Wesleyan University The Honors College

Memory of the Civil War in Popular Song

By

Paul J. Edwards

Class of 2009

A thesis submitted to the

faculty of Wesleyan University

in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the

Degree of Bachelor of Arts

with Departmental Honors in Music

Middletown, Connecticut April, 2009

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TABLEOFCONTENTS

INTRODUCTION 3

PERSONALSTATEMENT 9

CHAPTER1:THEGOODDEATHANDMEMORIESOFTHECIVILWAR 12

THEIMPORTANCEOFMUSIC 12DYING 14BURYING 18CONCLUSION 19

CHAPTER2:REGIONALISMANDTHELOSTCAUSEMOVEMENT 21

CONFEDERATENATIONALISMANDTHELOSTCAUSE 22“DIXIE”ANDTHEBIRTHTHESOUTHERNNATION 25DIXON,“DIXIE”ANDTHECLANSMEN 30OH,I’MAGOODOLDREBEL 31HANKWILLIAMJR.’SSOUTH 33ARETURNTOCOLDMOUNTAINANDSOUTHERNHOSPITALITY 36THEMYTHANDTHEORALTRADITION 41TRUTHANDROMANCE 42

CHAPTER3:EXPRESSIONSOFGENDERINSONG 44

MANHOOD 45WOMANHOOD:GOFIGHTFORUS 47FORDUTYCALLSYOURSWEETHER’SNAMEAGAIN 49THEHOMEFRONTANDTHEBATTLEFRONT 49WOMENKEPTAPART 50EXPERIENCINGMANHOOD 53THEIMPORTANCEOFMALESACRIFICE 56CONFEDERATEMOTHERHOOD 57CONCLUSION 58

CONCLUSION 61

SONGAPPENDIX 64BIBLIOGRAPHY 73ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS 75

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Introduction:RememberingthePast

John Tasker Howard remarked in his history of American music, that the Civil

Wareraproducedsomanysongsthatthey“couldbearrangedinpropersequencetoform

an actual history of the conflict, its events, its principal characters, and the ideals and

principles of the opposing sides.”1In this paper, I will explore how historically

themedcontemporarypopular music is constructed and informed by that same era.

Specifically,thisstudywill lookatthreeprevailingthemes intheantebellumandCivilWar

era in search of parallels with popular Civil War songs: historicityand fictional

romanticization; regionalism and federalism; andmasculinity and femininity.Whatmakes

thisera interesting inamusical context is that theAmericanCivilWarwas the lastmajor

military engagement dedicating millions of Americans (2 million Union soldiers, and 1

millionConfederatesoldiers)beforeAmerica’sinvolvementinWorldWarI.Thiswasthelast

large‐scale war before the invention of the cylinder phonograph in 1877. Before the

phonograph and radio, the ability to experience music was kept to the concert hall,

prevailingoraltraditions,andaccesstocreationandpublicationofsheetmusic.

CharlesHammpositsthataftertheCivilWar,

songsintheNorth,East,andWest,…quiteunderstandablyhadlittleinterestin the problems and struggles of either blacks or whites in the South,and…chosenottowritesongsdealingwithpostwarproblemsintherestofthe country, either. It may have been largely a matter of emotionaloverload; passions had been at such a fever pitch for so long that thereseemedtobelittleforceleft.2

1Howard,JohnTasker.OurAmericanMusic:ThreeHundredYearsofIt.NewYork:ThomasY.Crowell

Company,1946,pg255.2Hamm,Charles.Yesterdays:PopularSonginAmerica.NewYork:W.W.Norton&Company,1979,

pg254.

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Hamm’s statement rings truewithBillC.Malone’sbookSouthernMusic,AmericanMusic.

Malone’s book skips over the CivilWar in describing the history of blackface.3 Formusic

historians, the CivilWar has been an anomaly for exploring the United States in a larger

context

Inthisera,sheetmusicpublicationwasnearing itszenithbeforerecordingswould

becomeavailable.Althoughthisisnotastudyofmusicpublicationhistory,itisofnotethat

the CivilWarwas a time inwhich representations on paperwas the primarymedium of

information exchange. The war was well documented in diaries, letters, news, and

photography. Inthe20thcenturytheCivilWarhasdominatedliteratureandart.Thereisa

chronological regression in theway thatHollywooddepicted or located actionmovies. In

theyearsdirectlyfollowingWorldWarII,actionmovieslookeddirectlybackandfocusedon

thefightingofthewaragainstJapanandGermany.Eventually,duringtheescalationofthe

ColdWar,theWesternwouldbecomethemoviestandard.Movieswouldlocatetheaction

evenfurtherback inAmericanhistory. IntheearlyyearsoftheColdWar,thetopicofthe

CivilWar returnedas away todiscusswar. Thus, theheroes and villainsof thesemovies

would be of the Civil War era—Clint Eastwood in The Outlaw of Josie Wales (1976),

Charleston Heston in Major Dundee (1965) and JohnWayne inHow theWestWasWon

(1962). At once the Civil War was seen both as a way to discuss honor and valor in an

AmericansettingandasanescapismtoaromanticpartofAmericanhistory.Asearchonthe

Internet Movie Database revealed that recently the Civil War has again become an

3BillC.Malone.AmericanMusic,SouthernMusic.UniversityPressofKentucky.1979,pg1.

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importantsettinginmovieslikeGlory(1989),Gettysburg(1993),GodsandGenerals(2003)

andKenBurns’documentaryseriesCivilWar(1990).4

Music is deeply related to the period it comes from. The lyrics relate the

temperamentoftheeraandbecomeintegralinunderstandingoftheperiod.Popularsong

is themusicof themasses,highly responsive to thechangingmoodsof the times,andas

suchmaynotholdthemostthoughtfulcritiqueoftheera.However,aswearelookingfor

the popular perception of history it is appropriate for our purposes to examine these

popular songs. It is this popular perception that has become an influential part of how

Americans remember the Civil War. As James Davis states in the anthologyMusic and

History:

MuchCivilWarmusicwasusedtobindthepeople,eitherthroughpoliticalpropagandaorbymeansofdeclaringone’sloyalties…Singingpatrioticsongsatralliesandathomewasawayforcitizenstoparticipateinthewar,tobeintimatelyinvolvedinsomethingthatwasconnectedtothewarmovementwithoutbeingonthefrontlines.5

In this study, wewill look at the specific issues of trauma,memory, and cultural

shiftsastheyappearinmusic.Specifically,wewilllookatpopularsongsoftheCivilWarera

aswellascontemporarypopularsongsthatcontinuethenarrativethemesandtraditionsof

the Civil War. By comparing the past and present we will discover how music works to

contain,expand,andcontrolourunderstandingofoursharedhistoryasitrelatestotheCivil

War.

4Iidentifiedthesetitlesthroughkeywordsearch“AmericanCivilWar”onTheInternetMovieDatabase.www.imdb.com.5Davis,JamesA.“HearingHistory:MusicintheHistoryClassroom”.MusicandHistory.Jackson.UniversityPressofMississippi,2005,pg203‐204.

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TheCivilWardecimatedtheSouth, tookover600,000American lives,andaltered

the culture of the United States. The high death toll challenged the way Americans

previously conceived of mortality, the South struggled with its identity and purpose of

secessionism, and women took up a new position within the American culture that had

denied them any former participation inmale spheres of influence. In this study,wewill

lookathowmusichelpedshapethesesubjectsoftheCivilWarera.

In the first chapter, I delve into the Good Death, a specific part of the CivilWar

experience that has become an integral part of howwe view sacrifice on the battlefield.

Whenwe thinkofmen fighting in theCivilWar,weviewsoldiers fromtheNorthand the

South as noblemen ready to sacrifice their life for the nation. In song, this was widely

representedasshowingmengoingintothenextlifeaswitnessingGod’sgloryandnotafraid

ofthegreatbeyond.

Inthenextchapter,IdelveintotheSouthernmentalityofthelossoftheCivilWar,

knownastheLostCause.AcommonexpressionthataccompaniedtheendoftheCivilWar

is the phrase “the south shall rise again”, a meaningful phrase around the country.6

Simultaneously it is a question of cultural subordination, military defeat, and economic

apathy. In song, the South, “the land of Dixie” has become a wistful place to share the

culturalandpoliticalimportanceoftheSouth.

In my final chapter, we focus on the lives of southern women. With figures like

AbrahamLincoln,RobertE.Lee,TecumsehSherman,andJeffersonDavis,itiseasytoforget

thecommonperson,especiallythewaywomenwere important figures inthewar. It isof

6Hoskyns,Barney.AcrossTheGreatDivide:TheBandAndAmerica.NewYork:HalLeonard,2006,pg

191‐193.

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littlesurprisethatwomenwererelegatedtotheroleofwaitingwivesandmothersonthe

homefront. Althoughwomenworked as spies, gunrunners, and occupied a host of other

roles, in the songs of the Civil War we find the roles kept in a tight form of masculine

control.However,wewillseehowwomencontributedtoomanydifferenteffortsduringthe

war, from medical and funeral procedures to how they defined the character of the

Confederatenation. In this chapter,wewill explore the realityof southernwomen in the

CivilWarascomparedtotheroleswomenareportrayedtooccupyinsong.

While the first chapter will be focusing on death on amassive scale experienced

duringthewaranditseffectontheentireAmericanpsyche,thefollowingchaptersfocuson

theSouthandtheConfederacyasadistinctnation.FewhaveexploredtheSouthasitsown

nation as Drew Gilpin Faust has. In the introductions to her books, she discusses how

growing up in the South has shaped theway she explores Southern history. 7 Instead of

viewingtheCivilWarasjustaperiodofsouthernrebellion,shefullyacceptstheideaofthe

Southasashortlivedstatewithitsownperceivednationalidentity.Myreadingofherthree

bookshashelpeddefineeachofthethreechapters;thefirstcorrespondstoThisRepublicof

Suffering,thesecondtoTheCreationofConfederateNationalism,andthefinaltoMotherof

Invention.

In this study I focused on published sheetmusic and lyrics thatwould have been

available not only in the urban and rural homefront but also available on the battlefront

wheresoldierswouldrallybeforebattleorsingaroundthecampfireduringthewar.Itake

this as what constitutes popular song for the purpose of this study, and I look at how

7Faust,DrewGilpin.MothersofInvention.ChapelHill:UniversityofNorthCarolinaPress,1996,page

xi.

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popular songs have transformed the memories of the Civil War. For the purpose of this

essay,popularsongspecificallyreferstoapieceofmusicwith lyricalaccompaniment.The

level of popularity is definedby howwell a song sells or howwell it is knownby amass

audience.Forexampleinthe1860s,asongsuchas“Dixie”wouldfitthecriteria.

Although both the purpose and process of production of popular music has

changed,theconceptofa“bigseller”hasremainedaconstantdefinition.Whenitcameto

selectingmodernmusictoexamineinthisstudy,IselectedsongsbypopularmusiciansthatI

felt were directly relevant to the topic. They also have RIAA gold records, won Grammy

awards,andcomefromawell‐knownmusicallineage.

TheCivilWarcanbeunderstoodasawaroversocialandculturaldifference,where

twoopposingvaluesystemsclashedtoassertwhowasmorallysuperior.Forexample,the

image of the Confederate Battle Flag still raises contention as to itsmeaning:where one

might see a symbol of slavery, others see the memory of rebellion against a tyrannical

federal government.8 Similarly, a song such as “Dixie” poses the question of intended

content. Can it be understood as a racist song, or is it an important culturalmarker that

epitomizesthesocialstructureoftheSouth?Thesonglyricscanprovideaformofescapism,

whereanarrativetakesthelistenerawayfrompresentcircumstancesandtransportsthem

to a different world or era. I will draw connections between the Civil War era’s most

importantmarkers:mortality,regionalism,andgenderastheyrelatetocontemporarymusic

andhowsongsofthe20thand21stcenturycontinuetofocusontheCivilWar;creatingthe

8MichaelCooper.“ConfederateFlagTakesCentralStageAgain”.NewYorkTimes.January18,2008.AccessedApril4,2009.

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same themes that concerned songwritersa centuryearlier. Iwill specificallybe lookingat

whatisbeingtoldandexplainedthroughthelyricsofCivilWarmusic.

AsWillHermesofNPRsuggests,perhapstheinterestinthesenarrativesrelatestoa

return to a specific form of storytelling. As Hermes’ states, perhaps a song about the

narrator dying in battle ismore inspiring and interesting than “someone lamenting a girl

whowon’treturnhistextmessage.”9

Eachof the followingchapters focusesononeof theaforementioned themesand

canbetakenas itsownessaywitheachfollowingchapterbuildingontheprevious. Ihave

been very fortunate to havehadprofessors over the last few semesters interested inmy

researchintoCivilWarmusicandnationalmemory.AndrewW.MellonPostdoctoralFellow

ProfessorMarkHertzmanoftheCenterfortheAmericasallowedmetooutlinemychapter

ontheLostCause inhiscourse“BlackMusic intheAmericas”andIamgratefulforallthe

advicehehasgivenmeforfurtheringthediscourseofthispaper.ProfessorPatriciaHillof

HistoryandAmericanStudiesalsoallowedmetoworkandoutlinemychapterontheGood

Deathinherclass“TheLong19thCenturyinAmericanHistory”.Althoughtheworkdonefor

thisthesisisspecificallyfocusedonmusic,Ipurposefullysetoutonthegoalofmakingthis

workaninterdisciplinaryculturalstudy.Withoutthehelpoftheseprofessors,mythesismay

nothavebeenasfocusedonthethemesselected.

PersonalStatement

9Hermes,Will.Rock,AccessibleandArcane:TheDecemberists.NationalPublicRadiowww.npr.com,

March1,2006.September21,2008.

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WhenIwasafreshmanatWesleyanUniversity,IwasinvitedtoseeTheLastWaltz.

Amusic documentary, “a rockumentary” filmed byMartin Scorsese.10 The film chronicles

thelastperformanceoftheoriginalmembersoftheBand.Iwasneverreallyawareofthe

Banduntil seeingthatmovie,although Ihadheardthesong“TheWeight”before, Inever

botheredtofindoutwhosungit.AfterviewingthemovieintheGoldsmithFamilyCinema,I

wasstruckbytheattemptofhistoricitybytheBand.Theinterviewsandpersonalmoments

shown by Scorsese added a touch of nostalgia for a bygone era in American history in

additiontotheconcertfootage.AlthoughIhavecometolearnthatthefootagewasatleast

modestlyrehearsed,Iwantedtoknowwheretheycameupwiththesestories.

When firstdesigning this thesis Iwasgoing to look intohowtheBandandothers

constructedamusicalfolknarrative,specificallyhowmusicianscreateafolkishmystiqueto

theirpersonaandmusic.However,ayearpriortothebeginningofmywork,AdamTinkle

delved into the topic thoroughly in his thesis, “Back to the Garden: Pastoralism, Country

Rock,andAuthenticityintheU.S.Counterculture,1968‐1970”.

