DBT Track of the Week - #52: Carl Perkins' Cadillac

[Rocky]

Well it looks like Carl Perkins’ Cadillac is the final card in the first deck. And I’ll have to say I am shocked that this song has not been the Song Of The Week before.

Although I could NEVER pick a favorite Truckers song (Hell I had trouble picking just three in the Top 3 Songs of the Moment thread) I have to admit I have a strong affection for this song. The Sun Records story is part of the mythology of the South and Cooley uses it and makes it his own. “It was awful when I first wrote it,” says Cooley. “Just full of cliches. I hated it! Then I thought, ‘Let’s take this pile of (expletive) apart line by line and fix it!” I’m sure someone would eventually mix country and R & B but thank God Sam Phillips (who shares the same hometown with our own Patterson Hood) was there to help it along.

Whenever I hear Neff’s opening chords a big dumb grin comes across my face.

I also like the fact that I used Cooley’s lyrics to win a drink at a bar in Memphis with the trivia question of who had the first gold record (million seller) at Sun. I doubt I could pull that move with the posters on this site. Also I always assumed that the part about Jerry Lee calling Sam Phillips ‘sir” was artist embellishment. If anyone knows differently, feel free to speak up.

Life ain't nothing but a blending up of all the ups and downs
Dammit Elvis, don't you know
You made your Mama so proud
Before you ever made that record, before there ever was a Sun
Before you ever lost that Cadillac that Carl Perkins won

Mr. Phillips found old Johnny Cash and he was high
High before he ever took those pills and he's still too proud to die
Mr. Phillips never said anything behind nobody's back
Like "Dammit Elvis, don't he know, he ain't no Johnny Cash"

If Mr. Phillips was the only man that Jerry Lee still would call sir
Then I guess Mr. Phillips did all of Y'all about as good as you deserve
He did just what he said he was gonna do and the money came in sacks
New contracts and Carl Perkins' Cadillac

I got friends in Nashville, or at least they're folks I know
Nashville is where you go to see if what they said is so
Carl drove his brand new Cadillac to Nashville and he went downtown
This time they promised him a Grammy
He turned his Cadillac around

Mr. Phillips never blew enough hot air to need a little gold plated paperweight
He promised him a Cadillac and put the wind in Carl's face
He did just what he said he was gonna do and the money came in sacks
New contracts and Carl Perkins' Cadillac

Dammit Elvis, I swear son I think it's time you came around
Making money you can't spend ain't what being dead's about
You gave me all but one good reason not to do all the things you did
Now Cadillacs are fiberglass, if you were me you'd call it quits


Anybody know these guys?

Sweet acoustic version on Youtube.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YePTam6I6iw

[mark lynn]

Passing this along from Patterson. Pretty cool:

Y'all:

I'd like to first say that Carl Perkins' Cadillac is one of my all
time faves.
I think Cooley's telling of the tale is spot on and stunning.

I thought you might enjoy it if I were to pass along the following
anecdotes:

A friend of mine is one of the biggest Jerry Lee Lewis fans imaginable
and has seen him dozens of times.
He had, however never met him.
A few years back (time flies, it's probably been fifteen plus by now)
he finally had the chance to meet him backstage after what was by all
accounts an extra great show, even by Jerry Lee standards.
it was in Memphis and and Sam Phillips also happened to be there.
My friend knew Sam and even had interviewed him numerous times.
When he walked backstage, Sam was already back there holding court.
Sam was walking around the table that Jerry Lee was sitting at,
ranting about how many times he'd seen Jerry Lee over the last forty
or so (at that time) years and how this was the finest show he'd ever
seen
The entire time, Jerry Lee was sitting there at the table, looking
down and occasionally saying "Yes Sir Mr. Phillips" and "Thank You Mr.
Phillips".

The guy is a close friend and I absolutely know it to be a true story.
If Cooley hadn't written the song he wrote, I would have tried to
write that one.
Might someday anyway.

