Southern Culture on the Skids

Southern Culture on the Skids, also sometimes known as SCOTS, is an American rock band that was formed in 1983 in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. The band consists of Rick Miller, Dave Hartman, and Mary Huff.

Southern Culture on the Skids
Southern Culture on the Skids perform in Raleigh, NC, 17 April 2010. Left to right: Dave Hartman, Rick Miller, and Mary Huff.
Background information
OriginChapel Hill, North Carolina
GenresAlternative rock, neo-psychedelia, experimental rock, rockabilly, surf rock, psychobilly
Years active1983–present
LabelsLloyd Street
Moist
Plan 9
Caroline
Safe House
Geffen
Estrus
TVT
Yep Roc
WebsiteOfficial website
MembersRick Miller
Dave Hartman
Mary Huff
Past membersStan Lewis
Leslie Land
Chip Shelby
Chris Bess
Tim Barnes

Musical style

Stylistically, SCOTS gravitate towards the rockabilly, surf rock, country and R&B genres, with a punk edge and outrageous humor thrown in:[1]

Guitarist/singer Rick Miller, drummer Dave Hartman and bassist/singer/heartbreaker Mary Huff, play a greasy mix of surf, rockabilly, R&B and country-fried garage with a side of psych, all the while driving fans into ecstatic, sweat-drenched paroxysms of joy. It’s a musical gumbo Miller calls, “Americana from the wrong side of the tracks.“ The band has been prolific and ubiquitous for over thirty years, touring everywhere from the North Carolina prison system to Mount Fuji, Japan, and delivering what Rolling Stone calls “a hell raising rock and roll party.“[1]

Musical themes

SCOTS's music is generally very upbeat, as they usually write and perform songs about dancing, sex, and fried chicken,[2] which are main themes in songs such as "Cheap Motels," "Soul City," and "Eight Piece Box." They are also known for their live shows, which often include throwing fried chicken and banana pudding into the audience, and audience members invited to dance onstage.[3] As a general rule, they are not hostile toward non-commercial taping of their shows.[4]

Other media

The band appeared on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno in 1995, performing "Camel Walk" from their album Dirt Track Date,[2] where Jay Leno jokingly said Drew Carey performed on drums. They also appeared numerous times on Late Night with Conan O'Brien.[2] The song "Soul City" was heard in the 1996 film Happy Gilmore, as well as the 2005 Dukes Of Hazzard movie. The song "White Trash" is featured in the soundtrack for the 1996 film Beavis and Butt-head Do America. The song "Camel Walk" is used in the 1996 movie Flirting with Disaster, the 1997 movie Perdita Durango, and the 2009 movie Schwerkraft. It also was used on the first season of the TV show Psych in the episode "Weekend Warriors." "My Baby's Got the Strangest Ways" appears on the soundtrack to the 1997 slasher film I Know What You Did Last Summer. The band can also be seen performing the song on a beach party in the movie. Four of their songs, "King of the Mountain", "Pass the Hatchet", "Cheap Motels" and "The Corn Rocket" appeared on the soundtrack to the 2001 film Super Troopers. The song "Smiley Yeah Yeah Yeah" appears on the soundtrack to the 2004 Major League Baseball video game MLB 2005. The track "40 Miles to Vegas" appeared on the EA Sports video game NASCAR 07. The song "White Trash" appears in the trailer for the 2011 movie Goon. Rick Miller appeared on episode 174 of the Americana Music Show [5] and described their 2013 release, Dig This! as being inspired by having to dig ditches around his Kudzu Ranch recording studio to fix its septic tank. "Weird Al" Yankovic featured a style parody of Southern Culture on the Skids entitled "Lame Claim to Fame" on his 14th studio album, Mandatory Fun.