DissuadedfromretreadingonTinkle’sacademicgrounds, Icamebacktoaspecific

moment intheLastWaltzmovie.Thescene isapproximatelyhalfwaythroughthemovie,

andmembersoftheBandaresittingonacouchplayingaversionof“OldTimeReligion”on

fiddle, guitar, and harmonica. They play the song amazingly sloppy; the fiddle scratches

throughthesong,theharmonicaisbarelyaudible,andtheguitarisoutoftune,butinthis

short clip, the lead songwriter, Robbie Robertson, comments “it’s not like it used to be.”

Scorsesethen jumpstoahornsection’s lamentthat leads into“TheNightTheyDroveOld

DixieDown.”ThesongconcernedVirgilCane,aConfederatesoldierreturninghomeatthe

10Scorses,Martin.TheLastWaltz.MGM,1978.

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endoftheCivilWar.Ididn’tlistenthoroughlythefirsttimeIheardthesong,buttheBand

overthelastfouryearshasbecomeoneofthemostinspirationalmusicalgroupsinmylife.

Comingbacktothesongovertheyearshasmademequestion,howdidfourCanadiansand

anArkansawyercomeupwithasongabouttheCivilWar?Thisbecamethenucleusofmy

thesis. Theexact purposeof the thesis has becomemy search to findhow contemporary

popular songsare capableof reaching into thepast andusing theCivilWarasnotonly a

settingbutasawayoflookingattheAmericanpathos.

ThecontemporarysongsIchoseallfollowasimilarcriterionastheBand;eachsong

chosen not simply because I like it or relate to it, but because these songs are popular.

BeyondtheBand,I’vechosensongsbyWilco,HankWilliamsJr.,JustinTownesEarl,andthe

Decemberists. Each of these musical acts is recognized nationally as popular, with the

exceptionofJustinTownesEarl,eachartisthasachievedGoldstatusrecordsalesaccording

to the Recording Industry Association of America.11 Each group has added import to

Americanmusic, either through continuedmusical lineageasHankWilliams Jr. and Justin

TownesEarlhavedoneorbydelvingintothelineagesofothersasWilcohasdonethrough

their commission by Nora Guthrie to recordWoody Guthrie lyrics. Thesemusicians have

proventobemorethan just importanttomebutalsoof importancetoAmericanpopular

musichistory.

11VariousSearches.RecordingIndustryAssociationofAmerica.www.riaa.com.

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TheGoodDeathintheCivilWarSong

In Drew Faust’s book This Republic of Suffering, she posits the CivilWarmarks a

turning point in how Americans understood death. For Americans, “loss became

commonplace;deathwasnolongerencounteredindividually;death’sthreat, itsproximity,

and itsactualitybecamethemostwidelysharedof thewar’sexperience.”12Onewaythat

thiswasexpressedwasthroughmusic.As theUnitedStateswasdealingwiththemassive

lossoflifeandtheburgeoningnatureofthemilitaryindustry,oneothermajorindustrythat

continuedtoprosperwasmusicpublishing.BoththeNorthandSouthpublishedatreasure

troveofmusic.AsJohnTaskerHowardhaswritten inhisstudyofAmericanmusichistory,

theCivilWareraproducedsomanysongsthatthey“couldbearrangedinpropersequence

to formanactualhistoryof theconflict; itsevents, itsprincipal characters,and the ideals

andprinciplesoftheopposingsides.”13Thepurposeofthischapteristoexplorehowmusic

expressedasharedcommunityduringtheCivilWarera,andhowmusiccanretainvarious

conceptsand ideals into thepresent.Anddowe find thesameconcepts incontemporary

popular songsas thoseexplored inFaust’sThisRepublicof Suffering orare contemporary

songsfarremovedfromthe19thcentury?

TheImportanceofMusic

The reasons for studying themusicof theCivilWarperiodaremany.Howardhas

documentedboth theNorthand theSouthwerehighlyproductive inmusicpublishing. In

12Faust,DrewGilpin.ThisRepublicofSuffering.NewYork:AlfredA.Knopf,2008,pgxiii.13Howard,JohnTasker.OurAmericanMusic,pg254.

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NewOrleans,theBlackmar&Bros.publishingcompany,published232compositions;inthe

North,Root&Cadypublishedeightywar‐relatedsongsandissued258,000copiesofsheet

music and 100,000 music books in 1864.14 Perhaps even more important is the special

qualityoftheproliferationofmusic.Unlikeotherartisticorjournalisticproducts,music,like

poems and stories can be recalled and sharedwith others. In the anthology of CivilWar

music,DavidJ.Brinkmanwritesintheforeword,

Perhaps the most important conclusion…is that music does not existindependentlyofsociety.Listenershaveenjoyedmusicthroughouttimeforitsaestheticqualities,butmusichasalsobeenusedtoconveyemotionsandideas.Ithasbeenusedtoenhancepatrioticrituals,andtomaintainorderinsocial and religious ceremonies…How did the music of the Civil WarcontributetothestabilityoftheUnion—andtotheConfederacy?15

During theCivilWarmusicwasproduced fora varietyofpurposes, frompatriotic

marches,tosongsofsecessionismtosongsforvictoriousreturns.

FaustdescribeshowtheSouthwasfirmlyawarethattheprintedwordwascriticalin

theroleofcreatinganationalidentity,howeveralleffortsweremadebytheUniontostop

even the procurement of school textbooks, which required an order to be sent to

Edinburgh,Virginia.Theonlystereotypingfacility intheSouthwas inNashville,whichwas

capturedbytheUnion.FaustnotesthatthelimitedliteracyoftheSouthernpopulationled

toaculturethatreliedheavilyonspokenaccountsasawayofdisseminatinginformation.In

understandingthehistoryoftheConfederacy,musicbecamethemost importantexample

of“southernorality”.AsmusicwasthemostproducedpublicationintheSouthduringthe

war, it became the main mode in which soldiers and those at home could share in an

“imaginedcommunity”.Evenwhensheetmusicwasunavailablethenatureofmusic(meter,

14Cornelius,Steven.MusicoftheCivilWarEra.Connecticut:GreenwoodPress,2004,pg17‐19.15Ibid,pgix‐x.

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rhythm, and rhyme) allowed for the oral tradition to carry on when songs in print were

unavailable.16

Dying

From1861‐18652.1millionnorthernersand880,000southernersfoughtintheCivil

War.Bywar’sendover600,000peoplehadlosttheirlivesfightingintheconflict.Through

thisconflictdraftedsoldiershadtocontemplatewhatitmeanttofightandwhatitmeantto

die. In this aspectmenhad to join in the tradition ofarsmoriendi. Established in Jeremy

Taylor’s The Rule and Exercise of Holy Dying, the book explains “how to give one’s soul

‘gladlyeandwillfully[sic]’”.17AsFaustpointsout,AmericawasoverwhelminglyProtestant;

theGoodDeathbecameanimportantconceptforthoseathomeandthoseinbattle.This

turnedintooneofthebiggestconcernsforyoungmen:thefactthatmanywerefightingand

dyingfarfromhome.Asmostsoldierswerenotsurroundedbyfamily,thoseavailable,such

asfellowsoldiers,nurses,chaplainsanddoctorshadtocarryonthetasksthatwouldhave

beenrelegatedtothefamily. Intheirdyingmoments,thosearoundthemoribundwereto

attest to the person’s character. As Faust states “people believed final words to be the

truth, both because they thought that a dying person could no longer have any earthly

motivationto lie,andbecausethoseabouttomeettheirmakerwouldnotwanttoexpire

bearingfalsewitness.”18Thosewhoweredyingwouldspeakoftheirreligiousfaithaswellas

theirwilling and honorable sacrifice for their country. And in their capacity as a soldier’s

family,thosewhowitnessedthedeathtookituponthemselvestopassonthewordtothe

16Faust,DrewGilpin.TheCreationofConfederateNationalism.BatonRouge:LouisianaStateUniversityPress,1988pg17‐18.17Faust,DrewGilpin.ThisRepublicofSuffering,pg6.18Ibid.

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family.Forthoseintheheatofbattle,thebestthatcouldbedonewouldbetokeeppaper

onhandandpenaletterasonepreparedfordeath.Andthosethatfearedtheymightdie

instantaneously in battle would pen letters before theywent off into battle. The various

lettersthatweresenthomebecameinmanywaysitsowngenre.Withsomanyinthefield

experiencingdeatharoundthem, it isnotsurprisingthatthe lettershomepermeated into

songsoftheCivilWar.19

Faust comments that “Death transformed the American nation as well as the

hundreds of thousands of individuals directly affected by loss.”20 It is this transformation

thatcreatedthelanguagethatpersistsinAmericanmusicwhenreconstructingnarrativesof

theCivilWar.SongsoftheerawereunafraidoftacklingtheissueofdeathduringtheCivil

War.Although themusic fromtheera ranged fromminstrelmusic (“Dixie”and“Kingdom

Come,YearoftheJubiloh),tomarches(“Tramp,Tramp,Tramp”),roomwasmadeforsongs

of theGoodDeath (“JustBefore theBattle,Mother”and“Deadon theBattleField”).The

songs of the Good Death did not stray from gruesome detail despite the fact that the

soldierssingingthesongaroundacampfireonenightcouldbefightinganddyingthenext

morning.These fictional songsquoteand recall thosewhohavepassed.Each song recalls

theirserviceandtheirwillingnesstofightandthosewhoweeparethoseoutsidethebattle

whorecognizetheimportantoftheirsacrifice.As“DeadontheBattleField”reveals:

DeaduponthebattlefieldThebravestofthebraveIntheforemostrankshenoblyfoughtAndfoundasoldier’sgrave.HiscountrymournshislossAnationo’erhimweeps.

19Faust,DrewGilpin.ThisRepublicofSuffering,pg12‐19.20ibid,pgxiii.

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ButgloryguildsthehonorednameOurfondremembrancekeeps.21

The song iswritten as a eulogy to oneof the thousands of dead soldiers. The ubiquitous

experienceofdeathduringthe1860smadethissongandothersawayforsoldierstoretain

faith in their causeaswellas remember thosewhowentbefore them.Thesongnotonly

honorsthecorrectsociologicalresponsesofthesoldierandthenation,butalsoinfersthat

byfightinginsuchanoblecausethathehasattainedimmortalitythroughhisservice.

Manysongsgaveachanceforthoseathomeaswellasonthebattlefieldtofeela

senseof the“imaginedcommunity”.Perhapsoneof thebestexamplesof this is thesong

“BeMyMother ‘till I Die”written by Elmer Ruan Coates,which tells the story of a dying

soldierwho asks an accompanying nurse to portray hismother during his dying hour. As

most published songs were accompanied with a reason for publication or a “true story”

elementtoaccompanythesong,Coates’songwasthestoryofasoldierwhowasbroughtto

ahousewherethreesisterstookcareofthesoldieruntilhisdeath.Fauststipulatesthesong

mayhavebeenwrittenafter the storyof anursewhowasasked toact as the sisterof a

dyingsoldier.Aswascommoninthe19thcentury,peoplesometimesusedthesametuneto

write a responding set of lyrics. In response to this song, another song was published

entitled“ANSWERTO:LetMeKissHimforHisMother.”22

WhenconsideringtheconceptoftheGoodDeath,contemporarypopularsongsare

stillconstructingthesamenarrative.Onesongthatimmediatelyresonatedisasongfound

by the folklorist A.P. Carter called “When theRosesBloomAgain”.23 AlthoughA.P. Carter

21M.L.Hofford“DeadUpontheBattlefield”.1862.22Faust,DrewGilpin.ThisRepublicofSuffering,pgxiii.23Tweedy,Jeff.ChelseaWalls.CD.Elektra,2002.

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wasknownforwritingsomeofhisownsongs,hismaintalentwasinfindingsongsalongthe

easternstatesandreproducingthemforrecordingintheearly20thcentury.24Carter’slyrics

weremodifiedbyWoodyGuthrieandproliferatedbythebandWilcoasab‐sidefromthe

WoodyGuthriearchiveprojectMermaidAvenueinthelate1990s.25Thesongtellsthestory

ofanofficerwholeavesalovedonebehindanddiesinthemidstofbattle.

MidtherattleofthebattleCameawhispersoftandlowAsoldierwhohadfalleninthefrayIamdying,IamdyingAndIknowI'llhavetogoButIwanttotellyouBeforeIpassawayThere'safaranddistantriverWheretherosesareinbloomAsweetheartwhoiswaitingthereformeAndit'sthereIprayyoutakemeI'vebeenfaithful,don'tforsakemeI'llbewithherwhentherosesbloomagain

TheendingofthesongexemplifiesaGoodDeath,astheofficerdieswithfullmental

andspiritualfacultiesanddoesnotfeardeath.OneofthepassagesinFaust’sThisRepublic

of Suffering that immediately draws a parallel was the letter Ethelbert Fairfax wrote for

James Robert Montgomery, “I have never witnessed such an exhibition of fortitude and

Christianresignationasheshowed.Inthissadbereavementyouwillhavethegreatestofall

comfortsinknowingthathehadmadehispeacewithgodandwasresignedtohisfate”26In

this letter,there isaclearparallel inhowdyingmenwouldandshouldberemembered:a

peoplewhonoblyfoughtanddiedfortheircountryforagreatsacredgood.

24Petrusich,Amy.ItStillMoves.NewYork.FaberandFaber,Inc.2008.25Christigau,Robert.“WhatifWoodyGuthrieLedaRockBand?”NewYorkTimes,June28,1998.AccessedDecember6,2008.26AsquotedinFaust,DrewGilpin.ThisRepublicofSufferingpg17.

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Burying

Fortheliving,thedeathofasoldieraddedontotheworkattheendofthebattle.

ForthefirsttimeinUnitedStateshistorythenationhadtodealwithsuchahugelossoflife.

Faustmakes itclear thatalthoughthenobledeathofasoldierwas important,sowasthe

upkeepofthebody.ToAmericansduringtheCivilWarera,thebodywassomethingsacred

tobetakencareofasitbelongedtothepersonasabookorpicturemight.Assoldiers,as

well as family and church, were deeply concerned for their physical bodies, officials also

made an effort to dispose of bodies as a necessity of the threat to public health.When

capable,bothsidestooktimetoburythedeadafterbattleandevenplacethebodiesinto

coffins. However as thewarworsened, the capability to put labor into proper burialwas

stifled.Up to the endof thewar, figuring out how to handle the burial of soldierswas a

constantconcern.27

The concept of “Burying” from the Civil War era has been reclaimed in modern

song. “Yankee Bayonet (I Will Be Home Then)”28 written in 2006 by the band the

Decemberists relies on a similar rhetoric of leaving bodies to decompose. The song is

narratedbyadeadConfederatesoldier,whofondlyremembershiswife,whoremindsher

deadhusbandofthecurrentstateheisin.Thisrespondsdirectlywithhowthedeadhadto

beleftduetolackofresourcestoafford300,000deadaproperburial. Wherethesoldier

sings lines such as “Look forme when the sun‐bright swallow/Sings upon the birch bow

27Faust,DrewGilpin.ThisRepublicofSuffering,pg61‐65.28TheDecemberists.TheCraneWife.CD.Capitol,2006.