ALSO:
Sam wasn't just from Florence AL (My hometown) but actually from a
little crossroads (unincorporated) called McGee Town. McGee Town
consisted of 1 intersection, 1 country store (closed but still
standing) and about 6-8 farms, one being The Phillips Family and one
being The Johnson Family.
My Grandmother (Sissy) was a Johnson before marrying William Patterson
and her brother is George A. Johnson.
She and Sam were in the same class at school and born same year.
(Central High School, Class of 41.
The Johnsons were often not allowed to play with the Phillips kids
because my Great Grandmother said they were "too wild".
Their other brother, Duncan, was Little Bonnie's dad.
I grew up playing on that farm.

There is a reference to McGee Town in Sink Hole.

I met Mr. Phillips several times.
He owned the biggest radio station in North Alabama (his son still
runs it).
Around the time we were finishing Southern Rock Opera, I ran into Mr.
Phillips at the bar in our local Holiday Inn
(There aren't many bars in my hometown).
Mr. Phillips walked in and I happened to have my copy of Last Train To
Memphis in my car as I was reading it at that time.
I ran out and grabbed it and had Mr. Phillips autograph it for me.
As he was doing so, I told him that I grew up in McGee Town.
He stopped writing and said (in a very kurt tone) "Who's your people?"
I told him The Johnsons and he said "Bless your heart" and continued
writing my inscription.
It is one of my prize possessions.

Have a great week and see you soon.
Patterson

[Jonicont]

Also I always assumed that the part about Jerry Lee calling Sam Phillips ‘sir” was artist embellishment. If anyone knows differently, feel free to speak up.

Guess that settles that

[Smitty]

Passing this along from Patterson. Pretty cool:

Y'all:

I'd like to first say that Carl Perkins' Cadillac is one of my all
time faves.
I think Cooley's telling of the tale is spot on and stunning.

I thought you might enjoy it if I were to pass along the following
anecdotes:

A friend of mine is one of the biggest Jerry Lee Lewis fans imaginable
and has seen him dozens of times.
He had, however never met him.
A few years back (time flies, it's probably been fifteen plus by now)
he finally had the chance to meet him backstage after what was by all
accounts an extra great show, even by Jerry Lee standards.
it was in Memphis and and Sam Phillips also happened to be there.
My friend knew Sam and even had interviewed him numerous times.
When he walked backstage, Sam was already back there holding court.
Sam was walking around the table that Jerry Lee was sitting at,
ranting about how many times he'd seen Jerry Lee over the last forty
or so (at that time) years and how this was the finest show he'd ever
seen
The entire time, Jerry Lee was sitting there at the table, looking
down and occasionally saying "Yes Sir Mr. Phillips" and "Thank You Mr.
Phillips".

The guy is a close friend and I absolutely know it to be a true story.
If Cooley hadn't written the song he wrote, I would have tried to
write that one.
Might someday anyway.

ALSO:
Sam wasn't just from Florence AL (My hometown) but actually from a
little crossroads (unincorporated) called McGee Town. McGee Town
consisted of 1 intersection, 1 country store (closed but still
standing) and about 6-8 farms, one being The Phillips Family and one
being The Johnson Family.
My Grandmother (Sissy) was a Johnson before marrying William Patterson
and her brother is George A. Johnson.
She and Sam were in the same class at school and born same year.
(Central High School, Class of 41.
The Johnsons were often not allowed to play with the Phillips kids
because my Great Grandmother said they were "too wild".
Their other brother, Duncan, was Little Bonnie's dad.
I grew up playing on that farm.

There is a reference to McGee Town in Sink Hole.

