Moonshine, Moonlight and Music
In 1962, I was serving at Camp Elmore in Norfolk, Virginia. It was a holiday weekend, just before payday. Except for a few dollars and some change, I was broke. My buddy R.T. Rucker, suggested we go home to his farm in Tennessee. I told him I was about broke, and he said he was the same. How are we going to get there I asked? Hitch hike he replied. I told him he was crazy and he just laughed. Aww, come on Merce, you will love it. There's fried chicken on the farm and wait till you meet my sister! you will want to spend the rest of you life in Etowah, Tennessee. There's music and moonshine that we buy in mason jars. I have a car and some money in the bank there. Come on lets go, and I couldn't resist, off we went.
The adventure started off well and we quickly hitched a ride that got us about halfway around midnight. Then it turned into a bad trip. I remember spending most of our money for a bite to eat, at a small snack-bar. Then it was an empty road and no rides. We were getting up into the mountains and it was cold out on the road. Finally I told R.T., look you stand on one side of the road and I will stand on the other. Whichever way we can get a ride, that's the way I am going. He agreed and as luck would have it, we caught a ride going toward Tennessee.
That ride led to a trucker who dropped us off in the morning not far from Etowah. We started walking and before long the Sheriff who knew R.T. picked us up and delivered us to the farm. His Mom and sister were glad to see him, I guess he hadn't been home in some time. The women had been about to go to town and R.T. said he would drive them. He checked the oil in his car and it was low. He had to drain some oil from the tractor to bring it up and off they went. I relaxed on the front porch, enjoying the View. I woke up as stiff as a board about 4 hours later. I could smell fried chicken from the kitchen and R.T. was dozing on the porch also. About that time his Mom came out to get us up, time to eat she said. The food was out of this world, I loved and still do fried chicken. I was disappointed to see his sister disappear up the stairs after the meal. She was as pretty as a picture, but she had gotten engaged in R.T.s absent.
R.T. wanted to show me around so we headed out in his 1954 ford. The first thing I saw as we pulled into town, was a country band playing music on a flatbed truck. "Pretty cool". We checked out the music and R.T. knew somebody, and soon we had one of those mason jars, white lighting. We went to visit some of his friends and hot rodded around till the wee hours, while a great big moon watched us from above.
About noon the next day, we got in the ford and headed back to the base. I didn't get the girl, but I sure did have a good time. Out of it come this song.
Moonshine, Moonlight and Music
When I was young I took a hike, to the hills of Tennessee,
me and this old pal of mine, who had a sister, that he wanted me to meet
He said your gonna to love it, there's fried chicken on the farm.
There's moonlight and music, and moonshine, that we buy in mason jars.
and wait till you meet my sister, I am sure you will agree.
you want to spend the rest of your life in Etowah Tennessee.
Moonshine and moonlight, what a place to be,
moonshine and moonlight, and music, in the hills of Tennessee.
As the years go by, I confess that I would like to see R.T.
and sometimes in dreams to me it seems, I'm in Etowah, Tennessee.
and his sister was a pretty gal, but what lay-ed a hold of me,
was the moonlight, and music, and the moonshine, in the hills of Tennessee.
moonshine and moonlight, what a place to be, moonshine and moonlight and the music, in the hills of Tennessee