19

high,”hiswiferespondswith“Butyouareinthegroundwiththewolvesandtheweevils/All

a‐chewonyourbonessodry”.29

Whatmakesthissongsopeculiaristheplacementofthenarrative.Thisisn’tastory

toldfromthepointofviewofadyingsoldierorfromasoldierabouttogoofftobattle,it’s

fromthealreadydeadunburiedbodyofthesoldier.ThesongswrittenduringtheCivilWar

would have offered a small sense of comfort by placing the story before the soldier had

passedaway.Tothemoderndaylistenerofthesong,theremightbeaglimpseofhumorin

thelyrics,butforthoseconcernedwiththedisposalofbodies,thelyricspointtoarealfear

thatbodieswouldnotbeproperlyhandledafterdeath.Familieswhocouldaffordit,would

havethebodybroughthomeifpossibleandsonginthisvainwouldmostlikelyhavebeen

toodepressingtobeofanyusetopublishersinthe1860s.

Conclusion

Faust’sconceptofthe“imaginarycommunity”maybethebestwaytounderstand

how modern songs are able to portray the concepts that come from a previous era.

However, the very ideaofwritinghome froma far off battlefieldhasbecomea common

practicefromwartowar.ThenatureoftheCivilWarmayhavebeenthefirsttimethatsuch

lettersweresentatsuchahighrate.Withthemassivemobilizationofthenation,thefact

that music played such a large role in reenacting sociological and cultural roles is not

surprising. Music has the ability to not only carry a message or a narrative but also to

personify the times in which we live. What several journalists and music critics have

commentedonishowoftensongsrelyonthetropesofloveasawayofexploringalarger

29Ibid.

20

world, but through even more specific songs we can find a more interesting world of

discoveringourownculturalhistory.

21

RegionalismandtheLostCauseMovement

Instudyinghistoryandculture,understandingthenuancesofanyeraorperiodhas

takenprecedenceforanthropologists,sociologists,andhistorians.However,theperceived

historyofthepeoplewholivedthroughtheerabecomesthedominantnarrative.Despite

whatacademicstrytobringtolightabouthistory,popularbeliefcanoftentrumphistorians.

InthischapterIwillexaminehowoneofAmerica’sbiggestmythshaspermeatedand

pervadedintopopularmusicandhasbecomeoneofthefirmlyheldbeliefsinAmerican

popularhistory.AsmentionedMarkLaSalle’sreviewoftheCivilWarmovieColdMountain,

TheSouthlosttheCivilWar,butthey'vewontheliteratureeversince.TheyevenwonKenBurns'"CivilWar''documentary…ThelostcauseoftheSouthhasbecomeenshrinedasnoble,alastgaspofromanceandgentilitysoontobe swept under by an ungainly tide of urbanization, industrialization andimmigration.30

LaSalleilluminatesthewaysinwhichpopularhistoryhasbecomethedefactoCivilWar

history.AstheconflictwasbetweensectionsoftheUnitedStates,romanticizingtheevent

hasbecomeawayforAmericanstodealwiththeharshertruthsofCivilWarhistory.Inthis

chapterIwilllookathowtheromanticviewsoftheCivilWarhaveinfluencedmusicians’

understandingsoftheeventsofthewarandhowthatsubvertedviewhasfedintothelarger

pathosoftheUnitedStates.

Thesongsof theCivilWarnotonlyretell storiesofbattlesandthedifferent ideas

thateachsidefoughtfor,buttheyalsooutlinetheprevalentsocialandpoliticalmovements

30LaSalle,Mark.“WarisHellinthegrueling,thrilling‘ColdMountain,’andonlyhisfiercelongingforthewomanheloveskeepsJudeLaw,asaConfederatedeserter,aliveandontherun.”SanFranciscoChronicle.December25,2003.AccessedDecember4,2008.

22

thatdictated the livesofSouthernersafter theCivilWar.Where songswrittenduring the

war would focus specifically on recapturing events, exultations of military and political

leaders, or simply as morale boosters, there are songs that are excluded from Charles

Hamm’sdescriptionof thehistoryofAmericanmusic, songsof the LostCause.Wherehe

mentionsthemalaisecreatedaftertheCivilWar,wefindthatinrealityanewtypeofCivil

Warsongarisesfromthesamemovementthatsweepstheliteraryandintellectualworldof

theSouth.31

ConfederateNationalismandtheLostCause

One part of United States history that is often neglected is the history of the

ConfederateStatesofAmerica.Partiallydue to the idea that“to thevictorgo thespoils”,

the Confederacy is rarely viewed as its own nation‐state. But as Drew Gilpin Faust has

proved in her studies, the Confederacy had begun to set up not only its own brand of

republicandemocracy,buthadalsoworkedoncreatingnationalidentitybytheendof1860.

InthischapterIwillshowthatoneofthemostcompellingandsubversivepointsincreating

arhetoricofnationhoodfortheConfederacywasthroughmusic.“IWishIWasinDixie,”a

Northernminstrelsongthatbecametheanthemof theSouthernnation;“I’mAGoodOld

Rebel,”aReconstructionera song,andHankWilliams Jr.’s20th century song“If theSouth

WouldaWon”areall songs that return to the issueof Southernnationhood. These songs

showthatbeyondthepoliticalandeconomicrepercussionsofforminganewgovernment,

therewasanearnestattemptatcreating,culturally,anewnation.

31Hamm,Charles.Yesterdays,pg231.

23

ForhistoriansstudyingtheCivilWar,thereareseveralpointsthataredebatedwhen

discussing the Lost Cause, also known as the Southernmyth or myth of the Lost Cause.

However,itshouldbenotedthatthebeliefsoftheLostCausevaryaccordingtomotivesfor

thestartofthewarandreasonsforthelossofthewar.Oneofthemostexploredtenetsof

theLostCauseisthebeliefthatslaverywasnotanissueofsecession.Instead,slaverywasa

benign institution in which masters were paternal figures to the slaves and that slavery

would be abolishedprogressivelywithin theConfederacy.32However, another part of the

LostCausemythdoespaintthefightasapoorman’sfightforarichman’swar,specifically

inwhichnon‐slaveholderswerefightingforthearistocraticslaveowners.Anotherimportant

aspect of the Lost Cause is the belief in Southern nobility in military campaigns and

hagiographyofStonewallJacksonandRobertE.LeeasopposedtothebrutalityofSherman,

Sheridan,andGrant’s’totalwarpolicies.Theimportanceoftheromanticizationofsoldiers‐

notonlygeneralsandofficers‐wastocreatetheimageofthenoblesoldierwhofoughtfor

higher purposes. Coinciding with the North’s aggressive tactics during the war was the

culturalandeconomicthreattheNorthhadovertheSouth,asSouthernerswereunableto

competewith themass industries of the North. They saw the North as impeding on the

Southernwayoflife.33

JamesMcPhersondescribestheLostCauseasanunderstandingthatthelossofthe

warwasduenotonlytoexternalforcesbutalsotoforceswithin.McPhersonexplainsthat

theinternaldefeatorthe“lossofthewilltofight”camethroughaftertheFallof1863with

NorthernvictoriesatGettysburg,Vicksburg,andChattanoogaandfurtheredbythecapture

32Gallagher,GaryW.TheMythoftheLostCauseandCivilWarHistory.BloomingtonandIndianapolis:

IndianaUniversityPress,2000.33McPherson,James.BattleCryforFreedom:TheCivilWarEra.Oxford:OxfordUniversityPress,

1988,pages854‐855.

24

ofAtlantaandSheridan’sdefeatofEarly’sarmyintheShenandoahValley.However,what

McPhersonultimatelyarguesisthateachissueoftheLostCausemovementisafallacy.At

theoutsetofthewaritwastheNorththatwasfirstseizedbyafeelingofdefeatismforthe

firstfewyearsofthewar.Formilitaryhistoriansitisimpossibletorationalizehowthetide

couldbeturnedbyvictory‐relatedmoraleboosts.

In Gary Gallagher and Alan Nolan’s compendium of essays, TheMyth of the Lost

CauseandCivilWarHistory,Nolan finds that theLostCausenarrativebeganshortlyafter

thewarended.Theterm,accordingtoGallagher,wascoinedbyEdwardA.Pollardandfirst

appearedinhis1867publicationTheLostCause:TheStandardSouthernHistoryoftheWar

oftheConfederates.Fromthere,NolandescribeshowSouthernapologistsframedtheLost

Cause argument around a myth similar to Germany’s “stabbed‐in‐the‐back” myth. The

entirepointofNolan’sargumentisthattheLostCauseisamyththathasoverwrittenand

erased the history of the cause of the Civil War, and that the victims of the myth have

primarily been the civilian and the common soldier.Nolan explains that by rewriting the

history, it is no longer the narrative of 300,000 deaths fought for the preservation or

dissolutionoftheUnion.Itturns,likeGonewiththeWind,intoastory.Retainedinthismyth

is the character of Southern as intrinsically and racially different: that Northerners are

Anglo‐SaxonandSouthernerscomefromthefarsuperiorandnoblerNormanstock.34

Inthischapterwewilllookathowmusicpreceded,helpedcreate,andperpetuated

theideaoftheLostCause.SpecificallywewilllookathowConfederatenationalismandthe

Lost Causemyth have created amusical dialogue inwhichmusic has become one of the

remnantcarriersoftheshortlivednation‐state.Theideasfirstcreatedduringthe1860sin

34Gallagher,GaryW.TheMythoftheLostCauseandCivilWarHistory,pg16‐23.

25

theSouthhave,forbetterorworse,becomepartoftheAmericanhistoricalnarrative;the

ideasof theLostCausehavebecomepartofpopularhistory. Myanalysis focusesontwo

songs from the 1860s and Hank Williams Jr.’s 1980 song “If the South Woulda Won”.

Through these three songs I will outline how the Lost Cause myth has permeated and

pervadedAmericanpopularculture.

“Dixie”andtheBirthofaSouthernNation

“IWish IWas inDixie” (1859)waswrittenduringtheAntebellumera inNewYork

City by Daniel Decatur Emmett. “Dixie” traveled from theNorthernminstrel stage to the

South where it became the anthem of Southern secessionism and became so pervasive

withintheLostCausemyththatthesongwassungatmymother’shighschoolinColumbus,

Georgiainthe1970s.Thesonghelpedestablishtheword‘Dixie’asareferencetotheSouth.

Previously,Dixiehadthreeetymologicalsources,noneofwhichweredirectlyorexclusively

tiedtotheSouthasaregion:theLouisianacurrencydix,apopularslaveownerinNewYork

namedDixy,andmostnotablefromCongressmanJeremiahDixonthe“Dixon”responsible

fortheMason‐DixonlineintheMissouriCompromiseof1820.35

Thepopularityof thesongarose fromNorthernminstrel showsperformed first in

NewYorkbyBryant’sMinstrels.Although theoriginof themusic isunknown, the song is

believed to originate in Emmett’s youth in Ohio with a neighboring black family.36 The

popularityofthesongduringtheAntebellumperiodpointstoseveralelementsthatwould

come to define the myth of the Lost Cause. Whereas the first verse portrays a wistful

yearningtoreturntotheSouth,theremaininglyricsfocusonthestoryofawomanwhohas

35Cornelius,Steven.MusicoftheCivilWarEra.36Ibid,pg33.

26

her heart broken, portrayed in a light‐hearted fashion. The narrator focuses on the

character of a picturesque South, and indeed creates an image ofwhat southern culture

meansinthepopularAmericanmindwithitsAfricanizedvernacular.

The songwas structured around alternating verse and refrain in anAABC format.

“Dixie”wasoriginallysetforeitherasingleperformerorasmallgroupandasthesonggrew

in popularity the audience sang the “look away” refrainwith the performers. In between

verses,performerswoulddanceawhiletoafiddlesolo.37

The song was popular first in the North, though it became a useful song for the

South,asamilitantcallduring theCivilWar.Forexample,aversionwas titled“DixieWar

Song”:

Hearyenotthesoundsofbattle,Sabresclashandmusketsrattle?Toarms!Toarms!ToarmsinDixie!Hostilefootstepsonourborder,HostilecolumnstreatinorderToarms!Toarms!ToarmsinDixie!ChorusOh,flytoarmsinDixie!Toarms!Toarms!FromDixie’slandwe’llroutetheband,ThatcomestoconquerDixie,Toarms!Toarms!AndroutethefoefromDixie.Toarms!Toarms!AndroutethefoefromDixie.38Anotherversion,called“TheBayoucityGuards’Dixie”specificallytargetedAbrahamLincoln

You’veheardofAbe,thegaydeceiver,WhowenttoSumtertorelieveher;Lookaway!Lookaway!Lookaway!Dixieland.ButBeauregardsaid,“Saveyourbacon”Sumter’soursandmustbetaken!”

37Cornelius,Steven.MusicoftheCivilWarEra,pg33.38ibid,pg34.

27

Lookaway!Lookaway!Lookaway!Dixieland.39ThesongwasusedbytheNorthwithnewlyricsthatreflectedthechangingmoodasslavery

becameafocusofthewar.“DixieUnionized”,mentionsslaveryexplicitly.“O!I’mgladIlive

inalandoffreedom/Wherewehavenoslavenordoweneedthem”.40

WhiletheoriginalsongdoesinvolveaprejudicedunderstandingofraceintheSouth

it is interesting to note how this song hasmoved from a Northernminstrel show to the

unofficialanthemoftheConfederateStatesofAmerica.“Dixie”representsoneofthefew

minstrelsongsthatcamefromtheAntebellumperiodthatSouthernerstrusted.Previously,

Southerners considered minstrel shows as politically suspect. During the first decade of

minstrel shows (1843‐1853), performanceswent beyond romanticizing theplantation and

its paternal nature. These shows portrayed slaves tricking and sabotaging their masters’

plansandplantations. Itwasnotuncommon to seeGabrielorNatTurnerused in several

skits.41

For this reason, thenatureofminstrel shows isworthexploring.Believed tohave

startedin1843,theVirginiaMinstrelsputonthefirstburntcorkperformanceinNewYork

City’s Bowery Amphitheater. The show claimed to be an evening of “Ethiopian

entertainment” and soon thousands of ensembles were performing this stylized

entertainment form. The shows revealedhow race relationswereperceivedby thewhite

imaginationofthetime.Theburntcorkisnotedbyhistoriansasnotonlyasasimpleracial

marker,butalsoasadisguiseinwhichaperformercansatirizewhitemajorityvalueswhile

holding on to the contemporaneous belief structures, and as a mask that allowed

39Cornelius,Steven.MusicoftheCivilWarEra,pg35.40Ibid,pg35.41Faust,DrewGilpin.TheCreationofConfederateNationalism,pg67.

28

entertainers an escape from direct personal and psychological identification with the

performance.

The Englishman Charles Matthews is most noted for creating the caricatures of

blackculturefromhisstudiesofslavesin1822whichbecamethebasisofthecharacterJim

CrowandtheZipCoon.Perhapswhatismostnotableaboutthesong“TheZipCoon”ishow

thecharacterisportrayedasa“larnedskolar[sic]”whogoesontobecomePresidentofthe

UnitedStates.42However,evenduringtheCivilWar,minstrelmusicstuckratherclosetothe

perceivednaturesofblacks evenasNorthern composers like StephenFosterwrote songs

forColoredRegiments.

