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Stars indicate the most critically-acclaimed albums.

The Dirty South
by Drive-By Truckers


9.2

based on 15 reviews
Read critic reviews
How did we calculate this?

based on 27 votes
Read user comments
Rate this album

Official Artist Site

No, the Drive-By Truckers haven't gone all gangsta rap on us; the title is just one example of the southern rockers' playful side. Founders Patterson Hood and Mike Cooley remain, although their surrounding cast has changed a bit since the acclaimed 'Decoration Day.'

LABEL:	New West
RELEASE DATE:	24 August 2004
DISCS:	1 disc
GENRE(S):	Indie, Rock

All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...

100

E! Online

Even though the production is slicker, The Dirty South is still packed with painful, well-illustrated southern gothic sagas.

Village Voice (Consumer Guide)

Class warfare meets gangsta-rock.

Spin

Both sucks the air out of Dixie legend and revives it. [Sep 2004, p.122]

PopMatters

The band has never sounded stronger on record as they do here.

All Music Guide

The Drive-By Truckers are the best, smartest, and most soulful hard rock band to emerge in a very long time.

ShakingThrough.net

South undeniably positions the group as a hard-rocking roots act, and further as one of today's most assured rock bands, period.

Pitchfork

The Dirty South is more consistent and cohesive song-for-song, its wide scope more public than personal.

cokemachineglow

Comparing The Dirty South to the last two Truckers’ records is like arguing over the merits of the first two Godfather movies. Either way you win.

Billboard

These are songs riddled with illiteracy, cancer, unemployment, crime and consequence, fashioned by the brutal pen of one of the most promising American songwriters of the last decade.

Launch.com

A pleasure to examine at close range.

Mojo

Display[s] a lurid intelligence that seeks to explore an alternate American history. [Oct 2004, p.102]

Uncut

Lyrically, it's riveting, tapping into a unique Southern storytelling tradition. [Nov 2004, p.118]

Blender

These rough, bitter, ruminative songs are slower, longer and wordier than those on Decoration Day. [Sep 2004, p.139]

Village Voice

Although this could get tired eventually, the Truckers haven't run out of stories yet, and their acute awareness of themselves and their forebears suggests they'll know when to say when.

Stylus Magazine

The Dirty South is relatively toothless in comparison to Decoration Day and the breakthrough Southern Rock Opera, rarely even building up that predictably satisfying head of steam.

The average user rating for this album is 9.2 (out of 10) based on 27 User Votes
Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.

Megan G. gave it a10:
The Drive By Truckers are one of the best bands out! I love every song.

Cody D gave it a10:
One of the best Trucker CDs. I could listen to this all day and night.

Hein gave it an8:
The best Southern Rock since Lynyrd Skynyrd

Fred B gave it a10:
It doesn't get much better than this. All three guitar players are genius. The kind of stuff the government should distribute to heal the masses.

trav r gave it a9:
easy listen and rocking out just the way i like it

Tim K gave it a9:
I think after repeated listening over the last four months, I like it better than Decoration Day... Isbell has really come on with ' Manuel/Danko' and 'Goddamn Lonely Love', and Cooley's 'Carl Perkin's Cadillac' is my new favorite song while Patterson Hood is still chucking punch-in-the-guts rock and roll that hits you full steam and makes you believe you're listening to the best rock to come down the road in some time... awesome

[Anonymous] gave it a9:
Like all my favorite music, I had to listen to it several times, then it set it's hook good and deep. Turn it up to 10 and rip off the knob. Best enjoyed with your favorite beverage on ice.

The Dirty South by Drive-By Truckers

The Dirty South
by Drive-By Truckers