Poverty influenced Truckers album

Tough times inspired the lead singer’s first songs.

By Jess Camp

Published Feb. 22, 2008

Seven years ago Drive-By Truckers frontman Patterson Hood was living on the streets. His band was a disaster, and he had to get by living in fans’ houses.

“It was the most difficult period in our history,” Hood said. “We’d almost broken up. We were destitute, poor and homeless.”

These experiences have shaped and inspired Drive-By Truckers’ every step. The band (Mike Cooley, vocals/guitar; Hood, vocals/guitar; Brad Morgan, drums; John Neff, guitar/pedal steel; Shonna Tucker, vocals/bass guitar) recorded and released Southern Rock Opera on its own.

“Soon after that, we got mainstream success that helped our careers,” Hood said. “It made people want to check out the band live. It’s rock ‘n’ roll and is unlike any sub-genres. It’s all mixed into (our music). One song will sound like country, and the next will sound like The Stooges. It keeps things interesting.”

But Hood didn’t need hard times to be his muse. He started writing songs when he was just eight. You wouldn’t think a little kid would have much material to put into a song, but this kid did. He was a deep, thoughtful child.

“My first song was about being lonely,” Hood said. “I was a weird, misfit kid and lived in my own world, so I wrote about that. I’ve always heard music in my head, but it wasn’t until I was eight that I started writing it down.”

If you look into his lineage, it’s not surprising that he is so into music. His father is David Hood, who was both a musician and a producer. He produced songs for Rolling Stones, Willie Nelson and Cher, among others. Patterson, though, was kept at a distance from his father’s work.

“It wasn’t like that,” Hood said. “I never really went to work with him. He was gone a whole lot, so I didn’t get to see a lot of him. But I couldn’t have asked for a sweeter dad,” he said.

Now that he’s a father, he can put himself into his own dad’s shoes and is making many of the same decisions that his father made. He struggles with having to leave his family to go on tour, but he knows that’s what it takes to succeed.

“I like my job and can carve a living out of it, but it’s a tough balancing act,” Hood said. “People assume that I get to just hang out.”

It might not always be easy or relaxing, but performing in Columbia makes things better, Hood said.

“I like Columbia a lot,” Hood said. “We always do pretty well there, better than we do in St. Louis or Kansas City.”