By the nature of a war between the North and South,minstrelsy turned from a

Northern showcase into a Southern dominated performance.43 Asminstrel shows usually

glorified the life of Southerners, it no longer became appropriate to depict the enemy in

suchaway.What“Dixie”revealsisinthenatureofwhatitdoesnotreveal.Thecharacters

whosingthissongarenotconcernedwiththepoliticalorsociologicalworld inwhichthey

live in. Instead Emmett’s song creates a false cultural identity for blacks in the South. A

sense of political and social standing that is discussed at length by Faustwas integral for

whites in the formationof theConfederacy.Minstrelsy reconfirmed theplaceof slaves in

thenation,andformedthebasisofhowtheLostCausemythbecamesuchanintegralpart

ofthepost‐WarSouth.

The song’s lyrics wish for a return to the old ways. It is this romantic belief that

makes thesongsuchastrongemotionalpull for theConfederatenationalanthem.Unlike

42Cornelius,Steven.MusicoftheCivilWarEra,pg139.43Faust,DrewGilpin.TheCreationofConfederateNationalism,pg65‐67.

29

the“BattleHymnoftheRepublic”,“Dixie” invokesmemoriesofhome.Theoverallsong is

easy enough for soldiers or civilian groups to sing without practice, unlike the more

elaborate orchestration of the “BattleHymn”. Instead, this songwith its “land of cotton”

reminds the listener and singer of the origins of the song and creates the picturesque

language that would become the trademark of songs and othermedia interpretations of

Southernliving.

The most significant change to “Dixie” is how the song became less reliant on

vernacular and replacedwith standard American English. The original lyricswere sung as

such:

IwishIwasindelandobcottonOldtimesdaramnotforgottenLookaway!Lookaway!Lookaway!DixielandInDixielandwharIwasborninEarlyononefrostymornin’Lookaway!Lookaway!Lookaway!DixielandChorusDenIwishIwasinDixie,Hooray!Hooray!InDixieLandI’lltakemystand,TolibanddieinDixie,Away,away,awaydownsouthinDixie.Away,away,awaydownsouthinDixie.44

This isdue,asFaustnotes, inpartbytheConfederateStatesofAmericaeffortsto

establishanationalidentity,andpartoftheirattempttocreatenationalconsciousnesswas

to get rid of “Yankee degeneracies [sic]” and “Africanisms” (i.e.: saying “and” instead of

“an”,“morning”for“mornin’”,“object”for“objec’”,etc).45

44Cornelius,Steven.MusicoftheCivilWarEra,pg31.45Faust,DrewGilpin.TheCreationofConfederateNationalism,pg11.

30

Dixon,“Dixie”andtheClansmen

“Dixie” played into the world of Southern cultural reclamation through the same

lens thatwoulddefine thepost‐warSouth.Almosthalfacenturyafter the riseof“Dixie”,

ThomasDixonJr.;aNorthCarolinapolitician,lawyer,minister,playwrightandauthor,wrote

TheClansmen in1905.Thebookwenton tobecome themovieBirthofaNation but the

circumstancesofthebook’soriginsare importanttotheLostCauseMyth.Dixonreliedon

theSouthernmyth forhisbook;he reliedonacommonunderstandingofhistoryand the

rearrangingoffactstoturnheroesintovillainsandviceversa.Dixon’sbook,TheLeopard’s

Spotswritten1902,worksonthishistoricaldenialwiththecoupd’étatinWilmington,North

Carolina.ThestoryisbasedontheWilmingtonraceriotsinwhichwhitesupremacistsforced

blacksoutofofficebyforce(althoughcalledaraceriotatthetime,itisconsideredtheonly

successful coup d’état in Americanmunicipal government history). Twisting the factswas

standard practice forDixon, asGlendaGilmore comments onDixon’s bookThe Leopard’s

Spots.Shewrites,“Sincemanyoftheeventsactuallyoccurred,readerscouldnotseparate

fictionfromfactandwereunawarethatDixonhadreversedtheoutcomestomakeAfrican

Americans seem powerful and abusive”.46 In similar fashion The Clansmen rewrites

Reconstructionhistory intoanera inwhichblackmenrobbedwhitemenof theirpolitical

power.When the book became a play it was immediately understood that the play was

“duping”Southernnon‐aristocraticwhiteswiththemisportrayaloftheReconstructionera.

Non‐aristocrats understood the recent history of the South and firmly believed that the

Southernplantationownerswere,rightfully,morethecauseoftheCivilWarthanNorthern

aggression. To reestablish the film for white audiences, Dixon sought approval from

46Gilmore,Glenda.GenderandJimCrow.NorthCarolina:UniversityofNorthCarolinaPress,1996.

31

governorsandotherpoliticianstogainpublicsupport.Inthesamemanner,Dixoncalledon

hisformerclassmateWoodrowWilsontoendorsethefilmadaptationBirthofaNation.

“Dixie”becomespertinenttoDixon’sattemptstoreconfiguretheSouthernideasof

thewar,inDixon’sactiveattempttorecreateaninnocentSouth,wherethelandofcotton

wasnobleandchivalrous.Moretothepoint,thesonghasbecomearelicoftheantebellum

SouthandworkswithintheframeworkoftheLostCausesimplybyplayingwithinthelyrical

world that is cohabitated by Dixon’s book The Clansmen. As “Dixie” first creates the

imaginedperfectSouth,Dixon’sworkretellshistorytomatchrealitywithfiction.Whatthe

Southwantsisthewhitepaternitynotthefederalgovernmentenforcedblacktyranny.

Oh,I’mAGoodOldRebel

NextwewilllookatasongthatatfirstglanceappearstobeapartoftheLostCause

rhetoric.However,whatwewillseeisasongthathastheabilitytoblametheNorthforthe

lossofthewarbutdoesnotreflectbackonthenoblequalitiesoftheSouth.Withoutthis

aspectof thesong, thenarratorbecomesunrecognizableasaSouthernvoice. Instead,his

bitternessbecomesanaberrationthattolistenerswillsoundoddbecauseofhowoftenwe

areusedtohearingadifferentvoicerepresentingtheSouthandtheLostCause.

WrittenbyMajor InnesRandolph (C.S.A.), “GoodOldRebel” (Song2)waswritten

shortly after the end of the Civil War. To new listeners, the song may sound not only

humorous through itsperceived ignoranceofunderstanding theUnion,but it portrays an

interestingelementoftheLostCausemyth.ThesongtypifiesmanyofthetenetsoftheLost

Cause movement specifically through the narrator’s lack of apology or need for

reconciliation. The narrator simply points to the new problems created by the Northern

32

invasion of the Southern land. This song reveals the supposed plight of the common

Southernman but this adds to the erasure of the history of the war by focusing on the

perceived Northern aggression. For example, the narrator holds contempt for the

Freedman’sBureauandironicallymentionsthefreedomhefeelshasbeenstolen.

Nolan asserts that part of themyth of the Lost Causewas the idealization of the

Confederate soldier. That the confederate soldier “was invariably heroic, indefatigable,

gallantandlaw‐abiding”,47becametheperceptionofthefightingforceoftheConfederacy.

Nolan states that he is not trying to create a history that disparages the efforts of

Confederate soldiers with most fighting specifically because the North was invading the

South.However,inInnesRandolph’ssongwehaveanarratorthatfindsgrievancewiththe

North.SuchfaultthatfitswithintheLostCausemythisseennotonly inthecontemptfor

the North but specifically for whole heartedly ignoring the issue of slavery. While the

Freedman’sBureauismentioned,itismentionedintermsofthelargerforceoftheUnited

StatesandReconstruction.InthisSouthernperspectiveitisfocusingonwhathasbeenlost

by being controlled by theUnion, insteadofwhat is lost from losing thewar and former

Southernglory.

Unlike “Dixie”, Randolph’s song removes the romanticism of thewar; although it

does use the rhetoric of the Lost Cause it removes the hagiographyof Southern generals

andrefrainsfromanyreflectivethoughtabouttheSouth.As“Dixie”precedestheCivilWar,

itseemsthatthemostimportantqualityofmusicdiscussingtheLostCauseistheideaofthe

Antebellum South and not simply pointing blame at the current power of theNorth. The

47Gallagher,GaryW.TheMythoftheLostCauseandCivilWarHistory,pg17‐18,24‐25.

33

unrepentantnarratormakesthepointthatperhapstheSouthdoesnotmatter.Ashedraws

allreferencestotheNorth,heleavestheSouthbehind.

What canbedrawn from thisnarrative is thatRandolphperhaps is “tooclose” to

the war to provide the narrative that was in high demand after the war. As he had

experiencedthewarfirsthand,hisexperienceismorepersonalthanthewriters’experience

of the Lost Cause, making his story more personal than writers like Dixon would have

wanted.As theLostCausemayblametheNorth, italso finds faultwith the larger ideaof

governmentauthority,whichaftertheCivilWarwasathemethatcouldbeagreeduponby

allbutRadicalRepublicans.ThoseintheNorthalsoquestionedwhytheNorthwasusingthe

warsurplusandlabortorebuildtheSouth,whentheSouthshouldbeartheburdenforthe

war.ThisisanotherpointmissingfromRandolph’ssong,hisinabilitytoseekreconciliation.

ThathecannotdifferentiatethebrutalityofthewarfromtheoverallstructureoftheUnited

StatesmakeshissonglessmarketableasitisaregionalrallyagainstNortherngovernment.

HankWilliamJr.’sSouth

HankWilliamJr.’s1988song“IftheSouthWouldaWon”provestobeaninteresting

case study considering the songwaswritten a century after “I’mAGoodOl’ Rebel”. The

songissteepedintwoconflictingeras:onethatwishestoreturntoasimplertimewithout,

whatMarkLaSalleseesastheissuesof“immigration,industrializationandurbanization”48,

and themodern era of Southern iconography. Themusical form follows this conflict as it

travelsfromplaying“Dixie”,toSouthernrock,tofiddle,toslideguitar,andfinallytoaNew

Orleanshornsection.

48LaSalle,Mark.“WarisHell”.December25,2003.

34

PerhapsoneofthemostnoticeablequalitiesofHankWilliamsJr.’ssongisthatthe

songonlyimplicitlymentionstheCivilWar,withoutanyoftheclearbitternessexpressedin

“GoodOldRebel.”WilliamsinsteadfollowsthenarrativeoftheLostCausestraighttoits20th

centuryconclusion.ThenarrativethatWilliamsisworkingagainst isonethat iscreatedby

thefacttheNorthhaddefeatedtheSouthnotonlypoliticallybutalsoculturally.Withinthe

lyrics,Williamsgoesbeyondportrayingmanyof thepopularopinionsofReagan/Bush‐era

Republicanconservatism(deathpenaltylawsandthewarondrugsinMiami)andgoesinto

howtheSouthhasbeenunable toexpress itselfwithinacultural framework.This isall in

spite of the fact that even thoughHankWilliams Sr. isn’t on the hundred dollar bill, two

VirginiansandaCaroliniandograceAmericancurrency(Washington,JeffersonandJackson

respectively). However, Williams resides in the current era where he feels the cultural

significanceoftheSouthremains inthepast.Therecollection isaculturallynostalgicone,

referringto1950seraSouthernculture,PatsyCline,ElvisPresley,andHankWilliams.

Thesongitselfisseparatedintotwoparts.Thefirstversefocusesonelementsthat

wouldmakeAmericabetter, at leasta southernAmerica;where “pushers”andkillersare

swiftlydealtwithbyquickSouthernjustice.Althoughthereareotherelementstothisverse,

thetoneiscenteredonamorevigilantSouthernjustice.Thesecondverseisaculturalstudy

with references to the majority of the states that left the Union. Although the previous

versementionsthreemorestates,thisverseisashiftfromthesociologicaltothecultural.

The song explores the issues of post Civil War imperialism that have led to a

floodingofAmericanmarketsinsteadoftheexultationofAmericanculture.Withtheendof

sectional divide, theUnited Statesbegan todevelop into the creatorofmass culture and

exporteditindroves(beforethebeginningofWorldWarIIhalfthefilmsintheNetherlands

35

wereAmerican49).HankWilliams, Jr.howeverdoesnotgobeyondaculturalseparationof

NorthandSouthtotheLostCausediscourse.Althoughhedoesreferencecertainissuesas

beingnationallymotivated,herefrainsfromreferringtoadetailedracialdynamicbetween

Americans andChinese. The referencing of Chinese exports is part of themessageof the

1980seconomic landscape.AseconomicuncertaintyaffectedtheUnitedStates,moreand

moreforeignautomakersgainedafootholdintheAmericanautomakingindustry.

It isthismass industrializedculturethathasallowedtheLostCausetocontinue. It

has also allowed different styles of music to exist in one song. As the music expresses

various cultural backgrounds of southern America from Appalachian fiddle to Lynyrd

Skynyrd guitar riffs, the vocal delivery is oddly un‐Southern. Williams travels around the

South,andhechoosesamoreMiddleAmericanaccent.SimilartowhatGarthBrookswould

dointhe90s,Williams’vocaldeliverygoesforagreaterappealbeyondastylizedSouthern

drawl.However inother songs,Williamsuseda strongerSouthernaccent, suchason the

song“AllMyRowdyFriends”.50Itwouldappeartogowiththevarietyofmusicavailableto

theSouthernpopulation;Williamschoseavoicethatwouldbewidelyacceptedthroughout

not only the South but the North as well. Williams needed to create this song with a

universalappeal.Althoughnotaformofreconciliationforsingingapro‐Confederatesong,it

certainly creates a narrative voice that calls out froma nobler angle than that associated

withaSouthernerwithastrongeraccent.

Perhaps themost telling part ofWilliams’ song is the last lineof the song “might

even be better off”. This line is not said with any sense of pride in Southern progress.

49Rydell,Robert.BuffaloBillinBologna.Chicago:UniversityofChicagoPress,2005,pg170‐172.50WilliamsJr.,Hank.“AllMyRowdyFriends(HaveSettledDown)”.ThePressure’sOn.WarnerBrothers,1981.

36

Instead it is intoned as a humorous lament for what has become of the South.Williams

seems to be going back to the ideawithin the Lost Cause that the political power of the

SouthwasbeingtakenawaybytheNorth. Indeed, inthissongWilliams isconcernedwith

thepowerthattheSouthislackingfromtheimpliedpoweroftheNorth(expressedthrough

the federal government). This is best understood through the last line that if given the

chanceforselfdetermination,theSouthwouldhavebeenabletoformitsownmoreperfect

union.

AReturntoColdMountainandSouthernHospitality

By looking at the medium of film, we can obtain valuable insights into how

Americansviewtheirownhistory.AlthoughthereisaplethoraoffilmsthataddresstheCivil

War fromseveraldifferentperspectives, fromGlory’sdepictionof ablack infantryunit to

GodsandGeneralsthatlooksatthebeginningoftheCivilWar,ColdMountainbyAnthony

Minghellafitsaspecificcriteria.First,thefilmisnotacomprehensivenarrativeoftheCivil

War. Such a narrative would require an analysis of the political, economical and racial

causes of the Civil War: for example slavery. Second, the film was highly acclaimed,

garneringanAcademyAwardforsupportingactressReneeZellweger.51Third,themusicof

thefilmisusedasapresentationofauthenticCivilWareramusic,astheSacredHarpsongs

and fiddle tunesare chosenovera largeorchestral score.Although thiswillnotbean in‐

depthstudyoffilmmusic,themusicaddsanimportantamountofdepthintothecreationof

the narrative. Finally the film is not only recent (thus should have the most up‐to‐date

information on historical interpretations of the Civil War), but it was touted for its

51ColdMountainawardshttp://www.imdb.com/title/tt0159365/awards.

