THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Southern Rock Opera is the third studio album by the American rock band Drive-By Truckers, released in 2001. Originally released as a double album covering an ambitious range of subject matter from the politics of race to 1970s stadium rock, Southern Rock Opera either imagines, or filters, every topic through the context of legendary Southern band Lynyrd Skynyrd.
This remixed and remastered deluxe edition LP features a resequenced record as well as a third disc with multiple bonus tracks including a song — Mystery Song — that was recorded one night in Birmingham. Singer-guitarist Patterson Hood explains, “Birmingham and Moved were originally part of Act I on the original CD release. This is the first vinyl version to feature Moved and we felt that Birmingham would be the best other song to move without messing up the story element of Betamax Guillotine. We moved them here to keep the vinyl sides within time of maximum high fidelity. (Under 23 minutes per mastering guidelines).
“In the process of re-mixing the original tracks for the album, we stumbled upon a mysterious track that was recorded late one night in Birmingham. None of us have any memory whatsoever of recording it. The song itself was never even written down, just made up on the spot while the tape was rolling. We’re calling it Mystery Song. It’s actually a keeper.”
