Killer Plays Classic Boogie Woogie
4/2/07 After legend Meade Lux Lewis died in a 1964 car crash, Jerry Lee Lewis recorded this tribute to the boogie woogie purveyor titled The Killer Plays Boogie Woogie Classics
The James Burton Guitar Festival
....Interviewing the King of the Telecaster, James Burton, ranks as a great thrill for me... James Burton's musical accomplishments outshine any other guitar player. He's played and recorded with over read more...
The Bo Diddley Beat Goes On NPR
3/20/07 The Bo Diddley beat goes on...NPR highlights Diddley's accomplishments in today's news items...James Calemine
Dickey Betts, Ed King Join James Burton Guitar Festival in Louisiana
Shreveport, Louisiana- Dickey Betts and Chris Isaak are among 12 headliners announced for the
2007 Jazzfest Lineup Announced
3/10/07 Jazzfest begins in New Orleans on April 27 and continues through May 6. Some of the performers this year include Dr. John, Van Morrison, Lucinda Williams, Percy Sledge, T-Bone Burnett, James Carter, MOFRO, Little Freddie King, Norah Jones, Pharoah Sanders, Johnny read more...
"Fathead" Newman Performs New Years Eve Show Before Jazz Institution Closes Doors
1/1/07 On New Years Eve, Dallas, Texas, native David "Fathead' Newman performed at Chicago's oldest jazz club, The Jazz Showcase, before the 59 year old club closed its doors. The Jazz Showcase featured artists--among many others--such as Louis Armstrong, Charlie read more...
The Dirty Dozen Brass Band Comes Marching In...
12/24/06 On December 28, the Dirty Dozen Brass Band plays an intimate gig at George Street Grocery in Jackson, Mississippi. The next night, The Dirty Dozen lights up Tipitina's in their hometown of New Orleans. New Years Eve finds the group in the beautiful Arizona read more...
Dr. John's Ongoing Voodoo...Tom Petty's Big Highway Companion Weekend on Radio...
12/14/06 The Tom Petty Highway Companion Big Weekend takes place on December 15-17 at 10AET on XM 200. The station will also broadcast rare live Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers performances. Petty also hosts a show called Buried Treasure on XM Satellite Radio set read more...
Killer On The Loose...Jerry Lee Lewis Tours...
12/11/06 On September 26, 2006, Last Man Standing, Jerry Lee Lewis' latest CD hit the stores. The collection features musical appearances by Jimmy Page, B.B. King, Bruce Springsteen, Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, Ronnie Wood, Neil Young, Robbie Robertson, Willie read more...