37

authenticity of portraying civilian life during the Civil War.52 It is this point that will be

addressedwithhowthemovieaddresseshistoricitywiththeLostCause.

Criticsrarelymentionedthehistoricityofthefilm.Insteadthefilmwascomparedto

Gonewith theWind, specifically for the involved love story and the setting of the failing

Confederacy.

New York Times critic A.O. Scott briefly delves into the issue of authenticity,

althoughfromanacademicperspectivehemayhavemissedthepoint:

''Cold Mountain,'' which stars Jude Law and Nicole Kidman as would‐belovers separated by the cruelty and privation of the American Civil War,distinguishes itself from suchmiddlebrow conversation‐stoppers. Its sobergoodtasteisenlivenedbylargedosesofintelligenceandhumor,andevenatouchofauthenticcinematicgrandeur.

By authentic I mean utterly artificial. Mr. Minghella, who can beoverly solemn in pursuit of realism, is, thank goodness, also entrancedbythe beauty of exotic landscapes and the charisma of movie stars…And innearly every particular ‐‐ including the soundtrack, which blends GabrielYared'slavishsymphonicorchestrationwithAppalachianfiddlebreakdownsandDeep‐SouthSacredHarpvocalharmonies‐‐themovie'selegantfakeryimprovesonthebook'sstiffpretentiousness.53

From theperspectiveof amovie critic, Scottbriefly touchesonan issue important to the

academic study of a historical narrative, authenticity. What Scott points out that is

problematicforacademicsistheneedforafilmtocreateaninterestingnarrativeoverany

ideaofhistoricalaccuracy.However,inthispursuitMinghellahascreatedamoviethatfalls

intotheLostCausemyth.

52Sarris,Andrew.ColdMountain’sAchingLoveStory‐Literary,Well‐Acted,Meandering.TheNewYorkObserver.http://www.observer.com/node/48615.53Scott,A.O.“LoversStrivingforaReunion,WithaWarintheWay”.NewYorkTimes,www.nytimes.com,December25,2003.

38

ColdMountainpresentsitselfspecificallyasaSoutherntale,takingplaceprimarilyin

VirginiaandNorthCarolina.Thestory isadualnarrative, focusingonthecharacterAda,a

womanfromprosperitywhohastodealwiththeupkeepofherlandatColdMountainafter

thedeathofherfather.TheotherhalfofthenarrativefollowsW.P.Inman,anativeofCold

Mountainwho volunteers for the Confederacy. Themajority of the story follows Inman’s

desertion as he tries to return to ColdMountain and Ada. Throughout the film, Inman is

confrontedbynumerouscharactersthatbecomepersonificationsoftheauthenticaswellas

theinauthentic.

The movie begins with the Union soldiers placing dynamite underground below

Southern lines at the Siege of Petersburg in 1864. As the men place the explosives the

cameraslowlypansupthroughthedirttotheSouthernlinewaitinginthetrenches.Inthis

opening shot, the film immediately portrays Union troops as deceitful and unfair as they

decide to use a “dishonorable” tactic to beat the Confederacy. After the explosives

detonate, theUnion troops rush into thecrater createdby theblast,unwittingly trapping

themselvesastheConfederatehavea“turkeyshoot”.Whatthissceneandothersportrayof

Unionsoldiers,isthattheyarevillainousanddonothavethefeaturescommonofSouthern

men.ItshouldbenotedthatonereasontheUnionsoldiersranintothecraterwasdueto

theleadgeneralswitchingouttheoriginalblacksoldiersthatweretrainedtorunaroundthe

crater to untrained white soldiers. The feeling that white soldiers would perform better

followsintonegatingtheverypresenceofblacksinthecauseandconflictoftheCivilWar.

As the history‐based events continue, the audience gets flashbacks to Inman first

meetingAdaatColdMountain.NicoleKidmannarratesthissection,explainingthatAdaand

her father moved to Cold Mountain to leave behind “slaves, corsets and cotton”. This

39

immediately adds sympathy to Ada’s character as she characterizes herself as someone

opposed to racismandalso sexism.However,Ada’s familydoesown slaves and shedoes

wearcorsets.PerhapsplayingontheexpectednarrativeofAda’sVictoriansensibilityaswell

as the quality of the South, these ideas are meant to portray her character into the

perceivedpoliticalviewsoftheera.

As Inman, recovers from the explosion from the battle, he recalls singing Sacred

Harp with Ada in church. The song is appropriate for the battle that Inman had been

involvedin.“Idumea”isasongofdeathandthesceneoftheBattleoftheCrater,resembles

theopeningbarrageofviolenceinSavingPrivateRyan.

AndamIborntodie?Tolaythisbodydown!AndmustmytremblingspiritflyIntoaworldunknown?Alandofdeepestshade,UnpiercedbyhumanthoughtThedrearyregionsofthedead,Whereallthingsareforgot.SoonasfromearthIgoWhatwillbecomeofme?Eternalhappinessorwoe,Mustthenmyportionbe!Wakedbythetrumpetsound,Ifrommygraveshallrise;AndseetheJudgewithglorycrowned,Andseetheflamingskies!54

“Idumea”createsastarkcomparisonofthebattleasthenarrativestillfollowsInman

throughthebattle.

Thoughthishasprimarilybeenananalysisofwhatis“wrong”withthenarrativeof

ColdMountain,thefilmdoescreatecertainhistoricalaccuraciesthatare importanttothis54SacredHarpSingersatLibertyChurch.“Idumea”.ColdMountainSoundtrack.Columbia2003.

40

study.Mostnotablymentioned inNolan’sessay,oneof themostsevere issues facing the

Southwasdesertion.ThecharacterofInmanrevealsthatpartofwhatcompelledmostmen

to desert was not cowardice, but the need to return home.With defeats at Antietam in

1862 andGettysburg in 1863 desertionwas extremely high. By the time themovie takes

place (1864), the situation Inman found himself in would not have been uncommon.

However,moviecriticMarkLaSallenotestheactorwhoportraysInman“remainseveryinch

thecollectivedreamofaConfederatesoldier:young,stoicandfeline,withsomethingdark

andawfulbehindtheeyes.”55

However, the film presents Jude Law’s character with various Odysseus‐style

challengesonhisreturnhome.Eachoneofthesevignettesportraysthecowardiceofthose

whodidnot fight: fromGiovanniRibisi’s characterwho trapsdeserters toPhilip Seymour

Hoffman’scharacterwhotriestodrownablackslavegirlheimpregnated.Inman’scharacter

encountersthesemenandmore,andisfacedwiththetragedyofwhathasbecomeofthe

Southwhen the “goodmen” have all gone off to fight thewar. As Inmanmakes hisway

home,Ada iscontinuallyconfrontedbyamemberof theHomeGuardnamedTeague.His

onlyaspirationsaretoownColdMountainandtowinoverAda.However,hismethodsof

dealingwithdesertersandtheirfamiliesaretoocruelforAdatoloveTeagueasshewould

loveInman.AttheclimaxofthefilmInmanandTeaguesquareoff,andInmansuccessfully

killsTeaguebutismortallywoundedintheprocess,dyinginAda’sarms.Atthecloseofthe

filmweseeAdawithachildthatwasconceivedfromInmanandAda’sonenighttogether.

55LaSalle,Mark.“WarisHellinthegrueling,thrilling‘ColdMountain,’andonlyhisfiercelongingforthewomanheloveskeepsJudeLaw,asaConfederatedeserter,aliveandontherun.”SanFranciscoChronicle.December25,2003.

41

What Inman’sodyssey teaches theviewer is thatwhilenobleSouthernmenwere

offfightingfortheircountry,lessnoblecreaturesinfiltratedtheSouthcorruptingthelandof

Dixie. And although men like Inman were deserters, they returned home to correct the

wrongsofthosewhohadenteredintothetranquillifeoftheSouth.However,asanalogous

throughInman’sactionsinthemovie,byleavingthewarbehindtoreturnandtakecareof

the“home”,thesemenhadtosacrificethenoblepartsofthemselvestoregaintheSouth.

TheMythandtheOralTradition

Perhapsthebestwaytounderstandhowthesesongsthroughthemodernerahave

continuedtosharethesamethematicconcernscanbeexplainedbytheeconomicstatusof

the Confederacy. The South had its share of music publishers, from the oldest music

publisher in theUnitedStates, theSieglingMusic company (founded in1819) to theNew

Orleans‐based E. Johns & Co. that would be the first Southern firm to, publish an

unauthorized arrangement of “IWish IWas in Dixie’s Land”. But by 1862most of these

industries were forced to close by advancing Union Armies. However, before publishers

wereforcedtoclose,hundredsofpublishedsongsmadetheirwayintodistributionthrough

the South.56 These songs became the basis for what Faust believes would create

Confederate nationality andby extension feed into the collective experience that created

theLostCause.BillC.Malonewrites inhis introductionSouthernMusic,AmericanMusic:

“MusichasbeenoneofthegreatnaturalresourcesoftheSouth…TheSouthhasexerteda

56Cornelius,Steven.MusicoftheCivilWarEra,pg17‐18.

42

powerful influenceon thewholeofAmericanmusic…passively ithasprovideda sourceof

imagesorsymbols…whichhavefueledtheimaginationofmusiciansandsongwriters.”57

TruthandRomance

For this reason perhaps we can see that songs like “Dixie” helped infuse a

generationofSouthernerswith specific ideasandviewsofwhat itmeant tobeSouthern.

TheliteratureandfilmsoftheLostCauseonlyfurtheredtheideasthatwerefirstcreatedin

suchformsaspublishedmusic.Bycreatingaspecificculturalhistorythatrivals“realhistory”

musicians and other artists have a medium in which to work with a much problematic

narrative.InsteadofhavingtoconfrontpastgenerationsinvolvementwiththeCivilWaror

even 20th century civil rights, musicians can portray a history that is unashamed or

unconcerned with the morally ambiguous. Instead music can reframe Robert E. Lee and

others asnoble saints fightingagainst theoppressiveNorth, insteadofdepicting Leeas a

Virginianslaveowner,who,despitepopularhistory,madeseveral tacticalmistakesduring

the war. However, history is important for showing the evolution of people, ideas, and

cultures.Thefateofpopularmusicandothersimilarartsismorefocusedondepictingthe

moodofthetimeortimespast.Theycancreateasenseofstasisinhistory,butoftenlack

theabilitytopresentalargernarrativethatmoveshistorybeyondasnapshot.

57Malone,Bill.SouthernMusic,AmericanMusic,pg2.

43

Gender

To understand gender in the Civil War song, we must explore how gender was

expressedduring theCivilWarera.Oneof the filters thatwill beused tounderstand the

songs will be Amy Greenberg’sManifest Manhood. Through this lens I will explore the

conceptsoftherestrainedandmartialmanhood

One quality of the era’s songs that has not permeated the 20th century is the

treatmentofthematernalfigures.Althoughthiswillbediscussedlaterwewilllookathow

thesongsoftheerareflectnotonlythe“everyman”qualityofjournalsandlettersbutalso

thewayinwhichsoldiersreactedtothenotionofhome.

Songsfunctioninmainstreamsocietytoeitherreinforceorweakensocialnorms.By

lookingatnotonlythehistoryoftheCivilWarbutatthesociologicalimportanceofmusic,

wewillunderstandhowmusicoftheCivilWarinterpretsthespecificroleswomenandmen

wereexpectedtoenactinthepublicsphere.

During the Civil War period, the dynamics of gender role changed with how

Americansviewedtheirregional identityandconceptof lifeanddeath.Byexamininghow

men and women defined their separate spheres and how the Civil War disrupted the

conventions of the era, we will find that before the 20th century, women were slowly

redefininghowtheycould influencethepublicsphereofAmericansociety.Astherolesof

women reshaped cultural standards, various songs, plays, poems and official

pronouncementsusedwomenastoolsforthewareffort.Onepopularthemewastourge

youngwomentofavoronlymeninuniform.Inonesong,afemalecharacterissearchingfor

ahusband,

44

ButhemustbeasoliderAveteranfromtheWarsOnewhohasfoughtfor“SouthernRights”BeneaththeBarsandStars.58

musicbecomesanimportantfactorduringthisperiod.

ThischapterwillshowhowsongsoftheCivilWardifferfromcontemporarysongsin

exploringgender.Doeither songsof theperiod reflect the realityof the livesofmenand

women?Iwilldelveintotheissuesofmartialandrestrainedmanhood,women’spursuitfor

activeroles intheabsenceofmen,andfinishingwithhowtheseroles ledtomodernsong

interpretingthenationaldynamicthroughtheunderstandingofgenderroles.

Manhood

Inthissection,IwilldiscusswhatAmyGreenbergcallsmartialandrestrainedmanhood.In

herbookManifestManhoodandtheAntebellumAmericanEmpire,Greenberginvestigates

themeaningofManifestDestiny forAmericanmenandwomen in theyearsbetweenthe

U.S.‐MexicoandCivilwars..AccordingtoGreenberg:

restrained manhood was practiced by men in the North and South whogroundedtheiridentitiesintheirfamilies,intheevangelicalpracticeoftheirProtestant faith, and in success in the business world. Their masculinepractices valued expertise. Restrained men were strong proponents ofdomesticityor ‘truewomanhood.’ Thebelief that thedomestichouseholdwas the moral center of the world, and the wife and mother its moralcompass…They were generally repulsed by the violent blood sports thatcaptivatedmanyurbanworkingmen.59

Incontrasttothat,thereismartialmanhoodwheremen

58vonLaHache,Theodore.“IWouldLiketoChangeMyName:AFavoriteEncoreSong.Augusta:Blackmar&Bro.,1863.59Greenberg,Amy.ManifestManhoodandtheAntebellumAmericanEmpire.Cambridge:CambridgeUniversityPress,2005,page11.