I met Mr. Phillips several times.
He owned the biggest radio station in North Alabama (his son still
runs it).
Around the time we were finishing Southern Rock Opera, I ran into Mr.
Phillips at the bar in our local Holiday Inn
(There aren't many bars in my hometown).
Mr. Phillips walked in and I happened to have my copy of Last Train To
Memphis in my car as I was reading it at that time.
I ran out and grabbed it and had Mr. Phillips autograph it for me.
As he was doing so, I told him that I grew up in McGee Town.
He stopped writing and said (in a very kurt tone) "Who's your people?"
I told him The Johnsons and he said "Bless your heart" and continued
writing my inscription.
It is one of my prize possessions.

Have a great week and see you soon.
Patterson

That is cool as shit. I love this band.

[Rocky]

Well when I said if anyone knows differently, feel free to speak up I didn't expect it to be Patterson.

Since the first posts in this thread have been from Richmonders and the Truckers show on Brown's Island is in a couple of weeks maybe Karma is dialing up a little Carl Perkin's Caddy. Who knows?

[Clams]

Passing this along from Patterson. Pretty cool:

Y'all:

I'd like to first say that Carl Perkins' Cadillac is one of my all
time faves.
I think Cooley's telling of the tale is spot on and stunning.

I thought you might enjoy it if I were to pass along the following
anecdotes:

A friend of mine is one of the biggest Jerry Lee Lewis fans imaginable
and has seen him dozens of times.
He had, however never met him.
A few years back (time flies, it's probably been fifteen plus by now)
he finally had the chance to meet him backstage after what was by all
accounts an extra great show, even by Jerry Lee standards.
it was in Memphis and and Sam Phillips also happened to be there.
My friend knew Sam and even had interviewed him numerous times.
When he walked backstage, Sam was already back there holding court.
Sam was walking around the table that Jerry Lee was sitting at,
ranting about how many times he'd seen Jerry Lee over the last forty
or so (at that time) years and how this was the finest show he'd ever
seen
The entire time, Jerry Lee was sitting there at the table, looking
down and occasionally saying "Yes Sir Mr. Phillips" and "Thank You Mr.
Phillips".

The guy is a close friend and I absolutely know it to be a true story.
If Cooley hadn't written the song he wrote, I would have tried to
write that one.
Might someday anyway.

ALSO:
Sam wasn't just from Florence AL (My hometown) but actually from a
little crossroads (unincorporated) called McGee Town. McGee Town
consisted of 1 intersection, 1 country store (closed but still
standing) and about 6-8 farms, one being The Phillips Family and one
being The Johnson Family.
My Grandmother (Sissy) was a Johnson before marrying William Patterson
and her brother is George A. Johnson.
She and Sam were in the same class at school and born same year.
(Central High School, Class of 41.
The Johnsons were often not allowed to play with the Phillips kids
because my Great Grandmother said they were "too wild".
Their other brother, Duncan, was Little Bonnie's dad.
I grew up playing on that farm.

There is a reference to McGee Town in Sink Hole.

I met Mr. Phillips several times.
He owned the biggest radio station in North Alabama (his son still
runs it).
Around the time we were finishing Southern Rock Opera, I ran into Mr.
Phillips at the bar in our local Holiday Inn
(There aren't many bars in my hometown).
Mr. Phillips walked in and I happened to have my copy of Last Train To
Memphis in my car as I was reading it at that time.
I ran out and grabbed it and had Mr. Phillips autograph it for me.
As he was doing so, I told him that I grew up in McGee Town.
He stopped writing and said (in a very kurt tone) "Who's your people?"
I told him The Johnsons and he said "Bless your heart" and continued
writing my inscription.
It is one of my prize possessions.

Have a great week and see you soon.
Patterson

Wow. That sure ties up a bunch of loose ends: Carl Perkins/Jerry Lee/Sam Phillips, McGee Town Hill, George A, Little Bonnie, and "do they read 3DD?" Thanks Patterson, and thanks Mark Lynn.

[Duke Silver]

Aside from the token, interchangeable #1 and #2 (Zip City and Living Bubba), this is my favorite DBT song. Just another one of those once in a lifetime, perfect songs that Cooley seems to come up with every couple records or so.

