Newspaper Page Text
Page 4
Flagnole- Magazine
April 22, 1992
Blue and Far and Gone Forever
Tm bustm down the road beatin' sixty
Bumn up some asssphatt in Dixie
Swappm' aft the cogs
Smokin' bncoin logs
Searchm' for the truth but it's tricky
There s tots of sons of bitches
Out between the ditches
Hoggin ' up the road
Make me shift my load
I'd tike to give them all a few stitches
Cause I'm an outlaw of society
My licence expired in seventy three
But I'm still dnvm'
Still survivin'
And I'm free,. *
— Deacon Lunchbox (1969)
ll was early on Easter Sunday morning
when a 1977 Ford van collided with a 1972
Dodge camper, somewhere on 1*65, 30
miles or so south of Montgomery. The three
men in the Ford were killed instantly, while
the man in the camper is, at press time, still
m entice! condition. Nobody knows what
happened exactly, only that Robert Clayton
and Robert Hayes of the Jody Grind and
Timothy Tyson Ruttenber, alias Deacon
Lunchbox. are gone.
'The fact is, all artsts are con artists,'
said Deacon once to a journalist. He re
leased a ‘spoken-word’ cassette entitled
Rantin' and Railin'. which received airplay
on local college stations (especially the
perennial favorite, 'Omni Beer*). And then
there was his booklet of poetry called Some
Different Kinds of Songs — a collection of
Deacon's humorous political and social satire
“I'm just an o i d rednock hippy
Livin' a\ the end of this dirt road
I ain 't exactly totally crazy
But I am a few bncks short
of a load
I used to be normal in my younger days
I lust don t know what got into me
It had something to do with Richard Nixon
And this shit we called
LSD-D-D
Now I specialize in being lazy
Readm' Tar ot cards and
eatin' grits
None of my family understands me
Specially since I grew this pair of tits
Now I'm just an ol' redneck sex change
My life sure ain't easy at all
These hormones they always make me
bitchy
I feel just like a monkey fuckin'a football. "
— Deacon Lunchbox (1989)
t
i
Deacon was a native Southerner, spend
ing most of his childhood in Florida and
Georgia. Later, for a time, he would call the
mountains of North Carolina home, but al
ways there was an affinity for Atlanta. His
experiences and observations in the city
were a mainstay in his comedy and com
ment And his performances, lively and rau
cous, were indeed unique...
"Ban in the low country
Bamburg South Carolina
The Klan ran the town
Mama ran the diner
We had a house in ttie backwoods
With the swamp water lickin'
The only thing I cared about
Was Mama's fried chicken
Now I may be a redneck
But I ain't no damn racist
I love the south
But I'd rather drop in my traces
Before I'd take up the cross, the hood
and the flame
Of the peabrained peckerwood Klu
Klux Klan.'
— Deacon Lunchbox (1989)
Robert Paul Hayes and Robert F. Clayton
were members of the Jody Gnnd. Clayton
had recently joined the band as their new
drummer, Hayes played upright bass. The
band had just released Lefty's Deceiver
and were performing in Pensacola. Florida
at Sluggo's the night before the accident
occured. Vocalist Kelly Hogan and guitanst
Bill Taft were in a separate automobile, and
learned about the accident when they re
turned to Atlanta
tives of Atlanta.
“Screw all you effete intellectual snobs
up the ass
Mao Tse Tung jailed the intellectuals
The mob has the power
The mob would rather watch Hulk Hogan
Than William F. Fuckin' Buckley
So get down off your high horse
And dive into the primal cup of soup
With the rest of us morons
J. Paul Getty said
'The meek may inherit
the earth
Jody Grind: (L-R) Hogan. Clayton. Taft and Hayes.
But that doesn't include
the mineral rights'
L.L. Mencken said
‘You can never go broke
Underestimating the intelli
gence of the American public'
Well I got just one thing
to say about that
I'm a lot dumber than I
look and don 'tyou forget it."