45

rejectedthemoralstandardsthatguidedrestrainedmen;theyoftendranktoexcesswithpride,andtheyreveledintheirphysicalstrengthandabilitytodominatebothmenandwomen…theywerenot, ingeneral, supportersof themoral superiority ofwomen and the values of domesticity.Martialmenbelievedthatthemasculinequalitiesofstrength,aggression,andevenviolence,betterdefinedtruemanthandidthefirmanduprightmanlinessofrestrainedmen.60

In Civil War era songs, there is an emphasis on men wanting to return to the

domesticity of their home lives. They return to awifewho haswaited andmanaged the

homewhilethemenreturntotheirnormaltasks.61

These songs reflect a desire for antebellum ideals, women dealt with similar

hardships. As Confederate soldiers moved from state to state, displaced women took

inversetripsaroundtheSouthmovingawayfromthebattlefield.Thesetripscreatedanew

socialdynamicaselitewomenandmen interactedwithpeopleof lowersocialspheres. In

these lower class environments elitewomenbecame aware of the disparity between the

classes.Howeverthiswasnotawayinwhichsolidaritywasformed,instead,womenclung

moretotheirsocialstatus.Towomenoflowerclasses,themovementofelitewomenwas

seen as cowardly, as elite women could afford tomove from city to city away from the

conflict that would engulf parts of the South. To people of the low country, elites were

“refugees”,womenunwillingtotakeastandattheirhome.Insteadtheelitewomenmoved

andtookadvantageofhardpressedindividualsforhospitalityduringatimewhentheprice

ofhomegoodshadrisenuncontrollably.62

Womanhood60Greenberg,Amy.ManifestManhoodandtheAntebellumAmericanEmpire,pg1161Faust,DrewGilpin.MothersofInvention,pg5.62ibid,pg32.

46

Prior to the Civil War, women were not active outside the domestic sphere,

however,mobilizationofmenduringtheCivilWar,womenbegantotakeonlargerrolesin

society.InthissectionIexaminehowwomenpursuedamoreactivesocialrole;conversely

men’snarrationinsongsoughttoidealizeantebellumconceptionsofgenderroles.

Asexpounded inFaust’sbookMothersof Invention, theelitewomen in theSouth

during the Civil War took a larger role in political and social spheres. She write: “War

necessitated significant alterations—even perversions—of this ideology of behavior and

identity.”63Womenof theNorthhadbeenworking indifferentbenefit societies since the

founding of the nation. For example, the Southern caste system did not present

opportunitiesforwomentoworkinurbanaidfoundations.InPhiladelphia,womenworked

notonly for churchesbutalsooperated theirownsocieties todealwith issuesof slavery,

alcoholism,immigrationandslavery.64Theabolitionofslaverywasnotonthetableofissues

discussed in these circles. However, with the number of men dwindling as the war

progressedwomentookuprolesinvoluntaryassociationsthathadpreviouslybeenheldby

men.

AsmostCivilWarsongswerewrittenbymen,althoughnotnecessarilymenonthe

fieldofbattle,thesesongswoulddealwithnotonlyfightingtheenemybutwithhopesof

returning to an unchanged home front. In the songs, womenwere ready to take up the

domesticrolesthattheyfulfilledbeforethewar,butthewarpushedwomenintothewaras

muchasmen.

AsDrewFaustwritesinMothersofInvention

63Faust,Drew.MothersofInvention,pg17.64Dorsey,Bruce.ReformingMenandWomen.Ithaca,NewYork:CornellUniversityPress,2002.

47

The North…had inaugurated its reexamination of genderassumptionsmore than a generation earlier, aswomen’s rights advocatesbegantodestabilizetraditionalunderstandingsofmen’sandwomen’sroles.In the south, by contrast, emergent nineteenth‐century feminism had by1861 exerted almost no impact, and understandings of womanhood hadremainedrigidlybiologicalandthereforeseeminglynaturalandimmutable.In the eyes of many of the South’s defenders, this contrast was in itselfevidence of the superiority of southern civilization and of the dangeroustendenciesinherentinthenorthernwayoflife.65

IntheSouth,womenweretoplaytheroleofmoraleboosters,whonotonlyshownfavoron

uniformedmen,butwere,remindedthattheyweretohidetheirdoubtandtheirfearand

insteadgivecompletesupporttothewareffort.Moderndemonstrateasimilarpointofview

intheirlyricsastheyillustratewomen’sroleswouldchangewhenmenreturnedfromwar.A

newmetaphorhascomeintotheCivilWarsong.Wheresongsthatfocusedongenderhad

previously dealt with the returning male figure or how a woman would have to strive

withouthimthere,themodernsonginsteadfocusonthedeathofamalecharacterandthe

femalecharacter’sresponse.

In“YankeeBayonet”,theleadmaledieswhilehiswifeispregnant.Inthissongwe

seethatwiththedeathofthemaleandbirthofachild,thenationisrepresentedasgoing

throughadeathandrebirth.

ForDutyCallsYourSweetheart'sNameAgain

InManifestManhoodAmyGreenbergassertsthattheAntebellumManbeingsplit

betweenthe“martial”andthe“restrained”.

65Faust,Drew.MothersofInvention,pg5.

48

In the previous chapter Imade reference to the importance ofColdMountain to

constructingthenarrativeoftheCivilWarrelatedtomusicandthemesoftheLostCause.

But more can be gleamed from the movie as well as from the book. That women had

created a struggle for powerwith the Confederacy over the control ofwomen.With the

struggle for secession becoming a harder struggle on the frontlines, women used the

occasion towrite songs andpoetry asking for theirmen tobe recalledback to thehome

front.It is inthiscausethatwefindthefightfordomesticitytakesitsplaceinseveralCivil

Warsongs.

TheHomefrontandtheBattleFront

The Civil War was last war to be fought exclusively on American soil. The war

providedaninterestingsocialdynamicbetweenthoseonthehomefrontandthoseonthe

frontlines.Itwaspossibleandcommonforthoseathometoshareletterswithsoldiersina

closeproximitytohome,theproliferationbetweencorrespondentsbecomesanimportant

wayforhistorianstoexplorehowtheCivilWaraffectedtherelationshipsbetweenthemen

inthefrontandthewomenathome.Faust’sfindingsexemplifythatintheirseparationmen

andwomen developed a new understanding of gendered spheres. The distance atwhich

men found themselves from daughters, wives, and loversmanifested itself through their

textsasalongingfortheoldorder.Inthelettersfrommenofelitehouseholds,thislonging

waspresentedasadirectiontowhitewomenmaintainingorder in thehousehold. In the

South,thisspecificallymeantwatchingoverthedutiesofdomesticservantsandslaves.

Womenworkedtokeepthehouseholdthewaytheirhusbandsrememberedit.But

asthewardeterioratedtheSouth,sodidtheelitelifestyle.Elitewomenhadtotakeuproles

49

theywereunfamiliarwith, fromdoing the laboriousworkofdoing laundry tomaintaining

orderinaslave‐owninghousehold.Aswomentookupmoremasculinerolesintheirhome

life, some began to express themselves in there writing for newspapers and publishing

fiction.

WomenKeptApart

In the absence of patriarchical orderwomen grew accustomed to roles that they

neveroccupiedbefore.ThishadthegreatestaffectbeforethewarintheSouth,whereelite

women for the first timediddomesticchores thathadbeenpreviously left for slavesand

servants.At a timewhen thesewomenhadbeenonly subservient to their husbands, the

lack of control they were used to wielding over the home demonstrates a different

understandingofwhatdomesticitymeantduringthewarperiod.

For example, Southern Elite women took on responsibilities previously deemed

servantworkbutalsotheworkofmenand“Yankeewomen”.Formanywomenthisshiftin

responsibilitywasdistressinginthemselvesandwrotetotheirhusbandsonthefronttoask

adviceonwhat todo. In response to these letters,manymenmadean attempt todeter

suchworkintheSouthasmanymenwantedtheirwivesanddaughterstokeepwithinthe

samesocialsphereevenintheirabsence.

Stillthesongsofthistimeperiodrarelyfocusedontheplightwomenexperiencedat

homewithoutthepresenceofmen.Onereasonforthelackofsongs isthedominationof

songasamalevocation,whileseveral songsdid takeon the femalepersona, thesesongs

didnotgivevoicetotheconcernsactuallyfeltbytheelitewhitewomenonthehomefront.

50

In modern popular songs the narratives remain in the perspective of the male

sphere.Eventhough“YankeeBayonet”isadialoguebetweenthetwospheres,itisshowing

eachfigureintheirrespectivenaturalenvironments:amanonthefrontlinesandawoman

at the home front inside the domestic sphere. Where women had to show their own

courage in keeping up homeswithoutmale support, songs show the believedunchanged

faceofdomesticity.

In the Decembrist contemporary song “Yankee Bayonet”, the female protagonist

describestheallureofhomeagainst thebrutalityofhome.Whilehermanfightsamongst

the“bones”andthe“bile”shesitsontheCarolinacoast.Furthermore, inthenarrativeof

thesong,shesitsathomepregnantand lacks themale figure thatwouldbenecessary to

raiseachild.Thesongbrings intoquestion if there isa largermetaphortobeseen inthis

narrative.IsthismorethanaCivilWarballad?

In representations of manhood and womanhood, men represent the ideas of

independent living and being able to forge one’s own destiny, while at the same time

womenrepresent

The song “TheNight They DroveOld Dixie Down” by the Band portrays a similar

scene to “Yankee Bayonet”. The song tells a story which follows that of Virgil Cane in a

historicallybasedfictionalnarrative.Virgil isamanwhoservedonaConfederatetrainline

untilUnionsoldiersdestroyedtherails. Inthesong,hecomeshometohiswifeandfarm,

onlytowatchthefurtherdefeatofRobertE.LeeatRichmond,Virginia.Eachfigureofthe

storystaysinthespherethattheyhavebeenassignedto.Inthisfictionalnarrative,Virgil’s

51

wifespeaksasinglelineaboutwitnessingthemarchofLee’smen,whileVirgil’sfatherand

fallenbrotheraregivenaverseeach.

The contributionswomendidmakewere turned into songs, aswas the casewith

thesong“TheHomespunDress”.

ThreecheersforthehomespundressTheSouthernladieswear.NowNortherngoodsareoutofdate,AndsinceoldAbe’sblockadeWeSoutherngirlscanbecontentWithgoodsthat’sSouthernmadeWescorntowearabitofsilkAbitofNorthernlace,ButmakeourhomespundressesupAndwearthemwithagrace.66

Thesongfocusesonthetasksofusingavailablefabricsathomeinsteadofrelyonimports

thatwerestoppedbytheUnionnavalblockade.Thissongspecificallycallsonwomentonot

onlymakeasacrificeoftheluxuriestheywereusedtobutalsotoperformataskthatcalled

onthemtoactindependently.

These roles show women taking on common domestic roles in support of the

Confederatecause.ThisisthewaySouthernelitespreferredwomeninvolvedthemselvesin

thewar,byportraying themselvesas thosewhoheldonto thevirtuoussideof thenation

whowouldnotbeapartofasocietythatdidnotcondonetheactionsofthegovernment.

By getting involved in the war through their own available sphere, womenwere able to

contributemoral support for theConfederacyandpossiblyconvincemen to support their

possiblespouses.Asinthesong“IWouldLikeToChangeMyName”,thefemalenarratoris

searchingforahusband,shesings:

66Hudson,ArthurPalmer.FolksongsofMississippiandtheirBackground.ChapelHill;UniversityofNorthCarolinaPress,1936.

52

ButhemustbeasoldierAveteranfromthewars,Onewhohasfoughtfor“SouthernRights”BeneaththeBarsandStars67.

ExperiencingManhood

The song “Aura Lee, theMaid with the Golden Hair”68 (1861) was central to the

novelColdMountain.AsitremindsInmanofthewomanheleftbehind.SongssuchasAura

Lee were commonly sung by soldiers during the Civil War. They provided a sense of

nostalgiaformenatthefront.Forsome,thesongwouldserveasareminderofwhatthey

werefightingfor,butforthemajorityofsoldiersitbecameareminderofwhatwasawaiting

them:adesirablewomanandachancetobeawayfromthebattlefront.

In the song, the narrator experiences birds, flowers, and other parts of nature

singingofthewoman,AuraLeetohim.ThesongstartswithabirdsingingofAuraLee,then

the rose reminds the narrator of her blush, followed by the willows long branches

representingherhair, further in thesongthestarsarehereyes,andsunshine isher face.

For the narrator, the very land/nation he walks upon is reminding him of the woman.

Beyondthepersonificationofnature,thesoldiernarratorcanseethe longingnotonlyfor

thewomanhelovesbutforthelandthathefightsfor.

Mencravedasenseofwhatwasawaitingthemathome.Menusedsongstotake

their minds off of fighting. A song commonly sung before battle, “Rock Me to Sleep,

Mother,” pleads for escape from war and to go back into childhood and a mother’s

protectingarms:67TheodorevonLaHache,“IWouldLiketoChangeMyName:AFavoriteEncoreSong”.Augusta,Blackmar&Bro.,1863.68W.W.Fosdick.“AuraLee”.1861.

53

Backwardturnbackward,oh!TimeinyourflightMakemeachildagain,justfortonight:Mother,comebackfromtheecholessshoreTakemeagaintoyourheart,asofyore.

Andperhapsthisisthekindofsongthatcanlendunderstandingintothewaymodernsongs

depicttheCivilWar.Althoughitwouldbeapeculiarinstance,theBand,theDecemberists,

Wilco’scover,andJustinTownesEarlallrecordedandreleasedtheirsongsduringatimeof

conflict. The reflections of the narrators in these songs speak of valor and honor. They

reflectanimportantconceptduringtimesofwar,theideaofmalebravery.Althoughthese

songsarefarfromcritiquesofthewarandmaynotbethemostappropriatemusicsungata

USOshow.

In JustinTownesEarl’ssong“LonePineHill”, thenarratorhas losthisbraveryand

wishes to return tohis lover.Thenarratorhasbeen fighting since1861and iswaiting for

“Sheridantobringustoourknees.”Outof fearofdeathandwantingtoreturnhome,he

begs forGod’s forgivenessashe runsaway to returnhome.Hereasons thatsincehehad

never owned a slave the Civil War isn’t his fight. This demonstrates a change from the

reasonhegivesearlierforwhyheenlisted,whichwastofightforhishomeland.ForEarl’s

narrator, the valor ofwar is gone since, from his point of view the battles have become

senseless slaughters.He recounts the battles he has fought in, and after fighting for four

years,hopeislostsinceRichmondundersiege.HeisstationedatFiveForks,the“Waterloo

of the Confederacy”. For the narrator,what is there left to fight for? Earlier in the song

Earl’snarratortalksabouttheminesdestroyinghishomeland,thisgoesincontrastwithhis

remarksconcerningslavery.Concerningbothpartsofhisnarration, forces largerthanhim

are controlling his fate and his ability to return to the homehe remembers. Both forces,

54

governmentand industry,havemadethepurposeofhisvalormeaningless.Witha lossof

meaninginthewar,malebraverynolongerprovestoanissueforasoldier.Withdisillusion

inthecause,braveryisremovedfromimportance.

