100 Songs of the South

Atlanta Journal-Constitution's 100 songs of the South was a list compiled by The Newspaper's music critics Shane Harrison, Nick Marino and Sonia Murray in 2005. The list included songs spanning the spectrum of popular music, from pre-Civil War minstrel tunes to rap and hip-hop from this decade.

The list

1. Strange Fruit, Billie Holiday

2. Summertime, written by George and Ira Gershwin and DuBose Heyward

3. A Change Is Gonna Come, Sam Cooke

4. Mississippi Goddam, Nina Simone

5. We Shall Overcome, written by Charles A. Tindley; later rewritten by Guy Carawan

6. Dixie, written by Daniel Decatur Emmett

7. Rocky Top, The Osborne Brothers

8. Rosa Parks, OutKast

9. Georgia on My Mind, Ray Charles

10. Coat of Many Colors, Dolly Parton

11. Coal Miner's Daughter, Loretta Lynn

12. The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down, The Band

13. Grandma's Hands, Bill Withers

14. Sweet Home Alabama, Lynyrd Skynyrd

15. Ramblin' Man, The Allman Brothers Band

16. (Sittin' on) The Dock of the Bay, Otis Redding

17. Midnight Train to Georgia, Gladys Knight and the Pips

18. Carolina in My Mind, James Taylor

19. Old Folks at Home, Stephen Foster

20. Rainy Night in Georgia, Brook Benton/Tony Joe White

21. Tennessee, Arrested Development

22. Love Shack, The B-52's

23. Nutbush City Limits, Ike and Tina Turner

24. Outfit, Drive-By Truckers (2003)

25. Don't It Make You Want to Go Home? Joe South

26. Hey Porter, Johnny Cash

27. I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry, Hank Williams

28. Back Water Blues, Bessie Smith

29. I Can't Stand the Rain, Ann Peebles

30. The Devil Went Down to Georgia, The Charlie Daniels Band

31. Rednecks, Randy Newman

32. Get Low, Lil' Jon & the East Side Boyz featuring the Ying Yang Twins

33. Seminole Wind, John Anderson

34. Elevators (Me & You), OutKast

35. Blue Yodel No. 1, Jimmie Rodgers

36. My Home Is in the Delta, Muddy Waters

37. Blue Moon of Kentucky, Bill Monroe

38. Crossroad Blues, Robert Johnson

39. My Clinch Mountain Home, Carter Family

40. Love and Happiness, Al Green

41. Comin' From Where I'm From, Anthony Hamilton

42. Stuck Inside of Mobile with the Memphis Blues Again, Bob Dylan

43. In the Pines, Leadbelly

44. Ode to Billie Joe, Bobbie Gentry

45. Southern Hospitality, Ludacris

46. The Night the Lights Went Out in Georgia, Vicki Lawrence

47. Harper Valley PTA, Jeannie C. Riley

48. Goin' Down South, R.L. Burnside

49. Come on in My Kitchen, Robert Johnson

50. Foggy Mountain Breakdown, Flatt & Scruggs

51. Moon River, Johnny Mercer/Henry Mancini

52. Graceland, Paul Simon

53. Statesboro Blues, Blind Willie McTell

54. Po Folks, Nappy Roots

55. Hickory Wind, The Byrds/Gram Parsons

56. My Window FACES the South, Bob Wills

57. Alabama, Neil Young

58. Greenville, Lucinda Williams

59. Free Bird, Lynyrd Skynyrd

60. Southern NiGHTS, Glen Campbell

61. Orange Blossom Special, written by Ervin T. Rouse

62. Down in the Boondocks, Billy Joe Royal/Joe South

63. On and On, Erykah Badu

64. Sweet Southern Comfort, Buddy Jewell

65. South of Cincinnati, Dwight Yoakam

66. Blue Sky, Allman Brothers

67. Ugly, Bubba Sparxxx

68. Welcome to Atlanta, Jermaine Dupri featuring Ludacris

69. Oh, Atlanta, Alison Krauss

70. Deep Down in Florida, Muddy Waters

71. That's What I Like AbOUT the South, Bob Wills & His Texas Playboys

72. Dixie Chicken, Little Feat

73. Tennessee Waltz. Patti Page

74. Southern Accents, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers

75. Shake Whatcha Mama Gave Ya, Poison Clan

76. Patches, Clarence Carter

77. Cell Therapy, Goodie Mob

78. Betty Lonely, Vic Chesnutt

79. No Depression, Uncle Tupelo

80. Nann, Trick Daddy

81. Return of the Grievous Angel, Gram Parsons

82. Birmingham, Randy Newman

83. Blackbird, Dionne Farris

84. Evangeline, Emmylou Harris

85. High Water (for Charley Patton), Bob Dylan

86. Just Kickin' It, Xscape

87. Georgia Rhythm, Atlanta Rhythm Section

88. If Heaven Ain't a Lot Like Dixie, Hank Williams Jr.

89. Wait. Ying Yang Twins

90. Knoxville Girl, The Louvin Brothers

91. Red Clay HaLo, Gillian Welch

92. In Da Wind, Trick Daddy, Cee-Lo and Big Boi

93. Memphis, Chuck Berry

94. Stars Fell on Alabama, written by Mitchell Parish and Frank Perkins

95. People Everyday, Arrested Development

96. Can't You See, Marshall Tucker Band

97. Chattahoochee, Alan Jackson

98. Git Up, Git Out, OutKast with Goodie Mob

99. Maps and Legends, R.E.M.

100. Mistress, Caroline Herring

About the list

The AJC included songs from Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Alabama and Mississippi. A list of Texas and Louisiana songs was posted separately.