It was 80 years ago this week that prohibition was repealed. If you could legally drink on that day, the youngest you could be now is 101. While our nation's command over alcoholism didn't improve following the legal sale of alcohol, a lot less people went blind after screaming “shots!!!” in crowded, poorly lit spaces. Everybody's drinking soundtrack is different. Some folks like to cry and listen to Billy Joel. Others like to cry and listen to AC/DC but the results are usually the same: a car goes through a living room. Here are 5 sadsack toasts that wouldn't be possible without the 21st amendment.
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Louis Jordan
What's the Use of Getting Sober (1942)
I've been thinking
but I keep drinking.
I guess I'm about to lose my mind.
Even an upbeat guy like Louis Jordan likes to sing about drinking a pint every two hours in the morning.
Amos Milburn
Let Me Go Home Whiskey (1953)
Let me go home whiskey,
let me walk out that door.
I got orders from my baby
not to come home juiced no more.
Amos Milburn sang about booze a lot. “Bad Bad Whiskey,” “Good Good Whiskey,” “Thinkin' and Drinkin'” “Just One More Drink” and about a dozen more. Sing about what you know, they say.
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Frank Sinatra
Drinking Again (1962)
Sure, I can borrow a smoke,
maybe tell some joker a bad joke
But nobody laughs,
they don't laugh at a broken heart.
Nobody could make glamor look as miserable as Frank Sinatra. Poor guy. At least he isn't drinking alone.
Merle Haggard
Wine Take Me Away (1967)
I gotta leave this lonely town
and you're the quickest way I found
Help me friend of mine
wine take me away.
Some folks just don't want to go home. Especially if that home is Bakersfield.
Jerry Lee Lewis
What Made Milwaukee Famous (1968)
Now she's gone and I'm to blame
Too late, I finally see
What's made Milwaukee famous
Has made a loser out of me.
Those country boys really know how to sing about depression.
See also:
10 Jazz Albums to Listen to Before You Die
25 Greatest Orange County Bands of All Time
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