I've seen the band four times. Three of the four, they've opened with this one.

[Smitty]

It's also one of my favorite Cooley songs and my 2nd fav track off TDS - I actually prefer the reworked version with Neff's steel out front.

[Sub]

Always loved this one, it actually is one of the first songs my buddy I introduced to DBT was into as well. Certainly is an awesome tune.

['Scratch]

Fecking brilliant. I was just listening to this song the other day and it's definitely one of my favorite Cooley story songs. I was thinking how I didn't quite understand these lines:

"Carl drove his brand new Cadillac to Nashville and he went downtown
This time they promised him a Grammy
He turned his Cadillac around"

Can somebody tell me what they're referring to?


And thanks for the PH commentary. THAT made my day. Great post.

[sactochris]

The "making money you can't spend" line is one of my favorite lyrics ever.

[Kudzu Guillotine]

One of my fondest memories of this song was seeing them opening with it at the second Austin City Limits Music Festival. Johnny Cash had just died which obviously led to Rosanne Cash canceling her set. In order to fill her time slot a tribute to Cash was put together which included members of the DBTs, the Old 97s, the North Mississippi All-Stars as well as Tift Merritt and Ray Benson. As soon as the show was over the Truckers kicked into their set at another stage. Patterson did a very moving monologue beforehand about Johnny and June having a huge Southern dinner in heaven. If my memory serves, his write up on Cash was posted online at one time.

[one belt loop]

Fecking brilliant. I was just listening to this song the other day and it's definitely one of my favorite Cooley story songs. I was thinking how I didn't quite understand these lines:

"Carl drove his brand new Cadillac to Nashville and he went downtown
This time they promised him a Grammy
He turned his Cadillac around"

Can somebody tell me what they're referring to?


And thanks for the PH commentary. THAT made my day. Great post.

While I don't know the specifics, I imagine it's a reference to Nashville studios trying to lure Carl away from Sun. I imagine it's a reference to them being a bunch of blowhards.

[beantownbubba]

Holy fuckballs!

I love this band. I love this place.

Oh, and i love this song, too

[scotto]

Holy fuckballs!

I love this band. I love this place.

Oh, and i love this song, too

Absolutely. Made my day.

[Slipkid42]

Wow! This site sure has given me more insight into the band, than I ever dreamed I'd get. Patterson giving us some skinny on Carl Perkin's Cadillac, is like Paul McCartney explaining Rocky Raccoon for us. Pretty fucking cool.
This is one hell of a song. It should (by all rights) have been a smash hit (if only for the line 'Nashville's where you go, to see if what they said is so'). Cooley absolutely nailed it. Catchy lyrics w/a jangly melody. It's a song worthy of the very people he is singing about.

[bovine knievel]

Thanks, Patterson for the added insights.

This is always at the top of the list of songs I use to recruit new members to the DBT nation.

['Scratch]

While I don't know the specifics, I imagine it's a reference to Nashville studios trying to lure Carl away from Sun. I imagine it's a reference to them being a bunch of blowhards.

That make sense to me. Thanks OBL!

[Smitty]

First time I met Cooley, it was after the last night of 40 Watt TDS release shows and I ran into him on the street and we were both plastered - my friend got me to sign his newly purchased Bad Company Straight Shooter vinyl, which Cooley said was one of his favorite albums - I asked him a question about Carl Perkins Cadillac, what me meant by some line or something (something dumb probably, don't remember) and he answered with "I don't really know, because it sounded good I guess" or something along those lines.

[Zip City]

Fecking brilliant. I was just listening to this song the other day and it's definitely one of my favorite Cooley story songs. I was thinking how I didn't quite understand these lines:

"Carl drove his brand new Cadillac to Nashville and he went downtown
This time they promised him a Grammy
He turned his Cadillac around"

Can somebody tell me what they're referring to?


And thanks for the PH commentary. THAT made my day. Great post.

