Johnny Rebel (singer)
Encyclopedia
Johnny Rebel is the pseudonym of Cajun country musician Clifford Joseph Trahan (born October 3, 1938), also known as Pee Wee Trahan. Trahan has used this pseudonym most notably on racist
recordings issued in the 1960s on J. D. "Jay" Miller's Reb Rebel label of Crowley, Louisiana
. Johnny Rebel is often misidentified as the pseudonym of David Allan Coe
, and some of his songs have been misattributed to Johnny Horton
.
-era segregation
and the Ku Klux Klan
.
Trahan first recorded under the Johnny Rebel moniker in the mid-1960s. He employed J. D. "Jay" Miller's recording studio in Crowley, Louisiana
. Miller, in fact, produced the sessions and issued the recordings on his own Reb Rebel label.
Trahan's first release — the fifth for the Reb Rebel label — was a 45 RPM single of "Lookin' for a Handout" and "Kajun Ku Klux Klan." He would record five more singles for the label, which included "Nigger, Nigger," "In Coon Town," "Who Likes a Nigger?," "Nigger Hatin' Me," "Still Looking for a Handout," "Some Niggers Never Die (They Just Smell That Way)," "Stay Away from Dixie," and "Move Them Niggers North."
At least two of Trahan's songs, "Keep a-Workin' Big Jim" and "(Federal Aid Hell!) The Money Belongs to Us", were not about race, but about political issues — namely, the efforts of Louisiana district attorney Jim Garrison
to solve the Kennedy assassination
, and a song critical of U.S. federal aid programs.
In 1976, Trahan's song "Lâche pas la patate" ("The Potato Song"), sung by Jimmy C. Newman
earned gold record status in Canada.
Two of these songs were eventually issued in album format by Reb Rebel Records under the title "For Segregationists Only".
After a hiatus of about three decades, Trahan returned as Johnny Rebel in 2001 when he issued his CD single "Infidel Anthem," recorded in response to the September 11, 2001 attacks
. In 2003 Trahan released the album It's the Attitude, Stupid!, on the Try It Man record label.
At least two persons or entities claim ownership of the Johnny Rebel catalog. At present, however, it is unclear who actually owns the recordings.
Johnny Rebel's songs have been covered by other singers such as Big Reb and the German band Landser
. In 2005, his song "Some Niggers Never Die (They Just Smell That Way)" was used in the film What Is It?
directed by Crispin Glover
.
Trahan has rarely allowed himself to be photographed by anyone other than close friends and family, although he claims there are indeed images of him on the Internet
. He says he has no idea where those photos originated. Trahan has owned a driving school in Crowley, Louisiana which he handed over to his son in 2008. He appeared in a front-page article of the Crowley Post Signal on December 10, 2008 (about his writing of songs celebrating area high school football teams).
A CD compilation of his works simply shows a hooded Klansman
together with a depiction of the Confederate Battle Flag.
Racism
Racism is the belief that inherent different traits in human racial groups justify discrimination. In the modern English language, the term "racism" is used predominantly as a pejorative epithet. It is applied especially to the practice or advocacy of racial discrimination of a pernicious nature...
recordings issued in the 1960s on J. D. "Jay" Miller's Reb Rebel label of Crowley, Louisiana
Crowley, Louisiana
Crowley is a city in and the parish seat of Acadia Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 14,225 at the 2000 census. The city is noted for its annual International Rice Festival. Crowley has the nickname of "Rice Capital of America", because at one time it was a major center for...
. Johnny Rebel is often misidentified as the pseudonym of David Allan Coe
David Allan Coe
David Allan Coe is an American outlaw country music singer who achieved popularity in the 1970s and 1980s. He has written and performed over 280 original songs throughout his career...
, and some of his songs have been misattributed to Johnny Horton
Johnny Horton
John Gale "Johnny" Horton was an American country music and rockabilly singer most famous for his semi-folk, so-called "saga songs" which began the "historical ballad" craze of the late 1950s and early 1960s...
.
Rebel music
His songs frequently use the racial epithet nigger and often voice sympathy for Jim CrowJim Crow laws
The Jim Crow laws were state and local laws in the United States enacted between 1876 and 1965. They mandated de jure racial segregation in all public facilities, with a supposedly "separate but equal" status for black Americans...
-era segregation
Racial segregation
Racial segregation is the separation of humans into racial groups in daily life. It may apply to activities such as eating in a restaurant, drinking from a water fountain, using a public toilet, attending school, going to the movies, or in the rental or purchase of a home...
and the Ku Klux Klan
Ku Klux Klan
Ku Klux Klan, often abbreviated KKK and informally known as the Klan, is the name of three distinct past and present far-right organizations in the United States, which have advocated extremist reactionary currents such as white supremacy, white nationalism, and anti-immigration, historically...
.
Trahan first recorded under the Johnny Rebel moniker in the mid-1960s. He employed J. D. "Jay" Miller's recording studio in Crowley, Louisiana
Crowley, Louisiana
Crowley is a city in and the parish seat of Acadia Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 14,225 at the 2000 census. The city is noted for its annual International Rice Festival. Crowley has the nickname of "Rice Capital of America", because at one time it was a major center for...