Material loss

On June 25, 2019, The New York Times Magazine listed Southern Culture on the Skids among hundreds of artists whose material was reportedly destroyed in the 2008 Universal fire.[6]

Band members

Current members

Former members

  • Stan Lewis
  • Leslie Land
  • Chip Shelby
  • Chris Bess
  • Tim Barnes
  • Michael Kelsh

Discography

Albums

Year Title Label
1985 Southern Culture On The Skids a.k.a. First Album (name on disc itself) Lloyd Street Records
1991 Too Much Pork For Just One Fork[7] Moist Records
1992 For Lovers Only Safe House Records
1994 Ditch Diggin'[7] Safe House Records
1995 Dirt Track Date Geffen Records
1997 Plastic Seat Sweat[7] Geffen Records
2000 Liquored Up and Lacquered Down[7] TVT Records
2000 Liquored Up and Lacquered Down[8] Telstar Records
2002 Live At El Sol Kudzu Records
2004 Mojo Box Yep Roc Records
2006 Doublewide and Live[9] Yep Roc Records
2006 Doublewide and Live (Deluxe Edition) Yep Roc Records
2007 Countrypolitan Favorites Yep Roc Records
2010 The Kudzu Ranch Kudzu Records
2011 Zombified (reissue with 5 bonus tracks) Kudzu Records
2013 Dig This: Ditch Diggin' V.2 Kudzu Records
2016 The Electric Pinecones Kudzu Records

EPs/singles/demos

Year Title Label Other information
1984 Southern Culture On The Skids Lloyd Street Records EP featuring 4 studio tracks: "Rock-A-Hula Rock", "Swamp", "Voodoo Beach Party", "I Knew A Girl (Who Never Said No)"
1993 Peckin' Party Feedbag Records EP featuring 3 studio tracks and 3 live tracks
1993 Girlfight Sympathy for the Record Industry EP featuring 6 studio tracks
1996 Santo Swings!/Viva del Santo Estrus Records EP featuring 6 studio tracks; a fictional Santo tribute soundtrack
1996 Camel Walk Geffen Records Australian EP featuring 2 studio tracks and 3 live tracks (released September 24, 1996); the title track is from Dirt Track Date
1998 Zombified Monkey-Dog Music/Cortex Records Limited edition Australian tour EP featuring 8 Halloween-inspired tracks; re-released and expanded to a full 13-track CD (yet still considered an EP) in 2011
2009 "Come as you are"/"Lucifer Sam" Spinout Records EP on black vinyl featuring Los Side Los Straitjackets w/ "Smells Like Teen Spirit"
2014/2015 "Party At My Trouse"/"Hey Mary" Yep Roc Records Limited edition single (2014), and EP (2015) on purple vinyl featuring Fred Schneider

Guest appearances

Year Title Album Label Other information
1998 "Werewolf", and "Sinister Purpose" (featuring Zacherly) Halloween Hootenanny Zombie-A-Go-Go Records Compilation of 19 Halloween-inspired tracks by various artists including Southern Culture On The Skids
2013 "Goo Goo Muck", "Que Monstruos Son", "The Loneliest Ghost In Town", "Tingler Blues", "La Marcha De Los Cabarones", and "Demon Death" Mondo Zombie Boogaloo Yep Roc Records Compilation of 15 Halloween-inspired tracks by Southern Culture On The Skids, The Fleshtones, and Los Straitjackets

References

  1. "Southern Culture On The Skids". The Pageant. Retrieved 25 May 2018.
  2. Peacock, Joshua. "Fried Chicken Fun: Southern Culture on the Skids returns to Savannah with fresh album of old hits". DoSavannah.com. GateHouse EntertainmentLife. Retrieved 10 January 2019.
  3. Musique, Geek. "TOO MUCH PORK FOR JUST ONE FORK". Charleston Grit. GulfStream Communications. Retrieved 1 August 2012.
  4. Archived August 16, 2006, at the Wayback Machine
  5. "Southern Culture On The Skids - Americana Music Show Podcast". Americanamusicshow.com. 2014-01-13. Retrieved 2015-03-16.
  6. Rosen, Jody (25 June 2019). "Here Are Hundreds More Artists Whose Tapes Were Destroyed in the UMG Fire". The New York Times. Retrieved 28 June 2019.
  7. Jackson, Carol. "'Too Much Pork For Just One Fork' And 3 More Great SCOTS Song Titles". WUNC.org. North Carolina Public Radio. Retrieved 19 March 2014.
  8. MusicBrainz - Liquored Up and Lacquered Down
  9. Michael Buffalo Smith. "Southern Culture On The Skids : Double Wide & Live (Yep Roc)". Swampland. Retrieved 28 April 2008.
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