Cheat Mode

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Back in 2016 my wife and I took our first trip to Nashville, Tennessee. It was a something we had been wanting to do for a while, so I made the plans and that Spring Break we made the trip. It started out fraught with disaster, but by the end, we had such a good time that we ended up going two more times in the past decade or so.

I'm pretty sure I have written a post about it if you really wanted to dig way back into my HIVE history. In fact, I think it was those travel posts that really started to get me some recognition here on HIVE.

On Easter Sunday of that trip, we took a drive down to Chattanooga, Tennessee, and visited the aquarium. That's important for this post, because the photos I share from the aquarium equate to the closest I have been to the state of Georgia since I was a kid.

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While states like Delaware and Connecticut have been a tough order for my #threetunetuesday post theme sponsored by @ablaze, other states like California and now Georgia are almost "easy mode" or "cheat mode".

It's honestly crazy just how many songs there are out there that have Georgia either in the title or lyrics. In fact, where other states have left me scraping the bottom of the barrel to find three songs, Georgia has such an abundance, that I have to whittle it down to the three that I am actually going to share. I almost wish I could do Georgia twice in a row because next week is Hawaii and I think it is going to be another tough one.

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I've actually got family that live in Georgia, and when we were down in southern Tennessee, we were only about two hours away from them. Looking back, we probably should have made the drive over, but what's done is done. Instead, @mrsbozz and I had a really great time at the aquarium and then we went to a brewery for lunch. I'll always remember that trip to the brewery because my wife could have swore that Ludacris was low key sitting at the table across from us.

Unfortunately, we will never know.

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We have talked from time to time about making a trip to Georgia to visit Savannah. I have heard it is a pretty cool place. We did find ourselves in Atlanta at one point, but that was just because our flight had a layover there from Vermont back to Michigan. We don't really count the state as having actually visited it for a simple layover.

But I digress, you came here for music, so let me get to that for you.

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Direct Link

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While last week I leaned more into some newer songs, this week I am heading back a couple decades to a time where I feel some of the best music in the world was created. I've said it before, but if I could only pick two decades of music to listen to for the rest of my life, any genre, I would probably pick the 70's and 80's. I guess that makes sense, since those were my formidable year.

I really really wanted to share the Willie Nelson version of this song, butI figure it was best to stick with the most iconic version of "Georgia On My Mind", so you get this great tune and the official state song of Georgia from Ray Charles.

This week is going to be one of those times where I just don't have too much to say about any of the songs I am going to share. They are so amazing that they basically speak for themselves. Just sit and listen to them, enjoy, and imagine that you are coasting through the Georgia countryside. I think it is easy to think about Atlanta and forget just how big Georgia is and how much countryside there is. It looks like a pretty state!

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Direct Link

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Once again, "Midnight Train to Georgia is one of those songs that just kind of speaks for itself. I don't really know what else I can say about it. I probably should have picked a better quality version to share with you, but I think it was important to pass along this piece of history to you.

I absolutely dare you not to do the Pimps "Woo Woo" line towards the end of the song. I actually feel like Gladys Knight was a really underrated singer at the time. Yes, she had some hits, and I think in the R&B world she was probably more successful, but it's hard when you are going up against the likes of Diana Ross. If you are ever in the mood, I highly encourage you to take a deep dive into her stuff.

She's probably one of my favorite vocalists from this period of time. Plus, the Pips had some moves! Am I right?!

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Direct Link

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Finally, I am pretty sure I have shared this song with you before, but to round out our musical road trip to Georgia I am sharing Jim Croce's demo of "Walking Back to Georgia". I got the chance to see Croce's son perform a while ago and it was an amazing show. It was a stark reminder of just how much we missed out on by Jim being taken so early in life. He was such an amazing singer, songwriter, and storyteller. I have little doubt he would have been making phenomenal music well into the 90's and 00's if he had lived longer.

If you didn't like any of these songs, go ahead and do your own search for Georgia. I think you will be surprised just how many songs there are that have Georgia in the title or lyrics. Go ahead and listen to your Justin Bieber "Peaches" and make yourself feel better...

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All pictures/screenshots taken by myself or @mrsbozz unless otherwise sourced