InhisautobiographyontheBandLevonHelmsaid:

Wedidafewpressconferences,whichgotalittleembarrassinginSwedenbecause we were apolitical…the Stockholm press is peppering us withquestions…andwhat could we say except thatwe hated war asmuch asanyone…noneofuseverthoughttowriteasongaboutalltheshitthatwasgoing on back then: war, revolution, civil war, turmoil. Our songs weretryingtotakeyousomeplaceelse.69

And although the Band did write a song explicitly about the Civil War, it is a personal

narrative that isnotgoing foragrandiosestatementabout the times,either the1860sor

the1960s.Although the songdoescreate sympathy for theSouth,RobbieRobertsonwas

persuadedbyLevonHelmtoleaveoutanyreferencetoAbrahamLincoln.Instead,likemost

songs by the Band, the songs are about taking someone away from the prospects of the

futureortheimmediacyofthepresentbutlooktothepastasaplacetoescape.70Onthe

coversofearlyBandalbumcovers,thereisartworkdepictingasurrealpaintingofahouse

by Bob Dylan, the next showing the Band in the forest, a colorful spectrum of colors

depicting the plains, and the next a painting of the band eating outside. Each albumwas

madewith the purpose of depicting themes of American history. Songs such as “Acadian

Driftwood”,detail theexileofAcadianstoLouisianaorthesong“KingHarvest (HasSurely

Come)”,anarrativeofunionlaborsintheruralsouth.Thesesongs,despitetheirinterestin

history are vignettes of the events. The songs may tell stories of displacement, labor

69Helm,Levon.ThisWheel’sOnFire.ChicagoReviewPresspg165.70Hoskyns,Barney.AcrossTheGreatDivide,pg194.

55

problems,andofwarbut they’renotmeantas social critique,butasexpressionofmood

insteadofperiod.

TheImportanceofMaleSacrifice

Wecanpartiallyattributethe importanceandpervasivenessof themalenarrative

totheconceptoftheGoodDeathbecameroutedinthepsycheofpeopleoftheNorthand

the South and this could be seen as a reason why the male narrative has become so

importantandpervasive.Asonlymenweresoldiers,andso theones togive theultimate

sacrificetotheirnation,theimportanceofthatsacrificeovershadowedtheresponsibilities

andlifeofwomenandchildrenonthehomefront.

With “The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down”, the concept of male sacrifice is

intertwinedwiththisgenderdistinction.Themusicofthesongstartsoffwithaslowdescent

onthepianofollowedbylopsidedmarchonthesnaredrum.Thesingerintroduceshimself

asCaneandhisroleinthelargercontextoftheCivilWar,detailinghismilitarycareer,whom

he fought for, and how it ended. The chorus enterswith a roll on the drums as allmale

harmony sings the tag of the song. In the second verse, Virgil describes his life at home.

Afterhisreturnhome,heseesRobertE.Leepasshisfarm.Atthispoint,Virgilgoes intoa

metaphor as how even doing the lowest job (either a dirt farmer or a Confederate rail

worker)isworthdoingaslongasyougiveyourbestinthelineofservice.Beginninginthe

secondchorus,thereentersthesoundofasorrowfulhorncontinuesthroughintothenext

verse.Finally, inthethirdverse,Virgildescribeshowhis fatherhadbeenafarmerandhis

brother a “proud and brave” soldier “who took a rebel stand.” This both establishes a

heritageofhonorandvalorandalsoemploysthathisbrother’sdeathtoametaphorforthe

56

South. As Cane becomes Southern sugar cane, an important crop of the South. Virgil

explainsthat“youcan’traiseaCanebackup,whenhe’sindefeat.”ForVirgil,oncehisown

familyhadsufferedloss,theCivilWarwaslossforthefamily.

Motherhood

Whilewomenwerekeptoutofthediscourseofsongnarratives,theynevertheless

played an important part in crafting the idea of the Confederate nation. Specifically,

educatingtheyouthandguidingthegrowthoftheSouthernnationalidentity.Bytheendof

the Civil War, over half of all teachers were women in the South, when previously they

accountedforlessthaneightpercent.

The ascendency in educational power corresponds to the idea of republican

motherhood at the beginning of the American democracy. Southernwomenmid‐century

wouldpasson thevalues to their sonswhowouldbeactive citizens in thenewSouthern

nation.At the turnof the19th centurywherewomenpassedon the ideaof citizenship to

theirchildren.

In “YankeeBayonet,” thewoman is left to tend for theunborn childonherown.

Andinanenvironmentthatlookedtomothersasasourceofeducation,itwouldfallonthe

unnamedmothertobringupthechildintheidealsofSouthernsocietyandculture.Atthe

endofthesongthedeadsoldierandhiswifesingaduet.Thesoldierexplainsthathewill

returntoher“onthebreathofthewind.”Mostlikelythissuggeststhathewillreturntoher

as a memory and that through her unborn child, there is a chance for him to be

57

remembered.Andpossiblythewarcanberememberedthroughtheirchild.Asitfallsupon

themotherforthechild’seducation,hermemorywillbecomehis.

Conclusion

Women were in search for a way to be of use in an event that called almost

exclusivelyforviolentactionfrommen.Inaconfrontationthatwasdecidedthroughmilitary

victoryonthebattlefield,womenfeltexcludedfromactiveroles.Theconstructionofgender

in the South caused Southern men to not look favorably on involving women in the

difficultiesofwarandsoactivelytriedtokeepthewoman’ssphereseparate.Atthesame

time women’s opportunity for involvement in public works grew. With men away from

home, these elite white women had a chance to explore a new realm of possible

independence,frommanagementofhouseholdaffairstodoinglaundry(adaylongtaskthat

tookseveralindividualtocomplete).

In a novel calledMaccaria; or, Altars of Sacrifice Written by Augusta Jane Evans

during the CivilWar, published in 1864. The protagonist of the novel Irenemust choose

between a life that is chosen for her or a life that she can choose to lead her own life.

“Sacrifice”referstoIrene’sdutytosacrificeherowndesiresforthosearoundher.However

asshemust“sacrifice”, Irene,ayoungSouthernheiress, letshertrue lovegooff tobattle

while she stays behind tomarry someoneher father has chosen for her. Before thewar,

thereisaspecificepisodewhereIrenedoesn’tallowaslavetocarryherbooksforherand

insteadtakesituponherselftobeasindependentasshecanbeintheSouth.

58

AccordingtoFaust,isthequestthatthemaleprotagonistgoesoninsearchofself

identification what usually typifies a novel of the period. At that time the female lead

searches only for romantic fulfillment. Evans’ novel breaks away from this model by

presenting Irene the opportunity and chance to explore her place in theworld. Both her

truelovewhogoesofftowarandherhusbanddies,Ireneisabletoexploreseveralofthe

necessarytasksofwomenintheConfederacy.Shestartsaschoolandanorphanage.Inher

roles,IreneundertakesseveralofthegoalsestablishedfirstintheNorthernUnitedStatesin

the antebellum period. Women in places such as Philadelphia and New York had been

involvedwithbenefitsocietiesforthepoorandhomelesslongbeforethewar,itwasonlya

resultofmaleabsencethatSouthernwomenforthefirsttimewerebecomepublicfigures.

Prior to thewar,peopleof theSouthbelievedthatawomanduringcertainkindsof labor

wasaNortherner,thatshehad“Yankee”attributes,butwiththesuddenlackofmeninthe

South,women’slaborbecamesomethinguseful.

Incontemporarysongwomenarestillportrayedasiftheywerenotmajorfiguresin

theCivilWar.However,bytheendofthewarwomenbothnorthandsouthoftheMason‐

Dixon linewere experiencing a high level of interest and access to public life. Inmodern

songs suchas “YankeeBayonet” and “TheNight TheyDroveOldDixieDown”, the roleof

women is only the observational role of amother in charge of the home. Although both

songsdonotexplicitlytakeonthepointofviewoftheeliteSouth,theypreservehierarchy

thatisstressedbymenofthe1860.PerhapsthelackofstrongwomenintheCivilWarsong

narrative is that the roles women took up during the war lack the same relevance. For

example, in contemporary American society, no longer dowe viewwomen doingmenial

house chores as culturally significant, as a sign of the progressive changing times. As,we

59

haveatendencytoconceiveofhistoryprogressing,standardsareadoptedandbecomethe

norm.AndforabandliketheBand,knownfortheirWildmaninthewoodsappearance,the

oldstandardsthattheyappearedtotypifymaybewhatleakedintotheirsongthattriesto

establishwhatwascommoninCivilWarsongs.71

71JayCocks.“MellowHarvest”.TimeMagazine.www.time.com,August31,1970.

60

Conclusion:ConnectingwiththePresent

Music is both deeply rooted and transient. It dissolves into space whilesimultaneously settling into individual and collectivememory. Yesterday’s

songs trigger today’s tears.Music harbors the habitual, but also acts as aherald of change. It helps to orchestrate personal, local, regional, ethnic,religious,linguistic,andnationalidentity.Stableyetconstantlyinflux,music

offersbothstrikingmetaphorsandtangibledataforunderstandingsocietiesatmomentsoftransition.72

MarkSlobin’sopeningintroductiontothebookofessayscalledRetuningCulture isexactly

why studying thehistorical trends ofmusic is a field of interest forme.Although specific

noteselection,motifs,andsequencescanbeimportanttoasongsmeaning,thereisalarge

variance as to how the creator, performer, and audience member takes in any piece of

music.

Musiccanbeatroublesomewayofexploringhistory.Asongcanstartoffwithclear

intentionsandinafewyearstimeananthemfortheopposingcause.“Dixie”hasprovento

beamosttroublesomesonginAmericanhistory.SoonafterthecaptureofFt.Sumter,

“Dixie”couldbeheardthroughoutthecapitolasasignofsupportforSouthernsecession.73

Andyet,bytheendofthewarAbrahamLincoln,afanofthesong,requestedtohear“Dixie”

atashipboardparty.Hereportedlystated“thattuneisnowFederalproperty.”74Although

whatLincolndidwasonlyasymbolicactofunifyingthecountry,itwasalsoadmittanceto

howthesongbecamepartoftheconstructionoftheConfederatenationandliketheSouth

hadtobereclaimed

72Slobin,Mark.RetuningCulture.Durham:DukeUniversityPress,1996,pg1.73Bernard,KennethA.LincolnandtheMusicoftheCivilWar.CaldwellIdaho,CaxtonPrinters,LTD.1966,page12‐13.74Davis,JamesA.“HearingHistory:MusicintheHistoryClassroom”.MusicandHistory.Jackson.UniversityPressofMississippi,2005,pg214.

61

Althoughpopularmusichasfounditsplaceinacademicstudyovertheyears,the

bestwaytodelveintothesubjecthasremainedanelusivejourney.Inmythesis,Ihave

workedtoexplorehowthreethemesoftheCivilWarhavepermeatedtheirwayintothe

20thcenturyandhavereturnedinsongasawayof.AsstatedbyBillStewartinapopular

albumreview:

Therearestillpeopleouttherewhodon’ttakepopularmusicseriously.To

them,it’ssomethingfrivolousandsimplistic,pleasantinthesamecrudeandmindless way as scratching a mosquito bite, an underdeveloped form of“art” that deserves no more serious inspection than an eight‐year‐old’s

drawingofazombiefightingarobot.75

I believe that music can be more than “frivolous and simplistic. Music can magnify the

beliefs of a people, to find out how people relate to one another and to society. The

purposeofthisworkwastoexplorehowin150years,aseriesofeventsinAmericanhistory

hashadfarreachingconsequencesinhowAmericansexperiencethetraumaofwaraswell

ashowtheyrememberthehistoricalevent.Musichasbeenawayofrememberinghistory

since thebirthof theballad form.Popularmusicianshaveneverbackedaway fromsongs

about history or myths. Prior to creating the song “Yankee Bayonet”, The Decemberists

createda20‐minutesongcyclecalled“TheTain”basedoffoftheIrishtaleTáinBóCúailnge

(TheCattleRaidofCooley).Butthetimesatwhichmodernsongshavechosentolookback

into history have often been periods of upheaval, to look at a different era as a place of

higher ideals that havenotbeenmuddiedby the complexities ofmodern life. “TheNight

TheyDroveOldDixieDown”cameoutduringtheVietnamWarand“IfTheSouthWoulda

Won”cameoutaftertheIran‐ContraaffairandthebeginningofWaronDrugs.Despitewar

75Stewart,Bill.PopMattersAlbumReviewChrisCornellScream.www.popmatters.com.March11,2009.AccessedMarch11,2009.

62

beingatopicthatcanbringsorrow,thesesongslookattheromanticpastandlooknotonly

attheneedforsacrificebutatthepossibilitiesofabettertomorrow.

EachchapterhasexploredaspecificsocialchangethathadoccurredduringtheCivil

War, looking at how the event was transformed into a song and from there how that

significancetranscendedthetimeperiodtobecometheartifactofamodernsong.Songsof

thetimeperiodopenlyrelatedeventsoflongingbetweensoldiersandtheirloversbutalso

openly mocked leaders on both sides of theMason‐Dixon line. It is understandable that

songsof longingwouldoutlastsongs thatwouldmock figuressuchasAbrahamLincolnor

RobertE. Lee,bothseenasnationalheroes.But the fact that JustinTownesEarlputs the

BattleofFiveForks inasongorthatRobbieRobertsonoftheBandcanrelateStoneman’s

cavalrytototalwartacticsontraintracksisquiteafeat.

Historyhasawayofbeingforgotten,butthesesongwritershavebeenabletotake

historical fact and use fictional narrative to turn the Civil War into a source of multiple

meaning in the American songbook. Where the Civil War had been a specific event in

Americanhistorywithreasonsfortheupheavalandresolution,songwritershavebuiltupon

theevents to createa reinterpretedwar that stands in for trying tounderstandpersonal,

regionalandnationalhistory.Butbeyondthat,the

63

SongAppendix76

“IWishIWasinDixie”77

Oh,IwishIwasinthelandofcotton,Oldtimestherearenotforgotten,Lookaway,lookaway,lookawayDixieLand.

InDixieLand,whereIwasbornin,earlyononefrostymornin',Lookaway,lookaway,lookawayDixieLand.IwishIwasinDixie,Hooray!Hooray!InDixieLandI’lltakemystandtoliveanddieinDixie.Away,away,awaydownsouthinDixie.Away,away,awaydownsouthinDixieOptionalVersesOleMissusmarry"Willtheweaver"WillumwasagaydeceiverLookaway!Lookaway!Lookaway!DixieLandButwhenheputhisarmaround'er,Hesmiledfierceasafortypounder,Lookaway!Lookaway!Lookaway!DixieLandHisfacewassharpasabutcher'scleaverButthatdidnotseemtogrieve'erLookaway!Lookaway!Lookaway!DixieLand

76Thesongappendixisacompaniontothethesisandcontainsonlythecompletetextofthecontemporarysongsandafewofthesongsmentionedatlengthinthethesis.77DanielDecaturEmmett.“IWishIWasinDixie’sLand”.1859.

OleMissusactedthefoolishpartAnddiedforamanthatbrokeherheartLookaway!Lookaway!Lookaway!DixieLand

Nowhere'sahealthtothenextoleMissusAn'allthegalsthatwanttokissus;Lookaway!Lookaway!Lookaway!DixieLand

Butifyouwanttodrive'waysorrowComeandhearthissongtomorrowLookaway!Lookaway!Lookaway!DixieLandThere'sbuckwheatcakesandInjunbatter,MakesyoufatoralittlefatterLookaway!Lookaway!Lookaway!DixieLandThenhoeitdownandscratchyourgravel,ToDixie'sLandI'mboundtotravel,Lookaway!Lookaway!Lookaway!DixieLand

64

OhI’mAGoodOldRebel78

Oh,I’magoodoldrebel!

