Railroad keeps chugging along
Country band plays show in Dalton on Friday
Though he now lives in Adairsville, Ga., Danny Shirley, front man of Confederate Railroad, keeps up with what is happening in his hometown of Chattanooga. He was here recently to visit Songbirds Guitar Museum, and remembers fondly playing regularly at Governor’s Lounge with 90 Proof.
“Chattanooga has always had a lot of talent, but it’s really happening right now. It’s exciting to see it,” he says.
With six albums of their own in addition to having served as the backing band for country legends David Allan Coe and Johnny Paycheck, Confederate Railroad has traveled the world. Shirley said that without a doubt, the highlight of his career was “Playing Riverbend in ‘94. That was the greatest thing ever for me.”
Neither the band — Joey Recker, Mo Thazton, Rusty Hendrix, Mark DuFresne and Wayne Secrest — nor Shirley have slowed down much. They do about 100 shows a year playing everything from fairs and festivals to clubs and large venues.
Friday night, May 18, Confederate Railroad rolls into Crescent City Tavern, 324 S. Depot St. in Dalton, Ga., for a show from 7 to 11 p.m. Opening will be Rick Byers Band and Kolby Oakley Band.
In addition to the six studio albums, Railroad has released more than 20 singles, including “Trashy Women,” “Daddy Never Was the Cadillac Kind,” “Jesus and Mama” and “White Trash with Money.”
“That song still gets so much reaction when we play it,” Shirley said.
The song was inspired by a quote from Rosanne Barr and a conversation Shirley had with a neighbor of his when he lived in Mountain Shadows, an East Brainerd subdivision.
“We bought the house and thought, ‘This will be a nice quiet neighborhood to live in.’ We were on the road all the time, so I think I was there a total of eight days in like six months. A neighbor came over and said, ‘You know, we had a neighborhood meeting when we heard you were moving in. We feared it’d be wild parties all the time. But, you’ve been real quiet.’”
Shirley laughs at the memory, and says, “That house inspired that song.”
Tickets to the Crescent City Tavern show are $25 to $50 with a $55 VIP ticket that includes a meet-andgreet with the band. For tickets: www.eventbrite. com/e/confederate-railroad-tickets-44221370309.