I always took it to mean that Nashville tried luring him with the promise of fame and reward and that he rejected it.

[Iowan]

That's such a cool story. Since we know he's paying attention, thanks for filling us in Patterson!

[Tequila Cowboy]

Holy fuckballs!

I love this band. I love this place.

Oh, and i love this song, too

Yep. Holy Fuckballs is an entirely appropriate response. Oh and ditto and ditto.

Thanks Patterson.

[Lurleen McQueen]

Patterson did a very moving monologue beforehand about Johnny and June having a huge Southern dinner in heaven. If my memory serves, his write up on Cash was posted online at one time.

Well this whole thread just made my day. I love the back story straight from the man...On a side note, I interviewed Billy Bob Thornton a few years ago and he told me a story about being invited to Sunday breakfast at the Cash household. BBT has all sorts of food allergies that give him migraines - no gluten - so no flour, wheat, etc...Anyway, he and Johnny were visiting a while and then Ms. June calls them all in for breakfast...she's laid out a traditional Southern breakfast complete with homemade scratch biscuits, gravy, etc. Even though he knew it would give him a migraine, like any good polite Southern boy, he sat there and ate every last morsel and thanked Ms. June profusely for such a fine spread. He knew better than to turn down one bite of anything prepared by Ms. June Carter Cash. I'm sure there were plenty of yes-sirs and yes-ma'ams to go around that morning, too. Thanks for the post!

[rockreid]

Patterson did a very moving monologue beforehand about Johnny and June having a huge Southern dinner in heaven. If my memory serves, his write up on Cash was posted online at one time.

I saw them in Chicago the day Cash passed and he did a similar thing. I think it was before "all night long" . It was early into my DBT days and I'll never forget it. The gig's on archive. I listened to it a few weeks ago.

[Smitty]

Patterson did a very moving monologue beforehand about Johnny and June having a huge Southern dinner in heaven. If my memory serves, his write up on Cash was posted online at one time.

I saw them in Chicago the day Cash passed and he did a similar thing. I think it was before "all night long" . It was early into my DBT days and I'll never forget it. The gig's on archive. I listened to it a few weeks ago.

Here's an mp3 of that story, from the ACL Johnny Cash Tribute show.
http://www.mediafire.com/?3bu2czvbqr2fvcf

[RevMatt]

For me, the strength of this song is that it portrays the earliest and most important rock and roll icons as regular people motivated by their love of music and their hope that a career in music would give them a better life. Elvis first came on Sam Phillips' radar when he showed up at Sun Studios looking to make a record for his mother. I love how Cooley, in Sam Phillip's voice, gets to the bottom of Elvis' demons in just a couple of lines. He didn't need to become a star so his mother would be proud of him. She was from the beginning.

In the end, the artist just wants to be treated fairly and make some money. Phillips did this. He didn't blow a lot of hot air. Just said what he was going to do and followed through.

[Smitty]

Life ain't nothin but a blending up of all the ups & downs

[rockreid]

I apologize, it was before "CPC"---

http://www.archive.org/details/dbt2003-09-12.flac16

[Smitty]

Here's an mp3 of that story, from the ACL Johnny Cash Tribute show.
http://www.mediafire.com/?3bu2czvbqr2fvcf

Here's the two songs DBT performed at that tribute:

Walk The Line (Jason Isbell on vocals)
Give My Love To Rose (Cooley vocals)

[The Edge]

Wow, what more could I say? Great song, great story behind the song, and Patterson comes in to set the record straight!
Just another reason why DBT is so special.
I get the feeling if the band was the biggest band on the planet/mega huge, shit like this would still happen!

My best/worst Carl Perkins/ DBT moment happened at Memphis In May last year. Cooley mentions playing a song inspired by something about Memphis, and I start screaming for Cadillac. Well to my suprise the band breaks out with, "Birthday Boy"! Ha, now I know where to hunt the Cool man down when he's in Memphis, the Gold Club!!