— Deacon Lunchbox
(1989)
The Jody Grind seemed
to gravitate towards those
smokey dives, the kind you‘d
see in an old jazz movie
where the smoke is so thick
it rases the humidity. “Neon-
winkmg, all-you-could-eat
chicken wing, flaming Jel!-o
shooter, ladies drink free,
Apocalypse Now’ is how
David T. Ireland, the band’s
biographer, descnbed one
particular place the Grind
liked to play The name of
the band comes from a
World War II slang expres
sion. "Kelly saw [it] on a
Horace Silver record. It has
to do with being cheated
on.’ explaned Taft in an in
terview with Ireland
Hayes began playing
upright bass with the band
in October of 1989 after the
release of One Man's Trash
is Another Man's Treasure.
Clayton joined the band, re
placing Walter Brewer on
drums, in January of 1992,
and previously played with
Skin Deep Both were na-
At present, Kelly and Bill,
the founding and remaining
members of Jody Grind, are
not quite sure what they’re going to do.
Here’s hoping the spirit of the band will
continue. We’re sure the two Roberts and
Deacon would want it that way.
A donation in Robert Hayes’ name can
be made to the Georgia Environmental Coun
cil. Jody Grind had been scheduled to do a
benefit for the GEC Wednesday at the Vari
ety Playhouse. The concert will still take
place, with other Atlanta musicians volun
teering their talents. All interested musi
cians can contact the GEC or Steve Harris at
the Variety Playhouse. A memonal scholar
ship fund has been set up in Robert Clayton's
name for the Georgia State University Music
Department.
On Sunday, Apnl 26. Atlanta musicians
are putting together a New Orleans style
wake as a memorial service, parading
through parts of Atlanta in celebration of
these three lives. Musicians who are inter
ested in participating should call Steve or
Randy at DB Records at 404-521-3008.
We would like to express our deepest
sympathy to the family and friends of these
three men, and our sorrow at this loss.
Goodbye Robert...Deacon...Rob...
We will all miss you...
The Flagpole Staff
% > % %
vm
Vine Dining
T-Shirt Sale!
Hook a Cool Downstairs Tee - $7
Thursdays: Curry! Curry! Curry!
From now on enjoy Athen’s best curries every Thursday
NIGHT AT THE DOWNSTAIRS. THIS WEEK'S ENTREE IS THAI
Crispy Catfish Salad with other spicy delights'
Tuesdays Fantasy Dinners
April 28th - Celebrate Spring with the beautiful
VEGETARIAN CUISINE OF JAPAN NOODLES, EXOTIC DRESSINGS
& Soups, and a hilarious Japanese comedy on video
Gumbo Mondays
Party new Orleans style every Monday
with Shrimp Gumbo, Red Beans & Rice,
and Garlic-Drenched F kench Bread — only $3 99
Art on the Walls
Paintings by: Nancy Chen
HOURS: SUN: 11 • 11 PM/ MON.
Useful Knowledge
What would you be interested in watching at the
Downstairs? Silent movies featuring Gloria Swanson or
PERHAPS CUTTING EDGE CINEMA FROM INDEPENDENT FILMAKERS
like Les Blank, Jim Jarmusch, and Peter Greenaway’’
WE’RE CONTEMPLATING THIS, SO LET US KNOW WHETHER YOU’D
join an Alternative Film club at the Downstairs.
Thurs. 11am* 1am I Fri. & Sat 1 1am • 3 am •
Swell Music
Wed . Apr 22 — Put the Strange Damsel to Work
Thurs .April 23 — Boe
Fri . April 24 — Drovers / Crowsdell
Sat , Apr 25 — Flap / opal Foxx / Smoke
Mon , April 27 — Straight Ahead / Jazz 9 9pm
Tues . April 28 - straight Ahead / Jazz 9 9pm
Wed , Apr 29 — Neutral Mile Hotel
Thurs .Apr 30 — Hollow / MarleeMacLeod
Fri , May i — Upside Down Hangover
Mon , mav 4 — Butch Hancock / Steve Young /
Guitar Heroct "rom Texas
Tuts, may b - common Ailments or Maturity (from Boston)
Wed . may e — Dizzy • Free show
140 E. Clayton Street • 549*4416
