No Ya'll ternative

Chances are you've heard "Long Way Home" ... and rather frequently. It might have gotten lodged in your head once or twice, leaving you to wonder what is this song and where did I hear it? Chances are really high that until recently you had, or still have, no idea who Cross Canadian Ragweed is.

The song didn't grab a foothold on the nation's subconscious by burning up the charts or earning an awards nod. In an age of commercial made the radio star, CCR is one of the latest bands to gain notoriety and chart placement on the strength of ad nauseam commercial play. The end of the track - minus the core statement about the Vietnam days of lead singer Cody Canada's father - appeared on a 14-state television and radio commercial for Dodge trucks. Before the spot, the Texas/Oklahoma band's records moved about 17,000 units. Now, with a record Universal South deal, their self-titled release sold 60,000 copies ... right off the bat.

Not cornered to 14 states, the album gained more recognition and attention for the band than the commercial. Billboard called it one of the best albums of the year, their track "17" held the No. 1 spot on the Texas Music Chart for seven weeks and landed a CMT Hot Shot Video slot. They followed the eponymous release (their name comes not from a toe-curling cannabis strain, but mixing the names of guitarist Grady Cross, singer Canada and drummer Randy Ragsdale) with Soul Gravy. The strength of the record's success can be measured with "Sick and Tired," featuring LeAnn Womack. The cut is all over country radio like butter on grits and has even infiltrated certain Texas radio stations usually resigned to more classic country. The disc debuted at No. 5 on Billboard's Country Album chart and No. 51 on the Hot Album Chart.

However, the disc runs a more radio-friendly chart topper course. But most of the lamentations that snide Triple A fans throw on it can be shrugged off at one of their live shows.

Given a live opportunity, CCR pulls off alt. country - or y'all ternative as they call it - comparable to anything not getting radio play. They are even hip enough to put out faux Persian rugs on their stage, definitely cozy for Canada's bare feet.

The Lost Trailers have not been on any commercials, but locals might remember them from their last Hub City date - the shut down of the Rinky-Dink Dancehall in 2003. While CCR is a little bit rock 'n' roll, but mostly country, The Lost Trailers draw inspiration more from The Band than Skynyrd.

When it comes to mainstream country fodder, drop in a Red, White and Blue reference and you're gold - and so is your disc. CCR is not immune to this bug, however; when they bleed, they actually bleed patriotism and not jingoism. And you would be hard-pressed to find a beauty salon country station listener who would approve of "Boys From Oklahoma," a crowd-pleasing ditty about toe-curling cannabis. Putting the weed in Ragweed are lines like, "Them boys from Oklahoma roll their joints all wrong/They're too damn skinny or way too long." A later verse reveals that they may have taken some trips of one sort or another.

"Them boys in Louisiana got trouble growin' their weed/Them alligators is mean, and they eat up all the seeds/But on a bayou night by the light of a full moon/You can walk out and pick you a sack full of 'shrooms."



nick.pittman@timesofacadiana.com