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Sunday, May 14, 2017

Key West Songwriter's Festival - Story Behind The Song: "The South"

Story Behind The Song - “The South”



I believe it was in 2010, at the Key West Songwriter's Festival. It was a beautiful day and Robert Earl Keen was on stage at The Green Parrot with another songwriter.

When Robert Earl Keen first addressed the crowd, he proclaimed “It's so great to be back in The South again!!!”. Hummm. This left me a bit puzzled.

Then, at another show in the Key West Songwriter's Festival that year, my friend Misty Loggins said the exact same thing when she first addressed the crowd. Was this some kind of movement, or something?




Later, at another show, yet another performer stated the exact same thing!

Being a resident of Key West and a songwriter, I was inspired to address the subject and wrote a song with the title of “The South” to do so in a tongue-in-cheek format.



“The South”
I

Well they all came down from Nashville to this island in the stream

To have good times and share their rhymes with the likes of you and me

And we love them so and hate when they go, wish they could stay longer in town

One thing I've got to help them with though, just so they know...

II

It's an annual migration from Nashville down to the Keys

They send their best to give them a rest, stretch their legs out by the sea

And they play here and they play there, you know they play all over town

And the hustle and bustle of Nashville, here, ain't to be found

III

Well I go with a big smile to every event I can

One thing I happen to notice though, no matter where I've been

You know they all say it's so great to play in the South again

That thing I gotta help them with though, just so they know The South

is north of here


< Bridge>

Now, you gotta travel south to find your way here

We're just shy of Havana you see, swimin' in that ol' Gulf Stream

Now it may sound confusing, but you ain't loosing your sanity

That's why The South, is north of here.




IV

We're a crazy combination, some say a wild-ass stew

A little Bahamas, a bit of Cuba, a pinch of New England too

And yeah, you can bet there's a lick of Dixie, so don't have no fear

But be rest assured, you can take it to the bank

That The South, is north of here

V

Here chickens are protected, they don't go in your stew

We all ride bikes to get around town

And on the corner we can drink our brew

To the north of us is The South and we love our island view

Insanity might take the rains, that may be true

That's why The South is north of here


< Bridge>

Now, you gotta travel south to find your way here

We're just shy of Havana you see, swimin' in that ol' Gulf Stream

Now it may sound confusing, but you ain't loosing your sanity

That's why The South, is north of here.


© 2010 by Christopher R. Rehm  -  BMI

Listen to “The South” here:



Available for download at:



Thank you for reading my blog!!!



Catch our band, The Shanty Hounds, all around Key West and the lower Keys

We're always at Grunts, 409 Caroline St. Thursday's and Sundays 8 - 11 pm.

Our schedules are posted on our Facebook page:



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