By Jimmy Newlin, September 2008

Patterson Hood and Mike Cooley founded the Athens-based Drive-By Truckers in 1996 after years of toiling in earlier, unsigned acts like Adam’s House Cat, The Screwtopians and Horse Pussy.

Though their first few records, Gangstabilly and Pizza Deliverance, were well-received, it wasn’t until 2001 that the boys found a swagger to call their own when they released Southern Rock Opera, a double-disc grand opus of an homage to America’s (or Florida’s, anyway) greatest musical export: Lynyrd Skynyrd. With an exceptional live show that can last three-plus hours and with four notable full-lengths since S.R.O., the Truckers have established themselves as one of the most exciting American rock bands playing today – if not the most exciting. I recently spoke with bassist Shonna Tucker, who joined the band in 2003 but has only just recently stepped into the occasional lead-singer role with three tracks on their new record Brighter Than Creation’s Dark. We talked about songwriting, collaborating with the Muscle Shoals-soul legend Spooner Oldham on Brighter, what’s on her iPod and their headlining set at Gainesville’s Real Big Deal festival which you, the reader, would be quite the fool to miss.

Do you think the Truckers are a better band now that you’re providing a more pronounced feminine presence?

(laughs) I think we’re a better band now for a lot of reasons, but that thought’s never passed my mind. I think we’re better just ‘cause we’ve prevailed through time and hardship. We’ve got a great lineup now and everyone’s in a great mood, feeling good and happy, and that comes through. I like to think we’re going to just keep getting better and better. I think maybe me coming to the front has, I don’t know, drawn in a slightly different crowd. There are a lot of young girls now saying that they like the band and all that.

I guess I’d like to hear a bit about Spooner’s approach, but first I’d like to hear about what you brought to the album. Have you always written songs?

Yeah, I’ve always written. It’s never been my priority. Especially since I’ve been in the band, I’ve been working on being the best bass player I can be and being the best Drive-By Trucker I can be, and that meant being the bass player and doing my job. And I don’t know if I guess I finally felt like I found my spot there, so I was able to let go and go in a different direction. Was able to write a little bit more. But I felt like I had some more to say. Anyway, it was just timing.

Well, the three songs you’ve got on the new album have a lot of range.

That mostly comes from growing up listening to all types of music and I still do. We listen to all kinds of music on the bus, and that’s all we do. Our TV’s hardly ever on, we just listen to music all day long. Hooked up to our iPods. Going record shopping. There’s everything from old soul music to George Jones to hip-hop. I think all the writers in the band kind of go from one direction to another. That’s the fun part: we don’t feel restricted at all. Whatever hits you, just do it. See what happens (laughs).

What’s on your iPod now?

Oh boy. I love the new James McMurtry record, jeez, that’s a hard one. I normally just put my shuffle on all day, so you never know what’s going to come up. I love the new Radiohead record.

It seems like there are a lot more atmospheric, instrumental moments on the new album. I’m thinking of stuff like the opening jam to “Home Field Advantage,” which seems like something you’d hear at a Drive-By Truckers show rather than what you’d hear on one of the earlier albums. Think that has something to do with what Spooner has added to the band?

Yeah, I guess I know what you’re saying. We tour a lot and maybe that comes through, ‘cause we like to record records very live. And every record the band has made is at a different stage of the band, you know, and it’s like a different lifetime. Every record, to me, sounds so different from the other ones. And this direction that we went in… well, John [Neff] came in with a pedal steel, which is a completely different instrument, so that added a lot, and Spooner with keyboard and organ. Those two instruments haven’t been on the records for a while. That all had a lot to do with it. And we’re very live and spontaneous in the studio, so we didn’t plan on any of it either, it just happened that way.

You guys just got back from Europe. How do Europeans take to the band? Do the audiences have any preconceptions of the South?

I think maybe they do. In their minds they may have a romantic vision of the South and Southern people. They call us a Southern rock band, but European crowds are so great to us. But I don’t know if they really listen and study the words and love what we do and say. Mostly we’re just a spectacle on stage. The guys are all bearded and we’re drinking whiskey and it’s loud and slightly belligerent. I don’t know if it’s what we’re saying and how we do it that they love or if it’s ‘cause we’re up there as some kind of redneck circus onstage, but they appreciate it. 

When you load some Truckers albums on iTunes it says “Southern Rock” under genre, but some it says “Country.” And I know you’re a big soul fan. But there’s definitely a Truckers sound that, even though the influences are pretty clear, it feels more natural than a band like Interpol, where the influences seem more forced.

Well, it’s completely organic. We never have any preconceived notions at all when we go into the studio or a live show. We don’t make setlists, we never know what we’re going to play till we go out there. We’re aware of [influences], but we definitely don’t try to sound or do certain things so that we can be the Drive- By Truckers. It just is. If you were to spend 10 minutes with Mike Cooley, you’d understand he is one of a kind and you’ll never meet another person like him. (laughs) He’s crazy! And so is Patterson, but they’re two opposite people. And each one of our personalities makes us who we are which is like a lot of bands.

Sounds like you’ve got some good tour stories about those guys.

(laughs) There’s plenty of stories, but I don’t know if I should get into some of them. But it’s always great. Cooley’s the one who keeps us entertained, and he’s the first one up every morning. By the time any of the rest of us are up, he’s already had a pot of coffee, and he’s on his first beer, and he’s ready to go and excited, and he’s just a funny guy. He’s very intelligent and wise, and he moves us every day.

That sort of ties into my next question, which is about jokes. A lot of folks hear the band’s name or the titles of the first few albums and think you might be primarily a “joke” band. How do you find the right balance for humor in the band?

Well, we have those quirky songs and probably even more songs that are serious, about everything from war to cancer. I mean, you have to laugh about things, otherwise this would be a miserable life. You have to figure out a way to be happy.

With Patterson’s songs, it seems like things are getting a lot darker.

Well, if you go back and listen to the records, there’s a lot of dark things from before. He’s been through two divorces, and he’s got plenty of songs about that, and on the last few records, songs about family members with cancer, and from way back he’s singing about stuff like on “Zoloft.” So, I don’t know if it’s getting darker or if he just had a lot to say that just happened to be dark.

You guys are playing at a festival in Gainesville in a few weeks. Does it feel different to play festivals, rather than clubs?

Yeah, it’s a lot different. We’ve been doing mostly that lately. In Europe, we were there for three weeks, and I bet two weeks were just festivals. It is different. It’s fun, we don’t like it any better or worse. We enjoy playing clubs and theaters for the intimacy with the crowd, but I think the Drive-By Truckers are an outdoor band and we’re good at playing on the big stage ‘cause we’re big and loud anyway.

I know the band’s from Athens, so you’re probably Bulldog fans, but are you looking forward to coming to Gainesville anyway?

(laughs) Well, I still live in Alabama, so I’m a Roll-Tide fan all the way. But I’m looking forward to going to Florida.

Do you consider Florida part of the South?

Oh, I do. It may even be past the South. It’s extremely Southern. The people are very Southern, even though a lot moved there from other places. You can’t help but be Southern when you’re there: it’s hot and sticky and you’ve got to figure out how to have fun.