Nowthat’sjustwhatIam;Forthis“FairLandofFreedom”IdonotcareadamnI’mgladIfitagainstit,Ionlywishwe’dwon,AndIdon’twantnopardonForanythingI’vedone.IhatetheConstitution,ThisgreatRepublic,too,IhatetheFreedman’sBureau,Inuniformsofblue;Ihatethenastyeagle,Withallhisbragandfuss,Thelying,thievingYankees,Ihatethemwussandwuss.IhatetheYankeeNationAndeverythingtheydo;IhatetheDeclarationOfIndependence,too;IhatethegloriousUnion'Tisdrippingwithourblood;Ihatethestripedbanner,IfititallIcould.IfollowedoldMarseRobertForfouryears,nearabout,Gotwoundedinthreeplaces,AndstarvedatP’intLookoutIcotchedtheroomatismA‐campinginthesnowButIkilledachanceofYankeesI’dliketokillsomemo’.ThreehundredthousandYankees

78PerformedbyHermesNye.WrittenbyMajorInnesRandolph,C.S.A.SongoftheCivil

Wari.CD.FolkwaysRecords,1960

LiestiffinSoutherndust;WegotthreehundredthousandBeforetheyconqueredus;TheydiedofSouthernfeverAndSouthernsteelandshot;Iwishitwasthreemillions;Insteadofwhatwegot.Ican’ttakeupmymusketAndfight’emnownomore;ButIain’ta‐goingtolove‘emNowthatissartainsure;AndIdon’twantnopardon,ForwhatIwasandam;Iwon’tbereconstructed,AndIdon’tcareadamn.

65

IftheSouthWouldaWon79

Ifthesouthwouldawonwewouldahaditmade.I'dprobablyrunforpresidentofthesouthernstates.ThedayElvispassedawaywouldbeournationalholiday.Ifthesouthwouldawonwewouldahaditmade.I'dmakemysurpremecourtdowninTexasandwewouldn'thavenokillersgettingofffree.Iftheywereprovenguiltythentheywouldswingquickly,insteadofwritin'booksandsmilin'onT.V.We'dalllearncajancookin'inLuiousianaandI'dputthatcapitalbackinAlabama.We'dputFloridaontherighttrack,'causewe'dtakeMiamibackandthrowallthempushersintheslammer.Ohifthesouthwouldawonwewouldahaditmade.I'dprobablyrunforpresidentofthesouthernstates.ThedayyoungSkynyrddied,we'dshowoursouthernpride.Ifthesouthwouldawonwewouldahaditmade.

(FiddleSolo)"Playalittledixielandboys.Ahyes!"I'dhaveallthewhiskeymadeinTennesseeandallthehorsesraisedinthoseKentuckyhills.ThenationaltreasurywouldbeinTupilo,MississippiandI'dputHankWilliamspictureononehundreddollarbill.I'dhaveallthecarsmadeintheCarolina'sandI'dbanalltheonesmadeinChina.I'dhaveeverygirlchildsenttoGeorgiatolearntosmileandtalkwiththatsouthernaccentthatdrivesmenwild.I'dhaveallthefiddlesmadeinVirginia,'causetheysurecanmake'emsoundsofine.I'mgoinguponWolvertonMountainandseeoleCliftenClowersandhaveasipofhisgoodoleArkansaswine.Heyifthesouthwouldawonwe'dahaditmade.I'dprobablyrunforpresidentofthesouthernstates.WhenPatsyClinepassedawaythatwouldbeournationalholiday.Ifthesouthwouldawonwe'dahaditmade.Olayheheehee.Isaidifthesouthwoudawonwewouldahaditmade!Mightevenbebetteroff!

79WilliamsJr.,Hank.WildStreak.CD.WarnerBrothers,1988.

66

BeMyMotherTillIDie80

Verse

Ladies,someonebemymother;Then'twillseemthatIamhome;I'llimagineI'mabrother,Hearingeachfamiliarhome;ButIwantamothernearme,Withthatheaveninhereye;Ladies,someonebemymother,BemymothertillIdie.ChorusNowIfeelmywoundismortal,SoonI'llbreathmypartingsigh,Ladies,someonebemymother,BemymothertillIdie.VerseLongbeforeIwasasoldier,LongbeforeIfoughtandbled,InourcottageallthedearonesThuswouldgatherroundmybed.Donottreatmeasastranger;Letmefeelabrother'stie;OneofyouIwantasmother,BemymothertillIdie.ChorusSoonnowickedwarwillharmme;Angelsbringingpeacearenigh;Ladiers,someonebemymother,BemymothertillIdie.

80A.WAuner.“BeMyMotherUntilIDie”.AmericanSongSheetCollection.Philadelphia:A.W.Auner,n.d.

67

YankeeBayonet(IWillBeHomeThen)81

Soldier:Heartcarvedtreetrunk,Yankeebayonet

AsweetheartleftbehindGirl:Farfromthehillsofthesea‐swaled

CarolinasThat'swheremytruelovelies

Soldier:Lookformewhenthesun‐brightswallowSingsuponthebirchbowhigh

Girl:Butyouareinthegroundwiththe

wolvesandtheweevilsAlla‐chewonyourbonessodry

Chorus

ButwhenthesunbreakstonomorebulletsinBattlecreekThenwillyoumakeagrave?ForIwillbe

homethenIwillbehomethenIwillbehomethen

IwillbehomethenThen

Girl:WhenIwasagirlhowthehillsofOconeeMadeaseamtohemmein

Soldier:Thereatthefairwhenoureyescaught,careless,

Gotmyheartrightpiercedbyapin

81TheDecemberists.TheCraneWife.CD.

Capitol,2006.

Soldier:ButOdidyouseeallthedeadof

ManassasAllthebelliesandthebonesandthebile?

Girl:No,Ilingeredherewiththeblanketsbarrenandmyownbellybigwithchild

ChorusButwhenthesunbreakstonomorebulletsinBattlecreek

Thenwillyoumakeagrave?ForIwillbehomethenIwillbehomethen

IwillbehomethenIwillbehomethen

Soldier:Andstemsandbonesandstonewallstoo

CouldkeepmefromyouThisskeinofskinisalltoofewTokeepmefromyou

SoliderandGirl:ButOmylovethoughourbodiesmaybeparted

ThoughourskinmaynottouchskinLookformewiththesun‐brightsparrowIwillcomeonthebreathofthewind

68

WhentheRosesBloomAgain82

TheywerestrollinginthegloamingWheretheroseswereinbloom

AsoldierandhissweetheartbraveandtrueAndtheirheartswerefilledwithsorrowFortheirthoughtswereoftomorrow

AsshepinnedaroseuponhiscoatofblueDonotaskmelovetolinger

WhenyouknownotwhattosayFordutycallsyoursweetheart'snameagainAndyourheartneednotbesighing

IfIbeamongthedyingI'llbewithyouwhentherosesbloomagain

WhentherosesbloomagainBesidetheriverAndthemockingbirdhassunghissweetrefrain

InthedaysofauldlangsyneI'llbewithyousweetheartmineI'llbewithyouwhentherosesbloomagain

MidtherattleofthebattleCameawhispersoftandlow

AsoldierwhohadfalleninthefrayIamdying,IamdyingAndIknowI'llhavetogo

ButIwanttotellyouBeforeIpassaway

There'safaranddistantriverWheretherosesareinbloomAsweetheartwhoiswaitingthereforme

Andit'sthereIprayyoutakemeI'vebeenfaithful,don'tforsakemeI'llbewithherwhentherosesbloomagain

82Tweedy,Jeff.ChelseaWalls.CD.Elektra,2002.

69

TheNightTheyDroveOldDixieDown83

BytheBand

VirgilCaineisthenameandIservedontheDenvertrainStoneman'scavalrycameandtoreupthetracksagainInthewinterof'65wewashungry,justbarelyaliveByMay10,Richmondhadfell,itwasatimeIremember,Ohsowell

ThenighttheydroveoleDixiedown,allthebellswereringingThenighttheydroveoleDixiedown,allthepeopleweresinging

BackwithmywifeinTennesseeonedayshecalledformeVirgilquickcomeseetheregoesthe"RobertE.Lee"Idon'tmindchoppingwoodandIdon'tcareIfthemoney'snogoodTakewhatyouneedandleavetherestTheyshouldneverhavetakentheverybest

ThenighttheydroveoleDixiedown,allthebellswereringingThenighttheydroveoleDixiedown,allthepeopleweresinging

Likemyfatherbeforeme,I'mapeacefulmanLikemybrotherbeforeme,ItookarebelstandJust18,proudandbrave,butaYankeelaidhiminhisgraveIswearbythebloodbelowmyfeetYoucan'traiseaCainebackupwhenhe'sindefeat

ThenighttheydroveoleDixiedown,allthebellswereringingThenighttheydroveoleDixiedown,allthepeopleweresinging

83TheBand.TheBand.CD.Capitol,1969.

70

LonePineHill84

IswearIseeherinmydreamssometimes

Heldupinthemiddleofthenight

Shakinlikeapistolinayoungmanshand

Thereinthepalemoonlight

StandinupthetopofthatlonelyhillSparedbythecompanyminesIsmyblueeyedbabywithherbestdressonIntheshadowofalonelypine

ItwasbackbeforethewarWhenthecompanycameThesehillsgrewwildandfreeMeandbabywe'dhideinthehollerslowAwayfromthecruelsun'sheatButthentheyknockeddownthetimberAndburnedoffthebrushTogettotherichesbelowAndwhentheypulledoutTheyleftacoldblackgroundAndonepinestandinglone

Sotakemehome...Lonepinehill

Isignedupbackin'61I'manarmyofVirginiamanI'vebeenfromMannasastoMackonackeyAllthewaytoSailorsCreekfightingFormyhomeland

84JustinTownesEarl.TheGoodLife.CD.

BloodshotRecords,2008

After4yearsgoneandallhopelostAndRichmondunderseigeAndwe'redigginoutFiveForksAndwaitinintherainForSheridantobringustoourknees

Sotakemehome...Lonepinehill

There'sastrangemoonhangin'overheadtonightAndiftherainkeepscominthenthecreek'sgonnariseWiththegoodlord'sgraceI'llmakeitouttathisplaceI'llbeinherarmscomethemorninglightIswear...

SogodgrantmespeedandgrantmeforgivenessAndcarrymeonthroughthenightTakemethroughthehillsandoveryourriversAwayfromthisawfulfight

CauseIain'tneverknownamanthat'severownedanotherAin'tneverownednothin'ofmyownAndafter4longyearsIjustcan'ttellyouWhatthehellI'vebeenfightingfor...

Sotakemehome...LonepinehillTakemehome...Lonepinehill

71

AuraLee85

WhentheblackbirdintheSpring,'Neaththewillowtree,Satandrock'd,Iheardhimsing,SingingAuraLea.AuraLea,AuraLea,Maidwithgoldenhair;Sunshinecamealongwiththee,Andswallowsintheair.Chorus:AuraLea,AuraLea, Maidwithgoldenhair;Sunshinecamealongwiththee,Andswallowsintheair.Inthyblushtherosewasborn,Music,whenyouspake,Throughthineazureeyethemorn,Sparklingseemedtobreak.AuraLea,AuraLea,Birdsofcrimsonwing,Neversonghavesungtome,Asinthatsweetspring.(Chorus)AuraLea!thebirdmayflee,Thewillow'sgoldenhairSwingthroughwinterfitfully,Onthestormyair.YetifthyblueeyesIsee,Gloomwillsoondepart;Fortome,sweetAuraLeaIssunshinethroughtheheart.(Chorus)Whenthemistletoewasgreen,Midstthewinter'ssnows,Sunshineinthyfacewasseen,Kissinglipsofrose.AuraLea,AuraLea,Takemygoldenring;Loveandlightreturnwiththee,Andswallowswiththespring.

85W.W.Fosdick.“AuraLee”.1861

72

Notes

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Jackson,Jeffrey.MusicandHistory:BridgingtheDisciplines.Mississippi:UniversityPressof

Mississippi,2005.

McPherson,James.BattleCryforFreedom:TheCivilWarEra.Oxford:OxfordUniversityPress,1988.

Olson,Kenneth.MusicandMusket:BandsandBandsmenoftheAmericanCivilWar.Connecticut:GreenwoodPress,1981.

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Rydell,Robert.BuffaloBillinBologna.Chicago:UniversityofChicagoPress,2005.

Scheurer,Timothy.BornintheU.S.A.:TheMythofAmericainPopularMusicfromColonialTimesto

thePresent.London:UniversityPressofMississippi,2004.

Slobin,Mark.RetuningCulture.Durham:DukeUniversityPress,1996.

Articles

Cooper,Michael.“ConfederateFlagTakesCentralStageAgain”.NewYorkTimes.January18,2008.www.nytimes.com.AccessedApril4,2009.

Hermes,Will.“Rock,AccessibleandArcane:TheDecemberists”.NPR.com,March1,2006.September21,2008.http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=6196770

JayCocks.“MellowHarvest”.TimeMagazine,August31,1970.

LaSalle,Mark.“WarisHellinthegrueling,thrilling‘ColdMountain,’andonlyhisfiercelongingforthe

womanheloveskeepsJudeLaw,asaConfederatedeserter,aliveandontherun.”SanFranciscoChronicle.December25,2003.www.sfchronicle.comAccessedDecember4,2008.

Sarris,Andrew.“ColdMountain’sAchingLoveStory‐Literary,Well‐Acted,Meandering”.TheNewYork

Observer.http://www.observer.com/node/48615

Scott,A.O.“LoversStrivingforaReunion,WithaWarintheWay”.NewYorkTimes,

www.nytimes.com,December25,2003.

Stewart,Bill.PopMattersAlbumReviewChrisCornellScream.www.popmatters.com.March11,2009.AccessedMarch11,2009.

Discography

JustinTownesEarl.TheGoodLife.CD.BloodshotRecords,2008

OriginalSountrack.ColdMountain.CD.Columbia,2003.

TheBand.TheBand.CD.Capitol,1969.

TheDecemberists.TheCraneWife.CD.Capitol,2006.

Tweedy,Jeff.ChelseaWalls.CD.Elektra,2002.

VariousArtist.SongoftheCivilWari.CD.FolkwaysRecords,1960

WilliamsJr.,Hank.ThePressure’sOn.WarnerBrothers,1981.

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WilliamsJr.,Hank.WildStreak.CD.WarnerBrothers,1988.

Videography

Scorsese,Martin.TheLastWaltz.MGM,1978.

Minghella,Anthony.ColdMountain.MiramaxFilm.2003

InternetResources

TheInternetMovieDatabase.www.imdb.comRecordingIndustryAssociationofAmerica.www.riaa.com

77

Acknowledgements

EricCharryforstayingontopofmyrevisionsandstayingupaslateasme.

KateGavrielforgoingbeyondthecalloverandoveragainforafriend.

LillieJ.Edwardsforbeingmypersonhistoryprofessor.

MarkHertzmanforpushingmetowardsclarityandpersonrevelation.

MarkSlobinforintroducingtheideaofmusicasatooltowardsinterdisciplinary

understanding.

PatriciaHillforshowingmebreadthanddepthofAmericanhistory.

PaulaWeissforhergenuineinterestinmytopicandmakingmybestworkshine.