. Miller, in fact, produced the sessions and issued the recordings on his own Reb Rebel label.
Trahan's first release — the fifth for the Reb Rebel label — was a 45 RPM single of "Lookin' for a Handout" and "Kajun Ku Klux Klan." He would record five more singles for the label, which included "Nigger, Nigger," "In Coon Town," "Who Likes a Nigger?," "Nigger Hatin' Me," "Still Looking for a Handout," "Some Niggers Never Die (They Just Smell That Way)," "Stay Away from Dixie," and "Move Them Niggers North."
At least two of Trahan's songs, "Keep a-Workin' Big Jim" and "(Federal Aid Hell!) The Money Belongs to Us", were not about race, but about political issues — namely, the efforts of Louisiana district attorney Jim Garrison
Jim Garrison
Earling Carothers "Jim" Garrison — who changed his first name to Jim in the early 1960s — was the District Attorney of Orleans Parish, Louisiana from 1962 to 1973. A member of the Democratic Party, he is best known for his investigations into the assassination of President John F. Kennedy...
to solve the Kennedy assassination
John F. Kennedy assassination
John Fitzgerald Kennedy, the thirty-fifth President of the United States, was assassinated at 12:30 p.m. Central Standard Time on Friday, November 22, 1963, in Dealey Plaza, Dallas, Texas...
, and a song critical of U.S. federal aid programs.
In 1976, Trahan's song "Lâche pas la patate" ("The Potato Song"), sung by Jimmy C. Newman
Jimmy C. Newman
Jimmy Yves Newman , better known as Jimmy C. Newman , is an American singer and a long time star of the Grand Ole Opry.-Biography:Newman was born near Big Mamou, Louisiana...
earned gold record status in Canada.
Two of these songs were eventually issued in album format by Reb Rebel Records under the title "For Segregationists Only".
After a hiatus of about three decades, Trahan returned as Johnny Rebel in 2001 when he issued his CD single "Infidel Anthem," recorded in response to the September 11, 2001 attacks
September 11, 2001 attacks
The September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks (also referred to as September 11, September 11th or 9/119/11 is pronounced "nine eleven". The slash is not part of the pronunciation...
. In 2003 Trahan released the album It's the Attitude, Stupid!, on the Try It Man record label.
At least two persons or entities claim ownership of the Johnny Rebel catalog. At present, however, it is unclear who actually owns the recordings.
Johnny Rebel's songs have been covered by other singers such as Big Reb and the German band Landser
Landser (band)
Landser was a neo-Nazi rock band from Germany. Landser is an old-fashioned German colloquialism for a low-ranking soldier. The band, which is outlawed in Germany, was previously called Endlösung , and was founded by members of the neo-Nazi group Die Vandalen - Ariogermanische Kampfgemeinschaft ,...
. In 2005, his song "Some Niggers Never Die (They Just Smell That Way)" was used in the film What Is It?
What Is It?
What Is It? is the name of a 2005 dramatic film written, starring, funded and directed by Crispin Hellion Glover. It is described by IMDb as "The adventures of a young man whose principal interests are snails, salt, a pipe, and how to get home...
directed by Crispin Glover
Crispin Glover
Crispin Hellion Glover is an American film actor, director and screenwriter, recording artist, publisher, and author. Glover is known for portraying eccentric people on screen such as George McFly in Back to the Future, Layne in River's Edge, unfriendly recluse Rubin Farr in Rubin and Ed, the...
.
Trahan has rarely allowed himself to be photographed by anyone other than close friends and family, although he claims there are indeed images of him on the Internet
Internet
The Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite to serve billions of users worldwide...
. He says he has no idea where those photos originated. Trahan has owned a driving school in Crowley, Louisiana which he handed over to his son in 2008. He appeared in a front-page article of the Crowley Post Signal on December 10, 2008 (about his writing of songs celebrating area high school football teams).
A CD compilation of his works simply shows a hooded Klansman
Ku Klux Klan
Ku Klux Klan, often abbreviated KKK and informally known as the Klan, is the name of three distinct past and present far-right organizations in the United States, which have advocated extremist reactionary currents such as white supremacy, white nationalism, and anti-immigration, historically...
together with a depiction of the Confederate Battle Flag.
Studio albums
| Year | Album details |
|---|---|
| 1971 | For Segregationists Only
|
| 2003 | The Complete Johnny Rebel Collection
|
It's the Attitude, Stupid!'
|
|
Singles
| Year | Single | Peak positions | Album |
|---|---|---|---|
| US Country Hot Country Songs Hot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by Billboard magazine in the United States.This 60-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly mostly by airplay and occasionally commercial sales... |
|||
| 1966 | "Lookin' for a Handout / Kajun Klux Klan" | — | For Segregationists Only |
| "Nigger Hatin' Me / Who Likes a Nigger" | — | ||
| 1967 | "(Federal Aid Hell!) The Money Belongs to Us / Keep a Workin' Big Jim " | — | |
| 1968 | "Nigger, Nigger / Move Them Niggers North" | — | |
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart | |||